Thursday, March 31, 2011

UK issues details of public spectrum being considered for release

A blueprint for identifying and releasing by 2020 at least 500 MHz of sub-5 GHz spectrum currently held by the public sector was published by the UK government today.

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Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Qualcomm and Nokia propose Authorised Shared Access to spectrum

Qualcomm and Nokia have suggested a "third way" for freeing up spectrum for commercial mobile broadband. Authorised Shared Access (ASA) allows sharing via cognitive technologies while ensuring predictable quality of service through individual authorisations, the companies say. But while it offers a major change from the traditional reliance on licensed and licence-exempt regimes, it may not entirely satisfy proponents of unlicensed use.

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Tuesday, March 29, 2011

AT&T takeover of T-Mobile driven by need for spectrum

If, and it's a big if, AT&T's proposed $39 billion takeover of T-Mobile USA goes ahead, it will not only leapfrog Verizon to become the country's leading mobile network operator but also hold by far the largest balanced portfolio of spectrum of any operator.

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Spectrum managers are unsung heros says ITU boss

Opening PolicyTracker's Middle East Spectrum Conference the ITU Secretary General, Dr Hamadoun Toure, said spectrum managers aren't getting the recognition they deserve. 

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Thursday, March 24, 2011

Third mobile operator "not immediately required in Qatar"

Qatar does not need to grant a third mobile licence just yet, according to a consultation paper published by the regulator ictQatar.

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Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Spectrum caps may seal UK 4G auction deal with mobile operators

While the proposals in Ofcom's consultation on the combined auction of 800 MHz and 2.6 GHz spectrum may yet be subject to some changes, the initial reaction from mobile operators is generally positive, thanks to the proposed introduction of spectrum floors for the auction and overall spectrum caps.

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Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Colombia to auction 300 MHz of new spectrum

Following its recent successful auction of part of the 2.6 GHz band, the Colombian government is planning three more auctions over the coming 12 months at 1900 MHz, 1.7/2.1 GHz (the AWS band) and the remaining part of the 2.6 GHz band.

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Monday, March 21, 2011

Bangladeshi licence renewal plan under fire

Draft Bangladeshi guidelines for renewing 2G mobile licences fail to look beyond revenue generation to economic efficiency, mobile operators say. A similar point was made in recent research carried out for Australia's regulator, which argues that governments should resist the temptation to set mobile spectrum licence fee renewals too high.

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Friday, March 18, 2011

Three UK's CEO condemns Ofcom refarming decision

Kevin Russell, chief executive of Three UK, says the regulator "fundamentally ducked" the tough issues facing the UK's mobile market when it recommended that Three UK's rivals be allowed to refarm all their 2G spectrum for 3G services.

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Thursday, March 17, 2011

Shake-up planned for Iraq’s mobile industry

Iraq's mobile sector is about to go through a new phase of development this year with a fourth national licence being auctioned, and foreign loans and investments being allocated to existing operators to increase network quality and subscriber penetration rates to levels seen in neighbouring countries.

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Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Hungary and Spain ordered to implement amended GSM Directive

The European Commission has told Hungary and Spain to accelerate their implementation of the amended GSM Directive, which enables the 900 MHz band to be used for services other than 2G.

All EU member states were meant to implement the amended Directive into national law by 9 May 2010, removing any legal barriers to the deployment of 3G services in the band.

The requests to Hungary and Spain are in the form of "reasoned opinions" under EU infringement procedures. If either country fails to inform the Commission of measures taken to comply with their obligations under the amended GSM Directive within two months, the Commission could decide to refer them to the Court of Justice and ask the Court to impose financial penalties.

Despite this apparent slowness in implementing the revised Directive, both countries are pressing ahead with their plans for the 900 MHz band. Spain published its proposals last month, while Hungary's national development minister Tamas Fellegi recently said that the country would soon organise a frequency tender for the sale of a fourth licence in the band. Spectrum in the 900 MHz band in Hungary is currently held by Deutsche Telekom-backed T-Mobile Hungary, Telenor Hungary (formerly Pannon) and Vodafone Hungary. T-Mobile has 43 per cent of the mobile market, Telenor 34 per cent and Vodafone 22 per cent.

