Three UK consumer losses also continued, although churn improved by 1.7 percentage points year-on-year, supported by what Vodafone described as a “best-in-class customer experience.”

The newly combined VodafoneThree business now serves more than 28 million customers, making it the biggest mobile network operator in the UK. Vodafone said integration has progressed quickly, with spectrum and network sharing already activated for 28.6 million customers who can now seamlessly use both networks.

Vodafone said its UK mobile performance remained commercially resilient in the third quarter of FY26, even as underlying service revenue declined slightly due to tough prior-year comparisons and the after-effects of major business contracts.

The operator reported a 42.8 per cent increase in mobile service revenue in the UK, driven primarily by the consolidation of Three UK following the completion of the merger on 31 May 2025. Oorganic mobile service revenue fell 1.8 per cent, reflecting strong comparative performance in both Business and Wholesale segments during the prior year.

Overall UK service revenue rose 31.1 per cent to £1.72 billion, while total revenue climbed 30.9 per cent to £2.12 billion. The company reiterated that the organic decline of 0.5 per cent had been expected.

Sub-brands VOXI and SMARTY added 38,000 customers in Q3, signalling continued momentum in value-focused propositions.

Upgrades

The company has modernised over 8,000 radio sites and eliminated 16,500 km² of partial coverage areas, while seven million Three and SMARTY users have seen 4G speeds improve by up to 40 per cent through combined spectrum.

Mmulti-brand 

Vodafone is pursuing a multi-brand consumer strategy spanning Vodafone, Three, VOXI, SMARTY and Talkmobile. In November 2025, it launched the “Vodafone Together Family” proposition, allowing households to bundle mobile and broadband services alongside security features via Vodafone Secure Net.

While the quarter showed pressure in enterprise revenue — Vodafone Business service revenue fell 4.3 per cent, or 5.4 per cent organically — the drop was attributed mainly to a previously flagged one-off project booked in the prior year.

Convergence

Although the focus remains on mobile, Vodafone pointed to strong broadband momentum as part of its convergence strategy. The operator added 64,000 broadband customers in the quarter and now has the capability to serve 22 million households with gigabit speeds. It also added 11,000 fixed wireless access customers, reported within the mobile segment.

Integration

At group level, Vodafone said the UK integration is “progressing well and firmly on track,” reinforcing expectations that the business will help support delivery at the upper end of FY26 guidance.

The UK now accounts for 23 per cent of group service revenue, underlining its strategic importance as Vodafone seeks to extract synergies from the merger while stabilising underlying growth.

Despite the short-term organic softness, the scale benefits of the Three combination alongside network improvements and brand-led customer strategies position Vodafone to compete more aggressively in an increasingly converged UK telecoms market.

Coop is a member-owned retail cooperative operating food stores, pharmacies, funeral services and other community businesses across Jersey and Guernsey,

Sure International serves the Channel Islands, Isle of Man and several international markets, and was formed from the merger between Sure International and Airtel.

There are four rolling monthly plans starting at £13.50 for 5GB of data with unlimited calls and texts across the Channel Islands, UK and Ireland. Higher tiers include 10GB for £16.50, 15GB for £19.95 and an unlimited data plan at £24.95. Customers who sign up before 30 April 2026 will receive a 25% discount for up to 12 months.

Members who link their Coop account to the service will also receive a 10 per cent discount voucher off a siingle grocery shop each month, redeemable in Coop stores.

The launch follows the retailer’s introduction of travel eSIM products in 2025 and reflects a broader move into digital services.

David McGrath, chief marketing and membership officer at Coop Channel Islands, said the operator was developed following customer research that indicated demand for simplified pricing and greater flexibility.

Plans are offered on a one-month basis and can be changed or cancelled without penalty via an app or online account. Data boosters are available in 2GB, 5GB and 10GB increments, while roaming is sold separately rather than bundled into monthly tariffs.

Coop Mobile also will sell new and refurbished handsets supplied by Grade Mobile swhich supplies refurbished graded smartphones and consumer electronics to retailers, operators and distributors.Devices will be available online and through in-store touchpoints, with trade-in options also offered.

