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Official: Cellnet/mmO2 launch of 3G delayed till 2003 to boost shares

Since being split off from BT with a "birthday present" of ten billion pounds worth of third-generation licence, Cellnet, under its new name of mmO2 has focused on shareholder value, rather than a quick rollout of high-speed phones; and it is now official that 3G rollout is delayed "till 2003."

The company has huge debts - estimated by Bloomberg analysts at around half a billion pounds - but they're tiny, compared with the £10bn value of the licence which BT paid for for the right to operate third-generation phones in the Europe.

Now, the company's share price is rising, as it concedes that it will postpone much of the spending needed to launch 3G services, and won't offer them till 2003 - and no precise date in 2003 is offered.

"MMO2, with more than 17 million customers in four European countries, is unprofitable in Germany and the Netherlands," reports Bloomberg . "Under Chief Executive Officer Peter Erskine, the company is negotiating lower costs from equipment suppliers, delaying the rollout of new wireless services and wooing higher-paying business customers," the financial site reports.