The Texto SMS Gratuit team
25 July 2026 · 7 min read
On 23 July 2026, Arcep published the second public consultation on the modalities for reassigning mobile spectrum in mainland France. The stakes are high: aligning all the expiry dates — currently scattered between 2030 and 2035 — on a common date of 7 December 2035, and tightening the coverage obligations, including the famous reliability threshold raised from 95% to 98%. For a service like Texto SMS Gratuit, which depends on the quality of SMS delivery over the operators' networks, this overhaul of the spectrum will shape the reliability of messages for the next ten years.
Why this consultation is strategic
The frequency bands used by Orange, SFR, Bouygues Telecom and Free Mobile are coming to the end of their licences at different times. For an operator, a frequency band is the administrative authorisation to transmit on a portion of the radio spectrum — without it, no 2G, 3G, 4G or 5G. The current schedule is fragmented:
| Band | Current expiry | Target expiry |
|---|---|---|
| 900 MHz | 11 January 2030 | 7 December 2035 |
| 2.1 GHz | 11 January 2030 | 11 December 2032 (then 2035) |
| 1800 MHz | 24 March 2031 | 7 December 2035 |
| 2.6 GHz | 10 October 2031 | 7 December 2035 |
| 800 MHz | 16 January 2032 | 7 December 2035 |
| 700 MHz | 7 December 2035 | 7 December 2035 |
| 3.5 GHz | 17 November 2035 | 2035 (extendable to 2040) |
Arcep is therefore proposing a two-stage scenario: first short-term reassignments (from 2028-2030) to align all bands on the end of 2035, then a grouped competitive selection procedure (2029-2030) on the low and mid bands. A third consultation will follow before the end of 2026 to set the actual reassignment conditions themselves: duration of the new authorisations, fees, spectrum caps.
The coverage threshold rises from 95% to 98%
This is the most concrete measure for users. Until now, the coverage obligations in operators' licences required that services (voice, SMS, data) be available in at least 95% of connection attempts measured over a given area. Arcep proposes raising this threshold to 98%. Behind this figure lies a simple reality: a call that does not connect on the first try, an SMS that takes several minutes to send, are today cases tolerated by the contract — but they will no longer be.
In practice, Arcep also plans to extend this obligation to data at the same level as voice and SMS, and to strengthen indoor coverage (inside buildings), which remains the weak point of high bands such as 3.5 GHz. Mutualisation will be mandatory in the white-zone town centres: a single shared network for several operators, where investment is not profitable for each.
Photo: Unsplash — the physical infrastructure of the networks, which the Arcep consultation aims to make more resilient.
A strict framework for shutting down 2G and 3G
A hot topic in 2026: operators have already started switching off 2G and 3G, technologies on which some services still rely (notably SMS notifications from Linky meters, payment terminals, and industrial IoT). Arcep is now setting a strict framework: 5 years' notice before any switch-off, including 24 months for the detailed schedule. Operators will have to publish a public roadmap, with justification of the areas concerned.
For the record, Free already switched off 2G on its network in 2025; Orange has announced the progressive switch-off of 2G by 2030 and 3G by 2028-2029, as we detailed in our article on the 3G shutdown in France by 2028-2029. The consultation therefore enshrines a principle of transparency that was previously lacking.
What the operators are flagging
Unsurprisingly, the four national operators have already started to play their cards. Orange is asking for a longer licence duration (20 years instead of 15) to amortise 5G investments and prepare for 6G. SFR, in the middle of restructuring after the Altice takeover, is pushing for a reduction in fees to ease consolidation. Bouygues Telecom insists on regulatory stability — a classic message, but one that takes on new meaning in a context where operator revenues fell by 1.9% in the first quarter of 2026 (a subject we covered in our analysis of telecom revenues in Q1 2026). Free Mobile is defending the maintenance of a per-operator spectrum cap to preserve competition.
Arcep, in its consultation, is leaving every door open: it is explicitly asking stakeholders about the duration, caps, fees, and the fate of the 3.5 GHz band by 2040. The consultation remains open until 23 September 2026 at 6:00 p.m., and contributions can be sent to frequences.mobile@arcep.fr.
What it actually changes for users
For the general public, the reassignment will not change anything in the short term: operators will keep their current licences until the alignment on 2035. But three consequences can be anticipated.
First, the quality of SMS and calls will improve, particularly in rural areas and inside buildings. The 98% threshold, mutualisation in white zones, and the strengthening of indoor coverage form a coherent package that targets precisely the everyday irritants: the call that drops, the SMS that does not send, the network that "searches" for ten seconds.
Second, the regulated switch-off of 2G and 3G will force industrial players and service operators to migrate to 4G, 5G or LTE-M. For users, this means that an old 2G-only phone, still used by some seniors or in isolated areas, will stop working by 2030-2033. Better to plan ahead.
Photo: Unsplash — everyday mobile coverage, at the heart of the regulator's concerns.
Finally, the structural decline in SMS — down 27% year-on-year according to our analysis of the SMS roaming and national market in Q1 2026 — will not be reversed by the reassignment, but it will stabilise the technical foundation on which critical notifications still rely: FR-Alert warnings, bank transaction confirmations, SMS two-factor authentication, flight and appointment reminders.
Key dates to remember
- 23 July 2026: Arcep opens the public consultation.
- 23 September 2026 (6:00 p.m.): deadline for contributions.
- End of 2026: third consultation on the reassignment conditions (duration, fees, caps).
- 2028-2030: short-term reassignments to align the bands on 2035.
- 2029-2030: grouped competitive selection procedure.
- 7 December 2035: new common expiry date for all bands (excluding 3.5 GHz, extendable to 2040).
For SMS players, and for a service like ours that focuses on the simplicity of sending, the issue is less about technological revolution than about the guarantee of reliability: an SMS should be sent in under 5 seconds, delivered to its recipient, and not depend on a frequency band whose administrative future would be uncertain. Arcep's consultation lays the groundwork for a readable framework through to 2035. In time, it is good news for the resilience of the communications we use every day.
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