5G Auction Soars to $34 Billion With Verizon Leading Way
- Slice of midband spectrum may fetch a record $47 billion
- Such C-band frequencies are the hottest property in the sky
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Offers for 5G airwaves soared to almost $34 billion in a massive U.S. auction that could feature heavy bidding by Verizon Communications Inc., which needs more spectrum to compete in the dawning era of ultrafast mobile connections.
Analysts expect Verizon to put up $20 billion in a field of 57 bidders that includes fellow mobile heavyweights AT&T Inc. and T-Mobile US Inc., and cable companies Comcast Corp. and Charter Communications Inc. Collectively they could push bidding to a record $47 billion, according to 11 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Bidding started Dec. 8 and is expected to continue into the new year.