Hot on the heels of announcing their plans to extend and improve basic 4G connectivity around the country, the UK’s mobile operators are celebrating their principal gains in the 5G arena with low-band and mid-band spectrum.
Four companies – EE , Hutchison 3G UK (owner of the Three UK network), O2 parent Telefónica UK and Vodafone Limited – took part in the principal stage of the auction, which involved them bidding for airwaves in 34 ‘lots’ to determine how much of the available spectrum they each secured. Principal stage bidding has now ended and UK comms regulator Ofcom has revealed that the total revenue raised is £1.356 billion.
A total of 200 MHz of spectrum was available to bid for in the auction, split across two bands: 80 MHz of spectrum in the so called low-band at 700 MHz; 120 MHz of spectrum in 3.6-3.8 GHz mid-band. The former comprises 2x30 MHz of paired frequency spectrum, and 20 MHz of supplementary downlink spectrum and the 700 MHz airwaves are ideal for providing wide area coverage – including in the countryside. The latter GHz airwaves are part of the primary band for 5G and capable of boosting mobile data capacity, including carrying mobile video at high quality.
At the end of the principal stage, BT-owned mobile operator EE won 2x10 MHz of paired frequency spectrum in the 700 MHz band at a cost of £280,000,000; 20 MHz of supplementary downlink spectrum in the 700 MHz band at a cost of £4,000,000; and 40 MHz in the 3.6-3.8 GHz band at a cost of £168,000,000. For Three UK, Hutchison 3G picked up 2x10 MHz of paired frequency spectrum in the 700 MHz band at a cost of £280,000,000. O2 owner Telefónica won 2x10 MHz of paired frequency spectrum in the 700 MHz band at a cost of £280,000,000; and 40 MHz in the 3.6-3.8 GHz band at a cost of £168,000,000. Finally, Vodafone gained 40 MHz in the 3.6-3.8 GHz band at a cost of £176,400,000.