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| In an auction in November 2008, the Turkish Telecommunications Authority awarded three of a potential four 3G licenses to the three existing mobile operators: Turkcell, Vodafone and Avea. The licenses will last 20 years and generated a total of €822m (US$1,220.7m) for the Turkish government. Turkcell’s bid came in highest, at €358m ($531.6m). Both Vodafone and Avea offered €250m ($371.3m) for the second-largest license, and both operators declined to increase their bids. The Information Technologies and Communication Board granted the license to Vodafone following a draw between the two rivals. Avea, which is owned by fixed-line incumbent Turk Telekom, subsequently won the third license with a bid of €214m ($317.8m). There were no other bidders, so the fourth license was cancelled. It may be sold in the future, or the extra spectrum distributed among the current players. Now that Turkey’s 3G licenses have been awarded at last, we expect the operators to use mobile broadband as their main tool for increasing their market share and data revenue. |
