TELECOMMUNICATIONS: IRELAND ALLOCATES UMTS LICENCES.

• Position: Hutchison Whampoa - Brief Article

Hong Kong group Hutchison Whampoa came top in the "beauty contest" for Ireland's 3G mobile phone licences, according to a statement by the country's regulator on June 25. The two other candidates for an A licence, covering 80% of the country, were British groups Vodafone and O2 (the brand owned by mmO2, which split from BT in the summer of 2001). Ireland was the last of the European countries to put its UMTS licences up for sale. Hutchison Whampoa's bid was chosen for its ability to hire out...