Mobile operators that paid huge sums for third-generation (3G) licences have wasted their money, according to Finnish professor Hannu Kari.

The professor, of Helsinki's Technology University, has developed a system that allows handsets to access the web at 11Mbps in the 2.4Ghz radio frequency. This spectrum has not been licensed by any European Union country, and Finnish operator Jippii Group, which is to offer the technology, claims it has been given assurances that the frequency will remain free.

However, industry experts have warned that the system, known as Dynamics HUT Mobile IP, could interfere with other wireless systems, particularly Bluetooth.

Robin Duke-Woolley, senior consultant at Schema, said: "Bluetooth operates at about that frequency, so there could be interference. Being unlicensed means it will not be strictly controlled."

He added that there are practical obstacles facing the new technology. "Because it's a very high frequency, it will have a very short range. While Jippii has said that the infrastructure is as much as 10 times cheaper than 3G, the range restriction requires the building of hundreds of base stations," he explained.

The news will spark a firestorm in the telecoms industry as rival operators scramble to discover if the technology is viable. If this is the case, it is believed that the industry will lobby domestic and European governments to put the frequency up for sale.

But Duke-Woolley believes that the technology may not pose a threat to 3G licence holders. "Whether you can create a viable, high-quality national service out of it is another matter."

First published in Network News