The Nigerian Communications Commission has completed a series of five auctions resulting in the provisional award of 67 FWA licences for regions across Nigeria. This was the culmination of a 10-month process, during which DotEcon and Radio Spectrum International had advised the NCC on the award process. A ‘demand evaluation stage’ was used to assess demand for licences across Nigeria’s 37 regions. On the basis of these results, DotEcon designed an auction format that met the Commission’s objectives of efficiency and transparency. We also designed and operated the software used to process the bids. The auction format developed – a sealed bid combinatorial auction – was the first of its kind to be successfully implemented in the world. A DotEcon discussion paper analysing the auction process can be downloaded here.
