Telenor, Idea win airwaves in 2G auction: official

Videocon Telecommunications wins six zones in an auction that has drawn scant interest from bidders

Norwegian telecommunications group Telenor ASA won airwave space in six Indian telecom zones in an auction, said a government official, retaining part of its operations after its permits there had been ordered to be revoked by a court.

Idea Cellular won airwaves in all seven zones in which it was set to lose its permits after the court order, in a state auction that ended on Wednesday, the government official involved in the auction process said.

Videocon Telecommunications won airwaves in six zones in the auction that has drawn scant interest from bidders mainly due to a high starting price in the world's second-largest mobile phone market.

The governement was for the first time selling 2G mobile phone spectrum through an auction after the Supreme Court ordered the revoking of permits awarded to eight carriers in a 2008 scandal-tainted state grant process and their redistribution via open bidding.