Ireland plans to raise US$ 660 million from 4G auction (Ireland)
The Irish government is hopeful of raising approximately US$ 659 million via the spectrum auction for high-speed mobile broadband and 4G services.
According to reports, ComReg (Commission for Communications Regulation), the communications regulator in Ireland, expects a minimum amount of US$ 540 million for 28 lots of radio spectrum, but says that competition levels may lead to an increase in the price.
Reports reveal that a lot of 1800 megahertz spectrum will be charged at a minimum price of $ 13.2 million while a lot of 800 megahertz and 900 megahertz spectrum will be sold at a minimum of $ 26.3 million each.
Telecom operators Vodafone, 3, O2 and Meteor, are expected to bid for the licence. The process is expected to complete by the end of July 2012.
Vip to begin LTE trials in Croatia
Vip has announced that it has trialed an LTE network, operating in the 800Mhz radio spectrum bands in Zagreb city center.
According to the company, it would expect to launch a commercial service sometime next year, and will be conducting public demonstrations of the LTE network this weekend.
The company already offers HSPA+ based services with theoretical peak download speeds of 42Mbps in four cities- Zagreb, Split, Osijek and Rijeka.
Ofcom outline plans for 4G license auction (UK)
UK’s telecoms regulator, Ofcom has announced the proposed details for its upcoming radio spectrum auction which is expected to pave the way for 4G services in the country. It has stated that the spectrum auction is the largest ever single auction of additional spectrum for mobile services in the UK, equivalent to three quarters of the mobile spectrum in use today and 80% more than the 3G auction which took place in 2000.
It is believed that the auction will take place in the first quarter of 2012. The auction will be for two spectrum bands – 800 MHz and 2.6 GHz, and adds up to 250 MHz of additional mobile spectrum.
The auction structure will also be biased to ensure that the market retains at least four mobile networks (5 if you split the merged Orange/T-Mobile).
According to Ofcom, the least restrictive way to ensure at least four national competitors is through the use of spectrum floors in the auction. This involves disregarding any auction outcomes in which four companies do not win the minimum amount of spectrum necessary to provide higher quality data services. This can involve different combinations of spectrum, each of which could be sufficient to ensure a credible competitor.
Ofcom has proposed that this minimum amount should be one of the following five combinations:
- 2×5 MHz of sub 1 GHz spectrum and 2×20 MHz or more of 2.6 GHz; or
- 2×5 MHz of sub 1 GHz spectrum and 2×15 MHz or more of 1800 MHz; or
- 2×10 MHz of sub 1 GHz spectrum and 2×15 MHz or more of 2.6 GHz; or
- 2×10 MHz of sub 1 GHz spectrum plus 2×10 MHz or more of 1800 MHz; or
- 2×15 MHz or more of sub 1 GHz spectrum.
The watchdog also proposes to put in place safeguard caps to guard against longer term risks to competition from any one licensee holding a disproportionate amount of spectrum.
There will be a sub 1GHz safeguard cap of 2×27.5 MHz, which will mean that no one competitor can obtain more than this amount of sub 1 GHz spectrum, and there will also be an overall spectrum holdings cap of 2×105 MHz, which will mean that no one competitor can obtain more than this amount of spectrum overall.
Securing wide availability of next generation mobile broadband.
Ofcom also proposes to include a coverage obligation in just one of the 800 MHz licenses. The obligation would require the licensee to provide a mobile broadband service covering 95% of the UK population. It is expected that bidders will factor in the cost of achieving this obligation when making bids for the licence. This should result in coverage for future mobile broadband services that approaches today’s 2G coverage. The date for meeting these obligations would be the end of 2017.
A consultation is being carried out to iron out the final details, such as which of the five above spectrum limits should be adopted before the auction takes place next year.
DT will always explore options,says T-Mobile CEO (US)
T-Mobile USA’s CEO Philip Humm wrote to his staff recently about not ruling out the chances for a sale in the future.
He states in his letter that the parent company Deutsche Telekom (DT) will always explore options for maximizing the value of its portfolio and profits, without elaborating on what talks, if any are ongoing.
He confirmed in the letter that he has held talks with the CEO of Deutsche Telekom, Rene Obermann regarding the sale of towers, strategic partnerships and other financial options though, which largely support much of the recent rumors about a sale of the tower assets to raise funds. The company is thought to be in talks with WiMAX network, Clearwire over its radio spectrum.
Omnitele wins frequency management contract in Jordan
Omnitele has been awarded a contract by the Jordanian telecoms regulator for radio frequency management in Jordan.
As a part of the project, Omnitele will create new regulation for the liberalization of a number of licensed bands in the radio spectrum. This will include a structure for frequency license renewal fees and possible compensation, a re-farming process for some of the bands and procedures for the grant of new spectrum licenses.
According to Fadi Kawar, Chairman of the Board, TRC Jordan, since a need to adopt their frequency management framework to the changes visible in the industry has been recognised, they wanted to involve one of the top telecommunications consultancies in the development process.
Spain to raise $2.7 billion from radio spectrum auction
Spain’s Tourism and Commerce Ministry has announced its plans to rise between US$2 and 2.7 billion from the sale of radio spectrum released from the digital dividend. As per the Minister of Industry, Tourism and Trade Miguel Sebastian, mixed competition/auction would be used in the process, which aims to release 310 MHz of spectrum.
The Ministry estimates that the sale will also boost the economy by US$1.62 billion and create 40,000 additional jobs.
