Smart Telecom accuses Eircom

SMART Telecom said yesterday that Eircom was engaged in "completely unacceptable" tactics to prevent customers switching over to Smart's broadband internet service.

The company said Eircom stood in the way of allowing a customer to change providers by "threatening to leave new Smart Broadband customers without any telephone service at all during the time it takes to switch customers".

The blockage means customers who switch to Smart Broadband must take a new phone number to avoid having their phone service interrupted. But Eircom rejected Smart's allegations and said delays experienced by Smart in signing up new customers were not the fault of Eircom.

"Switching customers from the Eircom network to the Smart Telecom network should be a very simple automated and integrated service but for some reason it's not," said Smart chief executive Oisin Fanning.

Mr Fanning said over 80% of Smart customers were happy to take a new number to get away from Eircom.