The Jersey Competition Regulatory Authority, calculates average weekly grocery spending in Jersey is £112. Coop estimates that using the monthly voucher could save shoppers around £11 per visit.

Coop Mobile is now available to customers in Jersey, with Guernsey pricing adjusted to reflect local tax.

The operator is working with AI-solutions provider Zinkworks to bring in automation to monitor network performance in real time and resolve potential problems before they affect users.

Thise builds on technology already used in Virgin Media O2’s fixed broadband network, where automation is claimed to have educed repair times by more than a third and cut engineer visits by 12 per cent. Similar results are expected from mobile deployment by preventing faults, reducing manual intervention and limiting call-outs.

The system predicts where issues could occur and triggers corrective action. It will be deployed across radio access and core infrastructure.

Jeanie York, chief technology officer at Virgin Media O2, said: “Greater automation will help us predict and prevent issues and allow us to better spot and fix problems when they arise, reducing downtime and ensuring customers can trust us to deliver the dependable mobile experience they rely on.”

Paul Madden, CEO of Zinkworks, added: “operators are increasingly looking to deploy AI at scale to strengthen network performance and reduce outages”.

]]> https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/uncategorised/article/virgin-media-o2-and-zinkworks-to-plug-more-ai-into-the-network/feed/ 0 https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/uncategorised/article/hmd-appoints-new-way-international-as-official-distributor/ https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/uncategorised/article/hmd-appoints-new-way-international-as-official-distributor/#respond Tue, 03 Feb 2026 15:14:40 +0000 https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/?p=179754 New Way International is now a UK distributor for HMD Global, handling HMD’s portfolio across the UK channel.

New Way will distribute HMD  smartphones, feature phones, tablets and accessories, supporting customers across retail, reseller, managed service provider (MSP), enterprise and public-sector markets.

The initial focus will be on Nokia feature phones, with the majority of early stock drawn from that range. Nokia feature phones, which sell for around £60, are seeing strong demand in the UK  appeal for value-focused, enterprise and specialist use cases.

New Way says it was selected by HMD for its execution capability and established channel reach. The partnership is expected to improve availability and supply consistency, particularly in segments where reliable access to stock is critical. HMD aims to better support partners operating in both retail and business environments by expanding distribution through New Way.

“This appointment reflects our continued focus on building a strong, relevant mobile device portfolio for the UK channel,” said New Way MD d Nigel Prince,

“Working with HMD allows us to supporpartners with trusted products, consistent availability and the service levels they need to operate efficiently.”

The agreement reinforces New Way International’s long-term growth strategy, which focuses on expanding choice across price tiers and use cases, supporting sustainable demand, and delivering consistent service and availability to UK partners.

Devices will be distributed through the Good Things Foundation’s National Device Bank which provides refurbished laptops, mobile phones and tablets through the National Digital Inclusion Network set up in 2011 to tackle the digital divide at a local level

Reconome will be the charity’s exclusive technology partner and provide a long-term supply of refurbished devices.

The partnership builds on a pilot programme launched three years ago and is intended to move away from one-off device donations towards a sustained reuse model.

Around 7.9 million people in the UK lack basic digital skills,while 1.6 million adults do not have access to a smartphone, tablet or laptop according to Good Things Foundation’s Digital Nation 2025 data, Lack of access to devices is cited as a barrier to education, employment, healthcare and public services.

Reconome sources used IT equipment from corporate partners, which is then refurbished and redistributed through the National Device Bank to community organisations supporting people who are digitally excluded.

The Good Things Foundation has expanded its network of National Digital Inclusion Hubs to 667 locations since April 2022,  During this time it has distributed 28,992 devices, with a further 33,112 people benefiting from shared access within households or communities.

Nick Rawkins, co-founder and chief executive of Reconome, said the agreement would enable refurbished technology to be distributed at greater scale while reducing electronic waste.

