Application invitation: Director-General of Telecommunications Marion Lai invites applications to bid for the radio spectrum for the provision of CDMA2000 mobile services.

The Office of the Telecommunications Authority has invited applications to bid for the radio spectrum for the provision of CDMA2000 mobile services.

The auction will be held in late October or early November. The licensee will have a year's lead time to commission its network before launching CDMA2000 services from November 20, 2008.

Director-General of Telecommunications Marion Lai today said the move will facilitate overseas and Mainland visitors and business travellers to continue to use CDMA2000 services while in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong consumers will also benefit by having a new choice of third generation mobile services and can enjoy roaming services in countries offering CDMA2000 services without changing handsets.

Licence details

The authority has published an information memorandum which lists the auction rules, the minimum Spectrum Utilisation Fee (i.e. the reserve price, the terms and conditions of the licence) and other elements of the regulatory framework.

One licence will be issued and the 7.5 MHz x 2 bandwidth in the 850 MHz radio spectrum will be assigned to the licensee. The use of the spectrum will be subject to a one-off lump sum payment to be determined in the auction exercise.

The Government has set the reserve price at $76 million. The multiple round ascending auction will be held with a high level of confidentiality so the identity of the bidders and their bids in each round will not be disclosed.

New entrants and existing licensees can participate on their own or co-operate with others. The co-operation can be in the form of a joint venture or other types of agreements.