ARCHIVED—Auction of Additional PCS Spectrum in the 2 GHz Frequency Range Fact Sheet

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Auction ID 02
Auction Date January 15, 2001-February 1, 2001
Licences 62 licences for auction:
  • 4 licences in each of 14 Tier-2 Service Areas (Auction Label a,b,c,d)
  • 2 additional licences in Alberta 2-12 (Auction Label e & f)
  • 2 licences in a new service area 2-15 named QuebecTel Area (Auction Label f & g)
  • 2 licences in a new service area 2-16 named Telus - B.C. Area (Auction Label e & f)
Spectrum Block C1/C1' (Auction Label a): 1895-1900 MHz and 1975-1980 MHz bands
Block C2/C2' (Auction Label b): 1900-1905 MHz and 1980-1985 MHz bands
Block C3/C3' (Auction Label c): 1905-1910 MHz and 1985-1990 MHz bands
Block E/E' (Auction Label d): 1885-1890 MHz and 1965-1970 MHz bands
Block B2/B2' (Auction Label e): 1875-1880 MHz and 1955-1960 MHz bands
Block B3/B3' (Auction Label f): 1880-1885 MHz and 1960-1965 MHz bands
Block D/D' (Auction Label g): 1865-1870 MHz and 1945-1950 MHz bands
Bandwidth Licences for all blocks are 10 MHz each consisting of 5 + 5 MHz symmetrically-paired blocks
Number of Rounds 51
Number of
Bidding Days 		14
Qualified Bidders 7
Winning Bidders 5 bidders won 52 licences
10 licences are still held by Industry Canada
Total Winning Bids $1,481,920,000
Withdrawal and
Forfeiture Penalties 		None

Industry Canada is moving forward to make additional spectrum available so that Canadians can continue to have access to advanced mobile communications wherever and whenever they choose. The objective of this licensing process are to ensure the availability of adequate spectrum resources to meet the needs of the expanding PCS market and to enable the introduction of new offerings such as third-generation (3G) PCS.

The 40 MHz of additional spectrum consists of PCS spectrum blocks C/C' and E/E', which had been held in reserve in 1995. The additional 20 MHz in Alberta, parts of British Colombia and Quebec is spectrum that was returned to the Department as a result of TELUS Corporation's acquisition of Clearnet Communications Inc., placing the merged entity over the spectrum aggregation limit of 55 MHz.  The Department subsequently amended the spectrum authorizations held by TELUS and its affiliates to bring the entities into compliance with the spectrum aggregation limit. The amendment requires that the existing PCS spectrum block B/B' be subdivided into three equal blocks of 10 MHz (consisting of 5 + 5 MHz symmetrically-paired blocks).

*Note: The auction will normally close when a round concludes with: (a) no bids or withdrawals being submitted; and (b) no proactive waivers having been submitted. The auction will generally not close until stage three has been reached.