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ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has finalised a unique plan to conduct the much-awaited auction of 3G and 4G licences with the help of Simultaneous Multiple Round Ascending Auction (SMRA) mechanism to ensure secrecy and transparency in the sale scheduled for April 23 (Wednesday). 
"Based on the received sealed bid on April 14, it is now clear that the received demand is greater than the supply; therefore, the final auction will be conducted on April 23, as planned," PTA chairman Ismail Shah said, while briefing media persons about the process of auctioning spectrum for the Next Generation Mobile Services (NGMS). 
The auction of 3G and 4G spectrum was a landmark event in the country's telecom history, as it would help raise the GDP (gross domestic product) growth, Shah said, while adding the auction would also bring more than $1 billion investment to the country.
According to the PTA chief, the four successful bidders (cellular companies) have also been asked to ensure free of cost 3G services to people expected to attend the web-based auction. 
"All the four successful bidders would be allotted different colours to participate in the final auction process in a fair and transparent manner."
The SMRA is the most preferred auctioning mechanism and is widely used in the modern-day auctions worldwide. It is also preferred to the traditional open cry-out auctioning model, as the SMRA gives both the auctioneer and the bidder flexibility to simultaneously bid on lots of their choice, privacy and time to make educated decisions during the auction. Some of the recent auctions conducted in the United States, Sweden, Norway, Hong Kong and Canada were all SMRA-adaptive. 
With regards to the spectrum auction process, the PTA chief said, "All the lots are auctioned simultaneously over a series of rounds and in each round, bids will be submitted on individual lots at the announced prices. At the end of each round, a standing high bidder is identified for each lot. Once the standing high bidder is committed to the lot, it cannot withdraw." 
Dr Shah further explained that the standing high bidder was released from its commitment when outbid by another one. "When a lot receives at least one bid, the price for the lot increases in the next round. The bid increments will be up to a maximum of three percent of the last bid price, which will be decided by the PTA after each round in consultation with the consultant."