Mr. John Gartlan:

The 700 MHz is currently occupied by 2RN. It is due to be cleared by March 2020. We do not know what will happen at that time. We imagine it will be auctioned off but it will be a highly significant and useful band width for use for broadband radio because it could provide coverage to, say, the final 5% of premises where trees, drumlins and small hills are in the way. Generally, the lower in the frequency we go, the better it penetrates through obstructions. I will use the analogy of driving from Dublin to Belfast and listening to RTÉ. One starts off in Dublin listening on digital audio broadcasting, DAB, which is on a higher frequency. The quality is very good but the range is quite short at 30 km to 40 km, which is good compared to broadband radio. However, as one drives up the coast and moves into areas where DAB cannot cover, it falls back to VHF, or what we call traditional FM. That provides coverage to approximately 60 km from one's area because the frequency is lower and it penetrates better through obstructions, hills, trees and forests. Driving along the motorway one enters Northern Ireland but once one goes 60 km in, one is out of range because the terrain has blocked it and one has to move to a lower frequency again such as AM or LW to continue listening.

A similar analogy can be given in respect of broadband radio in that the lower the frequency used, the better the penetration one gets from broadband radio. That is at a slight sacrifice in terms of speed but we envisage that will be used only for the 5% of premises we cannot service on the mid and high frequencies.