TELUS has secured spectrum licenses equating to a national average of 15 MHz of AWS-3 spectrum for $1.5 billion, making it the biggest buyer in a recent auction by the Canadian goverment. The auction of AWS-3 spectrum which saw telecom operators in the country forking out more than $2.1 billion is expected to fulfill the need for expanded mobile coverage and capacity in urban and rural environments.
TELUS, which is the second largest mobile operator in Canada, said that it expects to incorporate the new spectrum into the natural evolution of the company's existing network, accelerating its ability to bring new devices to market and deliver economies of scale on wireless infrastructure investments. These licenses are very complementary to the 16.1 MHz of national AWS spectrum, added TELUS.
Other operators who secured their licenses during the auction were Bell Mobility, Eastlink, Videotron and Wind Mobile, while Rogers, Canada's largest wireless carrier made no spectrum acquisition in this round.
The purchase and deployment of this spectrum will ensure that TELUS continues to operate one of the fastest and most reliable wireless networks in the world, consistent with our number one corporate priority of putting customers first. TELUS has invested $3.8 billion in spectrum-related costs since the 2008 AWS auction, and has invested more than $32 billion in technology across the country since 2000.
TELUS President and CEO Joe Natale
We are very pleased to secure such high quality spectrum across the country, and to have won 75 per cent of the spectrum available to us in this auction. This spectrum will allow us to enhance LTE coverage, particularly in urban areas, adding much-needed capacity for our more than 8.1 million wireless customers. Consistent with our commitment to rural customers, TELUS' network today reaches 99 per cent of the Canadian population.
