ESAT Telecom has made a High Court challenge to Dublin Corporation's decision to allocate phone "pedestal" sites in Dublin. Mr Justice Quirke permitted Esat, with registered offices at The Malt House, Grand Canal Quay, Dublin, to take proceedings to quash the corporation plans for phone sites in accordance with a press advert on June 25th. Friday is the closing date for receipt of tenders.

Mr Eoin McCullough, for Esat, said that after the liberalisation of the telecommunications market, various companies were licensed to provide services previously exclusively the preserve of Telecom Eireann. Street phone facilities were part of those services.

Dublin Corporation had advertised for the submission of tenders and it appeared it intended to allocate these sites to the company prepared to pay the highest amount of money. This was an unlawful approach, Mr McCullough said; any procedure for allocation must be non-discriminatory.