Wednesday’s bidding on the 5G wireless spectrum became the telecom industry’s most expensive auction ever, with nearly $70 billion being spent as leading telecom companies compete for airspace on the new network.
Analysts predict that AT&T, Charter Communications, Comcast, T-Mobile US, and Verizon Communications are among the leading bidders. While C-Band bidding began on December 8th, the auction will resume on January 4 after the holiday break. Winning bidders will only be announced in the spring of 2021.
In addition to the bid itself, winners are also expected to pay approximately $13.2 billion in relocation costs. This raises the C-Band auction to approximately $82 billion.
Following the latest bidding action, AT&T shares fell slightly to 28.69, Comcast increased slightly by 0.7% to 50.38, and Verizon slipped to 58.84.
Verizon, which currently has the largest customer base, still trails AT&T and T-Mobile in mid-band spectrum holdings. While these three companies have already begun building 5G wireless networks using low-band airwaves, these networks are expected to be only slightly faster than existing 4G networks. In order to tap into the fastest 5G speeds, these companies will need to utilize mid-band or high-band frequencies.
