The advisory council of Germany’s Federal Network Agency (FNA, also known as Bundesnetzagentur or BNetzA) has approved the upcoming auction of spectrum in the 700MHz, 900MHz, 1500MHz and 1800MHz frequency bands, writes Telecom Handel. A total spectrum package of 270MHz is scheduled to go under the hammer in the second quarter of this year. The advisory council agreed that winning bidders must provide mobile broadband of at least 50Mbps (download) to a minimum 97% of all households in each federal state and 98% of homes nationwide.
The sale will feature spectrum in the 900MHz and 1800MHz bands, the current licences for which expire on 31 December 2016, while inclusion of frequencies in the 700MHz range was conditional on a consensus being reached between the federal government and federal states on the use of the band for mobile broadband services.