Mexican 3G auction could bring in $1.5B, depending on bidders' moods
By Chris Ziegler 
posted Jun 2nd 2009 7:17PM
posted Jun 2nd 2009 7:17PM
Mexico's prepping for a big auction of purpose-built 3G spectrum in the 1700 and 1900MHz bands toward the end of the year, and at least one big-time investment group, Banamex, believes that could net as much as $1.5 billion for the government when everything's said and done. The estimate actually runs from $1 billion to $1.5 billion depending on the number of bidders that ultimately decide to participate and which side of the bed they woke up on that morning, but any way you slice it, it's a nice chunk of change (for comparison's sake, Canada's AWS auction brought in CAD $4.2 billion -- about $3.86 billion). Telcel, Telefonica, and NII are all said to be virtual locks to place bids, while Mexico's number-three operator -- Iusacell -- may sit this one out considering its less-than-stellar financial situation and a stash of spare spectrum that it already has at its disposal. Before you start any wild rumors that a foreign company might swoop in and shake things up, be warned -- Banamex says that's highly unlikely considering failed attempts to bust into the Mexican market by Verizon, Voda, and France Telecom in the past.
Why would Mexico invest in a 3G network, now?
When the US invests on a 4G build out, do they sell their 3G leftovers / refurbs at a discount to other countries?
They have a 3G network already, only that its on the 850mhz frequency and its owned by Telcel.
They will launch a 4G network 3-5 years after the US launches their own and use the same LTE frequency as Rogers AT&T
i'm sure the mexican govt could use the money, just like any other govt would love to see it. but i would probably say holding out for another 8-12 months may be a better bet, especially as these telecomm companies improve their books as the global recession cools off.
band II and IV can be used for 3G and LTE
it's not bad for long-term investment
hopefully telefonica gets it! they really need to compete with telcel
What's not being discussed on this forum is the potential to get low-cost broadband out to areas where building landbased internet networks may not be as economical as expanding wireless capacity... this may be the first step to getting more people in rural areas online :)
so you people can know Mexico could be one of the best places to invest money in, I know people who have become rich by investing the money in that country and by rich Im telling you private planes, luxurious vacations all the time.....fancy clothes... and the list goes on and on
Rich by exploiting the country and being a monopoly...sorry but if I ever invest in Mexico I wont be rich because I won't run a monopoly and exploit its citizens :)