STOCKHOLM, Sweden-In a surprise announcement, the Swedish government awarded four Universal Mobile Telecommunications System licenses on Dec. 16, dismissing a proposal from Telia, the country’s current mobile leader. Sweden’s other two incumbent operators, NetCom and Europolitan, won licenses through a “beauty contest,” along with two consortia backed by France Telecom and Hutchison Whampoa plc respectively.
The news hit Telia a year to the day after its planned merger with Norway’s Telenor collapsed amid management bickering. The company, which has publicly said its third-generation strategy revolves around winning 3G licenses in Finland, Norway and Sweden, already has licenses in the first two Nordic countries.
The former state-owned company released statements saying it would appeal the National Post & Telecom Agency’s decision and it would still offer mobile broadband services, including UMTS services, by becoming a virtual network operator or initiating “structural deals.” Telia plans to roll out commercial GPRS services in the first quarter of next year.
Sweden’s telecom agency dismissed Telia’s application on grounds of technical feasibility, according to international press reports. Other operators plan to build more than 20,000 base stations, while Telia’s proposal had detailed plans for only 4,100 base stations.
The country’s four UMTS winners include Tele2, the mobile arm of NetCom, and Vodafone Group plc-controlled Europolitan. The Orange Sweden consortium includes France Telecom, NTL and Swedish firms Bredbandsbolaget, Framtidsfabriken, Skanska and Schibsted. The fourth winner is Hi3G Access, a consortium including Investor and Hong Kong-based Hutchison, which has also won licenses in the United Kingdom, Italy and Austria.
