AFTER spending more than R2 billion to buy spectrum at auction this month, Telkom confirmed that it is still pushing ahead with legal action to declare the entire auction invalid.

The auction raised R14,4 billion – R6 billion more than initially expected – with MTN and Vodacom each paying more than R5 billion for spectrum.

Telkom obtained 20MHz of 800MHz and 22MHz of 3500MHz for R2,1 billion. This is the first time that Telkom will own spectrum below 1 GHz, which will help it to increase coverage and boost connection quality, particularly in rural areas. It will also bolster its 5G service.

But Telkom still wants the auction to be declared invalid. The company, which is partly owned by the state, argues the design of the auction process issued by Icasa will entrench an uneven playing field in the telecoms sector. – news24.com