If you don’t play by the Federal Communications Commission’s rules, then you’re likely going to get caught and have to pay a hefty fine. Just ask AT&T, which must pay $640,000 after violating rules and requirements for operating some airwave licenses.

The FCC announced [PDF] it would impose the fine on the wireless carrier for allegedly operating numerous wireless stations throughout the United States without authorization for periods as long as five years.

“The Commission takes this enforcement action as part of its duty to prevent unauthorized radio operations from interfering with authorized radio communications and to facilitate the efficient administration of the radio spectrum for the benefit of all Americans,” the FCC says in a statement.

According to the FCC, the fine was imposed after an investigation by the Enforcement Bureau examined the licensing history of approximately 250 AT&T stations and determined that the company engaged in unauthorized operations at 26 of its common carrier fixed point-to-point microwave base stations and failed to notify the Commission regarding minor modifications of an additional eight stations within the past year.

Common carrier microwave base stations are generally used for long-haul backbone connections or to connect parts of the network that cannot be connected using standard wireline or fiber backhaul because of cost or terrain. The systems are also used to relay TV signals.

The Commission also found that AT&T apparently failed to conduct timely technical reviews of newly acquired licenses to ensure they operated as authorized and that in some instances, even after becoming aware of the Bureau’s investigation, AT&T continues to operate the same stations at variance from their licensed parameters.

Officials with AT&T say the FCC’s action stems from a review the company conducted of licenses acquired from other entities between 2009 and 2012 to determine if any FCC records needed to be updated.

“The vast majority of the licenses reviewed required no updates,” an AT&T spokesperson tells Consumerist. “The results of the review were voluntarily reported to the FCC and filings were made in ULS to modify and update Commission records as appropriate. The majority of the updates filed were considered ‘minor’ modifications under the Commission rules, updates that were as simple as correcting the longitude or latitude of a site or changing contact information. We strongly disagree that this conduct merits a proposed forfeiture of over $600,000, particularly when that amount is based largely on bureau penalty multipliers for conduct deemed willful, repeated and egregious. We will carefully review the [notice of liability] when it is released and respond as appropriate.”

FCC plans $640,000 fine against AT&T for unauthorized wireless operations [Federal Communications Commission]

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