Turkey’s 5G auction exceeds revenue target

Turkey’s 5G spectrum tender, confiirmed in August, is over and, according to Transport and Infrastructure Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu, it well exceeded the target of US$2.125 billion, which was set as the minimum value.

In fact it attracted a total of US$2.95 billion or, as Uraloglu pointed out, US$3.534 billion with VAT.

The country’s three operators – Turkcell, Vodafone and Türk Telekom – secured key blocks across the 700MHz and 3.5GHz frequency ranges. Reports say that Turkcell placed the highest bid of US$429 million for the A1 package in the 700MHz band and won four blocks in the 3.5GHz range. Its winning bids totalled $1.22 billion.

Türk Telekom secured the A3 package for US$425 million and three other packages. Its winning bids amounted to US$1.1 billion. Vodafone won the A2 package for US$426 million and won a single 3.5GHz block. Its winning bids totalled US$627 million.

News resource the Daily Sabah says the rollout of 5G services is expected to start in April next year, primarily in major cities. In fact Minister Uraloglu has been more specific, saying the first 5G signal will be available on 1 April next year and that 5G will gradually expand nationwide, starting with densely populated cities. He has been quoted as estimating that it could take a little over a year for coverage to expand nationwide.

Thursday’s tender also extended the authorisation period for 2G and 3G services, which were to expire in 2029. They can now continue until the end of 2042. Companies will pay 5% of their annual sales from these services to the country’s Treasury.

The Daily Sabah notes that the last frequency auction before this 5G tender was held in 2015. Three operators paid about US$4.66 billion, including VAT, for 4.5G frequencies for approximately 15 years.