Spectrum > Spectrum Awards Homepage > Completed awards > 10 GHz, 28 GHz, 32 GHz and 40 GHz Award > Q&As

Question: I read in an initial consultation that the minimum bid is set to £50K for any lot. In all of the auction documents, the minimum bid seems to be £10K, £20K, £30K and so on depending on the lot involved. Could you confirm that there is no minimum bid of £50K.

Answer: The original consultation document ‘Award of available spectrum; 10 GHz, 28 GHz, 32 GHz and 40 GHz’ published on 29 June 2006 proposed a minimum bid price of £50,000 for each licence. However, these proposals were subsequently amended. The round price in the first primary bid round for each lot is set out in Schedule 6 of the Wireless Telegraphy (Licence Award) (No.2) Regulations 2007 (“the Regulations”) and is as follows:

Column (1) Description of lot	Column (2) Price in the first primary bid round
National 10 GHz lot	£10,000
National 28 GHz lot	£60,000
First sub-national 28 GHz lot	£20,000
Second sub-national 28 GHz lot	£10,000
Third sub-national 28 GHz lot	£30,000
National 32 GHz lot	£60,000
National 40 GHz lot	£30,000

 

The lots for which a bidder may bid in the first primary bid round (and subsequent primary bid rounds) are determined by the bidder’s eligibility limit (please see regulation 15(7), 20 and 21 of the Regulations).

Please also note regulation 15(5), which provides that where a bidder wishes to include 10GHz lots in its selection of lots, it must include at least 2 such lots (i.e. you cannot bid for only one 10GHz lot).

Question: Can you confirm that you can switch between bands in successive primary bidding rounds as long as you have the correct number of eligibility points? For example, if you haven’t bid for 10GHz in previous rounds but have enough eligibility points, can you switch to 10GHz?

Question: Can we bid for a lot in the second round that we did not bid for in the preliminary round (provided we have enough credits)?

Answer: The eligibility limit rule set out in regulation 15(7) of the Wireless Telegraphy (Licence Award) (No.2) Regulations 2007 does not oblige a bidder to bid for the same selection of lots, or for lots in the same bands, in successive primary bid rounds. The bidder can choose any selection of lots, specifying lots in any of the bands, so long as it observes the eligibility limit rule (regulation 15(7)).

Question: Is there an upper limit to the number of lots a single bidder can bid for?

Answer: A bidder cannot bid for more than the total number of available lots in each band (see regulation 14(4) of the Regulations. The number of lots bid for in primary bids is also limited by the rule that the number of eligibility points associated with a bidder’s selection of lots cannot exceed the bidder’s eligibility limit (regulation 15(7)). A bidder’s eligibility limit cannot exceed 42 (see regulation 21). A bidder’s eligibility limit for the first primary bid round depends on the amount that the bidder has on deposit with Ofcom (see regulation 21). For subsequent primary bid round, a bidder’s eligibility limit is determined by the number of eligibility points associated with the bidder’s primary bid in the previous round (regulation 22).

In the event that there is only one bidder in the 10, 28, 32 and 40 GHz award process then the total amount of the prices indicated on the completed paired frequency range selection menu must not exceed £420,000 (please see regulation 11(2) of the Regulations).

Question: Will the date of the first primary bid round of the 10 GHz to 40 GHz auction be scheduled to avoid the half term break in the week beginning 11 February?

Answer: We have not yet set the date of the first primary bid round. We do not plan to delay the date to avoid the half term break.

Question: Question 6a of the Application Information Form in Schedule 2 to the Wireless Telegraphy (Licence Award) (No 2) Regulations 2007 asks for a brief description of agreements (if any) relating to the management of the applicant. What type of agreements does it refer to?

Answer: The purpose of question 6a of the Application Information Form in Schedule 2 to the Wireless Telegraphy (Licence Award) (No 2) Regulations 2007 is to obtain information that will assist Ofcom in determining under regulation 7(1) of the Wireless Telegraphy (Licence award) (No.2) Regulations 2007 whether an applicant is qualified to bid in the award process. In order to do this, Ofcom needs to know the identity of all of the members of the applicant’s bidder group, including any ‘associates’ (meaning someone with a ‘material interest’ in the bidder group as defined in regulation 2(1)). Agreements relating to the management of the applicant could include shareholders agreements, and could also include (for example) agreements reserving decisions about particular matters to specific persons.

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