India's 5G Spectrum Auction 2022: Everything you need to know
India's 5G auction starts today, i.e. July 26, 2022, for the country's first 5G spectrum ahead of a planned launch in 2023.
5G refers to the fifth generation of high-speed mobile internet, promising super-fast download speeds that can support technologies like self-driving cars, education, healthcare, smartdevices and virtual reality.
Four players are participating in the auction: Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Idea and a unit of billionaire Gautam Adani's flagship Adani companies.
5G Bidders Earnest Money (in INR)
Reliance Jio - 140 billion
Bharti Airtel - 55 billion
Vodafone Idea - 22 billion
Adani Data Networks - 1 billion
In total, the four bidders have put up $2.7 billion (218 billion Indian rupees) in collateral, the mandatory sum required to confirm a contract.
The DoT expects between Rs 70,000 crore and Rs 1 lakh crore from the auctions.
A total of 72 gigahertz of 5G spectrum will be on the block, to which the winning bids will retain the rights for 20 years.
According to an Ericsson report, the number of 5G subscribers in India is expected to rise to 500 million by 2027.