Upstart wireless carrier Wind Mobile is applauding Ottawa’s plan to set aside more spectrum licenses for new entrants, saying the move will help assure digital airwaves are deployed to spur much-needed competition.

“Alternatives like Wind Mobile need additional spectrum to grow and flourish,” Wind chair and chief executive Anthony Lacavera said after Ottawa announced details of a spectrum airwave auction tailored to new entrants.

He said refinements to the bidding rules will help assure that “spectrum in not going to be warehoused,” adding that limits to incumbent carrier participation could help make the airwaves more affordable.

After dropping out of Ottawa’s most recent spectrum auction after failing to secure financial support from its parent company, Wind said it will participate in an auction consultation process later this summer though financing for any bidding is not assured.

Industry Minister James Moore on Monday said the government will auction additional wireless spectrum next year to smaller carriers including Wind, Halifax-based EastLink, Inc. and Quebecor Inc. in a bid to fuel competition for telephone services.

The government will provide a 30 megahertz block of so-called advanced wireless services spectrum before a separate auction in April of airwaves in the 2500-megahertz band. There will be “strict provisions” on the transfer of the spectrum to bigger carriers, Moore said.

The setting aside of one large block for “operating new entrants” is the latest effort by Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government to help push a fourth major competitor in the industry to compete against the country’s three big incumbent carriers. Telus Corp., BCE Inc. and Rogers Communications Inc. control about 90 per cent of Canada’s wireless market.

“Today’s announcement will help new entrants acquire valuable new spectrum to help expand their networks and deliver fast, reliable service to Canadians,” Moore said in a statement.

Quebecor Inc. chief executive officer Pierre Dion last month said his Montreal-based Vidéotron unit is ready to become Canada’s fourth national wireless carrier.

“We will study the announcement carefully before going any further,” Quebecor Media Inc. spokesman Luc Lavoie said in an email Monday. “For now all we will say is that under the right conditions we remain committed to developing a national low cost high quality wireless.”

Canaccord Genuity research chief Dvai Ghose said while Ottawa is trying again to help a national new entrant to emerge from the current fragmented environment “we have seen this story before and it has not resulted in success for the new entrants.”

He noted that 40 MHz of the 90 MHz of spectrum auctioned in 2008 was reserved for new entrants and incumbents were capped at one prime block each in the 2014 700 MHz auction.

Despite this one of the entrants is in creditor protection, another has been sold to Telus and “the majority of new entrant owned AWS and 700 MHz spectrum is not being utilized,” he said in a note to investors.

“We wonder why the government believes that following the same strategy that has failed to date would have a different outcome this time around.”

Ghose also questioned why Ottawa would auction more spectrum before it establishes the new wholesale roaming tariffs that Quebecor has called a prerequisite to any national expansion of its wireless network.

Vidéotron has said it needs lower roaming tariffs for new entrants when using incumbent networks, an equity partner and preferential new entrant access to spectrum before it decides whether to go national.

“While today’s announcement gives clarity on new entrant access to future spectrum, it does not tackle the roaming issue,” Ghose said.

The telecom regulator the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission is to hold hearings on roaming tariffs from Sept. 29 and it could be the spring of 2015 or later before there is a final decision.

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“It is surely difficult for Vidéotron to know if and how much it should bid for AWS-3 and 2500 MHz spectrum outside Quebec, or whether it should bid for Wind or Mobilicity, if it does not know the new roaming rules,” Ghose said.

The government is “putting the cart in front of the horse,” he added.

With a file from Bloomberg

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