Eagle set to launch DC-HSPA+ later this month

Eagle Mobile, the wireless arm of incumbent Albtelecom, has announced plans to launch 3.5G services using Dual Carrier (DC) HSPA+ technology. The service, which will provide theoretical maximum download speeds of up to 42Mbps, is expected to launch commercially later this month, initially in Tirana, but will be subsequently expanded throughout the country. TeleGeography’s GlobalComms Database notes that Eagle participated in an auction for the sale of 3G licences in August 2012, entering a bid of just EUR355 (USD468.5) above the reserve price of EUR4 million. At the same time PLUS, the only other active cellco yet to receive a 3G concession entered a token bid of just EUR1. Watchdog the Electronic and Postal Communications Authority (AKEP) is yet to make an official statement regarding the tender, and Eagle’s announcement is the first suggestion that either of the 3G licences on offer had been issued. The two tranches of spectrum on offer were: 1950MHz-1960MHz paired with 2140MHz-2155MHz and 1910MHz-1915MHz; and 1965MHz-1980MHz paired with 2155MHz-2170MHz and 1915MHz-1920MHz.