Mobile bills could rocket up as Ofcom announces that it will charge networks far more to use phone spectrum

Sign up to our free weekly IndyTech newsletter delivered straight to your inbox Sign up to our free IndyTech newsletter Sign up to our free IndyTech newsletter SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Mobile phone bills could rocket up after Ofcom announced that the fees it charges to phone operators will be trebled. Networks should pay a combined annual total of £199.6 million per year for the 900MHz and 1800 MHz spectrum bands, which are used for 2G, 3G and 4G voice and data services, Ofcom has said. Ofcom's group director of spectrum, Philip Marnick, said: "We have listened carefully to the arguments and evidence put forward by industry, and conducted a complex and comprehensive analysis to determine the new fees. "The mobile industry has not previously had to pay market value for access to this spectrum, which is a valuable and finite resource, and the new fees reflect that value."