Croatia's Vipnet buys LTE frequencies for 150 mln kuna (19.9 mln euro)

Vipnet had obtained a 10 MHz paired frequency block (total of 20 MHz) of the 800 MHz frequency spectrum, Telekom Austria said in a statement.

Thanks to the purchase, Vipnet will be able to offer broadband services based on the fourth generation mobile technology (LTE). The licence of the acquired frequencies expires on October 18, 2024.

The sale was carried out by the Croatian telecoms regulator HAKOM through a public call procedure held from September 14 to October 15.

Under the regulatory requirements, the awarded frequencies have to cover at least 50% of the Croatian territory within five years.

Telekom Austria said all costs related to the roll-out in 2012 have been included in the group's annual guidance for 2012.

(1 euro = 7.5331 Croatian kuna)