ACMA is focused on low-bands for wide-area 5G coverage
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has recently opened applications for the upcoming auction of 5G spectrum in the 850 MHz 900 MHz band, ACMA said in a release.
The government agency noted that low band spectrum forms the backbone of 5G connectivity in Australia, adding that spectrum in the sub‑1 GHz bands can carry signals across longer distances and is essential to the deployment of wide-area networks, such as mobile services and fixed wireless internet.
ACMA Chair Nerida O’Loughlin said the allocation of 5G spectrum in the 850/900 MHz band will support new and existing operators to better deliver services across regional, rural and remote areas of Australia, as well as to major urban centers.
“The spectrum available in this auction will facilitate a wide range of new services that will benefit businesses and consumers across Australia,” O’Loughlin said.
In the auction, ACMA plans to auction 70 megahertz of paired spectrum in the 850/900 MHz band across all of Australia.
The application period runs from September 1 to September 21 with the spectrum auction scheduled to start in late November or early December 2021.
In April, five operators had secured spectrum in the ACMA’s latest spectrum auction in the 26 GHz band. Of the 360 lots available in the auction, 358 were sold, realizing a total revenue of AUD647.6 million (currently$479 million).
Telstra secured a total of 150 lots for AUD276.6 million ,while Optus obtained 116 blocks for AUD226.2 million. TPG Telecom paid AUD108.2 million for 86 lots; Pentanet AUD7.9 million for four lots in Western Australia; and Dense Air paid a total of AUD28.6 million for two lots in Sydney and Melbourne.
Telstra won 1,000 megahertz in all major cities and regional areas where the 26 GHz spectrum was sold, while Optus secured 800 megahertz of spectrum in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Canberra and a range of regional areas, and 600 megahertz in Hobart and Margaret River in WA. Meanwhile, TPG Telecom acquired 400 megahertz in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth, and 600 megahertz in Brisbane and all other metropolitan and regional areas.
Australian operator Telstra said that its current 5G coverage footprint currently reaches 75% of the country’s population. Telstra 5G’s network reaches more than 2,700 suburbs and over 200 cities and towns across Australia.
Telstra, which had launched 5G in May 2020, is currently using its spectrum in the 3.6 GHz band to provide 5G technology across Australia. Some of the cities in which Telstra offers its 5G service are Canberra, Central Coast, Brisbane, Sidney, Cairns, Gold Coast, Adelaide, Hamilton, Melbourne and Perth.
Optus currently has more than 1,300 5G sites across Sydney, Perth, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Canberra as well as key areas outside of these cities.
Earlier this year, Optus said it had switched on its first six 5G mmWave commercial sites in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.
Meanwhile, TPG Telecom announced that it had switched on a live 5G standalone (SA) network in Australia on the 700 MHz spectrum band through a partnership with Nokia.
The 5G SA service was initially available in parts of Sydney.
