GOVERNMENT is presently considering auction-ing another mobile licence following the surrender of AT&T’s mobile licence five years ago due to a Digicel buyout.

The Spectrum Management Authority (SMA), which regulates users of the radio spectrum on behalf of Government, this month invited ‘expressions of interest’ for the licences in the 1900 and 2100 megahertz bands.

“These bands can be used for both 2G and 3G mobile usage,” chairman Robert Lawrence said via a written response to Observer queries. “A portion of the band was previously

used but was recovered by the Authority.”

The recovery means that there is enough air or radio spectrum floating around to accommodate another cell service but the SMA doesn’t know if investors are still interested.

“The purpose of the ‘expression of interest’, is to determine the level of interest in and the demand for the two bands indicated,” stated Lawrence. “The information obtained from this exercise will better inform the SMA in this licensing process and will assist in determining the choice of allocation, the mechanism for assignment, licensing terms and conditions and pricing, for 30 MHz of spectrum available.”

Former monopoly UK-owned Cable & Wireless first operated mobile services in the island, then Digicel, the Irish-owned company, paid US$47.5 million and began operating in Jamaica in 2001, while Centennial paid over US$45 million for its licence at the time. Centennial later sold to Oceanic Digital which traded as MiPhone and which was later sold to Mexico-based Claro. US-based AT&T received the fourth licence in 2004 for US$6 million.

Years earlier, Government rejected AT&T’s initial offer which fell below the then reserve price of US$15 million, according to then director of the Office of Utilities Regulation, Winston Hay. AT&T (which merged with Cingular Wireless), however, surrendered its licence after selling its Caribbean operation to Digicel in June 2005. The expansion increased Digicel’s reach into five new territories and nullified a large competitor in five existing territories including Jamaica. The legacy of that transaction is that mobile spectrum usage can grow.