The move combines nexfibre’s wholesale fibre coverage with Virgin Media O2’s national network and marks giffgaff’s biggest diversification since its creation in 2009. The mobile brand has built a reputation for customer-led simplicity and value, and its broadband launch takes it into one of the most hotly contested segments of the UK communications market.

The service is now live across North West England, Yorkshire and the Humber, and the East Midlands, with North East England to follow in October. Wider rollout next year is expected to align with nexfibre’s £4.5bn full-fibre build and Virgin Media O2’s continued expansion.

Ash Schofield, CEO of giffgaff, said the brand is applying the same playbook that underpinned its mobile success:

“By harnessing the power of our members, we’re cutting through complexity with three simple full-fibre plans, flexible monthly contracts, and seamless switching through One Touch Switch. This is just the start. The long-term opportunity lies in scaling with Virgin Media O2 and nexfibre to create a true nationwide alternative to BT.”

The service launches with three packages: 200Mbps (£34), 500Mbps (£36), and 900Mbps (£39). There are no installation or set-up fees. It is delivered over nexfibre’s full-fibre network, with Virgin Media O2’s broadband infrastructure set to add national reach over the next 18 months. This dual-platform strategy enables giffgaff to go to market quickly while future-proofing its rollout.

By stripping out bundles and long-term contracts, giffgaff aims to win share from BT, Sky, TalkTalk and Vodafone, whose consumer broadband propositions are often tied to multi-service lock-ins.

Early trials suggest strong market potential: around 92 percent of giffgaff’s 500 trialists said they would recommend the service.

The regulator’s annual review of telecoms service quality revealed that companies outside the big four mobile networks—EE, O2, Three, and Vodafone—are scoring impressively on customer satisfaction metrics.

Tesco Mobile and giffgaff lead the mobile sector

Tesco Mobile and giffgaff led the mobile sector with standout overall satisfaction scores of 94%, well above the industry average. In contrast, major players O2 and Vodafone lagged behind, scoring 85% and 84% respectively.

When it came to handling complaints, Tesco Mobile again stood out with a satisfaction score of 68%, comfortably above the average, while Three fell short at 51%. Customers of Lebara, Tesco Mobile, and giffgaff were also more inclined to recommend their mobile provider to friends—another indicator of high satisfaction.

Complaints drop overall

The number of complaints made to Ofcom dropped overall in 2024, but disparities remain. O2 recorded the highest number of complaints per 100,000 customers (23), while Tesco Mobile had the lowest (4), underscoring the performance gap between the major operators and smaller challengers.

In the broadband market, Plusnet emerged as the top performer with a 91% satisfaction rating, whereas TalkTalk customers reported the lowest satisfaction at 77%. EE (66%), Plusnet (65%), and Sky (63%) all ranked above average for handling complaints, while TalkTalk (54%) and Virgin Media (53%) fell behind.

Broadband speed satisfaction remained strong, with 83% of customers content with their service—unchanged from 2022. Notably, satisfaction with value for money improved, rising from 62% in 2022 to 73% among standalone broadband users in 2024.

NOW Broadband registered the highest volume of complaints to Ofcom per 100,000 customers (65), while Sky had the lowest complaint rate in the broadband category, at 21.

The report highlights a continuing trend: smaller and challenger brands are outperforming established giants in key aspects of customer service and satisfaction.

The trial offers 12 months of broadband at just £10 per month, with fibre speeds of 500Mbps. Participants will also receive a £100 reward in exchange for feedback.

The new service will later be supported by Virgin Media O2’s wholesale broadband infrastructure. giffgaff becomes the first brand to use Virgin Media O2’s new wholesale broadband platform, and the second wholesale customer of nexfibre, a challenger to BT in the UK’s fixed connectivity market. Nexfibre is a joint venture between InfraVia Capital Partners, Liberty Global and Telefónica and is financed with £4.5 billion of equity and debt investment.

In keeping with its member-first ethos, giffgaff is calling on its community to help co-create the broadband experience. Giffgaff was founded in 2009 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Telefónica UK (O2) offering flexible, contract-free SIM-only plans with a strong emphasis on customer input. The name “giffgaff” is a Scots phrase meaning “mutual giving,”

Ash Schofield, CEO of giffgaff, commented:
“Broadband is a natural evolution for us as a connectivity brand. We’re committed to bringing together the best tech, with the experience of our customers — to build better broadband.”

