Slovakia has sold rights to use key frequencies for mobile services for half a billion euros. The Slovak Office for Electronic Communications and Postal Services (the Office) has successfully completed the largest electronic auction of mobile frequencies in the history of the Slovak Republic. Based on the auction results, individual licences were issued for the use of frequencies from the 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 2100 MHz and 2600 MHz bands, where historical allocations were reallocated. In addition, completely new frequency allocations have been granted in the 1500 MHz band.
Such a selection procedure is a really demanding process. The Authority therefore consulted an expert advisor in preparing the tender and specifying the terms of the tender. We appreciate the fact that it chose our company, Grant Thornton Advisory, together with the law firm PIERSTONE for such a challenging task.
From the point of view of Zbyněk Bolcek, Managing Partner of Advisory, setting the conditions for such a large auction was a great professional challenge: “Each frequency auction is unique, so it was crucial to analyse the market environment and regulatory requirements in detail. Thanks to our close and constructive cooperation with the regulator, we have managed to set fair and transparent conditions to support the development of the telecommunications market in Slovakia to the maximum extent.”
The success of the auction is evidenced by its total proceeds, which exceeded EUR 500 million, while the expectations were about EUR 140 million lower, as confirmed by the chairman of the Authority, Ivan Marták: “All of the frequencies offered were sold and the intense competition between the four operators for them brought record revenues.”
As a result of the reallocation of the frequencies used at the same time, the continuity of the allocations of the three largest network operators was ensured. The biggest changes compared to the current situation occurred in the paired part of the 2600 MHz band. At the same time, however, there has been a relatively significant increase in the amount of frequencies that the smallest mobile operator, 4ka, will be able to use, thus gaining additional capacity for the development of its services.
