March 22, 2015 at 19:25Prices for 4G frequencies will be determined by the Ministry of Communications
The Vedomosti publication reports that the Ministry of Communications and the Ministry of Economic Development held a preliminary discussion of the mechanism for determining the price of frequencies 2570-2620 MHz, that is, fourth-generation mobile communications (4G LTE). Frequencies are planned to be put up for a Russian auction, which will be held until the 4th quarter of 2015. All frequencies are divided into 82 lots, one of which is federal (a spectrum bandwidth of 20 MHz), and all the rest are regional, covering all regions except Moscow, Moscow Region, Crimea and Sevastopol.
The government instructed the Ministry of Communications to calculate the initial price of all lots, and the ministry promises to determine reasonable prices for all lots.
The Ministry of Economic Development is actively working with the Ministry of Communications on the issue of pricing, as reported by Elena Lashkina, a representative of the Ministry of Economic Development, and Oleg Musienko, an authorized representative of this department in the State Committee for Emergencies. True, it may take a considerable time to prepare the pricing methodology itself, and very little time remains before the auctions are announced. Therefore, for the first auctions, prices will be calculated using a separate expert evaluation. It is planned to attract representatives of telecom operators and representatives of industry associations as experts.
Until now, frequencies have been distributed in tenders, where the determining conditions for obtaining frequencies were work experience and investment obligations of the companies. Earlier, the former Minister of Communications and Mass Media Igor Shchegolev, and the Minister of Communications Nikolai Nikiforov announced the need to allocate frequencies at cash auctions. But GKRCh decided to hold such auctions only in February this year.
According to the representative of Rostelecom, the starting price of the lot does not matter much, the main thing is that the frequency be free and be in regions that are attractive from the point of view of economic indicators.
Now holding such auctions can be complicated by the fact of the crisis, in which telecom operators are forced to save money. Nevertheless, operators are already waiting for consultations on the issue of holding auctions by the government.
As for the price, the total value of all regional lots should not be lower than 2.5-3 billion rubles. A lot of federal value may also cost.
The government instructed the Ministry of Communications to calculate the initial price of all lots, and the ministry promises to determine reasonable prices for all lots.
The Ministry of Economic Development is actively working with the Ministry of Communications on the issue of pricing, as reported by Elena Lashkina, a representative of the Ministry of Economic Development, and Oleg Musienko, an authorized representative of this department in the State Committee for Emergencies. True, it may take a considerable time to prepare the pricing methodology itself, and very little time remains before the auctions are announced. Therefore, for the first auctions, prices will be calculated using a separate expert evaluation. It is planned to attract representatives of telecom operators and representatives of industry associations as experts.
Until now, frequencies have been distributed in tenders, where the determining conditions for obtaining frequencies were work experience and investment obligations of the companies. Earlier, the former Minister of Communications and Mass Media Igor Shchegolev, and the Minister of Communications Nikolai Nikiforov announced the need to allocate frequencies at cash auctions. But GKRCh decided to hold such auctions only in February this year.
According to the representative of Rostelecom, the starting price of the lot does not matter much, the main thing is that the frequency be free and be in regions that are attractive from the point of view of economic indicators.
Now holding such auctions can be complicated by the fact of the crisis, in which telecom operators are forced to save money. Nevertheless, operators are already waiting for consultations on the issue of holding auctions by the government.
As for the price, the total value of all regional lots should not be lower than 2.5-3 billion rubles. A lot of federal value may also cost.