Customers continue to miss out on competition due to 3G failure

Sure mobile has expressed disappointment that customers are continuing to miss out due to the lack of 3G competition in the Bailiwick.

The Office of Utility Regulation (OUR) has announced that Guernsey Airtel breached the conditions of its mobile licences by failing to launch services by 15 December 2007. This is despite the company previously being given a three month extension to the original launch deadline of 15 September 2007.

However the OUR has taken no action against Guernsey Airtel for the further failure to launch. Instead, a further extension has been granted until 31 March 2008.

Mark Briers, Sure mobile’s Marketing Director, said that consumers were the losers, and that it is disappointing that firmer action has not been taken.

“We’ve not yet had a chance to read the full report, but are disappointed that it appears Guernsey Airtel has effectively been granted a further extension instead of being subject to penalties for letting down the people of Guernsey before it has even launched! The finding that it has breached its licence conditions was a foregone conclusion given that it failed to meet the launch deadline, and as a result customers are still being denied 3G competition. It is customers that are the losers here, and firmer action could have been taken in their interests.”

Sure, the island’s most popular mobile operator, also applied for a 3G licence in 2005 but the OUR awarded it to Guernsey Airtel. Under its application, it committed to launch services by December 2006.

“We set out in our application that we would work with Nokia to provide the latest 3G mobile network, which would have been available by December 2006 and without the need for additional masts. We also set out clear financial penalties that we would have incurred had we failed to meet this schedule,” said Mr Briers.

“It is now more than 12 months later, and the latest deadline is still nearly three months away. The people missing most in all of this is customers who have chosen Sure as their mobile provider and could have had access to 3G services a year ago but are still denied that choice.”