Motorola chief predicts 3G rollout in 2004

NEWS 3G mobile phones will not become mass market until 2004 and nationwide coverage will be nothing but a pipe dream. That's the view of Kevin Loosemore, president of Motorola EMEA, who told the Financial Times that although the next-generation mobile services will be quickly available in urban areas, coverage was unlikely to extend to less populated areas like "rural Devon". Loosemore's prediction that the services will not be available until 2004 is also more pessimistic than most predictions. Loosemore joined the company in June. He was previously UK CEO of IBM.