Tag Archives: Spectrum

Argentina cancels 3G spectrum auction in favor of state-owned company Arsat

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The Argentinean government has canceled an auction for the 25 percent of Argentina’s 3G spectrum still controlled by the government, and will now go into business itself through state-owned satellite company Arsat. The government says people are tired of monopolies and deserve more competition when using smartphones and other devices to access the internet, Associated Press reports.

Arsat is building three new satellites to provide the service, and with the government’s help, small companies and cooperatives are expected to find it much easier to become internet providers in parts of the country where consumers now have little or no choice when accessing the web or using mobile phones.

According to de Vido, there were five bidders, but Claro was the only company with the necessary resources to manage part of the spectrum, and letting Claro win ‘‘would have led to more concentration.’’

The government is also studying other ways of reducing monopoly control in the telecommunications business, de Vido said, citing the dominant positions of Telefonica and Telecom as a setback for consumers. “This is not a state takeover”, de Vido said, but an effort to bring consumer prices down through more competition. De Vido said the move also should give consumers more choices as 4G devices roll out

Mexico to Recalls LTE Spectrum from MVS

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The Mexican government has announced that it will not renew the licenses held by companies in the 2.5Ghz spectrum band and plans to recall the spectrum when the licenses expire.

The most significantly affected company will be MVS Comunicaciones which has 190Mhz of spectrum in the affected block. MVS holds 42 of the available 68 concessions in the spectrum band, with the rest allocated to 11 other companies.

Last year, MVS Comunicaciones announced plans for a US$1 billion investment in a 4G mobile network as part of a consortium of companies, including US WiMAX operator, Clearwire and chipmaker, Intel. The company later abandoned the plans, citing a poor regulatory regime in the country.

MVS had offered US$500 million to renew its licenses, but the government had asked for US$1.2 billion, and that was for two-thirds of its holdings. Talks have seemingly broken down and now the government will push ahead with the recall of the spectrum.

Communications and transport (SCT) minister Dionisio Perez-Jacome said that the spectrum would be recovered as just 200,000 customers would be affected and it can be resold for use by LTE services.

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15 operators to bid for 4G spectrum in Chile

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Fifteen companies have acquired formal tender specifications to submit offers for 4G mobile spectrum in Chile, local newspaper Estrategia reports, citing data provided by Chilean telecoms regulator Subtel.

Interested bidders include Universidad de Chile, Telefonica Moviles Chile, Nextel, Entel PCS, Claro Chile, Telecomunicaciones Inalambricas, Media Consultores, Directv, VTR, Asesorias y Comercializadora Protel, ZTE Chile, Telefonica del Sur, Jorge Massardo Gonzalez, Ericsson Chile, Comercializadora Ozzy.

The Chilean government is auctioning three spectrum blocks of 20 MHz in the 2.6 GHz frequency band for provision of 4G services. The frequencies are expected to be awarded in June.

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Iusacell and Nextel end spectrum disputes

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Mexican mobile operators Iusacell and Nextel de Mexico have agreed to withdraw lawsuits filed over a 2010 government mobile spectrum auction. This move ends more than a year of legal battle, Dow Jones reports.

Nextel de Mexico reached an agreement with Grupo Iusacell to end litigation related to the auction, in which Nextel won a nationwide band of 30 MHz that it is using to develop its 3G network. Iusacell disputed the 2010 auction and took court action, claiming that the spectrum caps set by the antitrust regulator meant that Nextel obtained the spectrum unchallenged with the minimum bid.

Regulators defended the caps as a way of evening out the amount of mobile spectrum available to competitors, although the intention of attracting a fifth mobile operator was unsuccessful and another 30 MHz spectrum block remained unassigned. Mexico’s Communications and Transport Ministry welcomed the agreement, stating that it gives legal certainty to operators as they invest in their networks.