Residential telephone firm Interoute Ireland, which trades under the brand name Spirit, has sold its 50,000-strong Irish customer base to Esat Fusion for a fee estimated at £2 million (€2.54 million). The sale follows Interoute Ireland's recent decision to exit residential telecoms markets across Europe to concentrate on providing wholesale fibre and network services. Rival operator Swiftcall said the sale would give Esat the lion's share of the alternative market with 150,000 customers, reducing competition.