LONDON (WiMAX Day). Ofcom, the telecommunications regulator in the United Kingdom, today announced that it will begin a consultation from interested parties on spectrum in the 2500-2690 MHz, 2010-2025 MHz and 2290-2300 Mhz frequency bands, for eventual release at auction in 2007.

In its announcement, the Chief Executive of Ofcom, Ed Richards, stated “releasing more spectrum to the market will create new opportunities for innovation in wireless technologies, promoting competition and driving convergence.”

Ofcom acknowledged that the most important spectrum under consideration is the 2.6 GHz frequency. It is envisaged that this block of spectrum will be technology neutral, however “Ofcom recognises that uses or plans for use of the 2.6 GHz band internationally… is for a large part available for wireless broadband systems and the operators Clearwire and Sprint Nextel signalled in July and August 2006 their plans to develop networks in the spectrum using WiMAX technology.”

The 2.6 GHz spectrum most likely will be auctioned in blocks of 5 Mhz of paired and unpaired spectrum equal to a total of 190 MHz. The auction would allow for interested parties to bid for multiple blocks, and successful bidders would be allowed to re-sell the spectrum to third-parties. Ofcom plan that the eventual auction of 2.6 GHz spectrum would be conducted on-line, with several rounds of bidding.

Big boost for WiMAX
The long anticipated announcement from Ofcom is a major step in the advancement for liberalised spectrum in Europe. Ofcom noted that it had been advised not to make the 2.6 GHz spectrum available until a future date when there is more certainty about potential alternative uses of the spectrum. However, Ofcom concluded that “there is a balance to be struck, in this and other cases, between pursuing the reduction of uncertainty and releasing spectrum promptly so that it can start to be used to the benefit of citizens and consumers.”

While the announcement made by Ofcom clearly states that the spectrum should be technology neutral, the technical documents for the consultation to a large extent assume that the spectrum will be utilised by WiMAX. In a concluding remark, Ofcom state: “WiMAX and other wireless broadband technologies could bring significant benefits to the UK, and many of these benefits will be passed onto consumers in the form of lower prices from competition and greater choice. If the auction is delayed, at the very least these benefits will be postponed. It is very possible that the loss could exceed this, if there is a limited window of opportunity for WiMAX to establish itself as a competitor for 3G mobile data communications services: i.e. if the auction is delayed, WiMAX operators may find it difficult to enter the market, and the benefits of competition could largely disappear.”