France to Sell its 5G Spectrum for $2.4 Billion

A recent statement by France’s minister indicates that the country’s 5G spectrum is up for sale, with a massive floor price. The initial price will be 2.17 billion euros, which is around $2.4 billion. The amount comes as quite a surprise since earlier reports from the country’s telecoms regulator priced 5G significantly below this amount.

France's 5G spectrum to be sold at floor price of 2.17 billion euros: minister https://t.co/SZUnshy4jb pic.twitter.com/WrkGCvGRG3

— Reuters UK (@ReutersUK) November 24, 2019

5G Spectrum’s Sale Comes After Months of Negotiations

The regulator, known as Arcep, previously decided that the spectrum’s initial price should be at around EUR 1.5 billion. However, according to Arcep’s president, Sebastien Soriano, the country’s economy ministry has the final word on the 5G spectrum’s floor price. According to Agnès Pannier-Runacher, the Junior Economy Minister, the proposed price seems more than reasonable. The ministry has provided its recommendation, and now it is up to the government to ‘assume its responsibilities and decide. The sale of the 5G spectrum was expected for a long time, and the announcement finally came last Thursday. The announcement comes after months of negotiations between France’s authorities and its four major telecoms (Orange, Altice Europe’s SFR, Iliad, and Bouygues Telecoms) regarding the methods of 5G’s deployment.

Launching as Quickly as Possible

Telecoms and the government also had trouble reaching an agreement regarding the auction and the minimum price for the spectrum, according to unnamed sources. The authorities were seemingly focusing on finding the balance between raising enough money, but they also did not wish to put a major financial burden on the operators. This indicates that their goal was and is to launch the new technology as quickly as possible. There is no doubt that the 5G spectrum is an expensive technology, as proven by Italy and Germany already. These countries raised around 6.5 billion euros each. The amounts seen in their auctions were extremely surprising to French telecoms, which caused further concerns. What do you think about the floor price of the 5G spectrum? Are you excited about the launch of the new tech? Let us know in the comments below.

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