Auction 110, the latest sale of 5G-suitable spectrum by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), commenced yesterday (5 October), generating opening day bids of USD672.4 million.
The 33 qualified bidders include the likes of AT&T Communications (bidding as AT&T Auction Holdings), Verizon Wireless (Cellco Partnership) and T-Mobile US (T-Mobile License). Satellite TV giant DISH Network – which intends to launch a new 5G network in 2022 – is understood to be bidding via a holding company called Weminuche.
Auction 110 is offering bidders new flexible‐use licences in the 3.45GHz–3.55GHz band throughout the contiguous US. The 100MHz spectrum band has been divided into ten 10MHz blocks and licensed by Partial Economic Area (PEA), for a total of 4,060 licences.