Singapore regulators are poised to do what the Federal Communications Commission is reluctant to do in the U.S. In order to entice a fourth mobile operator to enter the market, Singapore’s Infocomm Development Authority is proposing to lower the reserve price for a new carrier in the country’s 2016 spectrum auction to around $30 million.
This is something similar to what T-Mobile US, Sprint and a handful of other smaller carriers tried to convince the FCC to do in the U.S to increase competition with AT&T Mobility and Verizon Wireless. FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler recommended they turn down the proposal.
The IDA made the recommendation in an effort to “enhance the vibrancy of the mobile and wireless landscape in Singapore.” In the proposed allocation exercise, the ICT regulator wants to set aside 60 megahertz out of the total 225 total megahertz at the $30 million price tag for a new carrier.
“A new entrant is likely to bring about a wider variety of innovative services and more competitive offerings to the benefit of end-users,” the IDA said in a press release.
The organization points to examples in other countries to back their claims observing, “Markets such as France and Spain experienced competitive mobile price plans and the introduction of new service offerings following the entry of a new mobile player.”
The proposed 225 megahertz of spectrum that will be available for mobile services will also include the 700 MHz, 900 MHz, 2.3 GHz and 2.5 GHz bands, which will be freed up after the country switches from analog TV to digital.
The auction price for the 700 MHz and 900 MHz bands will be set at $20 million per 5 megahertz pairing. The 2.3 GHz and 2.5 GHz bands are priced at $5 million per 5 megahertz spectrum chunk.
In the U.S., Wheeler said of his recommendation, “No single party will be happy with everything we’ve done, but the final product is a balanced solution to a challenging situation with more moving parts than a Swiss watch.”
The FCC initially released auction rules last year that would set aside no more than 30 megahertz of spectrum in each market that would only be available to bidders currently controlling less than one-third of spectrum in those markets below the 1 GHz level.
The IDA did say it believes four major infrastructure players in Singapore’s mobile market is all the market can handle.
The Infocomm Development Authority is an organization designed to support the growth of innovative technology companies and startups in Singapore.
