Fiji Kicks Off 4G Spectrum Auction

The bidding on frequencies to provide 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) services in Fiji is well underway with domestic operators Telecom Fiji Limited (TFL), Vodafone Fiji and Digicel Fiji lining up to place their bids for 20 lots of frequency on offer. In what is the government’s first-ever 4G auction, companies are looking to secure frequency blocks that carry minimum valuations of between FJD131,250 and FJD504,000 (USD70,049 andUSD268,986). Fiji’s Attorney-General and Communications Minister, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum says that after each round of the auction, details of the highest bids across all the lots of spectrum are being posted at the Department of Communications’ Suvavou House.

It is understood that Vodafone Fiji has so far successfully filled its 30MHz quota for 4G spectrum; it offeredFJD144,000 for each of the six frequency blocks it has purchased, while Digicel has secured three frequency blocks – offering FJD420,500 each for two blocks and FJD420,300 for the third – and TFL has bid for three blocks of frequencies, agreeing to pay FJD504,700 for each of them.