5G mobile communications standardAuction ends - bitter aftertaste remains
In the 497th auction round, the auction of mobile radio frequencies in the 2 GHz and 3.6 GHz ranges came to an end on June 12 after 52 days. Four providers secured these for 6.5 billion euros. Associations are now calling for local 5G frequencies to be allocated quickly.
Hannes Ametsreiter, CEO of Vodafone Germany (pictured as a 5G hologram): "The auction is over. And we got the frequency equipment we were aiming for. Unfortunately, however, we as an industry have once again had to spend a lot of money on license papers that we would have preferred to invest in network expansion. It is therefore all the more important that politicians and the industry work together to develop a reinvestment program that will allow the proceeds to flow directly into mobile network expansion. This is the only way for Germany to achieve what is most necessary for a digital future alongside 5G: closing the last major gaps in coverage."