Two spectrum auctions planned by the regulator Ofcom have been delayed after pressure from broadcasters and telecoms companies.
The timetable for the sell-off of spectrum gained as part of the so-called digital dividend has been delayed, a move that will be greeted as a partial success by HDforAll, the consortium of broadcasting and manufacturing interests that is seeking gifted capacity for high definition on the UHF band.
In their response to Ofcom’s earlier consultation, the public service broadcasters said the regulator should differentiate between the various uses of the spectrum, particularly where other bands could be used. For their part the mobile phone companies said the view taken on some of their technologies was pessimistic. Ofcom described some of the views as being ‘sectoral’.
An auction for the capacity that was to have taken place during the summer will now not take place until the autumn.
The separate sell-off of the 3G ‘expansion band’ – that will give operators more capacity than the original release – has also been delayed until early next year.