The Croatian Post and Electronic Communications Agency (HAKOM) has decided that the remaining unallocated radio frequency spectrum of the digital dividend, totaling 20 MHz, will be allocated to interested mobile communication operators through a public auction, it was announced today by the regulatory agency.
Two frequency blocks of 2×5 MHz each will be offered at the auction for the provision of communication services based on ‘Long-Term Evolution’ (LTE) technology.
The selected type of auction is the so-called ‘sealed bid auction’ with the criterion of selecting the highest bid price, with the starting price for one block set at 105 million kuna.
The deadline for submitting bids is October 28 of this year, when they will be publicly opened, and HAKOM’s decision on the allocation will follow by the end of November.
By allocating both blocks, the state budget would earn at least 226 million kuna this year, as operators would also pay an annual fee for the use of radio frequencies of 8 million kuna per block, and conditions would be created for greater availability of broadband internet access, especially in rural areas. An increase in operator investments in next-generation networks is also expected.
HAKOM reminds that by freeing up part of the radio frequency spectrum, through the transition to digital broadcasting of television signals in October 2010, conditions were created for the allocation of the frequency range 790 – 862 MHz (‘digital dividend’) to mobile communication network operators.
At the end of 2012, two frequency blocks of 2×10 MHz each were allocated to VIPnet and HT, while the third remained unallocated. The state budget directly earned 332 million kuna for those 40 MHz.
