Spectrum auction likely early next year

New Delhi, October 28

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) might conduct spectrum auction between January and March next year but Airtel will refrain from bidding for 5G spectrum if the reserve price is high, a top official of the company said on Wednesday.

Airtel India and South Asia MD and CEO Gopal Vittal said the company is working on a spectrum auction strategy and may look for some radiowave frequencies below 1,000 Megahertz (Mhz) frequencies to improve network.

Telcos will have to shell out Rs 9,840 cr

• Telecom regulator TRAI has recommended a price of Rs492 crore per Mhz for spectrum in the 3,300-3,600 Mhz band which is considered suitable for 5G services at present
• Telecom operators interested in buying radiowaves for 5G services will have to shell out a minimum of Rs9,840 crore on pan-India basis to buy spectrum in the 3,300-3,600 Mhz band

TRAI has recommended a price of Rs 492 crore per Mhz for spectrum in the 3,300-3,600 Mhz band which is considered suitable for 5G services at present.

Telcos will have to shell out a minimum of Rs 9,840 crore on pan-India basis to buy spectrum in the 3,300-3,600 Mhz band. — PTI