Canada raises $7.2 bn from auction of 3500 MHz spectrum

The Canadian government’s auction of 3500 MHz spectrum, which is key for 5G networks, raised C$8.9 billion ($7.2 billion), Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said on Thursday.
ZTE 5G base station in China
In a statement, he said 1,495 out of 1,504 available licenses were awarded to 15 Canadian companies, including 757 licenses to small and regional providers. This would boost competition to BCE, Telus and Rogers Communications.

The 3500 MHz spectrum auction has been hotly anticipated by companies looking to expand their 5G coverage in Canada. Preliminary results showed that BCE spent C$2.1 billion, Rogers C$3.3 billion and Telus C$1.9 billion.

The auction, initially set to take place in June 2020 and delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, closed after eight days and 103 rounds of bidding, the government said.

Latest

More like this
Related

Are UK customers ready to shift to new mobile service providers?

Ookla’s latest report on UK smartphone users’ satisfaction indicated...

How T-Mobile 5G strategy powered revenue growth

T-Mobile US in its quarterly earnings report said its...

GSMA: Digital divide is emerging in adoption of 5G

A digital divide is emerging in the rollout and...

More than 100 countries have not launched 5G networks: GSMA

At the end of 2023, global 5G connections have...