Hungary's telecoms regulator, the National Media and Infocommunications Authority (NMHH), was set up by the Law on Media and the Freedom of Press, which came into force at the beginning of 2011. The NMHH has taken over the functions of two agencies, the National Communications Council and broadcasting regulator ORTT. The NMHH president, Annamaria Szalai, is a former member of the ORTT and will remain in the post for nine years.•

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Australia's emergency services stake claim to digital dividend

The Police Federation of Australia (PFA) has urged the country's prime minister Julia Gillard to "ensure the government does not put profit before public safety" and to reserve 20 MHz of digital dividend spectrum for use by the police and emergency services.

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Monday, March 14, 2011

Spanish government outlines spectrum release plans

The Spanish government has published its plans for releasing 310 MHz of spectrum in the 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz and 2.6 GHz bands.

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Friday, March 11, 2011

Sweden's established operators win 800 MHz spectrum

Sweden's 800 MHz auction ended on 4 March when six licences were awarded to the country's four main mobile operators.

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Wednesday, March 09, 2011

Ofcom publishes Recognised Spectrum Access regulation

UK rules introducing spectrum trading for Crown bodies in the 3400 - 3600 MHz band take effect in March, and Ministry of Defence (MoD) spectrum could be available for commercial use late next year. Crown bodies include UK government departments and other government-sponsored agencies.

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Tuesday, March 08, 2011

New policies to bring Indian telecoms into the 21st century

With India's spectrum scandals accentuating the problems of its much-criticised system for allocating 2G spectrum, the government is trying to draw a line in the sand with a set of new policies aimed at producing a market-driven, transparent telecoms sector.

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Monday, March 07, 2011

FCC seeks to improve wireless access for Native Americans

Citing an "alarming lack" of telecoms services on American Indian tribal lands, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is seeking ways to make more spectrum available for wireless uses.

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Friday, March 04, 2011

Romania urged to relaunch digital switchover

A Romanian electronics industry association has written to the government to urge it to restart the country's stalled digital switchover process.

The Association for Digital Communication (ADC) made the call in an open letter addressed to Romania's authorities. The letter was also signed by a number of companies and individuals from Romania's telecoms and TV sectors. It calls on the government to:

    * develop and finalise a new digital switchover strategy, with an analogue switch-off (ASO) date of 2013, by the end of March 2011 
    * ensure the digital multiplexes are awarded via a competitive and transparent process 
    * start the public debate about how the digital dividend should be used

In August 2010, the Romanian government postponed ASO to 2015, arguing that this would give viewers more time to buy reception equipment and "ensure a reasonable time in which operators, equipment manufacturers and sellers of technology adapt their behaviour to new requirements".

The decision was made without consulting the regulator, Ancom, even though it had already issued tenders for two digital terrestrial television (DTT) multiplexes and seven Romanian and foreign companies had registered their interest. The tender process was subsequently cancelled.•

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Thursday, March 03, 2011

Swedish 800 MHz auction gets under way

Sweden's auction to assign licences for the use of spectrum in the 800 MHz band started on 28 February.

The licences are technology and service neutral. Six licences (2 × 5 MHz each) will be included in the auction and no company will be able to acquire more than two licences (2 × 10 MHz).

At the end of each day, but at 5pm at the earliest, Swedish regulator PTS will publish information on its website about how many bidding rounds have been finished, and the sum for the standing high bids in each bidding round. PTS estimates that the auction will take approximately two to ten working days.

To view the latest information on the auction, click here.•
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Belgium to hold 3G and 4G auctions this year

3G and 4G licences will be auctioned in Belgium in June 2011 and autumn 2011 respectively, according to the Belgian Institute for Postal Services and Telecommunication (BIPT). 

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Wednesday, March 02, 2011

March 2011 PDF edition

Reaction to President's Obama's plan to give 4G speeds to 98% of Americans is our lead article this month.  We also consider the latest views of EU regulators on the next World Radio Conference and cognitive radio as well as reporting on industry dissatisfaction with digital switchover policies in Romania.

Download the March issue of PolicyTracker here:

The Middle East Spectrum Conference
29-30 March 2011, Dubai
Download the brochure:
Includes programme of training courses:

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Tuesday, March 01, 2011

Mobile needs take centre stage at WRC-12 preparatory meeting

Mobile spectrum needs were raised by administrations and commercial interests during a two-week WRC-12 preparatory meeting in a bid to spur proposals to include the issue on the agenda of the 2015 conference.

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