Pakistan gets $507 million as the PTA finishes the third round of 5G license auctions.
The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) successfully ran the third round of the country’s 5G spectrum auction on Tuesday, raising $507 million. This brings the country one step closer to starting next-generation mobile connectivity.
The PTA held the sale in Islamabad and offered 600 MHz of spectrum for next-generation mobile services. The three biggest telecom companies in the country took part. The process was seen by government officials as a major step toward improving Pakistan’s digital infrastructure and making high-speed internet more accessible to more people.
At the start of the sale, PTA Chairman Major General (Retd) Hafeez Ur Rehman was there with Federal Minister for Information Atta Tarar, Federal Minister for Information Technology Shaza Fatima, and Federal Minister for Finance Muhammad Aurangzeb.
The government wants to start offering 5G services in five big cities at first. After the original rollout phase, more cities should be able to get them.
First round
There was an auction for 190 MHz of bandwidth in the 2600 MHz band, which was the first part of the process. Demand was higher than supply by 110 MHz, which showed that telecom providers were very interested.
Because there was more interest, the government chose to raise the price of spectrum by 5% for the next round of bidding.
During the first stage, 280 MHz of bandwidth in the 3.5 GHz band was made available in a different band. A lot of telecom companies bid on 200 MHz, showing that there is a strong market demand for mid-band frequencies that are thought to be necessary for 5G to work.
The people in charge of the process said that the demand showed that the telecom industry was ready to spend in new infrastructure.
Second round
It was also possible to finish the second round of the sale. After telecom companies changed how they bid, DG Licensing Aamir Shahzad announced the findings.
Some bidders changed their focus from the 2600 MHz band to the 700 MHz band, which is generally thought to be more valuable because it has better signal penetration and wider reach.
Even with these changes, there were still more people who wanted to buy 2600 MHz bands than there were lots that were available. Because of this, the government chose to raise the price of spectrum even more during the auction.
The regulators said that the dynamic bidding showed how operators were trying to balance the need for coverage with the need for capacity as they got ready to set up 5G networks in cities and semi-cities.
Third round
Strong involvement from telecom operators in the last round of the auction resulted in the sale of 480 MHz of the 597 MHz spectrum that was up for bid.
Maj-Gen (r) Hafeez Ur Rehman, Chairman of the PTA, stated that all lots in the 2300 MHz and 2600 MHz bands were booked up during the process.
22 of the 28 lots that were offered in the 3500 MHz band, which is used for 5G services all over the world, were sold.
The three telecom companies that took part acquired large chunks of spectrum:
Zong bought 110 MHz
Ufone acquired 180 MHz.
Jazz bought 190 MHz
PTA officials say that the auction brought in a total of $507 million, making it one of the biggest sales of mobile spectrum in Pakistan’s history.
The head of the PTA said that the next step in the adoption process would be talked about more at a meeting on Thursday.