Bulgaria's Communications Regulation Commission (CRC) said on January 18 that it would consider over the next months whether to allow the launch of a fourth mobile phone operator.

The CRC would invite opinions by interested parties and the public in the next month and prepare a report on whether there was a need for new operator, Reuters quoted a CRC spokesperson as saying.

Mobile services penetration in Bulgaria exceeded 130 per cent, according to data from Telekom Austria, owner of Bulgaria's Mobiltel operator.

In November 2007, Bulgarian Max Telecom applied for a GSM licence. Max Telecom, owner of the first WiMax network in Bulgaria, said it wanted to use the GSM license in combination with WiMax to offer new services to its clients. Two of the three current GSM operators, Mobiltel and Globul, have applied to use the same frequency, saying they want to expand their operations.

The third mobile operator, Vivatal, was not interested in the additional frequency, Reuters said.