Telstra reaches for regional Australia with 700MHz spectrum
Telstra has hit speeds of 235 Mbps in a test of 4G mobile broadband using 700MHz spectrum in Perth.
Telstra has hit speeds of 235 Mbps in a test of 4G mobile broadband using 700MHz spectrum in Perth.
Telstra and Huawei have announced they will launch the world’s first LTE Category 6 mobile broadband device in Australia.
The government and mobile industry have supported an overhaul of Australian spectrum regulations to keep up with the rapid pace of technology.
The Coalition victory in the federal election could bode well for Australian police seeking a portion of the 700MHz spectrum that went unsold in the Digital Dividend auction.
The Police Federation of Australia believes the departure of communications minister Stephen Conroy bodes well for the police union’s effort to snag 20MHz of the unsold spectrum in the 700MHz band, said Police Federation CEO, Mark Burgess.
A skirmish has broken out between Australian police and the mobile industry over who should have mobile spectrum in the 700MHz band that went unsold in the recent Digital Dividend auction.
The chairman of the Australian Communications and Media Authority has said his agency’s “door remains open” after the Police Federation slammed the agency for its handling of wireless spectrum dedicated to public safety agencies.
Even if the price for spectrum in the 700MHz band had been set lower, Optus may still not have bought more than 10MHz of the 45MHz that was available in the Digital Dividend auction, according to Optus chief country officer, Kevin Russell.
Broadcasters and the mobile industry had different takeaways about the level of demand for spectrum in Australia after the government failed to sell all of the 700MHz spectrum in the Digital Dividend auction.
Malcolm Turnbull has slammed the Labor government for not raising more money in the Digital Dividend auction.
Analysts have pointed to TPG’s bid for wireless spectrum as one of the most interesting developments in the Digital Dividend auction.
The government failed to sell one-third of the 700MHz spectrum—worth $1 billion—that was up for sale in the Digital Dividend auction. Total revenue for the auction made from 700MHz and 2.5GHz spectrum was $1.96 billion, below the government's expectations.
The Australian government seeks to deliver more spectrum to the mobile industry with the Digital Dividend auction opening today, according to Andrew Kerans, executive manager for spectrum planning at the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA).
A portion of the waterfront 700MHz spectrum in Tuesday’s Digital Dividend auction could go unsold despite aggressive bidding expected from Telstra, according to mobile industry analysts.
Bidding in next week’s Digital Dividend auction is crucial for Telstra and SingTel Optus to stay competitive even though it is likely to negatively impact their credit ratings, according to a financial analyst at Moody’s.