Eircom blow as Smart option preferred
Niche fixed line and broadband operator Smart Telecom was instead left celebrating as ComReg, the communications regulator, opened the door for the telecom minnow to compete with mobile heavyweights Vodafone, O2 and 3 by granting it the fourth 3G licence.
ComReg’s decision leaves Eircom out in the cold in 3G stakes, although it has a second generation licence, held through recent acquisition Meteor but offering a more limited service.
Eircom and Meteor had mounted separate bids for the 3G licence, as the three-horse race kicked off before Eircom made its €420 million swoop on the mobile operator during the summer.
They will, however, be able to provide 3G services as a virtual operator by striking a deal with one of the four licence holders.
“We’re disappointed by the decision but we’re absolutely determined that we’ll deliver 3G services to customers,” said Eircom commercial director David McRedmond.
Comreg said Smart’s application had scored well on the speed of its proposed network roll-out and had been backed up by “attractive” performance guarantees. But Smart’s knockout punch came from its unique status as a new entrant to the mobile market, a factor that earned it maximum points in the key category of promoting competition.
The terms of the licence mean Smart will need to make its 3G service available to 53% of the population, the equivalent of the country’s top five cities, by October 2011.
Smart chief executive Oisin Fanning said he was “delighted” with the news and promised Smart would be in the mobile market within a year. “Smart Telecom will pursue the same approach in the mobile sector as we have pursued in the fixed/broadband sector - higher data speeds and better value for consumers.”
ComReg chairperson Isolde Goggin said the extra licence would give consumers greater choice.
The announcement came as a top Swisscom executive said the company would take no action that would hurt its relationship with Vodafone, which has a 25% stake in Swisscom’s mobile business in Switzerland.
A Swisscom takeover of Eircom would see it go head-to-head against Vodafone through Meteor.
