|
A spokeswoman for NTL said the company had "no comment" to make on the matter. She said that NTL would shortly be announcing the results of the business review of its Irish operations.
In January the company unexpectedly announced that it was delaying the rollout of its digital television and Internet broadband network until it had completed a full review of its Irish operations.
Under its licence NTL is committed to supplying more than 100,000 homes in its franchised areas with digital services by the end of March.
A spokeswoman for the ODTR said that no decision had been made on what would be done if NTL did not meet this target because the regulator, Etain Doyle was still in discussions with the company.
The sanctions that could be imposed include a suspension or revocation of the licence, a reduction of the exclusivity period allowed under the licence, or fines could be imposed.
However, it is understood that under the licence from the director of telecommunications regulation that the company has a grace period of six months after that date to meet this target.
The company denied reports at the weekend that it was selling its Irish operations for IEP380 million around IEP150 million less than the US-based cable company had paid for the business two years ago.
The tough economic environment for telecoms and cable operators has been blamed for the group's decision to delay its IEP350 million Irish investment in the new network infrastructure.
It is believed that by last month only 36,000 of the NTL's customers had digital services.
This means it is unlikely the company will meet the terms of its licence.
The company have said it is committed to the Irish market and plan to invest in the construction of a new Irish headquarters here.
|
