Aminu Maida: NCC facilitating spectrum trades by way of leases for telcos

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has announced plans to facilitate potential spectrum trades by way of leases to optimise spectrum use.

Aminu Maida, the NCC executive vice-chairman (EVC), spoke during an interactive session with journalists in Lagos on Friday.

Maida said spectrum trades will ensure more efficient utilisation of the limited spectrum resource and enhance the quality of telecommunications service in Nigeria.

“Most operators are focused on making their 4G very efficient. Now, there was something I didn’t touch on in the recent rebranding of 9 Mobile. As an interim step, we’ve allowed them to go onto the MTN network,” he said.

“But in the coming weeks, there’s also going to be, pending, all the regulatory processes being completed, there’s going to be a number of spectrum trades, in the form of leases.

“What we as a commission are trying to do is to make the most efficient use of limited resources, because spectrum is limited.

“Most especially what I call as useful spectrum. What do I mean by useful spectrum? That is a spectrum for which you already have the technology of now, the radios that can use the spectrum. The spectrum for which the operators have the radios that can use the spectrum.

“Spectrum for which there are devices in the hands of consumers, so we don’t have to tell you to go and buy a new phone, just because, as an operator, I’m offering that device, that spectrum as one of my radio layers.

“If you factor those two, we don’t have any greenfield spectrum that falls into that sweet spot today in Nigeria.

“That sweet spot, like I said, for us, is 4G. Majority of the phones in Nigeria are 4G. 3G doesn’t deliver good internet. 3G was an experimental of mobile internet. 4G was when we started to see real, proper broadband on mobile.

“What that means is, because we don’t have any greenfield 4G spectrum, green field being one that the upshot and the federal government has allocated to operators.

“But we do have some 4G spectrum in the hands of certain operators that is not being utilised. So we’re working with all of the operators to see how we can come into a normal business so that we can better utilise these 4G spectrums.“

Maida added that the spectrum trades will allow operators to provide better quality of service and are expected to be concluded within a month.