Telecom, the second-biggest mobile phone operator in New Zealand, has been cleared to buy the final lot of 700 megahertz radio spectrum, flagged for fourth-generation mobile use, BusinessDesk reports.

While some 4G capability is already available over a higher MHz spectrum, the 700-MHz range is especially well-suited to pushing fast mobile broadband into rural areas because it requires fewer repeater stations to achieve coverage and into densely populated urban settings, such as commercial buildings.

As part of the auction\'s conditions, the mobile phone operators will have to upgrade existing rural cell sites to 4G capability within five years and continue to expand their coverage. That\'s to ensure at least 90 percent of the country has access to a 4G network within five years.