Play plans to launch services in the 700 MHz band in July, Orange declares that it will happen soon, and T-Mobile wants to give customers 800 MHz resources in the coming weeks – according to information provided to PAP by the operators. In March, UKE ended the auction for reserving these bands.
The President of the Office of Electronic Communications (UKE) concluded an auction for seven frequency reservations in the bands below 1 GHz in March 2025. The auction included six reservations for the 700 MHz band and one reservation for the 800 MHz band.
The operators selected during the auction are Orange Polska, P4, T-Mobile Polska and Polkomtel, and the total value resulting from the reservation of bands is PLN 2.5 billion.
“The reservations were granted in accordance with which blocks each operator bid for. Now is the time to complete the formalities. Of course, financial issues and payments are included here. After accepting the reservations, the time has come for us as operators to apply to the Office of Electronic Communications for the issuance of radio permits for individual base stations so that we can make this signal available to our customers within the auctioned blocks. (…) I think that in the case of the Play network, we will be able to switch on the first base stations in July,” Michał Ziółkowski, Play network technology director, told PAP.
He explained that currently, operators are preparing to launch the network in the new band by installing the appropriate equipment on base stations. Before launching each station, it is also required to prepare so-called electromagnetic field measurements, in order to ensure that the given station operates in accordance with the regulations.
He added that the company will gradually launch additional base stations operating, among others, in the 700 MHz band and will also modernize those already in use.
New band means improved internet quality
When asked whether customers would feel a difference in network performance, such as internet bandwidth, he said yes, especially if they use the network inside buildings – e.g. at home or in a city centre hotel.
“In such places, the signal attenuation is very high and with such building infrastructure, with such buildings, low frequencies cope best. That is, frequencies below 1 GHz, and such frequencies are (bands) 700 and 800 MHz, which were the subject of the last auction. (…) Therefore, as users, we should feel an improvement in the quality of service at home,” explained Ziółkowski.
He added that the signal in such frequencies penetrates better through bricks, steel and glass, for example . He noted that the second issue is the better spread of radio waves in the 700 MHz band in open areas, which will translate into improved range, for example in the mountains, including the 5G network.
T-Mobile also commented on the planned use of the bands acquired this year.
“Technically, we are ready to launch the network on new frequencies, primarily in the 800 MHz range, and the launch now depends mainly on the date of receiving entries in the register of radio devices, for which we will soon be applying to UKE. (…) We are the only operator to have won 800 MHz resources in this auction, which we will be able to make available to T-Mobile customers in the coming weeks,” the T-Mobile Polska press office told PAP.
It explained that the use of the 800 MHz band will translate into a rapid increase in the network's range and capacity, and improved performance primarily outside the largest towns, i.e. in areas where – as indicated – “low bands play a key role”. The company added that the network built on the basis of the 700 MHz band will be developed gradually.
“We are working to soon provide our customers with services based on the 700 MHz band that we have acquired. This will be another important milestone in the development of the 5G network in Poland. (…) The 5G network is important not only from the point of view of high quality of services, but also the resilience and security of the state,” Orange Polska spokesman Wojciech Jabczyński told PAP.
He added that the company plans to have over 90 percent of Poland's population within its 5G network range by the end of 2028.
“Further expansion of the Plus 5G network in the 700 MHz frequency range will be in line with the schedule and requirements specified in the UKE decision, and we will keep our customers and the public informed about the details on an ongoing basis,” Plus told PAP. It added that the company is currently using five other frequency ranges when building its network.
She also explained that the 700 MHz band is a frequency range that is referred to as “coverage” – its main advantage is good range, better performance in terrain such as forests and hills and penetration through obstacles, e.g. building walls. Thanks to this, it will be possible to provide service and network coverage inside buildings over a larger area. Plus indicated that the purpose of the auction announced by UKE was to build a nationwide 5G network, especially in rural areas and along communication routes – e.g. roads and railways.
As reported by the Office of Electronic Communications in March, the auction will enable the development of high-capacity networks in Poland. Reservations of frequencies in the 700 MHz band will enable the use of frequencies in 5G technology and may be a supplement to the reservations of frequencies in the 3.6 GHz band, allocated in December 2023. In turn, the reservation of frequencies in the 800 MHz band will enable the use of frequencies in LTE technology.
T-Mobile Polska took first place in frequency blocks A, i.e. frequencies 703-708 MHz and 758-763 MHz, and G, i.e. frequencies 816-821 MHz and 857-862 MHz. Orange Polska took first place in blocks B, i.e. frequencies 708-713 MHz and 763-768 MHz, and C, i.e. frequencies 713-718 MHz and 768-773 MHz, and P4 in blocks E, i.e. frequencies 723-728 MHz and 778-783 MHz, and F, i.e. frequencies 728-733 MHz and 783-788 MHz. Polkomtel won the auction for block D covering frequencies 718-723 MHz and 773-778 MHz.
For blocks A, B, C and F the highest declared amount was PLN 356 million, for block D this amount was PLN 363 million 120 thousand, for block E – PLN 370 million 382 thousand. The highest declared amount for block G was PLN 425 million 453 thousand.
The Ministry of Digital Affairs announced in March that operators selected in the auction will be required to improve quality and speed for 99% of households by 2030. The minimum data download speed at these points is to be at least 120 Mb/s.
According to the report “Poland within the reach of stationary internet access” published by the Ministry of Digital Affairs in mid-January 2025, there are over 9.1 million address points in the country. At the end of December 2024, over 7.6 million of them had access to broadband internet.
This means that the number of addresses without internet, or so-called white spots, has reached almost 1.5 million. In turn, the number of “NGA white spots”, or places where internet services have a bandwidth lower than 100mb/s, has exceeded 2.4 million.
Bartłomiej P. Pawlak (PAP)
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