As the 5G spectrum went under hammer on Tuesday the bidders seem to have chosen to go slow. Although Bharti Airtel along with Jio maintained the lead after the fourth round of government-initiated auction for 5G spectrum allocation  there was no clear outcome till the closing of the day. Bidding would continue on wednesday.

Private telecom service providers; Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio, Vodafone-Idea, and Adani Data network are participating in India’s biggest spectrum allocation auction. 

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The 5G spectrum is an essential piece of the whole 5G eco-framework. This new telecom technology runs on the same frequencies that are needed to run mobile data,  Wi-Fi, and satellite communications in the country.

The upcoming 5G services work on existing mobile towers and do not require installation of new towers. The impending 5G services will make new Job opportunities, and produce extra income for established and start-up businesses.

All nine Bands were supposed to be auctioned on Tuesday with a validity period of 20 years but it is speculated that the high and mid-range bands will catch more attention from the buyers, as those bands will be utilized for 5G network services. 5G  services can give up to 10 times higher speed and capacities than any 4G network service and 30 times faster than 3G. 

72Ghz or 72,000 Mhz airwaves went under the hammer today for the upcoming fifth generation mobile network (5G), which will soon improve information transfer and network connectivity throughout the country eventually.

On June 15, the Union Cabinet approved the proposal from the department of telecommunication providers to assign 5G Spectrum through an auction for a private captive network. 5g services are expected to be rolled out by the end of this year. 

 Bharti Airtel demonstrated a successful trial of the 5G network at the Bosch Automotive Electronics India (RBAI) facility in the year 2021,. Airtel successfully conducted India’s first 5G trial in the 700 MHz band in partnership with Nokia.

The four bidders; Airtel, Reliance Jio, Vodafone Idea, and Adani Data network, is bidding for nine bands of three different frequency from low (600 MHz, 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz),  to Mid (3300 MHz) and High (26 GHz) frequency bands.

The whole spectrum auction is worth approx Rs. 5 lakh crore. 

All four players  have submitted a combined Rs 21,400 core in earnest money deposit (EMD). 

 Jio has come with a purse of  Rs 14000 crore, Bharti Airtel-Rs 5500 crore, Vi-Rs 2200 crore and Adani has pitched in with  Rs 100 crore.

The auction is happening in a virtual mode where one by one all four bidders will submit an EMD ahead of the main auction round, which will be used in further proceedings.

 Reliance Jio is expected to spend more EMD than any other company, similar to last year’s auction.In June, in a major help to telecom organizations, the DoT rejected the 3% floor rate on spectrum use charges (SUC) and telecom operators will no more be required to make upfront payments and can pay in 20 equal installments.

However, the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), the business’ pinnacle body addressing telcos, has encouraged the public authority not to permit ‘Big Tech’ organisations to enter the 5G spectrum auction through secondary passage channels.

The COAL maintained that the 5G range ought not to be given on a regulatory premise as it prompts no business case for the rollout of 5G networks in the country.

“If the independent entities set up private captive networks with direct 5G spectrum allotment by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), it will diminish the revenue so much that there will be no viable business case left for the telecom service providers (TSPs) and there will not remain any need for 5G networks rollout by TSPs,” COAI Director General, Lt. Gen. Dr. S.P. Kochhar said.

The auction will continue on Wednesday.