UK court rejects operator challenge over spectrum auction rules (updated)

Hutchison Telecommunications Hong Kong Holdings

20/12/2017 11:23

(Adds background) 
    LONDON, Dec 20 (Reuters) - Two of Britain's leading mobile 
operators, BT's EE and Three, failed in a legal challenge on 
Wednesday to force a rethink of the rules for the upcoming 5G 
auction of mobile spectrum.  
    In a bid to maintain competition, regulator Ofcom has set 
limits on how much spectrum individual operators can buy in an 
auction that will increase the airwaves available to provide  
superfast services to mobile devices in the country.  
    The auction is key for the country's operators, which also 
include Vodafone  VOD.L  and Telefonica's O2  TEF.MC , because 
it will determine how they can compete with each other.  
    Under the plan, no mobile operator would be allowed to own 
more than 37 percent of all the mobile spectrum expected to be 
usable in 2020, capping how much the biggest spectrum owners 
such as BT and Vodafone can win.    
    Market leader EE said it objected to the restrictions while 
operator Three said the rules did not go far enough.  
    However, Judge Nicholas Green said on Wednesday at the High 
Court that both challenges had been rejected. Three said it 
would seek to appeal.  
    "We are disappointed by the initial ruling of the court as a 
fairer distribution of spectrum is vital for UK consumers and 
the digital economy," a spokesman for Three said.  
    "Ofcom does not expect 5G to rollout in the UK until 2019/20 
at the earliest, so this will have no impact on the delivery of 
this new technology."  
    Ofcom said it would now proceed with the auction as quickly 
as possible.   
 
 (Reporting by Paul Sandle; writing by Kate Holton; editing by 
Stephen Addison) 
 ((kate.holton@thomsonreuters.com; 0044 207 542 8560; Reuters 
Messaging: kate.holton.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net)) 
 
Keywords: BRITAIN MOBILE/AUCTION