On the day that Sweden’s 3G licences were awarded, 16 December, 2000, the director general of the National Post and Telecom Agency (PTS) declared that Sweden would have the best 3G coverage in Europe.
The decision was made after a beauty contest in which all four winning applicants had made commitments for coverage of at least 8.8 million Swedish inhabitants – more than 99% of the population – as early as the end of 2003. These commitments were later stated in the binding licence conditions issued by PTS to the successful bidders: Vodafone; Tele2; Hi3G (a co-operation between the Hutchinson Group and Investor AB); and Orange.
