5G Auction: Jio buys spectrum worth Rs 88,078, Airtel spends Rs 43,084
5G spectrum auction concluded in India on August 1, 2022, with Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Jio getting the biggest piece of the pie by acquiring 24,740MHz spectrum worth Rs 88,078 crore. It was followed by Sunil Bharti Mittal-led Bharti Airtel that spent Rs 43,084 crore for 19867.8MHz of the spectrum. Vodafone Idea, on the other hand, acquired 3300MHz in the mid-band 5G spectrum in 17 priority circles and 26GHz in the mmWave 5G spectrum.
Overall, the three telecom companies coupled with the Adani Group saw bids worth Rs 1,50,173 crore for 71 percent of total 5G airwaves spectrum. “About 72,098 MHz of spectrum was offered for auction and out of that, 51,236 MHz has been sold,” IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said as the 5G auction concluded in India today.
Reacting to the development, India Cellular and Electronics Association (ICEA) Chairman Pankaj Mohindroo said that the 5G auction will help in boosting the already booming 5G mobile handset market in India. “We are delighted that the 5G rollout is formally on course. It will be huge stimulus for the economy. As always the mobile handset industry is ready in advance with more than 125 models already in the market, 15K benchmark is breached and 10k is in sight,” he told BGR India.
Jio at 5G auction
Reliance Jio, as mentioned before, spent the most in the 5G spectrum auction that concluded today. The company acquired spectrum in the 700MHz, 800MHz, 1800MHz, 3300MHz and 26GHz bands in all 22 circles for a span of 20 years. The company said that it acquired 220 units of 700MHz band, 20 units of 800MHz band, 60 units of 1899MHz band, 2440 units of 3300MHz band and 22,000 units. In total, the 24,740MHz of spectrum will cost the company Rs 7,877 annually sans the 7.2 percent interest that the company has to pay over and above this.
Jio said that acquired a unique combination of low-band, mid-band and mmWave spectrum, which coupled its our fibre network will enable the company to provide 5G connectivity not just for consumers but also for enterprises.
“We will celebrate ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’ with a pan India 5G rollout. Jio is committed to offering world-class, affordable 5G and 5G-enabled services. We will provide services, platforms and solutions that will accelerate India’s digital revolution, especially in crucial sectors like Education, Healthcare, Agriculture, Manufacturing and e-Governance…,” Reliance Jio Infocomm chairmann Akash Ambani said in a statement.
Vodafone Idea at 5G auction
Coming to Vi, the company said that it has acquired 3300MHz in the mid band 5G spectrum in its 17 priority circles and
26GHz in mmWave 5G spectrum in its 16 circles. The company said that this move will enable it to offer a 5G customers while strengthening its enterprise offerings. While the company didn’t details as to how much it spent in the 5G auction in India, it did share a detailed breakup of the 5G airwaves that it acquired during the auction. Here are the details:
In addition to this, the company also acquired 4G spectrum in three circles of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Punjab, which the company said “will further improve the customer experience; an area where we have been consistently leading the league tables, as per various third party reports, over last several quarters.”
Airtel at 5G auction
Airtel, on the other hand, was the second biggest spender at the 5G spectrum auction in India. The company acquired 19,800MHz of the 5G spectrum in the 3.5GHz and 26GHz bands. In addition to this, the company also secured 5G airwaves in the mid-band spectrum. In total, the company spent Rs 43,084 crore for purchasing 5G airwaves for a span of 20 years.
The company said that it has accumulated the largest pool of low and mid band spectrum (Sub Ghz/1800/2100/2300 bands) which can be used to provide 5G coverage and massive capacities in the 3.5GHz and 26GHz bands will will enable the company to ‘create 100X capacities at the least cost’.
“We are confident that we will be able to deliver the best 5G experience in India in terms of coverage, speeds and latency. This will allow us to change a lot of established paradigms for both our B2C and B2B customers. 5G technology is the revolution that can alter India’s manufacturing, services and several other sectors,” Gopal Vittal, MD and CEO, Bharti Airtel said in a statement.
Adani Group at 5G auction
As per a report by The Economic Times, Gautam Adani’s Adani Data Networks spent Rs 212 crore to purchase 400MHz of spectrum in 26GHz band.
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