Traficom completes its auction of mmWave 5G spectrum in Finland

By Dan Oliver
published

Despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Finland has pushed ahead with its 5G frequency auctions.

(Image credit: Ministry of Transport and Communications)

Traficom, the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency, has today concluded (opens in new tab) the auction of three mmWave 5G frequencies in the 26 GHz spectrum, in the second round of its 5G frequency auctions.

The frequencies of 25.1–27.5 GHz were auctioned for national use in mainland Finland, as three separate 800MHz frequency bands. And the starting price was €7 million per band. 

“It is important for Finland’s competitiveness that we aim for a place in the vanguard of communications networks,” said Finnish Minister of Transport and Communications, Timo Harakka. “Over the past 18 months, 5G networks have been made available in 30 cities and municipalities in Finland. This spring, well-functioning connections have proved even more valuable than anticipated. And these auctions enable the construction on high-capacity and high-speed wireless connections.”

The winning bidders

The participants in the auction were Elisa Corporation, Telia Finland Plc and DNA Plc, and all submitted winning bids at the starting price of €7m for the construction of the 5G networks, generating €21m in revenue to the state. 

For the three 800 MHz frequency bands in the auction, which are valid until 31 December 2033, the winning bids were:

Frequency band 25.1–25.9 GHz
Elisa Corporation
Winning bid: €7 million

Frequency band 25.9–26.7 GHz
Telia Finland Plc
Winning bid: €7 million 

Frequency band 26.7–27.5 GHz
DNA Plc
Winning bid: €7 million

The lower part of the spectrum, 24.25–25.1 GHz, which is the frequency band of 850 Mhz, was excluded from the auction. This spectrum will be reserved for the construction of local networks, which will be used predominantly for industrial 5G use cases.

The Finnish government has been proactive in granting licences, and in 2018 the 3.5 GHz frequency went ahead, with the construction of the first Finnish 5G networks taking place at the start of 2019. 


Dan Oliver
Dan Oliver

Dan is a British journalist with 20 years of experience in the design and tech sectors, producing content for the likes of Microsoft, Adobe, Dell and The Sunday Times. In 2012 he helped launch the world's number one design blog, Creative Bloq (opens in new tab). Dan is now editor-in-chief at 5Gradar, where he oversees news, insight and reviews, providing an invaluable resource for anyone looking to stay up-to-date with the key issues facing 5G.