By Manny Pham
French regulator Arcep awarded 5G spectrum to operators in French Guiana, Saint‑Barthélemy and Saint‑Martin, paving the way for next-generation connectivity on the islands.
In a statement, Arcep revealed Digicel AFG, Free Caraibe, Orange Caraibe and Outremer Telecom were awarded spectrum in the 700MHz and 3.4GHz – 3.8GHz bands in Guiana.
All four are also now eligible to participate at auction for the remaining blocks of 5 MHz (paired) of spectrum in the 700MHz band, and for the assignment of the 3.4 – 3.8 GHz band.
Saint-Barthelemy and Saint-Martin
In Saint-Barthelemy and Saint-Martin, Dauphin Telecom, Digicel AFG, Free Caraibe and Orange Caraibe bagged spectrum in the same frequencies, and are eligible to auction the paired 5MHz in the 700MHz band.
Free Caraïbe and Orange Caraïbe also wrapped up 4.8MHz (paired) in the 900MHz band in Saint-Barthélemy; and a block of 5 MHz (paired) of spectrum in the 2.1 GHz band.
The four operators are now authorised to participate in the auction stage for the assignment of the remaining 10MHz of spectrum in the 3.4GHz – 3.8GHz band, and for the assignment of the 700 MHz band in Saint-Barthelemy and in Saint-Martin.
Free Caraibe and Orange Caraibe are also eligible to participate in the main auction for the 4.8 MHz pair of duplex frequencies in the 900 MHz band, and the assignment of the 5MHz pair of duplex frequencies in the 2.1 GHz band in Saint-Barthelemy.
