When conflicts arise between a major towerco and one of its key clients, the dispute is usually undisclosed and resolved internally. However, Crown Castle has taken its feud with Dish Wireless before a Denver County, Colorado, court.
When Dish Wireless announced its infrastructure partnership with Crown Castle to lease space on up to 20,000 towers in 2020, it was an engagement arranged by Dish’s EVP of network development, Dave Mayo, that married the two companies to a 30-year commitment.
However, marriage vows aren’t always everlasting, and Crown Castle has decided to move on – into a Denver County district court seeking relief to enforce its master lease prenuptial. Dish is fighting back.
In court testimony yesterday during a jury trial, Dish Wireless alleged that Crown Castle USA Inc., one of the country’s largest telecommunications infrastructure providers, is attempting to renegotiate a three-decade-long agreement to extract “hundreds of millions” in additional rent for the use of its cell tower sites.
Dish Wireless claims this move comes at a time when the company has limited alternatives for its equipment storage needs.
The legal battle centers around Dish Wireless’s use of additional space beyond what was agreed upon in the Master Lease Agreement (MLA) and subsequent Site Lease Acknowledgements (SLAs) with Crown Castle. The agreement specifies a monthly access fee, which escalates annually, based on the predetermined amount of space Dish would occupy at each site.
Crown Castle accuses Dish Wireless of occupying three extra feet of space at nearly 8,000 cell tower locations, contrary to the MLA’s stipulations that Dish pay extra for any additional space used beyond the contracted 5 feet by 7 feet of ground space per site. Despite Dish’s representation in thousands of SLAs that it would adhere to the agreed-upon space, Crown Castle asserts that Dish has consistently exceeded these limits, leading to the current legal dispute.
Crown Castle has stated that it held extensive discussions with Dish to address the overuse of space, offering solutions including revising Dish’s equipment configuration or amending the MLA to allow more ground space in exchange for an adjusted monthly fee. However, these negotiations have failed to yield a resolution, prompting Crown Castle to pursue legal action for breach of the MLA and SLAs.
The case, now before Judge Sarah Block Wallace in Denver County, highlights the ongoing concerns where carriers are asking for sustainability in pricing structures. The lawsuit is scheduled on Wallace’s calendar through April 18, 2024.