AT&T, Telefonica bids win Mexican spectrum auction

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Bids by telecommunications firms AT&T and Telefonica won 120 MHz of radioelectric spectrum in the 2500-2690 MHz frequency band that can be used for wireless services, Mexico’s telecommunications regulator, IFT said . The auction had drawn strong interest from operators because it is well-suited for broadband, 5g mobile networks and the so-called Internet of Things. The companies “will have the 2.5 GHz spectrum, which will be used for broadband mobile services. Said spectrum will allow operators to offer better quality to the domestic telecommunications market,” said the IFT. AT&T will pay 1.4 billion pesos ($75.6 million) and Telefonica 700 million pesos ($37.8 million) in total for their respective winning bids, the IFT added. “Telefonica has achieved its goal, obtaining the spectrum it needed to address the foreseeable increase in the demand for mobile data,” the company said in a statement.