Czechs to auction 4G mobile frequencies

Czech telecommunications regulators (CTU) announced Monday their intention to auction 4G mobile telephony frequencies and that a fourth mobile operator could enter the Czech market.

"We're offering 800, 1,800 and 2,600 Mhz frequencies for the total opening price of 9.2 million Czech koruna (376 million euros, $496 million)," CTU press spokesman Pavel Dvorak said Monday.

The auction will be held in late November while the new frequencies will distributed at the end of the year for a period of fifteen years, Dvorak said.

"Our objective is to give the Czech Republic access to high speed 4G mobile telephony as quickly as possible," he added.

The 1,800 Mhz frequency is reserved for a possible new mobile operator, he said.

Telefonica 02, T-Mobile and Vodafone currently dominate the Czech mobile market.

Details of the auction are to be posted on the CTU (www.ctu.cz) site on Tuesday, Dvorak announced, adding that the terms of the auction will be subject to public consultations for 30 days in line with Czech telecommunications law.

(c) 2012 AFP