Telecoms regulator draws up new ‘hybrid approach’ for city’s mobile spectrum reassignment

The Hong Kong government has tweaked its plan to reassign a large batch of the city’s mobile frequency spectrum, as it launched on Tuesday a second round of public consultation on the proposed arrangements.

The announcement by industry regulator the Communications Authority (CA) and the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Gregory So Kam-leung, has come amid calls for the government’s release of fresh spectrum to support the city’s 5G preparations and the adoption of spectrum trading between telecommunications network operators.

Based on the 325 submissions received in the first round of public consultation from February 3 to May 18 last year, as well as the findings of a consultancy study, the government has drawn up a “hybrid approach”, which combines the administrative assignment and auction of 200 megahertz of frequency spectrum in the 900MHz and 1800MHz bands, the deputy director-general of the Office of the Communications Authority, Chaucer Leung, said in a media briefing on Tuesday.

The licensed frequency spectrum on those two bands account for 36 per cent of the total 552MHz of spectrum currently assigned for use in mobile communications services, according to the CA.

It estimated that there are 50 megahertz of spectrum in the 900MHz band and 150 megahertz in the 1800MHz band.

The existing network operator assignments for those bands are due to expire between November 2020 and September 2021, it said.