Bidding for the second half of Thailand’s 4G spectrum sale began last Tuesday and concluded with the two operators paying $4.2 billion for licences.
The bids were nearly six times higher than the value of the spectrum and almost double the winning bids in the previous auction.
True and Jasmine outbid rivals Advanced Info Service and Total Access Communications, a surprise given that the latter had emerged successful in the 1800MHZ spectrum in November.
The auction marks Jasmine’s entrance into the mobile market, which will become the country’s fourth mobile operator.
Thailand’s auction for 15MHz licences in the 1800Mhz band in November attracted bids of over $2.17 billion. The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) extended the auction time after aggressive bidding from four operators – Advanced Info Service, True Corp, Total Access Communication and Jasmine International – drove up prices for the 1800MHz spectrum.
