Turkey’s major telecom operators — Turkcell, Turk Telekom, and Vodafone — collectively spent $2.95 billion to acquire 5G spectrum licenses in a landmark auction that paves the way for the country’s April 2026 rollout of next-generation mobile services.
Turkcell was the top bidder, spending $1.22 billion to secure the A1 block in the 700 MHz band and four blocks in the 3.5 GHz range. Turk Telekom followed with $1.1 billion in total bids, including the A3 block, while Vodafone spent $627 million, winning the A2 block and one 3.5 GHz allocation.
The tender also extended existing 2G, 3G, and 4.5G licenses to 2042, ensuring long-term stability for operators. Turkey’s Transport Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu said the first 5G signals will go live on April 1, starting in large cities before expanding nationwide within a year.
Analysts expect the operators to embark on multi-billion-dollar infrastructure investments as Turkey transitions to ultra-fast mobile networks. The minimum bid threshold was $2.13 billion before taxes.
This was Turkey’s first major mobile spectrum auction since 2015, when telecoms paid €4 billion for 4.5G frequencies.
