In buyer’s market, spectrum auction may see minimal competition, focus on best value: Analyst

Spectrum auction in India has turned into a buyer’s market, and may see “minimal competition” with operators going after airwaves that yield best value for money instead of focusing on renewing all expiring spectrum, BNP Paribas said on Thursday. With countdown now on for spectrum auctions where bidding is slated to begin on March 1. ICICI Securities said it expects the final prices across spectrums to be equal to the reserve prices due to significant supply of radiowaves, and likely limited demand for expiring spectrums.

While Credit Suisse expected “limited participation”, BNP Paribas was of the view that spectrum auction in India has turned into a buyer’s market and may see “minimal competition” with operators picking up spectrum that provides best value for money instead of focusing on renewing all their expiring spectrum. The price of 700 MHz spectrum remains expensive and is unlikely to receive much response in the coming auctions, concurred most industry analysts. Operators are likely to skip 700 MHz band again, BNP Paribas said in its report.