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Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Ofcom announces plans for 4G UK spectrum auction next year

Ofcom has announced plans to auction radio spectrum that’ll be used for 4G LTE and WiMAX mobile phone services in the UK. It’ll be auctioning two spectrum bands; the old analogue TV bandwidth at 800 MHz, along with a higher-frequency band at 2.6 GHz. Together, these bands are equivalent to three-quarters of the mobile spectrum in use today - and are 80% more than the 3G auction that took place in 2000.

Fourth generation ‘4G’ services are expected to provide additional network capacity and faster mobile broadband speeds.

The auction includes a number of measures that are designed to widen mobile broadband coverage. It plans to set limits on the minimum and maximum amounts of spectrum that bidders can win, with these minimum limits also designed to ensure at least four national wholesalers are awarded 4G frequencies. In addition, one of the 800 MHz licences will include an obligation to deliver 95% UK population coverage by the end of 2017.

Ed Richards, Ofcom Chief Executive, said “The auction is not only critical to the future of the UK mobile telecommunications market but it is also of significant importance to the wider economy. It will support a wide range of data services that are fast becoming essential features of the modern world. Our role as the independent regulator is to award this spectrum in a way that secures the best use of the spectrum for the benefit of citizens and consumers in the UK. That is why we are proposing to design the auction in a way that not only encourages investment but also promotes competition and delivers wide coverage of services.”

Ofcom hopes to start the auction in the first quarter of 2012. It’s launched a consultation on its plans and is asking for responses by 31st May 2011.

[Consultation]

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Opinion Articles

India caps mobile text messages

Anjana Pasricha from voanews.com writes:

India’s millions of mobile phone subscribers have won relief from a growing nuisance on the subcontinent - unsolicited text messages. The crackdown by regulators targets the world’s fastest-growing mobile phone market.

From remote villages to crowded metros, the number of mobile phones in India has grown exponentially to more than 850 million in just over a decade.

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Last week at The Fonecast: 3rd October 2011

Mark Bridge writes:

It’s time for my summary of last week’s mobile industry news… and what a week it’s been. Not just for me – I made my first-ever visit to Over The Air on Friday – but for the world of mobile devices.

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I'm no developer - but I still fell in love with Over The Air

Mark Bridge writes:

The text message just said "Yellow Citroën hatchback".  At least the diaeresis on the ë was in the right place. It meant the stranger who was giving me a lift from the station was probably an urbane French speaker. Either that, or they had surprisingly good predictive text on their phone. The third possibility - a serial killer with an old Sagem - hadn't crossed my mind yet.

It was at this point I realised I'd already fallen for Over The Air, a unique event aimed at mobile developers. Throwing caution to the wind, I'd arranged a lift there via Twitter with a mysterious developer I'd never met. Or spoken to.

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The Amazon Android tablet and the Apple iPhone 5

Mark Bridge writes:

I’m not a big fan of reporting on rumours - I’d rather wait until the real thing happens - but I thought these two stories were too big and too well-defined to ignore completely.

Firstly, it looks as though Amazon will be announcing an Android-powered tablet tomorrow. Called the Kindle Fire, it probably won’t be a direct replacement for the Kindle e-book reader but an alternative. Most commentators suggest we should expect a 7-inch colour screen, a focus on cloud-based services and a pretty heavily customised version of Android.

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Are smartphones endangering security?

Ian Kilpatrick, chairman of IP security specialists Wick Hill Group, writes:

Smartphones are spreading throughout the business world. Their use is growing across organisations and at all levels.

According to Gartner, sales of mobile devices in the second quarter of 2011 grew 16.5% year-on-year. Smartphone sales grew 74% year-on-year and accounted for 25% of overall sales in the second quarter of 2011, up from 17% in the second quarter of 2010.

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