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News - Ofcom to Increase License fees

Nabs
17: Community Champion
17: Community Champion

Ofcom have announced a massive increase in the amount mobile operators are going to have to pay for spectrum licenses

 

http://media.ofcom.org.uk/news/2015/annual-licence-fees-mobile-spectrum/

 

This is ultimately going to lead to higher bills for us customers and less investment in the network

 

 

2 REPLIES 2

jeffkinn
17: Community Champion
17: Community Champion

This is another indirect stealth tax on successful businesses and to be borne in mind the next time a disgruntled customer makes the fallacious statement that Vodafone doesn't pay any tax in the UK.

Jeffkinn_Sig.png

hrym
17: Community Champion
17: Community Champion

Just so we know what we're talking about:

 

Current and revised annual licence fees for 900 MHz and 1800 MHz spectrum

All figures £m

Vodafone

Telefonica

EE*

H3G*

Total

Current

15.6

15.6

24.9

8.3

64.4

Proposed Feb 2015

62.6

62.6

77.3

25.8

228.3

Final decision

49.8

49.8

75.0

25.0

199.6

 

For Vodafone and O2, that's a three-fold increase.  What we don't know, of course, is what proportion of overall operating costs is represents (and therefore what effect it may have on bills after the depressing* effects of competition are taken into account).   It does tend to suggest a government desperate for cash and prepared to milk every sector possible, though.

 

* I mean that competition tends to depress prices, not that it affects mood!