The government's lucrative auctioning of airwaves yesterday focused on spectrum that will allow the delivery of high-speed internet access without a phone line.
Prospective bidders were told a reserve of £78.3m has been set for the auction of 33 licences, due to start on October 16.
Analysts expect the sale to raise significantly more than the reserve after the auction of third-generation mobile phone licences raised £22.5bn.
British and international telecom operators are said to be interested in licences for the 28GHz spectrum, to deliver internet and multimedia access by wireless links.
Operators will be able to bypass BT and the cable networks to provide such services to the small and medium-size businesses. Colt, Energis, Cable & Wireless and MCI WorldCom are understood to be among those interested.
Kim Howells, minister for competition and consumer af fairs, said: "We have decided on an auction process as it provides a fast, transparent, fair and economically efficient way of allocating the scarce resource of radio spectrum. The levels bid will reflect the bidders' own valuations of the licences and the opportunities they see for broadband fixed wireless access."
Atlantic Telecom has ruled itself out of the bidding for fear the auction process will inflate the price for licences.
The company already owns national licences for fixed wireless operations, but these are run on a different frequency.
Atlantic Telecom is viewed as a market leader in this area and built its strategy on attracting small to medium-size businesses with the promise of high-speed internet connection.
Some analysts have estimated the auction of the licences could raise at least £2bn for the Treasury's coffers.
The government will auction three licences in the 28GHz band in 11 regions. Those licences will last for 15 years.
A spectrum offering even higher speed broadband services at 40GHz, which would enable television and video conferencing on computers, may also be auctioned this year.
Britain is behind Switzerland, Finland, Portugal, Spain, Ireland and Germany, which have already auctioned their licences for broadband wireless communications.
Switzerland's auction of 13 licences is understood to have raised about £150m.
