BT Pondering Mobile Again?

There is a report that British Telecom (NYSE:BT, news, filings) is considering re-entering the wireless business, yet again.  It happens every now again, at one point last year they were thought to be considering a WiMax buildout.  This time, the rumor involves some sort of joint venture between T-Mobile and 3.  Of course, BT does offer mobile services, but as an MVNO.  They used to have a mobile arm, but that was split off, rename O2 and was later purchased by Telefonica.

One can see why BT itches for a piece of the mobile action.  Like at Verizon and AT&T, the migration of communication to wireless means away from wireline and that means endless churn at best.  But without the mobile wing that Verizon and AT&T have, that game just isn’t nearly as fun, and the excitement and buzz for new products and technologies is decidedly mobile in nature nowadays.  However, it seems unlikely to me that BT will actually pull the trigger now.  Why?  Because it would be extremely expensive, and spending that money during a recession to enter an ultra-competitive market would require a bigger reason than they have right now.

But on the other hand, my knowledge of the UK market is limited, having last actually been in the country in 1990.  Opinions?

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Categories: ILECs, PTTs · Wireless