Far Eastone Telecommunication’s application to return its 2G service license in the frequency of 1,800MHz was yesterday approved by the National Communications Commission (NCC), which was widely seen as a strategic move to further expand its bandwidth for 4G telecom services in the frequency.
NCC spokesman Yu Hsiao-cheng (虞孝成) said the telecom applied to return 17.5MHz in the frequency, which was previously used to offer a 2G service.
He said that the commission can then reassign 8.7MHz of the returned frequency to Far Eastone.
The remaining bandwidth would be reassigned to Taiwan Mobile and Chunghwa Telecom, two adjacent 2G carriers in the frequency, which would receive 6.3 MHz and 2.5 MHz respectively.
Yu added that Far Eastone would use 8.7MHz to offer its 4G service.
Meanwhile, 3.746 million telephone numbers previously appropriated to Far Eastone for the use of the 2G service are to be transferred to the 4G service.
Statistics from the NCC showed the company still has about 401,000 2G users.
Yu said that current 2G users would not need to change their mobile phones or their service contract with the carrier.
The commission said that the strategic move would cause Far Eastone’s bandwith in the stated frequency to be expanded to 13.8MHz.
Chunghwa Telecom would have 17.5MHz, while Taiwan Mobile is to have 11.3 MHz.
Far Eastone’s move would be certain to change the lineup of the frequency blocks in 1,800MHz, the commission said.
Through the auction last year, Chunghwa Telecom gained C2 and C5 blocks in the frequency, whereas Far Eastone earned C3 and C4 blocks. Taiwan Mobile obtained only C1.
Apart from C5, which was not used by any carrier at the time of the auction, the remaining blocks were still used for 2G services offered by the three carriers, whose licenses are valid until June 30, 2017.
Specifically, Chunghwa Telecom’s bandwidth for 2G service straddles the C1 and C2 blocks, while Far Eastone offers a 2G service using part of the C1 block, as well as the bandwidth from the end of C2 and a large part of C3. Taiwan Mobile uses C4.
Regulations require the carriers to return their 2G service licenses if they want to activate 4G service using the blocks currently in use.
If Taiwan Mobile wants to start using the C1 block, for example, the carrier would need to return the C4 frequency block.
“We are glad to see Far Eastone made the friendly gesture first,” Yu said, adding that the commission hoped that Taiwan Mobile and Chunghwa Telecom would follow suit.
Data from the NCC showed that the nation still has about 2.15 million 2G service users, with about 1.3 million of them belonging to Chunghwa Telecom.
The nation has about 22.4 million 3G users, while 4G users have grown to about 4.9 million since the service was launched in the middle of last year.
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