The three largest operators in Ukraine, Kyivstar, lifecell and Vodafone Ukraine have submitted a joint statement on redistribution of the 900 MHz band and separate applications for licence renewal to the National Commission for the State Regulation of Communications and Informatization (NCCIR), according to the EU-supported Better Regulation Delivery Office (BRDO), which has campaigned for frequency distribution.

Previously, the 900 MHz band was fragmented and a large proportion of it was concentrated with one of the telecommunications operators, preventing the provision of next-generation 4G services across Ukraine. The joint statement by the three main operators allows to kick start LTE-900 implementation throughout Ukraine.

What are the next steps?

1. The government will amend the RFR Usage Plan and the amount of licence fees for RFR use.
2. The NCCIR will issue the appropriate licences in the 900 MHz band to the operators.
3. Operators will begin deploying 4G networks using the 900 MHz band. According to the NCCIR’s decision adopted on 21 January, they can start from 1 July this year.

A plan of activities approved and regional distribution will make it possible to have quality 4G communication in every settlement with more than 2,000 inhabitants within two years. 

The BRDO welcomed the development as an opportunity to gain full access to electronic administrative services, education and medicine as well as unlock business potential for citizens of small cities and villages.

The BRDO analysed in detail the need for frequency redistribution in its research on RFR market regulation and the ways to solve this problem, presented in June last year. Following this, in July, the President signed a Decree “On Some Measures to Improve Mobile Internet Access” approving a plan of measures for the introduction of the third- and fourth-generation mobile communications in the 790-960 MHz band. To implement these measures, a working group consisting of NCCIR and BRDO specialists as well as representatives of leading mobile operators, professional associations and government authorities was established as part of the NCCIR.

The BRDO is funded by the European Union within the framework of the FORBIZ project and the EU4Business Initiative, with the aim of simplifying the process of doing business and providing effective state regulation in key sectors of the economy.

The European Union’s EU4Digital programme supports efforts to achieve a common roaming space among Eastern Partner countries by 2020, to strengthen the independence of National Regulatory Authorities, and to develop coordinated strategies for frequency distribution. This complements the work of the EU in the area of broadband: in cooperation with the World Bank, the EU is supporting the roll-out of broadband strategies in the 6 EaP countries.

BRDO Press release

BRDO Green Paper ‘How to use the Radio-Frequency Resource for quality communication in Ukraine?’