Convergencia Research, Consultoría especializada en Latinoamérica y Caribe
Monday, August 03, 2020

Chilean government launches 5G tender and plans investments of US$3 billion

President Sebastián Piñera announced the start of the process during his Public Accountability speech: he stressed that Chile will be a pioneer in the region and that it will take a great leap forward in the full integration of the country into the digital society. Applications for the four parallel tenders will be received until October 19.

Last Friday the Chilean president addressed the country in the accountability of his government in the last year, and announced that on Saturday, August 1, Chile would start the process to incorporate 5G technology. In his Public Accountability Piñera stressed that Chile will be a pioneer in the region and that it will take a great leap forward in the full integration of the country into the digital society. The president explained that this process will mean an estimated investment of US$3 billion in the next 5 years. This time, the promise was fulfilled and as stated by the president, on Saturday the call for four public tenders for the awarding of telecommunications service licenses that operate high-speed wireless networks was published in the Official Gazette. The government also followed through on a promise to launch the tender after the Supreme Court's ruling on spectrum limits.

According to the call, there will be four tenders in parallel: the first one, to award a license that installs, operates and exploits an Advanced Pro, 5G or higher LTE wireless network in the 703-713 MHz and 758-768 MHz bands; the second, for 1,755-1,770 and 2,155-2,170 MHz; the third, for 3.3–3.4 GHz and 3.6–3.65 Ghz; and the fourth, for 25.90–27.50 GHz.

The specifications of each of the tenders, which are independent from each other, will be available from August 17 on the website of the Undersecretariat of Telecommunications. As from the following day until September 7, the consultation and clarification period will be extended, whose answers will be known on September 28. Applications will be received until October 19. The Undersecretary of Telecommunications, Pamela Gidi, indicated that the award would take place by the middle of next year.

Some operators reacted quickly through their representatives. Claro's Legal and Regulatory Director, Cristián Salgado, held the call for bids and said they are waiting to know the specifications. Movistar's director of regulation and public affairs, Fernando Saiz, said they hope to have the necessary spectrum and that the bidding process complies with both the new spectrum caps and the other provisions of the Supreme Court ruling. Saiz warned of the need to guarantee legal certainty to the participants so that all companies can simultaneously start offering future 5G technology. Movistar representative also called to privilege and incentivize the deployment of fiber optics, which will be the base structure for 5G.

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