Mobile phone network operators in Nigeria, like their counterparts in other parts of the world, will not get 5G spectrum free. They would have to pay for it through an ‘auction’ which the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) says it would soon conduct.
Putting a price to the 5G spectrum by the NCC would key into global trends where virtually every country that is now deploying the technology had to auction the spectrum. In some cases, operators had to pay as much as $3.2 billion to get license for the deployment of the service.
The Director of Technical Standards and Network Integrity (DTSNI) at the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Bako Wakil made the disclosure while speaking on the benefits of 5G at the Social Media Week (SMW), held in Lagos today.
Wakil, Assistant Director, Spectrum Administration, Kenneth uzoekwe and Head, Online Media and Publication, Niyi Ibietan spoke on the benefits of Nigeria adopting 5G and fielded questions on the technology, from a large crowd who attended the NCC day at SMW.
“The 5G spectrum is not going to be free. It is going to be auctioned”, according to Wakil.
Though he did not say when the licensing would take place and the mode of awarding the license, Wakil said Nigeria has no option than to follow the global trend.
He said the spectrum for the 5g technology has been assigned to Nigeria at the recent world radio conference and only existing operators would be allowed to bid for the spectrum.
Wakil said the NCC is currently perfecting its acts and consulting with operators on how to begin commercial launch of 5G in Nigeria.
Recently, NCC and MTN successfully carried out trials of the 5G technology in Abuja, Lagos and Portharocurt.
“Every country is working to move to 5G; we cannot be left out from the 5G benefits”, Wakil said, adding that Nigeria is not late in efforts to adopt the 5G technology, as the NCC was doing all that is possible to ensure Nigeria keys into the global trend and the benefits that are available in 5G deployment.
Wakil allayed fears that 5G adoption could pose challenges to data protection, saying that NCC and the operators would ensure end-to-end encryption, follow data protection laws and provide firewalls for all 5G networks and systems.
