Tele2 considering Norwegian exit

Nordic carrier Tele2 said Wednesday that it is evaluating a number of strategic options for its Norwegian operations.

The move is not entirely unsurprising. In December, the operator failed to win any spectrum in the latest Norwegian frequency auction, leaving it at a serious disadvantage in the market. At the time specialist consultancy Coleago said that Tele2′s failure was a direct result of the auction format.

Norwegian regulator, the NPT, used a first price sealed bid format for the auction and Tele2 gambled that it would outbid any potential new entrant. In a first price sealed bid auction bidders effectively bid blind, with the highest bidders paying the amount they each bid. In such an auction it makes sense to bid less than the value you place on the spectrum, Coleago said, something game theorists call “shading your bid.”

A new entrant, subsequently revealed to be backed by the owner of Norway’s rural-coverage focused challenger Ice.net, won the largest spectrum haul in the auction.

Tele2 said that ABG Sundal Collier Holding has been hired to advise on the different options for the Norwegian operation. Among the possible options are entering a strategic partnership, divesting Tele2 Norway to one or several parties, or continuing growing the business organically within the Tele2 Group.