Eircom faces fines over deadline

EIRCOM faces the prospect of hefty fines from tomorrow after the telecoms regulator threatened it with court action for repeatedly ignoring its orders.

ComReg has given the former State-owned phone monopoly until 11am tomorrow to comply with a direction that will force it to throw open parts of the fixed-line network to facilitate rivals.

Other phone companies, such as Esat BT and Smart, have asked Eircom to make it easier for them to have access to the network, to allow them to offer a wider range of broadband internet services.