ARN

NBN Co and Telstra win big in ACMA 2.3GHz spectrum auction

But NBN Co is the biggest winner, snatching up 24 licences and is now well on its way to deploying its wireless broadband service under the NBN

NBN Co has secured 24 licences and Telstra has nabbed 12 in the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) 2.3GHz spectrum auction.

The pair recently finalised its $11 billion agreement for the National Broadband Network (NBN) which is subject to Telstra shareholder approval.

NBN Co and Telstra had been bidding against each other on a number of licences in the 2.3GHz spectrum auction. vividwireless was also in the race through its subsidiary, BKAL Pty Ltd, which was snapped up in its acquisition of Unwired Australia in 2010.

BKAL received four licences.

The 40 licences raised a total of $1,671,350. NBN Co and Telstra paid $1,329,750 and $304,300, respectively. BKAL paid $37,300.

NBN Co said the spectrum windfall will help it bring wireless broadband to rural areas of Australia starting next year. A full rollout of services will be done by 2015.

The spectrums covered Western Australia, Northern Territory, South Australia, outback Queensland and far-west NSW; all the geographic coverage the company needs to kick-off its wireless network.

Around 93 per cent of premises will receive NBN services through fibre. The rest will be covered by fixed-wireless and satellite services.

This auction win complements the Austar soectrum NBN Co bought earlier this year.

“We look forward to providing those who are to receive our fixed-wireless service with the benefits of the latest 4G fixed-wireless technology, called LTE or Long-Term Evolution,” NBN Co CEO, Mike Quigley, said in a statement.

In June, NBN Co appointed communications vendor, Ericsson, to help rollout its 4G LTE fixed wireless network for rural and remote areas covered under the NBN. The contract length was 10 years.

ARN is seeking a comment from Telstra.

Nominations for the 2012 ARN IT Industry Awards open on Tuesday, June 12.

More about: ARN, Austar, Ericsson, etwork, Quigley, Telstra, Unwired

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Tags: Austar, Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), BKAL, Ericsson, Long-Term Evolution (LTE), National Broadband Network (NBN), nbn co, telecommunications, telecoms, Telstra, VividWireless
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