ISED, the Canadian spectrum regulator, issued the results of its 2026 Auction of Residual Spectrum Licences on February 6, 2026.
There were 207 licenses on offer, 166 of which (80%) were in the 3500 MHz/3800 MHz frequency range. 95% of the licenses were sold for total revenue of $415.5 million (CAD). The auction was conducted using a single-round sealed bid process.
Bidders included the Big 3 – Bell, TELUS and Rogers – as well as Videotron, Eastlink, Iristel and others. However only Bell, TELUS, and Rogers won licenses.
TELUS was the largest winner and acquired 103 licenses in 3800 MHz, paying $317 million, or 76% of the total revenues of $415.5 million. Rogers was second at $84 million for 30 licenses and Bell paid $13.5 million for 63 licenses.
Top-line Results
Some observations based on the top-line results (in Canadian $):
- TELUS paid $1.35 per MHz-pop, acquiring 3800 MHz licenses in major markets Vancouver (4 blocks) and Edmonton (3 blocks) as well as in 19 smaller markets in the West.
- Rogers paid $1.61 per MHz-pop, acquiring 3800 MHz licenses in major market Calgary (3 blocks) as well as in 7 smaller markets (including 8 blocks in Elliott Lake, 7 of which are 3500 MHz).
- Rogers MHz-pops are 80% on a major market (Calgary) compared to only 63% for TELUS (Vancouver and Edmonton), so Rogers’ prices are on average somewhat higher than those of TELUS.
- Bell paid the lowest at $0.18 per MHz-pop for 63 licenses, 40 of which were in the 2300 MHz and PCS bands.
Pricing for the winners was based on a second-price rule meaning the winning bidder paid the price as bid by the second highest bidder for the same licenses.
We do not yet know the exact competitive dynamic nor how much the winning bidders would have been willing to pay based on their as-bid prices since ISED has not yet released detailed bidding information.
Spectrum values – Canada and US Mid-Band
The Canadian results suggest a sort-of rationalization of the dramatically different results from the 2021 auction of 3500 MHz and 2023 auction of 3800 MHz licenses. The 2021 process resulted in a record average price of $2.27 per MHz-pop while the 2023 process resulted in only $0.25 per MHz-pop.
However, we also highlight that the 2026 Canadian results for 3500/3800 MHz, based on TELUS and Rogers, even though they represent the second highest prices actually bid, are about C$1.40 on average or US$1.03 per MHz-pop (using the nominal exchange rate). This is directionally higher, about 15% more, than recent US auctions, which had a MHz-pop weighted average value of US$0.89 based on the results of FCC Auction 107 (Lower C-Band in 2021) and Auction 110 (3.45 GHz in 2022).
Next Steps for Spectrum in Canada
There is not yet any planned auction in Canada – nor any process that would lead to an auction – for frequencies in the Upper C-Band range, 3980-4200 MHz. This is a key range and is on the FCC’s agenda for next year, 2027, where at least 100 MHz and up to 180 MHz will be awarded to mobile operators.
Canada has yet to launch its auction for mmWave spectrum which had been initially expected in 2024. Comments submitted to ISED on this topic across a few consultations were quite varied possibly causing some headaches to the regulator.
And there is no discussion or consultation on spectrum for 6G. We note that last week, the European Commission’s Radio Spectrum Policy Group (RSPG), published a draft opinion that said “The RSPG is of the opinion that the upper 6 GHz band will be the primary band suitable for the introduction of 6G in Europe by 2030.” It will be interesting to see if anyone would like to see changes to Canada’s current framework for the 6 GHz band.
It seems that Canada is frozen in time as we await a consultation on a revised framework for spectrum license transfers that was announced on March 31, 2023, but has yet to be launched. There was a brief sentence in the 2025 budget indicating this would be forthcoming before year-end. We assume this means before March 31, 2026.
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