Tuanz submission warns of 700MHz duopoly

In its submission on the 700 MHz spectrum auction Tuanz warns of a return to the duopoly that dominated mobile telecommunications before 2degrees started operation. It says that would stifle mobile competition, which has only recently taken off.

Tuanz fears only Telecom and Vodafone will have the resources to buy the 4G friendly spectrum made available by closing analogue TV broadcasting.

2degrees already has 4G spectrum, it picked up some when Telstra-Clear tidied its holdings to clear regulatory hurdles to Vodafone’s acquisition. Still, the company needs more to stay competitive.

45MHZ for sale

A total of 45 MHz is for sale. If the government caps holdings at 20 Mhz, that means the two big players could grab almost all the frequencies leaving only crumbs for a third-party.

Incidentally, the third-party may not be 2degrees, at least two other players have told me they are considering buying spectrum. There could be more players waiting in the wings.

Spectrum price concerns

Tuanz is also concerned the government may ask too much for the spectrum. It points to the Australian auction which saw a high price limit the competition for the available spectrum. The organisation says a lower spectrum price would leave carriers with money to invest in a quick network build.

You can see the Telecommunications User Group’s submission on the auction for yourself online at Why we can’t let two players dominate the 700MHz spectrum auction.