Tough times ahead for new mobile operators?

According to representatives of mobile phone operator Era, the new infrastructure operators, Centernet and Mobyland, will not take off. In the meantime, the Electronic Communication Office (UKE) warned against any attempts to hinder their launch. Market speculation is that the new operators will put their frequencies on sale, or look for partners to take them over.

Some say that Mobyland might be purchased by P4, operator of Play, while the frequencies of Centernet might attract the attention of Orange, but none of the companies commented on the information. "Mobile phone operators present on the market begged for these frequencies. UKE set the conditions of the tenders so as to favor new players. The only effect is that the frequencies were blocked for several years. At the moment the law prohibits us from purchasing them," said Klaus Hartmann, president of Era.

Anna Streżyńska, president of UKE, stressed that it was too early to announce the failure of the operators. "New operators complain they cannot sign operator and roaming contracts with existing players. [...] If this turns out to be the case, we shall be forced to impose regulatory obligations on the operators," said the head of UKE.

Experts are very pessimistic about the chances of the new operators mainly due to financial limitations. (Puls Biznesu, pp. 1, 10) M.M.