(Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said Friday it had opened bidding in its latest mid-band spectrum auction to boost next generation 5G wireless services.

The new auction will auction about 8,000 county-based licenses in the 2.5 GHz are in mostly rural parts of the United States. FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said Friday we all know there are gaps in 5G coverage, especially in rural America, and this auction is a unique opportunity to fill them in.

(Reporting by David Shepardson)