Ofcom 4G auction names 5 winners, but falls short of predicted total at just over £2.3 billion
Ofcom’s 4G mobile auction has made just over £2.3 billion, less than originally expected, with Everything Everywhere, Hutchison 3G UK, BT subsidiary Niche Spectrum Ventures, Telefónica UK Ltd and Vodafone all winners of the spectrum.
The auction had previously been forecast to generate over £3 billion for the Government, but has fallen well short of that number that saw Vodafone pay £790,761,000 following by EE which paid £588,876,000 for its allocation, then Hutchison as £225,000,000, Niche Spectrum at £186,476,000 and Telefonica at £550,000,000.
The total sum made from the auction was £2,341,113,000 and is expected to the see winners introduce the service in the coming six months, with EE having already rolled out its 4G offer last year.
Ed Richards, CEO of Ofcom described the completion of the auction as "a positive outcome for competition in the UK.”
He added: “We are confident that the UK will be among the most competitive markets in the world for 4G services.
"4G coverage will extend far beyond that of existing 3G services, covering 98% of the UK population indoors - and even more when outdoors - which is good news for parts of the country currently underserved by mobile broadband.
"We also want consumers to be well informed about 4G, so we will be conducting research at the end of this year to show who is deploying services, in which areas and at what speeds. This will help consumers and businesses to choose their most suitable provider."
Telefonica UK won the lot with a coverage obligation of the 800 MHz lots of spectrum, which will see it provide indoor mobile broadband reception to at least 98 per cent of the UK population and at least 95 per cent of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales before 2018.
With the growth of demand for mobile data expected to grow exponentially by 2030, Ofcom also plans to introduce more mobile spectrum and new technology through possible ‘5G’ mobile services.