Helen Milner OBE, chief executive of the Good Things Foundation, said the partnership would provide a more consistent supply of devices to support people who lack access to digital technology.

The initiative aligns with the UK Government’s Digital Inclusion Action Plan, which identifies access to devices as a key requirement for participation in an increasingly digital economy.

The organisations said the partnership would continue to support national efforts to reduce digital exclusion over the next three years.

Vodafone Business will provide infrastructure to enable river sensors that analyse water quality to transmit data every 15 minutes.

Undet the terms of the deal with UK-based environmental tech firm Additive Catchments Vodafone Business will keep AC’s sensors operational on a continuous basis, rather than relying on intermittent data collection. The project also involves partners, including Siemens, Google Cloud, AtkinsRéalis, Capgemini and The Rivers Trust.

The system is will provide greater visibility of pollution events, helping to distinguish between contamination caused by rainfall, sewage overflows or agricultural runoff. Traditional water monitoring methods rely on infrequent sampling and delayed laboratory results.

Regulatory changes require water companies in England to continuously monitor water quality around certain wastewater assets. This is expected to increase demand for resilient, always-on connectivity.

The new system will present the data in a more user-friendly format for swimmers, paddle boarders, anglers and other river users, end ensure regulators, water companies and infrastructure operators are working from the same data.

Environmental monitoring is a massive growth area for IoT services, alongside utilities, transport and smart infrastructure.

Rob Passmore, CEO, Additive Catchments, said “This partnership shows what’s possible when telecoms, technology, and environmental intelligence come together to serve the public good.  With Vodafone Business support, we’re extending the reach and resilience of our Catchment Monitoring as a Service (CMaaS) platform, enabling proactive water quality management at a scale never before possible”.

]]> https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/news/article/vodafone-business-gets-central-role-in-massive-ai-river-monitoring-network/feed/ 0 https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/news/article/vodafone-iot-lands-hyundai-group-in-car-connectivity-deal-across-gulf-region/ https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/news/article/vodafone-iot-lands-hyundai-group-in-car-connectivity-deal-across-gulf-region/#respond Tue, 03 Feb 2026 11:30:32 +0000 https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/?p=179732 Vodafone IoT is to provide in-car connectivity for Hyundai vehicles sold in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE. 

The agreement covers group brands Hyundai, Kia and Genesis cars to comply with local regulatory requirements for connectivity in each country. Vodafone IoT will provide local network access and compliance with national data and telecoms regulations.

Vodafone IoT’s Global SIM+ technology will be used. This allows a single SIM to operate as a local SIM in each market and enables local data routing and regulatory compliance while maintaining connectivity for vehicles that move between countries.

Vodafone IoT’s centralised managed connectivity platform integrates with local operator networks and allows Hyundai to oversee vehicle connectivity across countries from a single system.

Connected car services in the region will include remote vehicle control, vehicle status monitoring and other app-based functions. Deployment of these in the Middle East are complicated by differing national regulations.

Vodafone IoT said the partnership is intended to simplify launches in regulated markets by combining global SIM management with local operator relationships. Hyundai Motor Group said the deployment supports its broader move towards software-defined vehicles and connected services.

The two companies plan to extend the partnership to additional countries in the Middle East and Africa.

]]> https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/news/article/vodafone-iot-lands-hyundai-group-in-car-connectivity-deal-across-gulf-region/feed/ 0 https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/news/article/ee-and-three-top-nperf-leage-table-for-mobile-internet-speed-performance/ https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/news/article/ee-and-three-top-nperf-leage-table-for-mobile-internet-speed-performance/#respond Mon, 02 Feb 2026 10:56:09 +0000 https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/?p=179725 EE and Three led mobile internet performance in 2025 as speeds top 110Mbps in 2025, according to the latest ‘Barometer of Mobile Internet Connections’ from nPerf .

UK mobile users enjoyed a strong year for mobile connectivity in 2025, with EE and Three emerging as joint leaders for overall mobile internet performance, .

