After months of speculation the Eircell account is now out to tender. Arks, which has been care-taking the creative and strategic end of the account since Saatchi's closure, has been asked to tender as have McCann Erickson, Ogilvy & Mather, McConnells, Irish International and DDFH&B. McConnells already has a substantial part of the Eircell business as it is the media buyer for the brand.

The list of agencies which received an invitation to tender this week may seem long but it is thought that the account will not be awarded to a single agency - it is likely that it will be split between two or even three.

Eircell has significant below the line business including extensive and high profile sponsorship arrangements, as well as dealership communications and customer liaison. Added to this there are now several successful and quite distinct Eircell products including Chatterbox and Ready to Go.

It is thought that the account will be awarded in late June.