The outgoing chairwoman of the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg) has strongly criticised Eircom, accusing it of failing to accept competition and lacking a vision for the future.
Ms Etain Doyle, who said last week she would step down from the Commission early in the new year, also reiterated her belief that Irish mobile prices are among the highest in Europe. She blames Eircom for delays in introducing services and failing to accept that competition is here to stay.
Eircom has been much slower than other European firms such as British Telecom to accept competition and has dragged its feet on a range of services, according to Ms Doyle, who was the first industry regulator appointed by the Government in early 1997.
Asked if there was a danger that Eircom's lack of investment in its network could damage competitiveness, Ms Doyle said that Eircom was less committed than some other European companies.
"If I would compare Eircom to KPN or Telia, I don't see its vision of where it's going in terms of providing state-of-the-art communications in Ireland. And I think that is a disappointment."
She said there was a strong argument for more clearly separating Eircom's wholesale business from its retail business as had occurred in Britain with BT.
But Ms Doyle did commend the company for its recent decision to aggressively introduce high-speed broadband services.
She highlighted a lack of tough penalty powers as a weakness that made it more difficult for ComReg to force Eircom to comply with its decisions. She also blamed a weak economic climate for Eircom's retention of 81 per cent market share since 2001.
On the issue of mobile prices, Ms Doyle said she stood by her assessment that mobile phone prices in Ireland were among the highest in Europe. ComReg would supply further details on pricing to an Oireachtas Committee shortly, she added.
Meanwhile, Ms Doyle confirmed that a dispute with the Department of Communications regarding her pension entitlements had not yet been resolved.
Under the terms of her contract as a member of ComReg, she will not be able to work for a communications firm for a year.
