Four telcos tap 5G auction in North Macedonian
North Macedonia’s Agency for Electronic Communications (AEK) announced earlier this week that it has obtained four bids from telcos that aim to participate in a planned auction for the allocation of 5G frequencies.
Makedonski Telekom, A1 Makedonija, and Bitstream Mobile have expressed interest in licenses for national coverage in the 700 MHz and the 3 GHz spectrums. Neotel’s expression of interest concerns licenses for regional coverage in the 3 GHz band.
AEK invited operators to express interest in participating in a planned auction for the allocation of frequencies for 5G networks on June 1, said AEK in a statement.
The Macedonian watchdog plans to permit three licenses for the use of radio frequencies in the 700 MHz spectrum, seven in the 3 GHz band and four licenses in the 26 GHz band. Ten of the licenses will be issued for national coverage, whereas the remaining four will be granted for regional coverage.
The licenses will be issued for a period of 15 years and may be extended by up to five years.
As for the financial details, AEK set a starting price of $7.1 million for the licenses in the 700 MHz spectrum, $3.5 million for those in the 3 GHz band and $354,178 for the licenses in the 26 GHz spectrum.
According to Tele Geography, at least one major city must be covered by 5G technology by 2023. The aim is to have 5G coverage in all major urban areas and terrestrial transport routes by 2027.
By the end of 2029, the whole population must have access to a 5G signal with a minimum downlink of 100Mbps.