The Ministry is also planning to establish a legal framework for radio spectrum re-farming by the mobile operators and reuse of GSM spectrum for 3G services. The legal framework is expected to last until 2030, to be reviewed further to take into account technology changes later.
The spectrum being released in the forthcoming auction will be in the 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz and 2.6 GHz bands. It is expected that the current radio spectrum dedicated to mobile communications services will increase by 70%.
The date for the auction has not been set yet.
Ofcom proposes to allow reselling of Radio Spectrum (UK)
Ofcom, UK’s telecoms regulator is proposing to allow the mobile networks to buy and sell their radio spectrum, creating a market place in the industry for the first time.
As per the proposals, which cover spectrum at 900 MHz, 1800 MHz and 2100 MHz, operators with a greater need for spectrum will be able to make offers for spectrum from those who need it less.
According to Ofcom, it is hoped that this added flexibility will help operators to respond more quickly to demand.
According to Ofcom Chief Executive, Ed Richards, this is an important milestone in the modernization of spectrum management in the UK. It comes in response to the fast pace of change and innovation taking place in the mobile communications sector, which is placing increased demands on spectrum. One important way of meeting this demand is making the acquisition of spectrum as flexible as possible.
T-Mobile rules out LTE launch, looking for Radio Spectrum Partners (USA)
T-Mobile USA has outlined plans to catch up with its larger rivals and is targeting revenue increase of US$3 billion by 2014 and cost savings of a further US$1 billion by 2013.
The company has however ruled out deploying an LTE network for several years, once devices are readily available and once device quality is on par with the HSPA+ network. In the meantime a key area the firm has identified is improving T-Mobile USA’s spectrum position. T-Mobile’s parent company, Deutsche Telekom is exploring various options to acquire additional spectrum and reduce the gap regarding economies of scale compared with its larger competitors, including partnering with other companies – which is bound to restart speculation about a deal with WiMAX network, Clearwire.
The company is also looking at MVNO and co-branding opportunities, which could include the above speculated deal with Clearwire.
According to Ren© Obermann, Group CEO, T-Mobile is ideally positioned to grow in the expanding U.S. market with the mobile internet, if possible to a disproportionately large extent. Philipp Humm and his team have a broad-based strategy to put T-Mobile USA back on course for growth.
According to Philipp Humm, CEO of T-Mobile USA, having America’s largest 4G network, which is evolving to even faster speeds this year, and offering a compelling line-up of 4G devices put us in a strong position to be successful. They will consistently implement our challenger strategy and profit more from market growth. They will offer our customers the best data plans, the best service and the best 4G-network.
Obermann and Humm also stressed the strength of the US unit, which is generally strong enough to fund itself and will do this with regard to future investments.
Deutsche Telekom confirmed its goal of doubling the transmission speeds to 42 Mbit/s capability. In addition, 4G expansion has already had a positive impact on churn development: the churn rate has declined significantly in areas where T-Mobile USA has already been offering 3G and 4G services for several quarters compared with regions where it only offers 2G services.
3UK head criticizes spectrum allocation ruling
Kevin Russell, chief executive of 3 UK, has indicated that his business could be sold after accusing ministers and regulators of distorting competition in the telecoms industry.
He criticized a decision by regulators to let the operator’s larger rivals reallocate some of their radio spectrum from basic phone services to data activities such as internet browsing.
The Hutchison Whampoa-owned operator is seeking guarantees that it will have a fair chance of securing a significant chunk of low-frequency spectrum in an auction due next year.
The company wants Ofcom, the telecoms regulator to draw up auction rules that cap the amount of spectrum that any operator can hold.
Without this, 3 doubts that O2 and Vodafone could end up holding the bulk of the spectrum available at a bandwidth below one gigahertz. Everything Everywhere, the largest network operator, has similar concerns to 3.
Low frequency spectrum below one gigahertz is suitable for expanding 3G services to rural areas because wireless signals travel long distances on it.
Like other rival companies, 3 needs spectrum to support bandwidth-hungry smartphones such as Apple’s iPhone.
Mr Russell criticized Ofcom after the regulator stated that Everything Everywhere, O2 and Vodafone could reallocate spectrum currently used for 2G phone and text services to 3G data activities. According to him, healthy competition is critical for UK consumers using mobile services and Ofcom and the government must address the significant competitive distortions they have now created in pushing through the reform of spectrum currently used for 2G mobile services. This can only be done through the structure of the spectrum auction planned for 2012.
Mr Russell highlighted how the merger last year between Orange and T-Mobile in the UK, to create Everything Everywhere, had already reduced the number of network operators from five to four. If the government and Ofcom get this wrong, further consolidation could result. Ultimately that can only be bad, not good, for UK consumers.
Sweden to Auction 800 MHz Radio Spectrum
PTS – Sweden’s telecoms regulator, has announced its plans to sell 800 MHz radio spectrum early next year. The band comprises six licences (2×5 MHz each) and the auction is planned to start on 28 February.
According to PTS, the demand for wireless broadband has increased greatly in Sweden in recent years, with a consequential increase in the need for frequencies.
To maintain a wide range of affordable mobile services for Swedish consumers, the regulator claimed that it will impose a spectrum cap so that at least three stakeholders can be assigned frequencies in the 800 MHz band.
PTS added that it has imposed a coverage requirement on one of the licenses, which requires the operator to launch broadband coverage to permanent homes and businesses that currently don’t have access to the service. Those stakeholders wanting to participate in the auction must apply on Jan. 31, 2011 at latest.
