Czech telecoms regulator CTU will set aside some spectrum for a new mobile operator in the country’s upcoming 4G auction, it has been confirmed
The auction, expected to be launched on 15 August, will see some frequencies in the 800 MHz and 1800 MHz…
Czech telecoms regulator CTU will set aside some spectrum for a new mobile operator in the country’s upcoming 4G auction, it has been confirmed
The auction, expected to be launched on 15 August, will see some frequencies in the 800 MHz and 1800 MHz bands reserved for a new entrant. The objective is to boost competition in the country’s mobile market.
However the conditions, were first outlined in April, have drawn strong criticisms from the main mobile operators in the country, which claim that the new company will receive preferential treatment.
Although the auction terms have yet to be published, T-Mobile CR said in an emailed statement that “we consider any potential reservation of lucrative frequencies as preferential treatment…, which has the characteristics of state aid”.
The company added it will announce its next steps when the final conditions are known.
Similarly, a spokesperson for O2 CR said that, if the proposed terms are confirmed, the company “will consider all possible ways of defending our rights even by filling a complaint for illegal state support to the European Commission”.
Vodafone CR, Czech Republic’s third largest operator, declined to comment on the information until the auction is officially launched.
The mobile unit of PPF investment group, owned by Czech businessman Petr Kellner, participated in the country’s cancelled auction process earlier this year and is expected to take part again.
CTU called off the auction in March saying that bids were so high they would have had negative effects on the industry and consumers.
