Australian Telecommunications Spent $473 Million on Intermediate Frequency Spectrum

Australian operators have stated that they are still interested in 5G spectrum and have almost snapped up all 3.4GHz and 3.7GHz frequencies in recent auctions.
The Australian Telecommunications Authority stated that out of 588 available spectra, 574 were sold to the four major telecommunications companies, which paid a total of 722 million Australian dollars (472.9 million US dollars).

Australia Telecom is the largest buyer, investing AUD 545.6 million (USD 358 million) to purchase new spectrum up to 110MHz.
The second largest buyer is TPG Telecom, a potential partner of Australia Telecom in a regional network sharing transaction that was rejected earlier this year due to competitive reasons. TPG has invested AUD 128.2 million to acquire the 150MHz frequency band in the 3.7GHz frequency band.
Both companies have stated that the new spectrum is aimed at increasing capacity and improving customer experience, rather than expanding coverage in rural areas.
Australia Telecom stated that 80MHz of its new spectrum is used in major cities such as Sydney and Melbourne, and only 25MHz is used in rural areas of Australia, while TPG stated that almost all new frequencies are used for urban coverage.
Optus Mobile paid AUD 33.5 million (USD 22 million) to purchase four 3.7GHz frequency bands in the growth areas of northern New South Wales and southern Queensland, while national broadband wholesaler NBN paid AUD 14.4 million (USD 9.4 million) to purchase 200 frequency bands in rural areas to enhance its FWA capabilities.
The 3.4GHz frequency band license will expire in December 2030, and the 3.7GHz license will expire in January 2044.
Australia Telecom has the largest 5G network in Australia, covering 85% of the population. The company stated that the frequency spectrum already carries the majority of 5G traffic.
While Australian telecommunications companies are purchasing a large amount of intermediate frequency spectrum, South Korean authorities are also looking for buyers for their idle 28GHz frequency band.
The Ministry of Science, Information and Communications Technology (MSIT) sold approximately 800MHz of the 28GHz spectrum to three existing operators in 2018, but due to failure to fulfill construction commitments, they were asked to return it last year.
According to South Korean media reports, the Ministry of Communications has started a new round of auctions, which are only open to non telecom operators. The lowest price allocated nationwide is 74 billion Korean won (57 million US dollars).
This is not its first attempt to attract new players into this already well served market, so as a sweetness, it also offers 20MHz in the precious 700MHz frequency band.
If a nationwide licensor cannot be found, it will sell spectrum on a regional basis.