Ofcom has begun 5G auction for mobile broadband and future 5G services, earlier this week. Five companies are taking part in the auction to bid for available spectrum in two frequency bands. The five companies that have been approved to bid in the auction are: Airspan Spectrum Holdings Ltd; EE Limited; Hutchison 3G UK Limited; Telefonica UK Limited and Vodafone Limited.

The first band, 2.3 GHz, can be used by mobile companies as soon as it is released, to increase mobile broadband capacity for today’s mobile users.

The second band, 3.4 GHz, cannot be used by mobile devices available today, but is earmarked for 5G. This is the next generation of mobile technology, which also has the potential to pave the way for innovative new services in transport, healthcare and many other industries.

Ofcom will auction a total of 190 MHz of spectrum in the two bands: 40 MHz in the 2.3 GHz band, and 150 MHz in the 3.4 GHz band. There are two caps on the spectrum any one operator can hold, to protect competition in the market. The first means that EE, which currently holds the most spectrum, will not be able to bid for any spectrum in the 2.3 GHz band. The second is an overall cap on how much a single company can hold after the auction.