Nokia 3G delay benefits NEC in UK

NOKIA IS HAVING a lot of trouble delivering its 3G infrastructure on time, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. And so its customer, Hutchison 3G, has decided to ask NEC and Siemens to supply the first 3G kit which will be installed in the South of England, including London.

Nokia will now swap with NEC/Siemens -- whose 3G gear is working happily for MMo2/Manx Telecom on the Isle of Man -- and supply infrastructure for the Northern area.

Parent company, Hutchison Whampoa, which back in 2000 sold its Orange network to Mannesmann, currently has no UK network. Hence its desire for speed since the clock is steadily ticking away on the soccer rights it purchased last year, for example, and it is anxious to see a return on investment.

This infrastructure change might help it to meet its target of a working 3G network by Q3 2002. More of a problem will be obtaining sufficient 3G handsets. Manx Telecom has a mere 70. µ

www.worldsfirst3g.com