Anatel’s proposal will include 30 days for public consultation and hearings. The spectrum that Brazil holds in the 451 MHz to 458 MHz band and 461 MHz to 468 MHz band are to be used for expanding service to rural and remote areas. The tender’s winners would be required to fulfill commitments to expand voice and data telecommunication services in remote areas at affordable prices. The winner also would have to provide free broadband connectivity to all public schools in rural areas of their provisioned service.

   Pyramid Research Senior Analyst Jose Manuel Mercado has identified at least five major entities in the region that will bit for only four blocks of spectrum. TIM is Brazil’s second-largest carrier after Telefonica Brasil SA, according to Anatel statistics. America Movil is third, followed by Oi and Sercomtel.

   “Between the capital expenditures necessary to build these networks and the costs of acquiring the spectrum, we expect it to be a very expensive process,” said Mercado. “With all of the fixed and mobile integrations that have been made over the past few years, these firms’ profitability prospects will hinge on their ability to use their infrastructure to bundle and build scale. Given this and the 4G auction, which should occur in the second half of 2012, we expect capital expenditures to rise for all of the major carriers. To fund this, it’s likely the smaller firms will need to raise capital.”
   The Brazilian telecoms market has represented an intense, competitive environment for years. Several entities are ramping up pricing strategies. In a Seeking Alpha regional report issued in February, the firm’s analysts said Brazil is in the midst of one of most aggressive pricing wars. “TIM launched the first salvo by offering extremely low rates for on-network long distance calls. Recently, America Movil’s Brazilian subsidiary Claro and Telefonica Brasil’s mobile arm Vivo began undercutting those prices in an attempt to boost subscriber growth,” Seeking Alpha analysts wrote in the report. “Vivo has also started offering unlimited postpaid plans, as well as launching Vivo Directo, a new push-to-talk offering. While these maneuvers, along with the injection of new smartphones, have kept subscriber growth strong – up 19 percent year-over-year in November for the Brazilian mobile sector – margins on earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization have been pressured."
   The Brazilian government raised 237.5 million reais ($132 million) during its most recent spectrum auction, where TIM Participacoes SA and Tele Norte Leste Participacoes SA gained more airwaves for wireless services.

   TIM, controlled by Telecom Italia, acquired nine lots of spectrum in the 1.8-gigahertz band for 109.3 million reais ($62.1 million). Tele Norte Leste, which operates under the Oi brand, spent 110.6 million reais ($62.8 million) for four lots in the same band. Both companies are based in Rio de Janeiro.

   The auction of airwaves left over from previous sales aims to help carriers stock up more capacity as demand surges for mobile services. According to an Anatel statement, Brazil had 232 million wireless subscriptions at the end of October 2011 – an increase of 19 percent from the previous year.

   America Movil spent 14.5 million reais ($8.2 million) for one lot in the 800 megahertz band, and Sercomtel SA paid 3.03 million reais ($1.72 million) for a block in the 1.8 gigahertz band.

In its report, Seeking Alpha said that of the five major carriers in Brazil, America Movil is best positioned to handle an uptick in competitive aggression and capital spending.

“It has already launched quadruple-play bundles of Internet, pay TV, fixed voice, and wireless, and its pay TV product gives it a strong competitive advantage in bundling “With Telefonica Brasil’s parent Telefonica recently cutting its 2012 dividend, the firm’s financial flexibility – roughly 2.5 times net leverage – has clearly eroded.”