Wave has clashed with Cable and Wireless over mast-sharing

Wave Telecom has been told it is taking too long to get its mobile phone service up and running.

The island's Office of Utility Regulation has acted after the company failed to launch by 30 April.

Wave claims it has to complete talks with Cable and Wireless, but they have gone on longer than expected.

Necessary approvals

However, Cable and Wireless said it had made every effort to respond to what it called Wave's "changing requirements".

It said: "Wave has experienced a number of problems in implementing their mobile network in Guernsey.

"We consider that these problems lie outside the control or influence of Cable and Wireless, including commercial relationships with third parties and the obtaining of necessary approvals."

Wave Telecom aims to set up a mobile telephone network on Guernsey to compete against Cable and Wireless.

The Office of Utility Regulation says the delays mean consumers will suffer and has given the company a new date of 1 July to set up its service.

The two companies have clashed over issues of mast-sharing, with Wave Telecom accusing its rival of stalling negotiations.

Cable and Wireless said interconnection discussions with Wave had been complicated by the way they had chosen to deploy their network .