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Billionaire entrepreneur - and Microsoft co-founder - Paul Allen has applied to bid in the FCC's upcoming 700 MHz spectrum auction, going up against the telcos and Google.

Billionaire entrepreneur and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen has applied to bid in the FCC's upcoming 700 MHz spectrum auction, going up against major telecommunications providers as well as Internet giant Google. Allen's application comes via his investment company Vulcan Capital, which has been behind everything from genetics research to the Portland Trailblazers to Seattle's Experience Music Project.

Vulcan's name turned up in a list of applicants (PDF) seeking to bid on the 700 MHz spectrum block, seen as being the best opportunity to implement a significant wireless broadband service in the Unites States. Although several blocks of the 700 MHz have already been auctioned off—Qualcomm and AT&T already have pieces—a major swath of the spectrum will be opened up when the U.S. officially ceases analog television broadcasts in February, 2009.

Although the auction has attracted a host of bidders—few of whom are household names—satellite operator Dish Network (a.k.a. EchoStar Communications) does not appear on the list.

Bidding on the spectrum begins January 24, 2008. Auction rules prevent participants from discussing the auction process or their bidding strategies.