T-Mobile took the gloves off in its battle against Dish Network, urging the FCC to strip the company of its vast spectrum holdings because Dish has no immediate plans to build out much of its spectrum. Dish, T-Mobile argued, “intends to continue to warehouse spectrum with no benefit to consumers. The [FCC’s Wireless] Bureau should not permit Dish to succeed with its plan,” T-Mobile wrote in its lengthy filing on the topic. (The full filing is available at the end of this article.)

Indeed, T-Mobile didn’t hold back in its arguments against Dish, noting that Dish’s plan to build out an NB-IoT network by 2020 would use only about 2% of Dish’s vast 95 MHz of nationwide spectrum holdings. T-Mobile said that action violates rules at the commission that spectrum holders must put their holdings to use instead of sitting on them.

“The demand for mobile broadband services and spectrum capacity has only increased since the Commission stated its expected use of the spectrum Dish holds,” T-Mobile wrote. “In contrast to Dish, T-Mobile is meeting those mobile broadband needs by putting to use—and quickly—spectrum it obtained in the recently concluded broadcast incentive auction. Last month, T-Mobile announced that it has deployed 600 MHz Extended Range LTE in 1,254 cities and towns in 36 states, including the island of Puerto Rico. T-Mobile’s own efforts to satisfy real consumer demands make it clear that as the demand for broadband use continues to grow exponentially, Dish’s plan is no more than a cynical effort to hoard valuable spectrum assets.”