By Paul Lipscombe
French telecoms regulator Arcep has outlined the interested bidders ahead of up an upcoming 5G spectrum launch in the Caribbean.
The upcoming spectrum allocation centers around three French overseas territories; French Guiana, Saint Barthelemy, and Saint-Martin.
The regulator will auction off spectrum in the 700MHz and 3.4GHz-3.8GHz bands in French Guiana, Saint Barthelemy, and Saint-Martin, and in the 900MHz and 2.1GHz bands in Saint Barthelemy, reports Comms Update.
Four operators have expressed interest in the 700MHz and 3.4GHz-3.8GHz bands in Saint-Barthelemy and Saint-Martin, with Dauphin Telecom, Digicel, Free Mobile, and Orange Caraibe being named by Arcep as the interested operators.
The four operators have each requested the allocation of one of the four 50MHz blocks in the 3.4GHz-3.8GHz band.
Meanwhile, Free Mobile and Orange Caraibe have submitted applications to secure frequencies in the 900MHz band and 2100MHz bands in Saint-Barthelemy.
Arcep is set to examine all these applications before publishing a list of candidates to participate in the auctions, with the auction set to take place in the coming weeks.
In French Guiana, Digicel, Free Caraibe, Orange Caraibe, and Outremer Telecom (SFR) have all applied for 700MHz and 3.4GHz-3.8GHz spectrum on offer.
Each operator has applied for one of the four 2x5MHz blocks in the 700MHz band, with the auction to be concluded in the coming weeks.
Namibia’s CRAN Calls For More Private Investment To Improve Country’s Telecoms Coverage
- Regulator Is Also Preparing To Issue 5G Spectrum In March 2023
By Paul Lipscombe
Namibia’s regulator has called for more private sector investment in the country’s telecoms companies as the country attempts to improve its 4G coverage.
The comments were made by the chief executive of the Communications Regulatory Authority of Namibia (CRAN), Emilia Nghikembua.
At present Namibia’s 4G coverage extends to 85 per cent of the country, notes Comms Update, however, only seven of Namibia’s provinces are covered by the 4G networks, while the Kunene, Kavango West, and Omaheke regions had less than 50 per cent 4G population coverage.
“MTC and Telecom Namibia have extensive network coverage in all of Namibia’s regions, which contributes to coverage, but there remains room to increase the footprint to ensure 100 per cent population coverage,” said Nghikembua, who is pushing for full coverage.
Namibia was relatively quick out of the blocks when it came to launching 4G services in the country, with the service going live in May 2012. This was even before the UK, (October 2012), Australia (2013), and China (2014).
The country hasn’t been so quick to launch 5G services, however, although CRAN says it plans to issue 5G spectrum in March 2023, while also addressing the misinformation around the technology.
The planned spectrum auction comes at a time when many African countries and operators are launching 5G networks. French telco Orange notably switched on its first 5G network in Africa in November, bringing the service to Botswana.
Meanwhile, Safaricom launched 5G services in Kenya, Vodacom has done similar in Tanzania, as has Telkom in South Africa, while MTN has also launched 5G networks in Nigeria.
