Tech Roundup: Brazil’s 5G auction scheduled for November

This week: 5G auction is ready to go. Brazil rises in global innovation ranking but remains out of the top 50. The “cyber pandemic.” And a startup which wants to take food delivery to Brazil’s countryside.

5G auction set to happen in November

Brazil’s telecommunications regulator Anatel approved the government’s 5G bidding notice this afternoon, clearing the way for the auction of frequencies for the latest generation of internet connections. 

Why it matters. After years of delays, the 5G auction finally has a date to take place: November 4. It coincides with Anatel’s anniversary and is the last day of chairman Leonardo de Morais’s term. 

Twists and turns. The government left the 5G auction dormant for most of the Jair Bolsonaro presidency, but things have picked up this year after the administration used the sale as bait to get more vaccines from China and Sweden — countries which are home to both vaccine producers (Sinovac and AstraZeneca) and telecom giants (Huawei and Ericsson).

• Last month, the Federal Accounts Court approved the bidding notice, but not without drama — the court’s technical advisors said the government’s plan was not compliant with Brazilian law. Still, a 7-1 majority of board members chose to sign off on the notice.

5G compromise. In order to protect networks from potential security threats involving Huawei (experts fear it allows espionage from Beijing), the government decided on two separate 5G networks — one for the government and another for private clients. 

• Huawei should be allowed to compete for frequencies in the latter auction.

Brazil climbs global innovation ranking – but still out of top 50

Since last year, Brazil has risen five positions in the World Intellectual Property Organization’s Global Innovation Index (GII), occupying 57th place among 132 countries under study. However, even with this improvement, the country is still performing worse than it did in 2011, when it featured among the top 50 most innovative economies in the world.

A long...