Smartphone company to create 50 jobs

Mobile phone company 3 is to create 50 jobs with the expansion of its operations in Ireland.

The new roles in finance, product development and retail will be based at its headquarters in Dublin as well as outlets across the country.

Communications Minister Pat Rabbitte said 3 was playing an important role in boosting Ireland's high-speed broadband network for smartphone users.

"The smartphone economy is vital to Ireland's future and I am heartened that 3 is strengthening its presence here with the addition of a further 50 new jobs to its already 400-strong workforce," he said.

Chief executive of 3, Robert Finnegan, said there has been an explosion in smartphone use and the company's expansion is a clear signal of its ambition to grow further in Ireland in the coming years.

"We've talked about the smart economy for years but the explosion of the smartphone is changing the way consumers use the internet for good and it is driving economic growth around the world," he said.