LONDON (Alliance News) - BT Group PLC has been left out of a lucrative UK Government deal to upgrade the communications systems used by emergency services in Britain, The Times reports on Monday.
Citing a Home Office tender document for the work, one of the biggest public sector communications in recent years, the Times said BT was not even shortlisted for the upgrade. The deal is estimated to have a combined value of nearly GBP5 billion over ten years, split across four tranches.
The project involves modernising radios and communications devices used by police, fire and ambulance workers in the UK.
BT had been thought to be well-positioned for the work, given its history with government communications contracts and recent push back into the mobile market, including the acquisition of 4G spectrum.
The contract will now be fought for by O2, EE Ltd and Vodafone Group PLC, along with incumbent operator Airwave. Arqiva and UK Broadband Networks will also battle to win part of the deal.
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/business/industries/telecoms/article4166978.ece
By Sam Unsted; samunsted@alliancenews.com; @SamUAtAlliance
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