Rival telcos’ deft moves in spectrum auction may compound Vodafone Idea’s woes: Report

NEW DELHI: The positioning of Vodafone Idea – which picked up modest 11.80 MHz spectrum – could potentially “worsen” as rival telcos will be able to boost their coverage and capacity after buying additional radiowaves in the just-concluded auctions, according to a report.

Vodafone Idea has acquired spectrum to cover minor gaps in five circles for Rs 1,993.4 crore, while Bharti Airtel shelled-out nearly Rs 18,700 crore for 355.45 MHz radiowaves and Reliance Jio a whopping Rs 57,123 crore for 488.35 MHz spectrum.

India’s first auction of telecom spectrum in five years ended on Tuesday with Rs 77,814.8 crore of airwaves being acquired by telcos and billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio spending the most.