Three was the clear 5G leader, achieving an average download speed of 234.28Mbps and the highest 5G nPerf score at 104,060 points. Vodafone ranked second for 5G performance, while EE and O2 followed behind. Three also led 5G upload speeds at nearly 30Mbps, strengthening its position for data-heavy and latency-sensitive services.

EE delivered the strongest web browsing and video streaming performance, with browsing success rates of 69.65 per cent and YouTube streaming scores of 76.51 per cent. Three followed closely on both measures, reinforcing the tight competition between the two operators for overall quality of experience.

The report is based on millions of real-world tests conducted throughout the year and measured steady improvements in download speeds, upload performance and latency.

EE topped the overall rankings with an nPerf score of 86,470 points, closely followed by Three on 84,993 points. Both operators recorded average download speeds above 110Mbps, well ahead of Vodafone on 74.56Mbps and O2 on 44.07Mbps. The UK market average nPerf score stood at 78,222 points, reflecting increasingly competitive performance at the top end of the market.

Latency and upload performance were key differentiators for mobile voice and real-time communications, Three had the lowest average latency iat 35.31ms, giving it an edge for VoIP calling, video conferencing and online gaming. EE followed with 36.43ms. Vodafone lagged behind on 43.72ms. O2 sat mid-table at 37.56ms.

Three led upload speeds at 16.50Mbps, ahead of EE on 15.77Mbps. Vodafone averaged 11.88Mbps, while O2 trailed at 8.22Mbps. nPerf noted that Three’s upload advantage translated into a more consistent experience for two-way services such as video calling and live streaming.

nPerf said the findings reflect intense competition among the UK’s leading mobile networks, with EE and Three offering “complementary strengths” across speed, latency and quality-of-experience indicators. For consumers and business users alike, the results point to increasingly reliable mobile voice quality, smoother video calls and faster mobile broadband particularly where 5G coverage is available.

The study analysed performance during both busy evening hours and quieter periods, ensuring results reflect real-world network congestion as well as peak capability. Only national operators with more than five per cent test share were included.

READ FULL REPORT HERE

The Mobile Component Repair (MCR) service enables the repair of individual device components rather than full unit replacement.

TMT First was the only Staffordshire business to receive the award last year. The presentation took place at a ceremony attended by more than 100 guests, including Newcastle-under-Lyme MP Adam Jogee, the town’s mayor, executives from Samsung and eBay, and representatives from Keele University, the University of Staffordshire and Staffordshire Chambers of Commerce.

At a ceremony attended by more than 100 guests founder Adam Whitehouse received the award from the Lord-Lieutenant of Staffordshire, Professor Elizabeth Barnes CBE, the King’s official representative in the county.

“We live in a world where technology is moving at an incredibly fast pace, but there is a tendency that if it goes wrong people jump to replace it. Our close collaboration with and support from Samsung as part of our 12-year relationship has enabled us to innovate and develop new service and repair solutions such as MCR,” he said.

TMT First was one of just 197 organisations nationwide to receive a King’s Award in 2024.

Whitehouse said the award reflected the company’s long-term focus on repair, refurbishment and sustainability, supported by its 12-year partnership with Samsung. He added that MCR demonstrates how extending device lifecycles can reduce environmental impact while lowering costs for consumers and businesses.

Professor Barnes said TMT First’s approach aligned closely with the King’s sustainability priorities, particularly around sustainable consumption and reuse, and encouraged other Staffordshire businesses to follow its example.

The Lakesideopening follows 20 Experience store launches across the UK over the past 12 months as part of EE’s £3 million investment retail between May 2025 and March 2026.

EE claims 58 per cent of customers in the East of England are not confident using all the features of their smart devices and says Experience stores are positioned as a response to this, offering demos and personal guidance.

The Lakeside store will will be one of 11 EE locations across Essex offering “Stay Safe with AI” appointments, in partnership with Essex Police. The sessions raise awareness of artificial intelligence risks, including deepfakes.

EE stores will offer 30-minute online safety appointments managing children’s devices, setting up parental controls and supporting first-time smartphone users. The sessions are open to customers on any network.

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