Telus Outspends Rogers and Bell in Ottawa’s $415M 5G Airwave Selloff

The federal government has wrapped up its latest sale of wireless spectrum, clearing out nearly all of its leftover airwaves to help boost 5G coverage across Canada.

The auction focused on residual licences, which are frequencies that either didn’t sell in previous auctions or were given back to the government. Out of 207 available licences, 196 were snatched up by Bell, Rogers, and Telus, bringing in more than $415 million for the federal treasury.

Spectrum refers to the invisible radio frequencies that carry data through the air, allowing your smartphones and other wireless devices to connect to the internet.

“Reliable telecommunications are essential to how Canadians live, work and connect with one another,” said Mélanie Joly, Minister of Industry, on Friday in a statement. “Ensuring that spectrum doesn’t sit idle is one of many ways we work toward that.”

To prevent these incumbent telecoms from sitting on these frequencies, Ottawa has included strict rules requiring the winners to actually build out the infrastructure and provide service within a specific timeframe.

Telus was the biggest spender in this round, paying over $317 million for 103 licences, largely focused on Western Canada and BC’s Lower Mainland. Telus loaded up on 3800 MHz spectrum across B.C. and Alberta, locking in key 5G capacity in major cities like Vancouver, Edmonton, and Victoria. At the same time, it filled coverage gaps along regional hubs, highways, and northern communities to strengthen broader Western Canada 5G coverage.

Rogers spent roughly $84 million on 30 licences and focused its spectrum buys on 3800 MHz capacity in select cities and regional markets, including Calgary, Charlottetown, and Summerside. The strategy leans toward targeted 5G upgrades rather than broad coverage, with spectrum added in smaller communities like Elliot Lake, Thompson, and Dawson Creek.

Meanwhile, Bell secured 63 licences for $13.4 million. It focused its auction buys on lower-cost 2 GHz and 2300 MHz spectrum, with a heavy emphasis on smaller cities, rural markets, and northern communities across Quebec, Ontario, the Prairies, and the North. Rather than chasing dense 5G capacity, Bell spread spectrum across dozens of regional areas, topping it off with selective 3800 MHz upgrades in places like Winnipeg, Sault Ste. Marie, and North Bay.

A small batch of spectrum licences remains unsold, mostly covering very remote or low-population regions where deployment is more challenging. These include parts of the North, along with smaller B.C. communities like Squamish, Whistler, Kamloops, Williams Lake, and Smithers, which may be offered again in a future auction.

The sale included airwaves in the 3500 MHz and 3800 MHz bands, which are the sweet spot for 5G because they can carry a lot of data over decent distances. A small handful of licences in remote areas like Yukon and Nunavut remained unsold.