(2003-09-06) World Com Iraq Deal

Rather than its deserved Corporate Death Penalty, MCI/World Com is getting a sweetheart deal from the Pentagon to build a Cell Phone network in Iraq. Batelco raced into Iraq after the U.S. invasion and installed cell towers throughout Baghdad. With half of land lines out of service and Saddam's 1990 plan to build cell towers stymied by UN Economic Sanctions, Baghdadis welcomed the new service. But the CPA shut down Batelco and threatened to confiscate its $5 million of equipment. Now the CPA is now prohibiting companies more than 10 percent owned by foreign governments from bidding on civilian cell business in U.S.-occupied Iraq... Companies like Vodafone, T-Mobile and NTT Do Co Mo of Japan all have more experience of "setting up green field operations in developing countries (than MCI)," says Lars Godell of Forrester Research. He adds that the George W Bush Administration's decision not to seek competitive bids "confirms the worst suspicions" of European cellular companies.