March 2023

Kazakhstan 3.6 GHz Spectrum Auction

The Ministry of Digital Development, Innovations and Aerospace Industry of the Republic of Kazakhstan recently announced the results of their spectrum auction for two 100 MHz Lots of 3.6 GHz spectrum. The spectrum was acquired by a consortium formed by mobile operators Kcell and Mobile Telecom Service (Tele2-Altel), both part of the Kazakhtelecom Group.

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February 2023

Future Utilisation of the 470-694 MHz Band in the UK

In this report, written for the UK Spectrum Policy Forum ahead of WRC-23, Coleago explores the future use of the 470-694MHz UHF band in the United Kingdom post 2030. The band is sought after and used by a wide range of services, including digital terrestrial television (DTT), Programme-making and special events (PMSE) and mobile services amongst others.

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July 2022

Vision 2030: Low Band Spectrum for 5G

In this report, written for the GSMA, Coleago explores why low band spectrum is the cornerstone of digital equality and affordable connectivity to ensure that mobile's economic and social benefits can be felt in all communities.

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April 2022

The South African spectrum auction: An insider view

A review of the recent South African spectrum auction and the learning for other regulators seeking to award spectrum to support the development of mobile broadband and 5G

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January 2022

The Nigerian 3500 MHz spectrum auction

A review of the NCC's 3500 MHz spectrum auction and the learning for other regulators seeking to award spectrum to support the development of mobile broadband and 5G.

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September 2021

Estimating mid-bands spectrum needs for the 2025-30 timeframe

This report written by Coleago for the GSMA provides a global analysis of spectrum needs to meet the 5G vision of providing ubiquitous high-speed wireless mobile connectivity and a user experience to match that of fixed networks.

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July 2021

Mobile services, spectrum and network evolution to 2025

A review for telecoms regulators and operators of key global developments, insights, trends, and best international practices, to inform future spectrum policy and management and operator strategies.

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December 2020

IMT Spectrum Demand

Starting with an analysis of the existing trends and anticipating the future evolution of 5G, this report looks at the importance of making more mid-bands spectrum available for IMT as an essential means to achieve the 5G vision.

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December 2020

Releasing low band spectrum for mobile

Mobile network operators need to continuously expand capacity to meet the rapid growth in mobile data consumption. The right mix of new spectrum in the low-, mid- and high-bands is vital for the rapid delivery of mobile broadband services at accessible prices.

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September 2020

The benefit of technology neutral spectrum licences

In many countries the process of introducing new technology in existing frequency bands is delayed or held up because spectrum is not licenced on a technology neutral basis. Indeed some countries have not learned the lesson from a delayed introduction of 3G and 4G and are now repeating the same mistake for 5G.

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July 2020

2300 MHz spectrum for 5G

The 2300MHz band is already widely used for FWA and mobile LTE and is now becoming a key resource for 5G-NR. 5G must deliver a 10 fold increase in the user experienced data rate from 10 Mbit/s to 100 Mbit/s, a factor 100 increase in area traffic capacity to 10 Mbit/s/m2, and a 10 fold reduction in latency to 1 milli-second. To deliver this, the 2300MHz band (LTE band 40 LTE and 5G-NR band N40) is....

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June 2020

Regulatory approaches to providing deep rural coverage

In a number of markets, governments are working together with the regulator and mobile operators to address coverage “black spots” and deep rural coverage. This new paper explores some of the approaches being adopted.

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June 2020

The 6 GHZ opportunity for IMT

The deployment of 5G will bring large benefits for mobile services and users over the coming years. This report provides an analysis of the future spectrum need based on area traffic density demand over a 5-year timeframe from 2025 to 2030 with reference to the 5G target minimum performance requirements agreed by the ITU for IMT-2020. The report also supports stakeholders in assessing the most su....

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June 2020

5G and mmWave spectrum

In this paper, we consider regulatory approaches to the assignment of mmWave spectrum. The abundance of mmWave spectrum means that demand many not exceed supply and so an auction format may not be the appropriate approach. Regulators need to be flexible over their choice of award mechanism and less prescriptive or demanding in their choice of licence conditions.

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November 2019

Spectrum roadmaps and regulatory policy objectives

A spectrum roadmap can play a key part in realising the efficient use of spectrum and promoting investment and innovation. A spectrum roadmap is one of the most significant things a regulator can do to plan how best to allocate spectrum resources and reduce regulatory uncertainty.

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September 2019

Maximising coverage through spectrum awards

Many regulators are pursuing the goal of increasing mobile broadband coverage. The award of new spectrum offers regulators an opportunity to increase existing coverage levels. In this new paper, Graham Friend explores the key challenges associated with this strategy.

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May 2019

Sustainable spectrum pricing

Whether or not a 5G business case is workable depends in no small part on how much operators have to pay for spectrum licences. 5G requires more spectrum but generates little or no incremental revenue. Regulators need to assess the sustainability of spectrum licence fees by calculating how large the annualised cost of spectrum is in proportion to mobile operator revenue. The methodology is easy to....

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March 2019

Avoiding spectrum auction failure

Stefan Zehle's presentation to the Asia Pacific Spectrum Management Conference identifies the key causes of spectrum auction failure and how to avoid them.

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January 2019

Learning from best practice in Tanzania

The Tanzania telecommuncations regulator recently concluded a successful spectrum auction which reflected all the key elements of best practice. Coleago advised TCRA and in this paper, we highlight the key factors that contributed to the success of the auction.

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October 2018

Regulatory levers to stimulate investment in LTE and 5G

5G has captured the imagination of policy makers but there is a gap between the political rhetoric and telecoms regulatory action to achieve mobile broadband and 5G policy objectives. With mobile operators and equipment vendors sounding cautious about the business case for 5G, a change in government policy is needed to stimulate investment.

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September 2018

Spectrum auction failure for Bangladesh – Lessons for Thailand

The outcome of the recent spectrum auction in Bangladesh was disappointing with high reserve prices resulting in low demand and even lower auction receipts. In Thailand, reserve prices for the forthcoming auction have also been set unrealistically high. Could we see another failed auction result just around the corner?

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April 2018

Regulatory competition to support 5G

NRAs are in competition with each other to attract international investment and need to take a strategic and flexible approach to regulation in an era of rapid telecommunications change.

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April 2018

5G regulatory policy and assignment strategies

The introduction of 5G will require a fundamental reassessment of spectrum management best practice as the economics of the wireless industry are fundamentally changed.

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