An MMDS company operating in Munster was led by a former Minister for Communications "to believe at all stages" that MMDS licences would be exclusive, it was claimed in the High Court yesterday.

In an affidavit read to the court, Mr Patrick Cronin, chief operations officer of Cork Communications Ltd (CCL), also denied that his company and Princes Holdings were involved in a campaign of interference and threats to the then Minister for Communications and the Government, over the period November 10th, 1995 to April 15th, 1997, to ensure the Carrigaline-based company, South Coast Community Television Broadcasting Service, would not get a licence to re-broadcast British TV channels.

Mr Cronin said CCL was licensed in 1991 to relay British TV channels in certain "cells" in the Munster area and was led to believe that MMDS licences would be exclusive "and further that the Minister would not issue any other licence for retransmission of TV programmes in the State save cable and MMDS licences".

Mr Cronin said CCL was a subsidiary of Princes Holdings, whose principal business was the development of broadcasting retransmission systems by way of cable and MMDS. He said 50 per cent of Princes Holdings is owned by Independent Communications Ireland Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Independent Newspapers plc.

He said Cork Communications/Princes Holdings (CC/PH) had made it clear to the Cable Communications Association of Ireland (CCAI) that it would not do anything which could be construed as an interference in the Minister for Communications' consideration of a licence application from South Coast Community TV.

He said allegations by South Coast that CC/PH was engaged, over the period November 10th, 1995 to April 15th, 1997, in an campaign of interference and threats to the Minister for Communications and the Government with the aim of ensuring South Coast would not be granted a licence, were "wholly untrue and without any substance".

The affidavit was read to the court on the second day of judicial review proceedings taken by South Coast Community TV against the Minister for Transport, Energy and Communications; the Director of Telecommunications Regulation; the Attorney General and Cork Communications Ltd.

South Coast is seeking several orders, including one quashing the April 15th purported refusal by then Minister for Communications, Mr Alan Dukes, of the company's application for a licence.

The case resumes on Tuesday.