According to the telco regulatory agency, Glo was left out because it didn’t meet its criteria for the licensing process for the 3.5 gigahertz spectrum which is required for 5G deployment.

NCC, in a statement, said only three qualified bidders met its criteria, and they paid at least $19.74 million each in order to qualify.

“The qualified bidders that have met the criteria for participation in the licensing process of 3.5Ghz spectrum, including payment of the stipulated Intention to Bid Deposit as outlined in the Information Memorandum, are MTN Nigeria Plc, Mafab Communications Limited, and Airtel Networks Limited,” the statement read partly.

According to the document released by the Federal Government, “Applicants must transfer an IBD corresponding to a lot into the designated account in cleared funds not later than 17.00 hours West African Time on November 24, 2021.

“A bank guarantee, or similar instruments, will not be acceptable. This deposit will bind the applicant to take up a licence, should it be a successful bidder, at the reserve price or any higher bid value submitted during the process.”

The commission pegged the IBD at 10 percent of the reserve price for the spectrum ($197.40 million).

NCC official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on the matter said Glo and 9mobile did not submit any application to partake in the process.

The commission said, “At the close of the bid submission date of November 29, 2021, three companies, namely MTN Nigeria, Mafab Communications Limited, and Airtel Networks Limited had successfully submitted their bids in line with the requirements of the IM.”

According to the NCC, only the three companies would participate in the main auction as well as in the mandatory mock auction process set to hold in December 2021.

In the IM, the commission had earlier disclosed that it was only offering two lots of 100 MHz TDD Spectrum in the 3.5 GHz band ranging from 3500 – 3600 MHz and 3700 – 3800 MHz for auction.

 This implies only two of the three companies would emerge with the capability to offer 5G services after the auction.

The post 5G Auction: Glo Missing As NCC Enrolls MTN And Airtel appeared first on Business News in Nigeria.

As seen in new industry statistics released by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the telco owned by billionaire –Mike Adenuga, dropped from 52,918,718 subscribers in March to 50,598,855 in April, which is about 2 million.

In a similar vein, MTN Nigeria lost about 1 million subscribers having dropped from 75,927,231 in March to 74,819,864 in April. Also, both 9mobile and Airtel lost less than 500,000 subscribers together, with the former dropping from 12,850,383 in March to 12,779,155 in April, and the latter (Airtel) dropped from 50,384,950 in March to 50,177,408 in April.

Below is the reason…

It would be recalled that last year’s (2020) December, the NCC halted the registration and sale of new SIM cards in the country. This move, according to the commission, was for people to link their National Identity Number (NIN) with their SIM cards.

Although, the ban had been lifted, the loss of subscribers by the telcos might not be unconnected to the ban.

Speaking on this development, a telecom expert, in an interview, stated: “The impact of the SIM-NIN policy will slow down growth. The NIN requirement will slow down the ability to register SIMs legally because not every Nigerian has NIN.”

READ ALSO: MTN Loses Subscribers To Rivals, Here’s Why

The post Glo Tops List Of Telcos That Lost Subscribers, Here’s Why appeared first on Business News in Nigeria.

Recall that in September,MTN’s grip in the telecommunications market slacked as its market share dropped from 40.90% to 40.30%.

While MTN was losing subscribers, its closest rival, Airtel, continue to grow its subscriber base by over 483,000 subscribers. This means that Airtel was gaining more than the number MTN lost within the same period.

Airtel Network rose from 54.7 million in August to 55.2 million in September, to close the gap between Airtel and MTN.

According to Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), Glo Network recorded an increase in its subscriber base, which rose from 52,9 million to 54.2 million in September, Glo Network recorded in August; reflecting an addition of 1.3 million, meaning Glo Network recorded the highest voice subscriber growth.

Surprisingly, 9mobile Network which has been struggling to gain subscribers five months ago, also recorded voice subscriber growth, after its subscriber base rose from the 12.3 million to 12.7 million in September, rising by 351,600 gain.

Meanwhile, the loss of subscriber which was recorded in MTN’s voice (telephone) subscriber base, fell by 448,000 with 82.6 million subscribers, this is below the initial 83.08m it recorded in August.

What this means

Indeed, the past few month hasn’t been a good one for MTN, as the company made efforts to win its competitors Airtel and Glo Network in the data war.

While MTN couldn’t keep its subscriber base from reducing, its rivals’ Airtel, Globacom, and 9mobile have gained more subscribers within the same month.

In this torrid period, note that the Subscribers dumping MTN may cost the company its market share within the Nigerian market.

The post MTN Loses Subscribers To Rivals, Here’s Why appeared first on Business News in Nigeria.