German mobile phone auction raises €50.8bn

Germany's marathon auction of new-generation mobile phone licences was finally wrapped up yesterday after licence holders paid an extra €286.8 million to top up frequency, bringing the end total to €50.8 billion. The auction, which saw the total raised in three weeks of bidding sail past the £22.5 billion sterling paid in a similar auction in the UK, left European telecoms stocks severely weakened and rating agencies warning of impending credit downgrades.