Orange Jordan requests 3G launch extension

Orange Jordan is reported to have asked the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC), for an extension on the launch of its 3G network, originally expected to take place in February. The company’s CFO Rasian Diranieh is reported to have said he did not expect the network to be launched in the first quarter of the year because of delays in receiving the requisite frequencies.

The TRC has dismissed Orange’s claims, saying that 3G frequencies in all areas where Orange planned to launch have been released.

Orange Jordan was granted a 12-month exclusivity period commencing on the day of commercial launch, with commercial launch having to be a maximum six months after the telco submitted its bid for the 3G licence. As this was done mid-August, the expectation was that Orange would look to commercialise service by the middle of February 2010.

No bid bond was instituted, which is typically linked to the requirement to meet a launch date, though a real commercial penalty may exist should Orange not meet its February launch schedule. The exclusivity period is set to commence counting down from the middle of February 2010 whether the operator launches or not. That is to say, should it launch later, it would face a shorter period of exclusivity in which to establish its 3G offerings.