28 January 2015
The auction commission within ANCOM has announced that it has determined the winning bidders and the number of multiplexes won following the first stage of the auction for awarding regional multiplexes. An allocation round will be organised on 11 February 2015, when the specific allocation for the categories with several available multiplexes will be established, upon the bidders’ payment of an additional amount for a specific allocation of the acquired multiplexes. All the five applicants in this auction acquired the multiplexes they bid for.
Thus, 2K Telecom acquired 5 regional multiplexes (4 in Bucharest and 1 in Ploiesti), Radio M Plus obtained 1 regional multiplex (Iasi), Regal won 1 regional multiplex (Ramnicu Valcea), Cargo Sped acquired 1 regional multiplex (Sibiu) and, respectively, Digital Video Broadcast won 1 regional multiplex (Satu Mare). All licences are granted for the 17.06.2015 – 17.06.2025 period.
The companies Regal and Cargo Sped will enter the allocation round, to be held on 11 February 2015, during which the multiplex won out of the two in the categories where they submitted their bids will be determined. After the allocation round, ANCOM will announce the final results of the auction, including the licence fees to be paid by each of the winning bidders.
The winners of the regional multiplexes will be able to start the provision of commercial television broadcasting services as of 17 June 2015. By 1 May 2017, they will have to launch into operation at least one transmitter in each assignment area.
National multiplexes will cover the whole country with digital terrestrial television services, whereas each of the regional and local multiplexes will serve specific allotments, which may cover one county or one locality.
A digital multiplex is a group of radio broadcasting and television programmes, additional multimedia services and other associated identification data transmitted from the emission stations to the end-users by terrestrial radio means, using digital modulation within the limits of a standard television channel/frequency block.
