On the morning of March 19, at the Radio Frequency Department building, the notice board “Auction of radio frequency rights” was displayed. The auction of radio frequency rights for the C2 band (3700-3800 MHz) is scheduled to be held at 2:00 p.m. the same day.

The starting price for the 3700 MHz to 3800 MHz frequency block for 15 years of use is VND 1,956,892,500,000 (one thousand nine hundred and fifty-six billion, eight hundred and ninety-two million, five hundred thousand VND). Enterprises eligible to participate in this auction include: VNPT, MobiFone...

Any enterprise that wins the auction for the 3700-3800 MHz frequency band will have to deploy at least 30% of the number of radio transmission stations committed to deploy in the first 2 years.

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The signboard “Auction of radio frequency rights” at the Radio Frequency Department building. Photo: TK

Previously, on March 14, 2024, based on the results of receiving registration dossiers to participate in the auction and the results of collecting the deposit, National Joint Stock Auction Company No. 5 announced the list of enterprises that were not eligible to participate in the auction due to not paying the deposit for the C3 frequency block (3800-3900 MHz). Therefore, the auction of radio frequency usage rights for the 3800-3900 MHz frequency block was not held due to the lack of the minimum number of enterprises eligible to participate in the auction as prescribed.

When there are not enough enterprises participating in the auction, National Joint Stock Auction Company No. 5 will return the money for purchasing documents and deposit, no later than 2 working days from the expected date of the auction, to the enterprises that have purchased documents and submitted valid registration documents to participate in the auction.

Previously, on March 8, 2024, the B1 2500 - 2600 MHz frequency band auction was held, marking a new historical milestone for Vietnam when switching from allocation and selection to auction to obtain frequencies.

After 24 rounds of auction, Viettel was the winning bidder for the right to use the 2500MHz - 2600MHz frequency band, bidding up to VND7,500 billion for this band. Having won the B1 2500 - 2600 MHz band, Viettel will no longer have the right to participate in the next auction.

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By 2030, 5G will bring Vietnamese operators revenue of 1.5 billion USD. Photo: VNP

Currently, the 5G frequency band in the world is divided into 4 groups, including: low frequency band (under 1,000 MHz), mid-range band 1 (1,000 - 2,600 MHz) and mid-range band 2 (3,500 - 7,000 MHz), and finally high frequency band (24,000 - 48,000 MHz). Each frequency band has different advantages and disadvantages for network operators in the process of organizing investment in 5G technical systems and optimizing costs. Normally, the lower the frequency cost and investment cost, the network operator will be able to provide services at more attractive prices for customers.

According to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (USA), higher frequency bands will have larger bandwidth, stronger speed, lower latency and higher capacity than lower frequency bands.

According to the 2023 statistics of the GSA (Global Mobile Supplies Association), the number of 5G terminals supporting mid-band 2 (from 3,700 MHz) is currently equivalent to the number of devices supporting mid-band 1 (below 2,600 MHz). The deployment of 5G at 3700-3900 MHz by network operators in Vietnam will bring more choices for customers in terms of phones/terminals.

The Global System for Mobile Communications Association (GSMA) 2023 report shows that currently, mid-range band 2 (including the 3,700-3,900 Mhz band) is being used by 152 carriers, 8.4 times higher than the number of carriers using mid-range band 1 (2,600 MHz) with 18 businesses. This shows the popularity, trend and advantages of the 3,700-3,900 Mhz band in developing to 5G networks in the future.

Forecasts show that by 2030, 5G will bring Vietnamese operators $1.5 billion in revenue. By 2025, 5G is likely to contribute 7.3 - 7.4% to Vietnam's GDP growth.

According to a representative of VNPT, winning the 5G spectrum price is not enough to serve the needs of customers and people. In the past time, this enterprise has carefully and systematically prepared a strategy to develop an ecosystem of digital products and services to maximize the power of 5G.

VNPT will provide 5G services related to Cloud, IoT, AI, Machine Learning and Data Analytics in the industrial sector, providing IoT applications and diverse digital services to people. Not only that, the network operator also especially promotes improving the quality of service to each customer thanks to new products and services with better and more competitive prices along with attractive incentive programs... helping people access new technology easily and conveniently.

This is also the way VNPT has been promoting and effectively supporting the national digital transformation, turning Vietnam into a digital country with a strong digital economy, every citizen becomes a digital citizen, integrating with the general trend of the world.

MobiFone representative also confirmed that they will soon deploy 5G service after the spectrum auction. Currently, Vietnamobile is still "silent" about the 5G race.