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To: 49thMIMOMander who wrote (99208)	5/15/2001 7:14:33 PM
From: S100	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 152472

<Two years ago this was fun in scandinavia.> More fun now in Finland. Poor reporting? CEO Roadshow slide 16, never changed, same answer always no matter when you asked, shows 1H 2003 for 3G mass market. Test users 1H2002, Early Market 2H 2002. Tuesday, 15 May, 2001, 16:11 GMT 17:11 UK Finland stalls on 3G launch A Finn on a tram with her mobile phone By BBC News Online technology correspondent Mark Ward Finland's leading mobile phone firm Sonera is planning to switch on its third-generation phone service even though there will be no handsets available for it. Meanwhile, rival operators have asked for a delay to the switch-on date for the new network citing problems with handsets and technical problems. At the same time Spain has decided to put back the switch-on date for its 3G phone system until next year to allow technology to catch up with the ambitions of the phone companies. In separate announcements earlier this month BT's Isle of Man subsidiary, Manx Telecom, and Japan's NTT DoCoMo announced that they were being forced to delay the roll-out of their new mobile networks. Empty hands In March 1999 Finland became the first country in the world to award licences for new third-generation mobile phone services. Four licences were handed out to Sonera, Radiolinja, Telia Mobile and a consortium of regional telecom firms called Suomen Kolmegee. The 3G - or Universal Mobile Telecommunications Services (UMTS) - network promises to boost the speed with which data crosses wireless phone networks. It will also give operators a chance to deploy futuristic multimedia services. The licences were awarded on the condition that the UMTS networks went live on 1 January 2002. Now Radiolinja has asked for a delay to the switch-on date, saying that problems with developing the network technology and a lack of handsets make the deadline difficult to meet. Last month Finnish transport and communications minister Olli-Pekka Heinonen said he would consider a delay to the start date if any of the operators asked for one. It is not yet clear whether Radiolinja's request for a postponement has been granted. But rival mobile phone firm Sonera said it is planning to launch its UMTS network on time even though no-one will be able to use it. "It's probable that there will be no handsets," said a spokesman for Sonera, adding that it had the same problems with handsets that BT's Manx Telecom had when it delayed its 3G turn-on. The spokesman said Sonera could not even turn to Finnish phone maker Nokia for help because its 3G handset would not be available until late in 2002. "We are monitoring the situation but still we are holding to the target, which would mean launching service from the beginning of next year," he said. No networks News that countries which have led the way in mobile use cannot get the technology to work will come as yet another blow to mobile phone companies keen to recover some of the cash they splashed out to buy 3G licences. Now it has emerged that Spain has given permission to its mobile operators to launch in June 2002. Originally the Spanish firms were due to switch their UMTS networks on in August of this year. All 3G licences have strings attached that force mobile phone firms to meet certain switch-on dates, coverage targets or standards of service. Those operators with UK licences must have their network cover 80% of the population by 2007. Delays could also hit German mobile phone firms which are currently discussing whether to share networks in a bid to cut costs. "These delays do not come as a great surprise," said Jason Chapman, senior analyst at the Gartner Group consultancy. "We are seeing delays where the operators were probably being over ambitious with their launch dates." news.bbc.co.uk