MANAMA: The Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) has granted additional frequency licences to mobile operators in the 800 and 2600 MHz bands to meet the increasing demand for mobile services in Bahrain.
Transportation and Telecommunications Minister Kamal Ahmed said that the move is in line with the fourth National Telecommunications Plan and coincides with the changing pattern of consumer use of mobile services.
According to the minister, data consumption rates have grown steadily over the past years as demand for data services, especially social networking applications, has increased, requiring additional frequencies to meet the needs and expectations of consumers.
TRA has contracted with a specialised consulting company to find out the best mechanisms for granting frequency licences to operators in line with the characteristics of the telecommunications sector in Bahrain in addition to adopting the best international practices in this regard.
TRA has published two consultation documents which examined the views of operators and manufacturers on the most appropriate mechanism for granting frequency licences, including the proposed prices for the frequencies introduced. After extensive consultation, frequency allocation was made through the administrative granting process of most frequencies (180 MHz out of 200 MHz) and by bidding on the remaining 20 MHz.
“The process was part of requirements of the fourth National Telecommunications Plan to provide additional frequencies to mobile operators to ensure optimal use of this national resource,” Mr Ahmed said.
“We look forward to operators’ continued efforts to develop mobile networks and services which will promote Bahrain’s leading position in the telecommunications sector regionally and internationally.
“We value fruitful efforts of TRA and the Spectrum Strategy and Co-ordination Committee that have led to the successful granting of frequencies,” he added.
TRA acting director general Shaikh Nasser bin Mohammed Al Khalifa said, “The demand of operators to obtain all frequencies available to them reflects the appropriate granting mechanism that has been adopted to meet the spectrum needs of the operators.
“We expect that the availability of additional frequencies to operators will have a positive impact on the quality of services available and the sustainability of competition for the benefit of consumers. The total revenues from this process exceeded BD15 million.”
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