Press Releases

2 Companies Have Applied for Multiplexes in the DTT Auction

31.01.2017
 
 
In the fourth digital terrestrial television (DTT) auction organised by the Romanian National Authority for Management and Regulation in Communications (ANCOM), two companies have submitted application files: NOVA MEDIA S.R.L. headquartered in Timișoara and M PLUS INVESTMENTS S.R.L headquartered in Iași. Having analysed the application files, the auction commission announces that both companies have qualified in the next stages of the auction procedure.
On 13 February 2017, following the stage of establishing the first set of winning bids, the auction commission will announce the winning bidders and whether the auction stage needs to be organised.
Available resources
Two national multiplexes, 26 regional multiplexes and 18 local DTT multiplexes unawarded in the previous procedures are available in this auction.
A digital multiplex is a group of radio broadcasting and television programmes, additional multimedia services and other associated identification data transmitted from the emission stations to the end-users by terrestrial radio means, using digital modulation within the limits of a standard television channel/frequency block. 
Each national multiplex will cover the whole country with digital terrestrial television services, whereas each of the regional and local multiplexes will serve specific assignment areas, which may cover one county or one locality.
The auction procedure
According to the strategy regarding the transition to digital terrestrial television and the implementation of multimedia services at a national level approved by the Government of Romania, the multiplexes will be awarded by a competitive selection procedure, i.e. by auction. Each bidder submits an initial bid, indicating the categories and the number of multiplexes it wishes to purchase. If the demand exceeds the number of available multiplexes, the auction may continue with primary rounds for the multiplexes where the demand exceeds the supply. For the remaining categories, the winners will be designated based on the initial bid.
After the winners and the prices of all the wanted multiplexes have been established, the auction may continue by an allocation round through which the multiplexes will be awarded to the winning bidders based on the additional amounts they are willing to pay in order to acquire a certain frequency allocation.
The minimum licence fee, which is the starting price for each of the two national multiplexes is EUR 300,000, whereas the one for the regional and the local multiplexes ranges from EUR 1,000 for a multiplex allotted within a locality that is not a county capital to EUR 10,000, for a multiplex awarded in a county in the E category, as per the Terms of Reference. The licence fees have been established by the Government in February 2014.
All the multiplexes will be granted for a 10-year period and the winners will be able to start the provision of commercial television broadcasting services as soon as they obtain the licence from ANCOM. The winners of national multiplexes must put into operation at least 36 transmitters within 2 years, whereas the winners of the regional or local multiplexes will have to launch into operation at least one transmitter in each assignment area, within one year.
The auction documentation is available on ANCOM’s website, here.
 
Additional information:
Following the three auctions organized so far, three national multiplexes have been awarded to the National Broadcasting Company, this company winning the free to air multiplex and two other multiplexes in the UHF band, for EUR 1,020,002, i.e. licence fee. Moreover, twelve regional multiplexes and one local multiplex have been awarded. Further information on the three auctions is available on ANCOM’s website, here. 
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