Italy 26 GHz spectrum tender opens for FWA and 5G expansion

The allocation of high-frequency spectrum provides the necessary bandwidth for low-latency video delivery and high-density 5G services in underserved regions. By offering regional blocks, Italian regulators are lowering the barrier to entry for specialized FWA providers, which could intensify competition for home broadband subscribers against traditional fiber and cable incumbents. This move aligns with broader European efforts to harmonize next-generation mobile networks for industrial and consumer applications. As the tender progresses, the industry should monitor the final auction prices to see if they remain modest compared to the €6.5 billion raised during the 2018 5G auctions.

Italy's 26 GHz tender arrives as European regulators increasingly treat millimeter-wave spectrum as a critical tool for closing the rural broadband gap. In March 2026, AGCOM published its updated national broadband coverage report showing FWA connections in Italy had surpassed 5.2 million households, up roughly 18% year over year, with the majority of new activations concentrated in areas where fiber deployment remains economically unviable. Eolo, the FWA specialist controlled by the F2i infrastructure fund, has been the most aggressive bidder in prior Italian spectrum rounds and announced in early 2026 that it would invest €400 million over three years to expand its 5G FWA network to underserved municipalities. The company's CEO Giorgio Tavolini has publicly argued that 26 GHz capacity is essential for delivering gigabit-class fixed wireless in areas where trenching costs exceed €15,000 per household.

On the regulatory side, the European Commission's Radio Spectrum Policy Group has been pushing member states to make the 26 GHz band available under harmonized technical conditions since the 2019 Implementing Decision (EU) 2019/784 established 24.25, 27.5 GHz as a pioneer band for 5G. Italy's tender design, which combines national blocks with smaller regional lots, mirrors the approach Germany's Federal Network Agency adopted in its 2019 local spectrum auction, where regional blocks attracted 18 new entrants including industrial users and municipal operators. WindTre, which holds significant 3.7 GHz mid-band spectrum from the 2018 Italian auction, has signaled interest in the 26 GHz round to complement its existing FWA offering, while Iliad Italia confirmed in July 2026 that it was evaluating participation to extend its fixed wireless footprint beyond its current 1.5 million FWA subscribers. Opnet, the wholesale FWA platform spun out of Fastweb, is also expected to bid for regional blocks to serve as a neutral host for smaller ISPs.

From a technical standpoint, 26 GHz deployments in Italy face propagation challenges that mid-band 5G does not, particularly in dense urban environments and areas with heavy vegetation. Ericsson's 2025 Mobility Report estimated that mmWave FWA base stations require roughly three times the site density of 3.5 GHz deployments to achieve equivalent outdoor coverage, though the report noted that beamforming advances and integrated access backhaul have reduced that gap by approximately 30% since 2022. In the United States, where T-Mobile and Verizon have operated 26 GHz and 28 GHz FWA services at scale, Ookla Speedtest data from Q1 2026 showed median mmWave FWA download speeds of 412 Mbps, compared to 287 Mbps for mid-band 5G FWA, validating the capacity advantage that Italian regulators are targeting with this tender. The key question for Italian operators will be whether equipment costs and site acquisition economics allow them to replicate those performance gains at a price point competitive with fiber.