The Ministry of Transport and Communications said it would propose that Cabinet allot three UMTS licenses, each for a fixed fee, to the three existing cellular operators and award a fourth license to a newcomer in a tender sale. The minimum price for the fourth license tender would be established by an advisor. Such a solution, in our view, would be relatively favorable for the three incumbent operators (both Ceske radiokomunikace and Cesky Telecom have a cellular subsidiary), though a fixed fee is yet to be determined. The ministry did not suggest what the fee might be, but the 2001 budget envisages CZK 20 bil. revenues from the UMTS licenses, implying some CZK 5 bil. (USD 125 mil.) for each license. The licenses should be awarded next year. The Finance Ministry said it does not object to this method of UMTS license allocation, which increases the likelihood of Cabinet approval. We expect the Cabinet to make a decision over the next couple of weeks.
(Ondřej Daťka)