The High Court will rule today on an application by the ITG telecommunications group for an order restraining Eircell from refusing to sell its electronic pre-paid vouchers for mobile phones to ITG.
Submissions from both sides concluded yesterday and Mr Justice O Caoimh said he would deliver judgment at 3 p.m. today.
ITG, claims Eircell is abusing its alleged dominant position in the marketplace by its refusal to allow ITG sell Eircell airtime from terminals installed by ITG in some 1,500 retail outlets.
Eircell denies the claim and has alleged that ITG's essential objective in the legal proceedings is to circumvent the result of an open tendering process for a contract to distribute Eircell airtime.
ITG participated unsuccessfully in the tender process and Eircell has contracted with An Post for the sale of the airtime. ITG is seeking the injunction pending the determination of a full hearing later this year.
In closing submissions for ITG yesterday, Mr Michael Collins SC, said Eircell was, on the one hand, claiming to have a non-exclusive contract with An Post and on the other hand saying it was not prepared to supply airtime to a third party. This was a contradictory position.
Mr Maurice Collins, for Eircell, said his client was entitled as a matter of fundamental principle to choose the method of distributing its airtime and to choose the identity of the distributor. It had done so after a tendering process.
