Conduit's foray into the British directory inquiries market will hold the key to the group's future growth or subsequent decline due to the sheer scale of investment required to gain a foothold.

Following the switch off of British Telecom's 192 directory service last month in Britain, there are 15 firms competing in the market.

Conduit has spent about £19 million (€27.3 million) already on its campaign to grab a slice of the £300 million annual directories market in the UK and has set aside a further £40 million over three years.

But it is clear that Conduit has not been as successful as it expected. Despite offering one of the cheapest call charges, analysts believe Conduit has suffered from the general confusion in the market.

In the past few weeks the company has laid off about 250 temporary employees and British media reports have speculated that the firm has eased off on its expensive advertising campaign.

British Telecom has claimed that the total number of calls to directory inquiries was down by 45 per cent in the first two weeks after the 192 number shutdown.

In addition, a rival firm called The Number is regarded as having stolen a march on the rest of the competition through its catchy advertising campaign featuring two middle-aged runners.

Analysts believe just three or four firms can hope to make a successful business in the British market putting the pressure on Conduit management at a sensitive time for the company.