America Movil’s Claro, Telecom Italia’s Tim Brasil, Telefonica’s Vivo and regional player Algar Telecom have all secured frequencies in Brazil’s 700 MHz national spectrum auction, which was held today in Brasilia.
Claro was awarded the first…
America Movil’s Claro, Telecom Italia’s Tim Brasil, Telefonica’s Vivo and regional player Algar Telecom have all secured frequencies in Brazil’s 700 MHz national spectrum auction, which was held today in Brasilia.
Claro was awarded the first nationwide 4G licence with a bid of R$1.95bn (US$795m),Tim Brasil also offered R$1.95bn for the second lot while Vivo secured spectrum with a bid of R$1.93bn (US$787m). Algar received frequencies covering only certain Brazilian cities with a bid of R$29.6m (US$12m).
The total amount spent by the operators, R$5.8bn (US$2.4bn), is well below the R$8bn (US$3.3bn) the Brazilian government had reportedly hoped to raise.
The regulator did not receive any offers for two remaining lots. As previously indicated, neither Oi nor Nextel Brasil took part as both operators are focused on addressing their balance sheets.
Anatel initially tendered 4G-suitable spectrum in 2012 when it sold licences in the 2.5 GHz band. However, 700 MHz licences are particularly desirable to operators as a wider area can be covered with fewer base stations in comparison to higher frequencies.