The Brazilian telecommunications regulator ANATEL has adopted spectrum re-farming of the 2.6GHz band, allowing the use of this spectrum for deployment of next-generation Mobile Broadband services.

Congratulating ANATEL, GSMA said, ANATEL's decision to re-allocate spectrum in the technology neutral 2.6 GHz band to support the nationwide deployment of next-generation Mobile Broadband services will provide mobile operators in Brazil with a clear future investment path for the country's mobile network infrastructure.

ANATEL's decision is also consistent with the ITU's Option 1(i) for international 2.6GHz spectrum harmonisation, currently being followed by the majority of mobile operators worldwide. Spectrum harmonisation in this band means that Brazilian operators will benefit from the vast economies of scale that the GSM ecosystem offers, driving down equipment and device costs, which can be passed on to customers, said GSMA in a statement.

"Other countries such as Mexico, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and South Africa would benefit from similar rulings whereby existing spectrum is intelligently re-allocated for Mobile Broadband deployment as part of global spectrum harmonisation, driving widespread socio-economic benefits for governments and consumers and generating additional revenue for operators," said Tom Phillips, Chief Government and Regulatory Affairs Officer, GSMA.

Brazil's 2.6GHz spectrum band had previously been allocated to MMDS operators to support pay-per-view TV services. This ruling will not impact these operators, who will keep 70MHz(ii) of spectrum (50 MHz of TDD and 2 X 10 MHz of FDD). ANATEL's decision does mean that the country's mobile operators will benefit from the majority of this spectrum, stating that 120MHz should be auctioned off by mid-2013(iii). Mobile operators in Brazil also have the option of deploying LTE immediately, should they acquire an MMDS operator currently holding spectrum licenses.

Ensuring the necessary spectrum is available will pave the way for Brazilian operators to follow the clear upgrade path from existing HSPA technology to LTE.