Bulgaria to hold new 5G auction after legal challenge
17/03/2021 12:05
(Repeats to additional subscribers)
SOFIA, March 17 (Reuters) - Bulgaria's telecoms regulator
said on Wednesday it would hold a new auction on April 6 for
three 5G licences after its decision to allocate them without
competition was contested in court by the country's leading
telecoms operator Vivacom.
The Communication Regulation Commission (CRC) said its
decision to launch a new process was backed by the three main
telecoms operators. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2LD13O
"The regulator decided to amend its decision to speed up the
process and avoid lengthy court proceedings," CRC head Ivan
Dimitrov told Reuters, saying the auction date was April 6.
Vivacom, A1 and Telenor Bulgaria, which is owned by Czech
investment group PPF, will bid for specific bands in the 3.6 GHz
spectrum.
The initial price of each permit for 20 years is set at 4
million levs ($2.43 million). Each company can get only one
permit and the highest bidder will be given first choice from
one of the three 100 MHz bands in the 3.6 GHz spectrum.
($1 = 1.6437 leva)
(Reporting by Tsvetelia Tsolova; Editing by Edmund Blair)
((tsvetelia.tsolova@thomsonreuters.com; +359-2-93-99-731;))