Industry Canada has announced new rules for next year’s auction of portions of the radio spectrum. Highlights include:

• 38% of the auctioned spectrum will be reserved for new entrants — in other words, off-limits to the big three incumbent providers (Telus, Bell, and Rogers).
• The incumbents will also have to share their networks and cell phone towers at “reasonable” rates.

The new rules will certainly help to make the Canadian wireless market more competitive, which is a good thing for cell phone customers. That said, it’s hard to give a sophisticated response to the auction rules without taking a close look at the policy framework for the auction, which is a long, complex, and highly technical document. It’s worth noting, though, that the rules still leave 62% of the available spectrum available to the highest bidder — a situation that favors the incumbent providers.