Only one bid for new mobile licence

FREE is the only bidder to run France's fourth mobile phone network and it is claiming it will cut mobile phone bills in half.

The company presented its dossier just before the deadline set by telephone regulator Arcep.

Virgin Mobile withdrew last week along with the group Bolloré and Egyptian operator Orascom.

France has some of the highest mobile phone tariffs in Europe and only three operators: Orange-France Télécom, SFR and Bouygues Telecom.

The cost of setting up and running the fourth network, along with bureaucratic complications, have meant several attempts to find an operator have fallen through.

Newspaper Le Figaro noted that the idea of a fourth mobile operator was touted almost ten years ago.

The current operators have criticised the price of the fourth licence - €240 million – as being too low.

Free says a fourth licence will intensify competition in the mobile phone sector – which had a turnover of €25 billion in France in 2008 – leading to better deals for customers.