French UMTS contest loses Deutsche Telekom

NEWS In a statement, Kai Uwe Ricke, CEO at Deutsche Telekom's mobile arm T-Mobile, said the company had decided to focus on countries where it already has a mobile customer base and infrastructure. The decision, he claimed, was purely economic and not a reflection on France or the French market. The German telco still has a strong presence in the French market through its ISP Club Internet, fixed line business Siris and IT services joint venture Debis Systemhaus. France's UMTS auctions are expected to take part in the first quarter of next year. The closing date for tenders is 31 January 2001. Vivendi's SFR, Bouygues, Cegetel and Suez Lyonnaise Telefonica are still expected to participate in the allocation process.