Thailand’s National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission (NBTC) reportedly plans to auction off spectrum in the 2100 and 2300-MHz bands early next year to enable telcos to upgrade to 5G-Advanced and 6G.
The NBTC made the announcement on Friday as part of its broader spectrum management roadmap between 2025 and 2030 to facilitate evolution to 5G-A and 6G. According to newspaper The Nation, NBTC commissioner Somphop Purivigraipong said the auction would be scheduled for the first quarter of 2025.
While the overall roadmap covers a number of bands in the ranges of 3300-4000 MHz and 6.425-7.125 GHz, Somphop said the NBTC would focus on the 2100 and 2300-MHz bands first, as there is more immediate demand for it from telcos.
The 2100 and 2300-MHz bands in question are currently held by state-owned National Telecom (NT), but its licence for both will expire in September 2025, along with its licence for 850-MHz spectrum. According to the Bangkok Post, NT had asked the NBTC for an extension, but telcos True Corporation and Advanced Info Service (AIS) have been lobbying the commission to put the 2100 and 2300-MHz bands up for auction, as they need it for 5G-A and 6G.
Somphop said the new licences for the 2100 and 2300 MHz bands will be good for 10 to 15 years, and that the starting price would not be high, the Nation report said.
Somphop also defended the NBTC’s plan to recall spectrum in the 3500-MHz band currently being used by digital TV broadcasters as part of its roadmap. Under the plan, the 3500-MHz spectrum auction is scheduled for 2027, with the winning bidders able to utilise it in 2029 when the digital TV licences expire.
The Association of Digital Television Broadcasting has formally opposed the plan, but Somphop said that the 3500-MHz band is more suitable for mobile networks under the guidelines of the International Telecommunication Union, the report said.
However, Somphop also said the NBTC would take into consideration whether telcos were investing in their networks in preparation to use the band as they get closer to the auction date, the report added.