DUBLIN, Ireland-Contrary to most industry predictions, Meteor Mobile Communications has secured the third mobile license in the Republic of Ireland.
Orange plc of the United Kingdom strongly was fancied to secure the country’s first combined GSM 900 license.
The Meteor consortium is 60-percent owned by U.S.-based Western Wireless Corp. and used that company’s experience of providing services in the United States as part of its pitch. The group has promised to drive down call costs and concentrate on attracting first-time customers.
Meteor has made a commitment to launch its GSM (Global System for Mobile communications) service by March 1999, with the network due for completion by the end of 2001. The new operator will be required to provide coverage of at least one-third of the population within two years and 80 percent within four years.
The new license holder is likely to run into infrastructure problems given that neither of the existing operators is likely to offer roaming facilities. While Meteor has secured provisional agreements with more than 70 mast site owners in Dublin, it will require several times this number to meet its national coverage requirements.
Orange was the early front-runner for the license, particularly after group managing director Hans Snook hinted at a single tariff for the United Kingdom and Ireland that would enable an Orange customer in Dublin to call a counterpart in London at a lower rate than fixed-line charges. The company already operates a mobile service in Northern Ireland.
