Vol. 557 No. 4
297 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources the position in regard to availability of third generation mobile phone technology throughout the country; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22589/02]
The licensing of third generation mobile phone technology is a matter for the office of the Director of Telecommunications Regulation. In June 2002 the director announced that following a competitive selection process held during the year Hutchinson Whampoa, Vodafone and O2 had been offered licences to provided 3G services in Ireland. These offers were subsequently accepted.
There were two types of licence to operate 3G in Ireland on offer. The A licence won by Hutchison Whampoa, with a total fee of €50.7 million, provides for 80% population coverage with minimum roll-out requirements of: 53% of the national population by end December 2005; and 80% coverage by the end of December 2007. The B licences, which were taken up by O2 and Vodafone, with a fee of €114.3 million, provide for a minimum of population coverage of 53% – equivalent to five major cities – and roll-out requirements of: 33% demographic coverage by the end of June 2006; and 53% demographic coverage by the end of June 2008. The differentiation in the fees reflects the greater roll-out cost to the A licensee in meeting the coverage and time constraints compared to the minimum requirements for the B licences.
