Despite vigorous competition between Ireland's MNOs in the
2012 Multi-Band Spectrum Auction
("MBSA"), three blocks of 1800 MHz
spectrum remained unassigned. Applications for the unassigned
spectrum were due by 13 December 2013. The winner(s) were expected
to be announced by 3 January 2014, with the relevant blocks
available for use by 1 February 2014.
Although this might have seemed like a golden opportunity for
those that lost out in the MBSA, the three lots of 2 x 5 MHz of
1800 MHz spectrum in question were only unassigned in the first
time slice (ie, 13 July 2013 – 12 July 2015). Hutchison
3G Ireland Limited ("Three") obtained
rights to these lots in the second time slice (ie, 13 July 2015
– 12 July 2030). Given that all MNOs obtained rights to
some 1800 MHz spectrum in time slice 1 and the fact that the rights
acquired will expire in just over a year, the precise value of such
lots to each of the MNOs was difficult to gauge; the reserve price
per lot was
