The auction raised a lot higher-than-expected 3.8 billion euros ($5 billion) as well as the result will cause fierce competition available as one of Europe's best cellular phone markets since the winners straighten faster, fourth-generation services which permit consumers to view video and surf the world wide web on the go.
The Dutch marketplace is currently covered with KPN, Vodafone and Deutsche Telekom, the 3 that won licences, as did new entrant Tele2 of Sweden.
Two cable companies - Ziggo and UPC, owned by Liberty Global, which curently have strong shares in broadband and pay-TV - said they provided some pot bid but later removed in the auction later as the bidding went way too high.
KPN, that is 28 percent owned by Mexican telecoms tycoon Carlos Slim, said the price tag on the licences meant it will stop paying any dividend for 2012 and would shell out only 0.03 euros per share for 2013, less than already revised dividend forecasts.
It had already cut its dividend forecast with this year to 0.35 euros from a basic planned payout of 0.90 euros. It offers paid an interim dividend of 0.12 euros.
KPN ended up refining their plans payout for 2013 of 'a minimum of' 0.35 euros.
Traders and analysts have previously expressed worry about the capacity of KPN to repay dividends trained with includes a debt to core profit ratio exceeding its targets. KPN shares hit a 10-year low of three.90 euros in November.
Eelco Blok, KPN's leader, later acknowledged with a business call that KPN was paying a "considerable price" to the licence, but asserted since the market leader, it couldn't afford to overlook on the auction. Next he said it'd develop a good return over its 17-year duration.
KPN, which expects to straighten its new 4G services from February, did retain its outlook for 2012 core profit, cashflow and capital expenditure.
It said hello would draw on existing cash and its particular 2 billion euro open-end credit facility to advance buying. The dividend cut helps you to save it 800 million euros.
Inquired on the have an effect on debt and it is financial health, Blok said investors might need to delay until the corporation reported fourth-quarter results on Feb 5.
WELCOME WINDFALL
The Dutch government had relied on raising about 480 million euros through the auction, along with the better-than-expected result gives a welcome windfall each time of austerity measures and budget cuts amounting to 46 billion euros by 2017.
Holland reserved spectrum for first time entrants for the October 31 auction within a bid to further improve choice minimizing prices inside a country with 19.6 000 0000 phone subscriptions - many for each head of population.
The auction of 41 separate spectrum licences was the most important in Dutch telecommunications history, the state of hawaii telecoms agency said on Friday.
Swedish firm Tele2, that was already present within the Dutch market like a virtual operator, will have the capacity to build out a unique network, the agency said in the statement.
"This may create more competition," it added.
Vodafone paid 1.38 billion euros for nine licences, KPN paid 1.351 billion euros for 15 separate licences, while Deutsche Telekom's T-Mobile spent 911 million euros on 15 licences. Tele2 created a bid of 161 million euros and won two licences.
Many of the spectrum licences will begin buy and the majority will run 17 years.
