Trio to cough up USD307m for 3G licences

Iraq’s three mobile providers – Zain Iraq, Asiacell and Korek Telecom – have agreed to pay the USD307 million asking price for 3G spectrum, Reuters writes, citing a senior official at the Communications and Media Commission (CMC). The trio have made downpayments of USD73 million and will pay the remainder in four instalments over the next 18 months. As previously reported by CommsUpdate, the three operators balked at the fee when it was proposed in October, criticising the price and highlighting the substantial increase in operating costs incurred by the ongoing security crisis in the region.