5G Spectrum auction: Bidding enters sixth day; collects around Rs 1.50 lakh crore so far

The auction of the 5G spectrum, capable of offering ultra-high-speed internet, entered the sixth day of bidding on Sunday after receiving bids worth 1,49,966 crore in the first five days from players like Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel.

The bidding resumed on Sunday morning with the 31st round, and the subsequent round is currently underway, sources said.

The pitched battle in Uttar Pradesh East circle  where demand for 1800 MHz had peaked since Wednesday - seems to be cooling off now, indicating that the auctions may be entering the final leg, according to industry sources.

That said, much would depend on how the bidding progresses through the day, they added.

As of Saturday, the total value of bids in the telecom spectrum auction had come within the striking distance of the Rs 1.50 lakh crore mark.

The minister observed that the auction and its "good response" underlines the industry's maturity.

Billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Jio, Sunil Mittal-led Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea and a unit of billionaire Gautam Adani's flagship Adani Enterprises are in the race to bid for the 5G spectrum, which offers speeds about 10 times faster than 4G, lag-free connectivity and can enable billions of connected devices to share data in real-time.

Besides powering ultra-low latency connections, which allow downloading full-length high-quality video or movie to a mobile device in a matter of seconds (even in crowded areas), the Fifth Generation or 5G would enable solutions such as e-health, connected vehicles, more-immersive augmented reality and metaverse experiences, life-saving use cases, and advanced mobile cloud gaming, among others.

The reserve price fixed for spectrum is a "fair number" and the same is visible from the auction outcome, the minister had asserted.