HELSINKI, Finland and OSLO, Norway-Hutchison Whampoa and Investor-backed Hi3G, which will operate under the brand name “3,” will join Swedish third-generation (3G) license holders seeking rollout extensions. Hi3G has confirmed its intention to ask Swedish telecom authority PTS for an extension of the deadline to roll out its 3G mobile network in Sweden.
“We have notified the PTS by letter of our intention to apply for a postponement, and for altered conditions to our license,” said Hi3G spokesman Niklas Lilja. “We want an extension of the full rollout deadline. At this point, we cannot say by how much.”
Hi3G’s senior executives rejected suggestions that the company “lacked commitment,” stating that it planned to launch 3G services offering video on handsets during the first half of 2003. Users will also be able to use existing current-generation services on new dual-mode phones while the next generation of technology evolves.
Ulrica Messing, in charge of information technology at the Ministry for Industry, Employment and Communications, has already warned that existing conditions do not indicate any grounds for granting rollout delays in Sweden but do raise the possibility that new European Union directives could allow for changes.
According to Hi3G, the main technical problem facing the company is what it called “serious delays” in obtaining building permits to construct masts. “The processing time for mast building applications is very long. It’s far too long,” said Lilja.
A concrete example of the kind of obstacles hindering reaching existing deadlines emerged in Swedish Trelleborg, where the local authority rejected five applications to build 3G masts.
“Until we have received information that 3G masts pose no risks for the area, Trelleborg will be a white spot on the map,” a local official said.
Hi3G was incorporated in 2000 by partners Hutchison Whampoa of Hong Kong and the Swedish venture capital company Investor. The Swedish-Asian owned telecom has become the latest license holder in Sweden to apply for a delay to its 3G rollout deadline. Earlier, Orange and Vodafone presented their separate requests to the PTS. The central concern expressed by license holders is that the terms of the original license, which require full national coverage in Sweden by year-end 2003, are untenable.
However, the PTS has rejected Orange’s petition for postponement and is expected to deliver a similar ruling to Vodafone in November.
By contrast with Hi3G, Orange and Vodafone, Sweden’s fourth license holder, Tele2, is building its 3G network together with arch rival Telia using Telia’s and Tele2’s existing mast infrastructure, which covers both urban and rural areas.
Sweden’s second-biggest mobile operator, Tele2 said it will not be seeking a delay to the rollout of its 3G network and services.
In Norway, Transport and Communication Minister Torild Skogsholm’s decision to prepare an in-depth report on 3G’s status ensures missed deadlines by politicians.
