UK telcos to pay almost £200 million per year to use 900 MHz, 1800 MHz bands
U.K. telecom regulator Ofcom has published revised annual fees for mobile operators, which determine the amount of money they must pay to use certain parts of the mobile spectrum.
In 2010, the British government urged the regulator to revise these fees in order to reflect full market value.
The fees are paid annually by mobile operators for the use of 900 MHz and 1800 MHz spectrum bands, which are used for the provision of 2G, 3G and 4G technologies.
Under the new fees, U.K. mobile operators should pay a combined annual total of 80.3 million pounds ($121.9 million) for the 900 MHz band, and 119.3 million pounds for the 1800 MHz band. The four mobile operators will pay a total of 199.6 million pounds per year.
Mobile operator EE will pay a total of 75 million pounds per year for the use of the two bands, compared to the 24.9 million pounds the telco is currently paying. Mobile operators Vodafone and Telefónica will have to pay annual fees of 49.8 million pounds each, compared to their current fees of 15.6 million pounds, while operator H3G will pay 25 million pounds compared to the current annual fee of 8.3 million pounds.
The new fees will come into effect in two phases: One half of the fee increase, from the current to the new rates, will come into effect on Oct. 31. The second half will come into effect on the same date in 2016, with full fees payable annually from that point, Ofcom said. The regulator also said that each year the fees will be updated taking into account the inflation rate.
“The mobile industry has not previously had to pay market value for access to this spectrum, which is a valuable and finite resource, and the new fees reflect that value,” Philip Marnick, Ofcom’s group director of spectrum, said.
Telenor Serbia to upgrade 3G network
In other EMEA news, Serbian mobile operator Telenor announced plans to spend 10 million euros ($11.2 million) to upgrade 1,659 base stations by the end of March 2016. This upgrade will boost the operator’s 3G coverage to 99% of the country’s population.
Telenor Serbia has already invested 20 million euros in the rollout. The operator also plans to use mobile spectrum in the 800 MHz band to bolster indoor coverage in urban areas as well as to improve connectivity in rural regions. The telco launched 4G LTE services in March through spectrum in the 1800 MHz band. Telenor Serbia is a wholly owned subsidiary of Norwegian telecommunications company Telenor.
