Mexico's Telcel cleared to use spectrum in 2.5GHz band

Mexican telecom regulator IFT authorized América Móvil subsidiary Telcel to indirectly acquire the right to use 60MHz of spectrum in the 2.5GHz band from media group MVS.

Now that the IFT green-lighted the agreement Telcel and MVS signed last November, América Móvil's company will cover 75.4% of Mexico's population across 1,759 localities.

The acquisition is expected to occur in the second quarter of this year, said América Móvil in a statement.

The IFT underscored that even though Telcel will use the spectrum in question, it is not the concessionaire. In this sense, the transaction does not entail a restructuring of spectrum ownership in the 2.5GHz band. Nonetheless, Telcel's participation in spectrum bands used to provide mobile services will change from 22.2% to 29.8%.

In terms of spectrum ownership, Telcel has 41% of the assigned spectrum, US telco AT&T has 38%, and Spanish operator Telefónica 20%.

The regulator also said tenders for 120MHz of spectrum in the 2.5GHz band and 10MHz in the AWS band will take place in the next two years. This could mean a delay to previously announced plans to tender the 2.5GHz band in the third quarter of this year.