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Eircom, 93pc higher than UK.....

  • 20-04-2001 11:08am
    #1
    yankinlk
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,742 ✭✭✭


    http://www.unison.ie/irish_independent/stories.php3?ti=41&ca=35&si=414278&issue_id=4338

    Unbundling delays up for discussion


    EU COMMISSIONER Erkki Liikanen will meet Minister for Public Enterprise Mary O'Rourke later today to discuss the delays in the unbundling of the local (LLU) here, among other issues.

    Speaking at a Chamber of Commerce of Ireland briefing he said that while Ireland is normally fast when it comes to technological development "this is not the case with LLU."

    "I have also looked at the reference prices and they are not cheap," the Commissioner added.

    Eircom, which owns the local loop or the line side of its local switch linked to the customer or consumer premises, has given initial price proposals for competitors of euro 32 rental monthly but this figure is 93pc higher than the price being proposed by the UK.

    Mr Liikanen, a former Finnish Minister for Finance, focused on the importance of the SME sector and warned against complacency in developing Irish telecoms infrastructure.

    He added that in no country had LLU been easy.

    December 31 was the deadline for a reference offer to be sent from Eircom to the ODTR on LLU.

    However, although the deadline was met according to an ODTR spokesperson the offer was neither complete nor satisfactory.

    "LLU work should be completed by the end of April contingent on getting additional price information from Eircom," the spokesperson for the ODTR said.

    Up to now competitors like Esat have been critical of the delays in LLU and have accused Eircom of dragging its heels.

    "We are very interested in providing competition in the market for the SME sector and would like to bring it at the same level as we have done to our corporate customers on our own network," said Richard Cooke, chief executive officer Esat Group.

    "But we need to be able access to the local loop to do that."

    "We'd like to know why not a single local loop has been unbundled since the December deadline as is EU law.

    "The other issue is that the indicative prices are exceptionally high," Mr Cooke added.


    Ailish O'Hora



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