Govt will auction 4G spectrum within this year, says Tarana Halim

The government will auction a fourth generation (4G) spectrum for mobile phone services within this year, State Minister for Post and Telecommunications Tarana Halim has said.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 6 Jan 2016, 11:57 AM
Updated : 6 Jan 2016, 11:57 AM

“We want to launch 4G services this year. The preliminary work for that has been done,” she told the press in Dhaka on Wednesday,
 
But she did not reveal the frequency of the spectrum to be auctioned.
 
“This bidding will be open to all operators. The state-run operator Teletalk was able to launch 3G services before others. But it won’t be given that privilege this time.”
 
The 3G spectrum auction was held on Sep 8, 2013 in which Grameenphone, Banglalink, Robi and Airtel participated.
 
Teletalk was permitted to launch 3G services without going through the competitive process.
 
Post and Telecommunications Division Secretary Md Faizur Rahman Chowdhury said that operators currently having the ‘maximum spectrum’ would not be allowed to join the first bidding.
 
“This is to ensure a competitive environment among the operators,” he said.
 
Grameenphone has the highest allocation of 32 MHz spectrum. Teletalk has 25.2 MHz, Banglalink and Airtel 20 MHz each, and Robi 19.8 MHz.
 
The Bangladesh Telecom Regulatory Commission (BTRC) initiated a move last year to auction off unused 2G and 3G spectra but dropped the plan amid opposition by mobile phone operators.
 
When asked if the 4G auction would be held along with those for unused 2G and 3G spectra, the secretary sounded positive.
 
Tarana Halim called the press conference to highlight the Post and Telecommunications Division’s achievements in the past two years.