It was 86.6% up from the initial bids, which stood at 2.8 billion reais ($1.5 billion), said Anatel. Eight licenses for Minas Gerais state and the region covering the municipalities of Londrina and Tamarana in Parana state were auctioned on Thursday, it said. Telephony operator Telemig Celular acquired the first license auctioned for Minas Gerais state for $21.2 million, up 36.5% from the initial bid. Other winners included mobile phone operators Claro, TIM and Oi, which posted bids of 28.1 million, 22.5 million and $23.7 million, respectively. Vivo, the largest mobile phone operator in the country, acquired the first license auctioned for Parana state for $2.1 million. Other licenses for the state went to Brasil Telecom, TIM and Claro. The auctions started on Tuesday, when mobile phone operators Oi, Vivo, TIM and Claro offered a total of $1.05 billion for four licenses to use the new technology in the southeastern states of Rio de Janeiro and Espirito Santo, and in the northeastern states of Bahia and Sergipe. (people.com.cn)