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The country’s largest wireless operators dominated the Federal Communications Commission’s latest 5G spectrum auction, bringing revenue to a record price of more than $ 81 billion. The FCC released the names and winning bids of the auction’s top five bidders on Wednesday.
Verizon, which made its bid under the name of Cellco Partnership, spent most of the auction, offering $ 45 billion for 3,511 spectrum licenses. AT&T came in second, offering $ 23 billion for 1,621 licenses. T-Mobile had the third highest bid, $ 9 billion, for 142 licenses.
The so-called C band spectrum, which includes 500 MHz of spectrum between 3.7 and 4.2 GHz, has been used by satellite providers to provide video programming to cable providers. The FCC started auctioning 280 MHz of the spectrum block in December and ended on January 15. About 200 MHz of the spectrum of this band will continue to be used for TV programming.
Wireless experts expected the auction of the mid-band spectrum to generate a lot of interest. Some predicted that the valuable spectrum could be worth up to $ 60 billion. But the final count surpassed those predictions, raising more than $ 81 billion for the U.S. Treasury.
The high price and the final list of winners underscores the high value that the largest wireless service providers in the country have assigned to the middle band spectrum to build their 5G networks.
5G is the next generation of wireless service, which should increase the speed of the network and make it more responsive. The technology can help make apps like autonomous vehicles a reality and will provide new AR and VR experiences for smartphones.
The middle band spectrum, like the C band, is considered important for 5G deployments because it offers geographic coverage and the ability to transmit large amounts of data. This combination is especially attractive to wireless giants who have been trying to fill their spectrum portfolios.
“It is essential for America’s economic recovery to deliver on the promise of next generation wireless services for everyone, everywhere,” said FCC Acting President Jessica Rosenworcel in a statement. “This auction reflects a shift in our country’s approach to 5G towards the mid-band spectrum that can support fast, reliable and ubiquitous services that are competitive with our global peers.”