The Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday announced it started its 5G spectrum auctions.
Bidding began on spectrum in the upper 37 GHz, 39 GHz, and 47 GHz bands (Auction 103). The FCC is making 3,400 MHz of millimeter-wave spectrum available through this auction.
The United States is behind South Korea, China, Germany and the UK in terms of 5G coverage. Mobile operators such as Verizon, AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile US are stepping up their network investment in 5G business.
“Today’s spectrum auction shows that America is continuing to lead in 5G. Auctioning the 39 GHz and upper 37 GHz bands together presents a critical opportunity for 5G deployment as it represents the largest amount of contiguous spectrum available in the millimeter-wave bands,” FCC Chairman Ajit Pai said.
The Upper 37 GHz, 39 GHz, and 47 GHz auction would be the second-ever incentive auction in the United States.
Earlier this year, FCC concluded its first-ever high-band 5G auctions of the 28 GHz and 24 GHz bands.
Next year, FCC will conduct two mid-band spectrum auctions — the 3.5 GHz auction on June 25, 2020, and an auction in the 3.7-4.2 GHz band in the latter part of 2020.
