Swedish mobile licences awarded

STOCKHOLM, Sweden (CNN) -- The Swedish National Post and Telecom agency (PTS) on Saturday awarded the next generation of mobile licences (UTMS) in Sweden to Europolitan, HI3G, Orange and Tele2.

Swedish telecommunications giant Telia lost out and immediately announced it would appeal against the decision.

"This is a disaster for the country," Telia President Marianne Nivert said.

Telecom analysts believe the decision will send Telia's share price tumbling on Monday.

But PTS general director Nils Gunnar Billinger said Telia underestimated the competition and did not fulfil the requirements of coverage.

"Sweden will have the best UMTS coverage in Europe and also the country's sparsely populated areas will take part of the new technique," Billinger said at a press conference.

Several national and international telecom operators applied for the licences. They were awarded on the basis of criteria such as coverage, rate of expansion and financial back-up.

CNN Sverige contributed to this report.

Telia
Europolitan
Tele2

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.