Sweden rejects 3G delay for Vodafone

The Swedish telecoms regulator yesterday rejected Vodafone's appeal to extend the deadline for rolling out third-generation mobile phone services in the country by an extra two years.

The PTS, Sweden's telecoms authority, said it did not consider Vodafone's reasons for having the deadline extended "to be enough to change the terms of the 3G licence".

Vodafone's Swedish operation, Europolitan, had asked the PTS to extend the deadline for rolling out 3G in Sweden to the end of 2005 from the end of 2003, complaining it was having problems getting building permits for new masts.

Europolitan and its rivals in Sweden, such as Orange and Hutchison, have pledged to provide 3G services by the end of next year.

But Vodafone is not the only operator having troubles. In September, the PTS also turned down a request from Orange which had asked for an extra three years to roll out 3G services.

So-called 3G technology, which is yet to launch in the UK, will enable mobile phone operators to offer their customers new services such as faster internet access and video clips on handsets.

Separately, Vodafone said yesterday it had signed deals with computer equipment suppliers that will see them offer the mobile phone operators' business customers devices which are ready to use on the Vodafone network. Dell, Fujitsu-Siemens, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Psion Teklogix and Toshiba will sell a range of devices such as notebooks and handheld computers, or so-called PDAs, as well as provide ongoing support.

"By partnering with IT vendors to integrate, configure and test mobile access at the point of manufacture, business customers can now choose to purchase their preferred integrated mobile hardware device in the knowledge that it will be fully supported by their supplier of choice," said Thomas Geitner, Vodafone's chief executive of global products and services.