Dish network has been on a bit of an acquisition spree recently, acquiring satellite operator DBSD North America for $1 billion, then grabbing TerreStar Networks. When asked back in February what Dish was up to and whether or not they'd be engaging in a wireless play Dish CEO Charlie Egen essentially stated they were simply acquiring spectrum for fun. Fast forward six months and Dish is now making it clear that they very much want to jump into the wireless market using these spectrum assets, proposing a hybrid satellite-terrestrial mobile broadband network using LTE-Advanced network technology. Dish saw the waivers that were granted by the FCC for LightSquared and essentially wants in, and is promising the FCC they'll deploy LTE in a semi-ambitious fashion:You can expect this waiver to be granted, given it provides an interference-free-though-less ambitious alternative to LightSquared's plan. Even if the network never materializes, it also provides the FCC the competitive justification they need for their inevitable approval of the AT&T T-Mobile deal. In much the same way BPL was used by the agency to justify cable and DSL deregulation, either LightSquared or Dish's plans can be used as a justification to let AT&T proceed, even if the competitive reality never materializes.