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Ofcom warns O2 over 3G coverage obligations

Ofcom has issued O2 with a warning over it’s 3G coverage in the UK, which is below the required target.

O2 acquired its third-generation (3G) mobile wireless licence for 4.3 Billion in an auction of 5 licences back in April 2000.  The other license holders are Hutchison 3G (3), Orange, T-Mobile and Vodafone. 

All licenses carried with them a 20 year duration.  This enabled them all to operate a 3G network in the UK that can provide high speed data and Mobile Internet services to mobile devices as well as traditional  voice and text services.

The licences also carried with them an obligation to be able to provide 3G services to at least 80 percent of the population in the UK from 31 December 2007.  The other four licence holders have achieved this, but O2 is left at an embarrassing 75.69 percent.  Ofcom says this shortfall equates to approximately 2.5 million people missing out on 3G services.

Under the terms of the Wireless Telegraphy for licence breaches, if O2 doesn’t pull up its socks by the end of June 2008, Ofcom will shorten the term of the licence by four months.  This will amount to a financial sanction of at least £40 million according to Ofcom.

In a statement, an O2 spokesperson said: “We accept that Ofcom is enforcing the terms of our licence. However we are fully committed to growing our 3G coverage and customer base with the best quality 3G service and are confident that we will have met Ofcom’s requirement before June 2008.”