On May 27th, the Canadian federal government will kick off its latest wireless spectrum auction. Today, they announced the list of bidders as well as the number of spectrum licenses each is seeking.
Heading up the list is a company called Niagara Networks Inc. They are seeking a total of 6,510 licenses, enough to launch a network that could cover the entire country. The company made a credit deposit of $881 million but declined to provide details as to where the funding is coming from (citing confidentiality agreements). Many suspect that a foreign mobile carrier such as T-Mobile it could be their mysterious partner.
Rogers Wireless is second on the list with 4,030 license requests (at a cost of a $534 million deposit). Third is Calgary-based Shaw Communications Inc. seeking 3,076 licenses. MTS AllStream, Quebecor Inc and Globalive Communications Inc. (funded in part by two foreign mobile operators) round out the top six.
Industry Canada will now review the applications and do credit checks. On March 31st, they will announce which applications qualify for the auction.
What makes this auction interesting is that forty percent of the spectrum available has been reserved for new entrants in an effort to create more competition in a market dominated by three national players (Rogers Wireless, Bell Mobility and Telus Mobility). Let’s hope it works!
Source : CBC News