The National No. 5 Auction Partnership Company organized the auction on September 9 for three pairs of 900 MHz spectrum blocks. Each pair carried a starting price of over VND1.056 trillion ($41.7 million). All three participating major network operators successfully secured spectrum blocks.
Specifically, VNPT won the C3-C3’ spectrum block pair (900-905 MHz and 945-950 MHz) with a bid of nearly VND1.079 trillion ($43.7 million). Viettel secured the C4-C4’ block pair (905-910 MHz and 950-955 MHz), while Vietnamobile won the C5-C5’ block pair (910-915 MHz and 955-960 MHz), with both winning bids reaching nearly VND1.077 trillion ($41.6 million) each.
According to the Ministry of Science and Technology, the 900 MHz band represents a traditional mobile communications spectrum featuring four distinctive characteristics. The auction took place just ahead of Vietnam’s national 2G network sunset scheduled for September 15, a phase where the 900 MHz band was historically utilized to power legacy 2G mobile infrastructure.
This marks the first time Vietnam has auctioned a radio frequency spectrum band that has been actively exploited for many years. Previously auctioned spectrums included the 2.6 GHz and 3.7 GHz bands, which had never been licensed for mobile communications, alongside the 700 MHz band cleared from analog terrestrial television.
The auction applied a novel format by simultaneously bidding out all three paired spectrum blocks across two distinct phases: determining the quantity and selecting the specific positions of the winning blocks. This advanced mechanism allowed participating telecom enterprises to proactively engage in line with their operational needs and real-time market dynamics.
Ultimately, the successful allocation of the 900 MHz spectrum supplements essential frequency resources for International Mobile Telecommunications (IMT), providing a vital foundation for local operators to enhance service quality across 4G and 5G mobile networks nationwide.
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