Isle of Man advances in 3G race

The Isle of Man's telephone company Manx Telecom took delivery this week of the first 3G handset to arrive in Europe.

The whole telecoms industry is spending huge sums to roll out the new 3G network, which promises to make the internet mobile by delivering data to handsets at much higher speeds.

Delays in producing the new handsets mean that most consumers across Europe are unlikely to get the new service before 2003.

David and Goliath

But in a David and Goliath contest Manx Telecom is competing with Japan's telecoms giant DoCoMo to get the first network up and running.

Unlike the phone companies which paid a fortune for 3G licences in auctions in Britain and across Europe, Manx Telecom, which is wholly owned by BT, was given its licence for nothing.

The Isle of Man government saw this as a way of promoting the island as a centre of e-commerce.

BT sees the pilot project as way of testing the viability of the new system and its attractions to consumers. The company has sent key staff to the Isle of Man.

New masts have been built and equipment is being installed in the island's main telephone exchange by NEC of Japan and Germany's Siemens, which are partners in the project.

A dozen Japanese engineers have been on the island since Christmas.

The first handset was flown to the island by NEC on Wednesday and as Manx Telecom's chief executive Chris Hall opened the parcel at the firm's headquarters in Douglas, there was great enthusiasm.

"To have the opportunity to hold the first handset to arrive in Europe is very exciting," he said. "We see this as very important to the industry."

It is hoped that the network will go live at the end of May.