At the frequency auction for the ultra-fast mobile Internet 5G three industry giants and newcomers have thrown their hat in the Ring. On Friday afternoon, the deadline for the companies from the delivery, to at the auction in the spring to participate.

There are four applications were received to participate in the auction, informed the Federal network Agency. The auction is to be held in the second half of March. In the case of the applicants is that of the three existing network operators German Telekom, Vodafone and Telefónica, as well as the emerging wireless services Discounter to 1&1-Drillisch, which has no own network.

In the course of February, the office will decide whether the companies approved for the auction in Mainz – this is regarded as a formality. The minimum bids for the 41 frequency blocks are located between 1.7 and 5 million euros, all the minimum bids together, the 104 million Euro would be taken. The actual revenue is likely to be in view of the importance of the 5G several times higher. It is estimated that five billion euros could be flushed into the state’s coffers.

The abbreviation ” 5G ” stands for the 5. Mobile radio generation. The Transmission is about 100 Times faster than the currently widely used Standard 4G LTE. For private customers, 5G shouldn’t be too important, because for most of the mobile applications on your Smartphone or Tablet, 4G is enough. For the industry, 5G, however, of Central importance, such as for self-driving cars, or for tele-medicine. “With the participation in the auction, we continue to pursue our goal to be the best mobile coverage for consumers and for the industry,” said Deutsche Telekom. 5G is a key technology for digitisation.

for the First time in the bidding process of the goal of the Online group, United Internet, the uses so far, especially the Telefónica network, and now even their own towers to build.

Although the auction will not take place until March, fuelling the topic of 5G for months again and again to heated discussions. The industry complained that the 5G development obligations is unfair and an economic brake to be block. The policy insists, however, on an area-wide supply with fast Internet, what to reject, the grid operator as utopian. The tips of the parliamentary groups of the CDU and the SPD, in turn, want to impose a so-called local, Roaming, what is not previously provided for customers in a certain area, no signal would be connected automatically with another network.

The administrative court in Cologne has virtually the entire industry, filed lawsuits against the rules on Procurement, this is partially very different reasons. Thus, the three network operators are afraid to open their services to competitors, so that no dead spots occur – this they see as a devaluation of their own investments. The in the auction from non-participating companies Freenet and United Internet rate, the rules are quite different – and as to taking a hard line against companies that have, to date, no private network, and is therefore on the industry sizes Telekom & co. are instructed.

“Probably never before has a frequency auction was such a Wealth of uncertainties,” concluded the President of the digital Association Bitkom, Achim Berg, on Friday afternoon. It is unclear whether the rules on Procurement and supply requirements at all stock. The politicians have created with their plans to the local Roaming additional uncertainty. “This auction is fraught with many unknown variables, and participate in, and requires special entrepreneurial courage.”

meanwhile, it was announced on Friday, a further claim from the Union on the topic of 5G. The Christian Democrats in a draft paper of the party in favour of the coalition agreement provided for the model regions for the 5G mobile communication standard at least two in Eastern Germany.

dpa