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Responding to leaks about the branding, Hutchison Whampoa confirmed on Wednesday that 3 will be the name for its worldwide third-generation mobile businesses, which includes Ireland.
It appears the leak took the company by surprise, with Hutchison Whampoa's managing director Canning Fok saying the firm will make further announcements on its offerings and strategy on its own terms.
"Our name is just one part of our brand," said Fok in a statement. "We will stick to our timetable over the coming months, and tell people much more about our approach to our markets and our services when the time is right."
The company said the name should always appear as '3', with the exception of Web site addresses, where it is written as a word in the relevant language (e.g. www.three.co.uk). However, the company has not yet registered the domain www.three.ie in Ireland.
The Hong-Kong based telecoms company holds third-generation mobile licences in Australia, Austria, Denmark, Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Sweden and the UK. It has spent billions in acquiring the licences, shelling out over STG4 billion in the UK alone to secure that territory's most valuable 3G licence.
Hutchison won the valuable A licence at the end of June in Ireland, where, just as in the UK, it does not operate a network of its own.
In Ireland it beat off competition from O2 and Vodafone to win the coveted A licence, which provides for 80 percent population coverage and potentially extra spectrum for enabling mobile virtual network operator services. The licence will run for 20 years and cost EUR27 million.
The ODTR said it chose Hutchison because its application was strong on promotion of competition, virtual network operator access and quality of service.
It has been rumoured that Hutchison may now bid for mobile operator Meteor, which has struggled to compete with O2 and Vodafone. Although Meteor has less than 10 percent of the Irish mobile market, it has built up its network over the last year, which could prove attractive to the network-less Hutchison.
John Kelly, head of research at consultancy firm Alatto Technologies, said he would "not be surprised" if Hutchison acquired Meteor. However, a spokesperson for Hutchison told Business & Finance recently that he could not comment on the "rumour and speculation" that followed the awarding of the A licence.
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