UK regulator, Ofcom has announced a timetable for the 4G LTE mobile spectrum auction. This new spectrum will almost double the amount of bandwidth currently available to 3G networks. Ofcom has confirmed reserve prices for the different lots of spectrum to £1.3 billion and has set the auction rules, from applying to bidding.

Ofcom has set 11 December as the provisional date for the submission of applications by prospective bidders. In January, bidding will begin and during February/March, bidders will be informed what they have won and its cost.

Regulator expects that by May and June, new 4G services will go live from a range of providers.

In August 2012, Ofcom approved an application by the mobile phone operator Everything Everywhere (EE) to use its existing 1800 MHz spectrum to deliver 4G services.  EE launched a commercial 4G service in some areas of the UK on 30 October 2012.