5G: Govt reaps bids worth ₹1.49 lakh-cr
Day Two of the 5G spectrum auction has seen the government receive bids worth ₹1.49 lakh crore, Union telecom minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced on Wednesday, adding that the auction will extend to a third day and is set to continue on July 28.
“The 5G auction is continuing even today and it is going to continue tomorrow also. At the end of the 9th round, we have grossed about ₹1,49,454 crore,” Vaishnaw said.
The 5G spectrum offers ultrahigh speeds (about 10 times faster than 4G), lag-free connectivity, and can enable billions of connected devices to share data in real-time. The government is targeting to allocate the spectrum by mid-August and 5G services are expected to start rolling out by September-October 2022.
Tycoons Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio, and Sunil Bharti Mittal’s Bharti Airtel were among the four firms that participated in the e-auction to buy fifth-generation (5G) airwaves. Analysts have said that Reliance Jio may be the most aggressive of those in the race.
The 5G spectrum auction also marked the first time firms led by Ambani and Gautam Adani are vying for the same asset, making it a keenly-watched contest.
Vodafone-Idea is the other company participating in the auction.
Separately, minister of state for communications Devusinh Chauhan on Wednesday told Parliament that telecom service providers are likely to launch 5G mobile service in the current financial year 2022-23. “The Department of Telecommunication vide notification dated June 15, 2022 has already initiated the process of Auction of Spectrum in 600 MHz, 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz, 3300 MHz, and 26 GHz Bands which includes the Spectrum required for launch of 5G Services,” Chauhan said in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha.
Chauhan said the department of telecommunications has amended the guidelines for Pro
duction Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for manufacturing of telecom and networking products to facilitate design-led manufacturing of 5G products in the country.
One of the amendments is related to providing 1% higher incentive for products qualifying the design-led criteria.
In addition to powering ultralow latency connections, which allow downloading full-length high-quality video or movie to a mobile device in a matter of seconds (even in crowded areas), fifth generation or 5G would enable solutions such as e-health, connected vehicles, more immersive augmented reality and metaverse experiences, life-saving use cases, and advanced mobile cloud gaming, among others.
The government placed 72 gigahertz of airwaves on the block for a 20-year tenure in various frequency bands ranging from 600 MHz to 26 GHz.
The auction was held for spectrum in various low (600 MHz, 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1,800 MHz, 2,100 MHz, 2,300 MHz), mid (3,300 MHz) and high (26 GHz) frequency bands.
Winners have to make payments in 20 equal annual instalments to be paid in advance at the beginning of each year, a relaxation that is expected to significantly ease cash flow requirements and lower the cost of doing business in this sector.
On Tuesday, the opening day of the auction, four rounds of bidding were held, with mid and high-end bands seeing keen interest. The 3300 MHz and 26 GHz bands attracted strong bids.
The telecom minister described the participation of four bidders as “strong”.
The auction saw healthy participation, Vaishnaw said, adding that the response shows that the industry has turned from its difficult times. He had said that the government will allocate the spectrum in record time and 5G services are expected to start rolling out by September.