SK Telecom , South Korea''s top mobile carrier, said on Monday it beat rival KT Corp in an auction for the license for the 1.8 GHz spectrum band for 995 billion won ($920 million), more than double the initial bid price.

The auction for "golden spectrum" for super-fast, next generation Long Term Evolution (LTE) services was hotly contested by the two mobile operators struggling to grab a bigger share of the growing smartphone market.

KT said in a statement on Monday that it decided to give up the auction due to bid costs soaring from the initial auction price of 446 billion won.

Instead, the firm has secured the remaining 800 MHz spectrum band, KT said in a separate statement. A company official said KT paid 261 billion won for the spectrum.

Shares in SK Telecom and KT rebounded from losses in the previous session, when the intensifying auction sparked cost concerns, advancing 4.2 percent and 3.7 percent respectively as of 0134 GMT.