Spain’s Ministry of Industry launched the start of its spectrum auction today, with 11 telecom operators granted the right to participate.
The government is inviting bids for a total 270 MHz of spectrum in the 800 MHz, 900 MHz and 2.6 GHz bands, a…
Spain’s Ministry of Industry launched the start of its spectrum auction today, with 11 telecom operators granted the right to participate.
The government is inviting bids for a total 270 MHz of spectrum in the 800 MHz, 900 MHz and 2.6 GHz bands, a government spokeswoman confirmed.
“A result will be announced in a few days,” she told TelecomFinance.
Some E2bn could reportedly be raised in total from the online auction, which has rules to limit the amount of frequencies that any one operator can hold.
The country’s mobile operators are Telefonica, Vodafone and Orange, while cablecos Ono, Euskatel and R Cable are also expected to participate.
In a separate auction back in May, the Spanish mobile subsidiaries of France Telecom and Sweden’s TeliaSonera were unmasked as the only bidders for licences in the 900MHz and 1800MHz bands.
Reports had suggested that this auction would attract bids from Spain’s cablecos, as well as small Spanish telco Jazztel. Later reports cited Jazztel CEO Jose Miguel Garcia reaffirming his company’s interest in acquiring mobile spectrum.
In a media statement in April, the government said that its June spectrum auction would bring certainty and predictability to operators and equipment makers, while establishing a stable legal framework until 2030.
The statement added that “the tender will encourage competition in the sector, promoting access to those operators that don’t have or have little spectrum”.
