| NOTAS: | "As mobile technologies advance and demand for mobile data traffic increases, national regulatory authorities (NRAs) have acted to liberalize certain spectrum bands from previous technological restrictions. This “refarming” of spectrum has proved a popular choice in the 900MHz and 1800MHz frequencies, which were mostly awarded to operators for 2G services. Many regulators have updated the conditions of the licenses to accommodate the principle of technological neutrality, which removes restrictions on spectrum use and allows operators to deploy other technologies in these bands. This is a positive move, a market-based management mechanism that lets the users of radio spectrum decide its real economic value and the best way to use it. Several mobile network operators (MNOs) have taken advantage of this decision to deploy 3G services; this approach can deliver cost savings as fewer base stations are needed, and it also improves 3G coverage. On occasion, refarming has also helped operators to steal a march on the competition by rolling out 4G ahead of their rivals. This report provides an overview of how regulators have liberalized these bands and the issues they encountered in doing so." |
