The Portuguese government said it plans to open a tender for a personal communications services license this month and issue a third mobile phone license by the end of this or early next year.
“The specification of the bidding is practically concluded and will be presented by the Portugal Communications Institute in June,” commented Under Secretary for Telecommunications Leonor Coutinho.
Presently, Portugal’s mobile phone market consists of Global System for Mobile communications carriers Telecomunicacoes Moveis Nacionais, owned by Portugal Telecom, and Telecel-Communicacoes Pessoais.
The third operator will build a system based on Digital Cellular System 1800 technology, an upbanded configuration of GSM technology. GSM and DCS 1800 are the standards adhered to for all European Union members.
An operator will be chosen based on its technical capabilities, financial standing and on whether the group’s plans are in the public interest, said Casmiro de Jesus, commercial attache at the U.S. Embassy in Lisbon, Portugal.
Interested parties include Portuguese companies SIBS, Sonae, a large banking and industrial group; Compta, a hardware and software information technologies company with telecom interests; and SIBS-Sociedade Interbancardia de Servicos, an automated teller machine operator currently working with cellular provider Telecel to set up mobile ATM services.
TMN, which operates analog and GSM cellular services, is majority-owned by the Post Telephone and Telegraph of Portugal, referred to as Portugal Telecom, and Marconi of the United Kingdom. In April, British Telecommunications plc and MCI Communications Corp. purchased small stakes, 1 percent and 0.5 percent respectively, in Portugal Telecom, TMN’s parent.
Telecel is a venture of Portuguese financial firms Grupo Espirirto Santo and Grupo Amorim, each with 37.5 percent ownership, and AirTouch Communications Inc., with a 23 percent stake.
At the end of last year, the Strategis Group reported that Portugal had about 582,000 subscribers.
