Hong Kong incumbents win spectrum at ‘reasonable’ prices

Image by Yulia Tolshina

The government of Hong Kong has awarded 5G spectrum licences in the 3.5GHz band to the territory’s four incumbent mobile operators. The auction for 200MHz of frequencies raised a total of HKD1.006 billion (USD128 million) in spectrum utilisation fees (SUFs). China Mobile Hong Kong (CMHK) paid HKD300 million for 60MHz of spectrum, while HKT and SmarTone offered HKD252 million each for 50MHz, and Hutchison 3 won 40MHz with a bid of HKD202 million. Spectrum will be handed over on 1 April 2020 and licences are valid for 15 years.

In a press release HKT stated: ‘HKT welcomes the government’s decision to set modest reserve and round prices for the auction to facilitate the development of 5G in Hong Kong. We are pleased that, as a result of rational biddings, HKT is able to obtain 50MHz of contiguous spectrum at a price that is beneficial to the industry as well as the mobile users. This reasonable SUF level represents additional incentives for the industry to invest in 5G development and promote the adoption of 5G by the public.’

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