Denmark completed the auction of 1800 MHz frequency licences, ending a process that started as recently as Sept. 20 and raising a total of just over DKK1 billion (€134 million/$150 million).
The Danish Energy Agency (DEA), which is also responsible for the regulation of telecoms, broadband access and spectrum, said the market’s three main mobile network operators -- Hi3G Denmark (Three Denmark), TDC and TT Network -- each won two blocks of frequencies in the band.
Hi3G Denmark and TDC will each pay just over DKK300 million for two 20 MHz blocks apiece, while TT Network is paying about DKK425 million for two 25 MHz blocks.
TT Network is the joint network infrastructure company of Telia and Telenor in Denmark. It was first established in April 2012 and operates the 2G, 3G and 4G radio access networks (RANs) of both companies.
Telia and Telenor had hoped to establish a closer union of their respective mobile businesses in Denmark in order to break the dominance of market leader TDC, but the European Commission (EC) effectively scuppered the proposed merger in 2015.
The EC later said it had been concerned that the combination of the two units would have created a duopoly on the market.
Telenor has also previously indicated that it continues to consider its options for the Danish business. However, the acquisition of new spectrum will now provide it with additional resources to extend its LTE network.
Coverage requirements are attached to the new 1800 MHz licences with a particular focus on areas where there is currently little or no broadband coverage. The coverage requirement includes 245 areas of 1x1 km and will provide improved services to 2,185 businesses and homes across the country.
Each of the three companies has to meet a third of the coverage requirements by December 2019, with targets including mobile broadband with a “perceived: download speed” of at least 30 Mbps and a “perceived upload speed” of at least 3 Mbps.
For more:
- see this DEA release (in Danish)
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