Judge Kevin J. Carey of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware in Wilmington approved the telecommunications company's bidding procedures on Thursday, Dec. 22.

All of Open Range's assets will be up for auction on Jan. 11 and Jan. 12. Bidders can bid on individual items or a group of items.

According to the bidding procedures motion, filed Dec. 9, Open Range will set initial bid amounts for each asset or lot. Counsel RB Capital LLC and Heritage Global Partners Inc. will conduct the auction.

Alvarion Inc., which had provided equipment and services to Open Range prepetition, filed a limited objection to the bidding procedures on Dec. 20, asserting any buyer of its software must adhere to their license agreement. Carey's order stipulates that the buyer of the Alvarion software must sign the conditions and acknowledgments for the license agreement.

Open Range had hoped to sell its business as a going concern during a Nov. 14 auction led by a $2 million stalking-horse bid from TotheHome.com LLC. TotheHome.com, however, backed out of the asset purchase agreement, leading Open Range to shut down its network and begin winding down operations on Nov. 18.

That same day, Open Range filed bidding procedures to govern a sale of its core assets, including installed and functional equipment, intellectual property and other personal property at its facility. Carey approved the procedures on Nov. 23.

While reconducting the marketing process for its assets, the debtor received more than 100 low-dollar offers and numerous inquiries about purchasing portions of its assets. Open Range then realized it would have a better return if it allowed bidders to purchase selected assets than it would if the entire company were acquired.

Formed in 2004, Open Range provided broadband services to underserved rural America using wireless networks before shutting down operations. The company funded its business with a $267 million loan from the Rural Utilities Services division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which recently aroused scrutiny from Congress. On Nov. 9, the House Energy and Commerce Committee launched an investigation into the telecommunications company's government loan, citing the USDA's lack of oversight, and accused the agency of extending loans for "inappropriate purposes."

Open Range filed for Chapter 11 on Oct. 6 with about $74 million in secured debt and $36 million in unsecured debt. The debtor is backed by private equity fund One Equity Partners III LP.

Norman L. Pernick and Marion Quirk of Cole, Schotz, Meisel, Forman & Leonard PA are debtor counsel.

Christopher S. Chow of Ballard Spahr LLP represents One Equity Partners III, a fund of One Equity Partners, itself the private investment arm of J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.