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To: MrGreenJeans who wrote (2833)	5/31/2000 10:21:00 AM
From: MrGreenJeans	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 3175

French Minister Rules Out Auction Process for Wireless Licenses By Jad Mouawad Paris, May 31 (Bloomberg) -- French Industry Minister Christian Pierret ruled out holding an auction to award new- generation wireless-phone licenses, saying the government may opt for a system that involves comparative selection. ``In France, an auction system does not seem to be the most appropriate,'' Pierret said in an interview with Bloomberg Television. He said the licenses, limited to four, would be awarded for 15 years. The French government has for the past six weeks delayed disclosing the method chosen for the licenses after five similar ones were auctioned in the U.K., reaping 22.5 billion pounds ($33.6 billion). The prospect of having to pay similar sums in addition to investing in new networks prompted two French mobile-phone companies to decry the auction process. Bouygues SA, which runs Bouygues Telecom SA, and Vivendi SA, which controls Cegetel SA's SFR mobile-phone unit, both said they would have no choice but to enter a bidding war even if that meant being driven out of business. France Telecom SA, which operates Itineris, the country's biggest wireless company, said it would seek a license in France no matter what method was chosen. The French mobile companies favor a system that involves comparative selection, while foreign companies eager to gain a foothold in the French market have endorsed auctions. Based on a technology called Universal Mobile Telecommunications System, or UMTS, the new wireless services will let users browse the Internet and see video through mobile phones. Pierret also said the government is unlikely to award a fifth license, an idea first introduced last week by Suez Lyonnaise des Eaux SA Chief Executive Gerard Mestrallet.