Clearwire (NSDQ: CLWR) frequently brags about how much spectrum it has at its disposal, and how easy it will be to deliver a ton of video and other high-bandwidth services over mobile networks. It’s a luxurious postion to be in and something that has only become top of mind for consumers recently as they experience dropped calls or sluggish 3G internet speeds.

But it appears that AT&T (NYSE: T) and Verizon have been formulating their response to this, and this week refuted Clearwire’s claims, by arguing that they have deep spectrum positions that can re-purposed for 4G when it needs to, reports ConnectedPlanet.com. Kris Rinne, AT&T’s SVP of architecture and planning, who spoke along side other executives at a GSM Association event, said: “You need to make sure you count all of our spectrum when you make these comparisons.”

The FCC is working on a plan that would sell a chunk of spectrum in the first half of 2011 that failed to be sold in 2008 because of the strict conditions of use.

The spectrum, which was earmarked for public-safety use, may now have different terms and conditions, if any are to be attached. Jamie Barnett, chief of the FCC Public Safety & Homeland Security Bureau, told Reuters that the FCC could issue a notice of inquiry “early summer” but a final decision has not been made.

As it promised back in January, Affiliated Media, the holding company for newspaper chain MediaNews Group, has emerged for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The owner of the Denver Post and San Jose Mercury News was able to shrink its debt from a staggering $930 million debt to a more manageable $165 million. That 82.3 percent reduction in its debt, allowed it to end the bankruptcy period. This was a pre-packaged reorg, meaning its lenders are all in agreement. None of the newspapers will be affected, and Dean Singleton will remain chairman and CEO. Release

Microsoft’s experimental Office Labs group says it’s testing a new microblogging service called OfficeTalk—which “applies the base capabilities of microblogging to a business environment, enabling employees to post their thoughts, activities, and potentially valuable information to anyone who might be interested.” It’s an experiment but the Office Labs group does say that OfficeTalk has been one of its most popular internal tests to date and it’s therefore inviting interested outside firms to try it out.

Initial stats are in for NCAA March Madness on Demand and it looks like CBSSports.com will be able to declare victory again (unlike fans of Georgetown or Vanderbilt). Unlike NBC Universal (NYSE: GE) and the Olympics, CBS (NYSE: CBS) goes for maximum exposure online—offering full, free access to all 63 games of the NCAA Division 1 Men’s Basketball Tournament. Day one by the internal numbers:

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Yahoo (NSDQ: YHOO) Chief Technologist Sam Pullara is leaving the company, capping off a week of high-profile departures. At Yahoo, Pullara was “responsible for ensuring that products we develop are competitive and provide compelling customer experiences by driving a dialogue between internal product groups, research and business leaders,” according to his LinkedIn profile; he also represented Yahoo on the board of the OpenSocial Foundation and had helped launch its ‘open application platform’—which lets third-party developers build apps for Yahoo properties. Pullara is taking a job as an entrepreneur in residence at Benchmark Capital.

It now seems all but official that Google (NSDQ: GOOG) will pull its search operations in China; Chinese media says Google will make an announcement Monday and the search engine could shut down as soon as April 10.

The likely big winner in all of this: Baidu, which currently controls more than 50 percent of the Chinese search market to Google’s roughly 30 percent. So, how much value may Google be handing over to Baidu? (NSDQ: BIDU) One measure: In the two months since Google first issued its China manifesto, Baidu has gained nearly $13 billion in market value (Its stock is up a whopping 42 percent, completely reversing a 10 percent drop during the prior two months). By contrast, Google has lost about $7 billion in market value (its stock down nearly 7 percent), while the S&P 500 has been flat.

Now the Financial Times is getting really bullish about its web access model. In another tweak, it’s now ensuring that no free articles are on offer to non-registered users.

In 2007, the site introduced this access model to give five free articles a month to casual readers, and 25 to free-registered users, as incentives to subscribe. But, watching its paying customers grow since then, it reduced the five free articles to one a month, and now to none.

Most forecasters have expected broadcast ad revenues to experience a nice recovery as the recession eases, but BernsteinResearch analyst Michael Nathanson expects a TV advertising to see a rebound that could bring stations back to their healthier 2007 levels. While the major station owners took a big hit on revenue declines last year, margins remained fairly strong. For example, while Gannett’s broadcast revs fell by almost 20 percent in ‘09, it was still able to post EBITDA margins of 42.6 percent. Belo’s TV station ad revs dropped 23 percent between ‘07 and ‘09, but it still managed to produce respectable a 26.7 percent EBITDA margin. And although CBS’ and Scripps’ margins have gone from the 30 percent neighborhood down to the mid-teens, Nathanson says that a large wave of political ad spending this year to boost those levels back up—though on a smaller revenue base.

Palm (NSDQ: PALM) provided a stark view of its financial and market position yesterday after releasing its third-quarter results. With inventories mounting, cash reserves dwindling and its market competitiveness to be determined, investors today are being quick to ditch the stock. In afternoon trading, Palm’s stock was down about one dollar, or 18 percent, to trade at $4.60 a share.

To be sure, there were critics that were even more harsh and believe the stock could go lower. Canaccord Adams technology analyst Peter Misek cut his price target from $4 to $0, and maintained his “sell” rating. In a note to clients, he wrote: “We believe Palm’s troubles will only accelerate as carriers and suppliers increasingly question the company’s solvency and withdraw their support. With what appears to be roughly 12 months of cash on hand, an accelerating burn rate, a complete lack of earnings visibility, and substantial debt and preferred equity, we no longer see any value in the company’s common equity.”