The move is set to strengthen the national reach of the Virgin Media O2 and nexfibre full fibre network,

Ernest Doku, broadband expert at Uswitch.com, commented: “giffgaff’s entry into the broadband market could be exciting news for consumers looking for an alternative to the bigger players. While giffgaff’s full fibre broadband is only being offered on a trial basis at the moment, working directly with consumers to test its new service as ‘co-creators’ is a good way of showing its commitment to ‘building a better broadband’ The real test will be what kind of pricing will giffgaff be offering to consumers as this product becomes more widely available.

Guff Gaff’s esearch indicates that, on average, each UK adult possesses at least two unused mobile devices at home, with anotherl two devices having been discarded in the bin. Despite the potential value many end up in landfill sites.

The survey estimated the average male owned three unused handsets and discarded an additional two. Women had, on average, two unused devices and threw away two. Around 57 per cent of binned phones were actually broken or damaged and many could have been reused or recycled.

The study said the prospect of making some money was the main incentive for selling a used phone/ Environmental considerations were cited by 28 perf cent of people surve4yed. cited environmental sustainability as a motivating factor. A third of respondantswere interested in donated a phone to a good cause.

Giffgaff has a partnership with The Big Issue providing 250 refurbished phones to Big Issue vendors so they can support cashless payments for magazine purchases.

Giffgaff, CEO Ash Schofield said : “People are sitting on a significant amount of cash when finances are being hit hard. I would urge everyone to do what they can to get the maximum life out of their phone. Recycling i is great for helping people, like Big Issue vendors,benefiting not only their wallets but also the environment and communities in need.

 This is Big Issue’s first partnership with a mobile network, and the first time that Big Issue sellers have smartphones with NFC technology, The Giff Gaff supplied-phones will replace handset and card reader combinations

 Giff gaff says Big Issue resellers sold more magazines when they were able to do cashless transactions adding up to £520 per year in additional earnings. 

Russell Blackman, MD of the Big Issue, said: “The pre-Christmas period is always busy for the Big Issue, with more and more vendors signing up to sell the magazine, and sales dramatically increasing. Customers want to support vendors by buying the magazine, whilst also wanting it to be as quick and easy as possible. The Big Issue plans to work together with giffgaff to continue improving vendors’ confidence and competence with their new phones.”

O2 has the best subscriber perks says an analysis of network incentives by comparison site uSwitch

Opt for the O2 SIM only £6 per month 4GB deal and take advantage of all of the perks on offer, and the perks will be worth £1,102.44. This is a 665.58 per cent profit on the total contract amount over two years.

Unlike the UK’s other top providers,U USwitch says O2 customers can benefit from perks that renew each week says comparison site USwtch. These include a free weekly Greggs’s coffee, sausage roll and breakfast roll. You also get the chance to bag a free weekly Odeon cinema ticket throughout a contract.

Whilst free Apple TV and Peloton subscriptions are on offer in the first three months, there are larger perks available too.

Users can redeem a free 43″ £529 Bravia TV if they buy or take out a contract deal on a Sony Xperia 1 IV or 5 IV, this week with the TV. Whilst some perks require an initial spend, the return could still see consumers benefiting.

“The total value of all O2 perks is £2,135.67. Over 24 months, customers could be earning £699.23, once they’ve factored in contract costs and the cost required to redeem some of the perks”, says uSwitch.

*Cost of perks without weekly deals (e.g. O2 Greggs coffee)

O2 PERKS HOLD VALUE MORE THAN ANY OTHER NETWORK

Lebara, iD mobile and giffgaff offer a range of one-month rolling contracts and one-off perks that can be redeemed in the first month of a contract.

In the first month, a new user could be benefitting from perks worth 2335.3% of the cost of a Lebara SIM-only contract. But once the perks have been used, they depreciate, making contracts less profitable and, in some cases not profitable, over 24 months.

 Lebara’s perks amount to £92.24. So, in the first month, perks on offer for Lebara’s 1GB one-month plan for £3.95 a month are worth 2335.3 per cent more than the contract cost. After two years the contract cost will amount to £90.06, meaning perks will only be worth £2.18.

O2 offers a range of deals, including weekly, monthly and one-off, and customers’ perks are guaranteed to be valued at at least 130.3 per cent after two years, for higher priced contracts such as O2 SIM only unlimited contract for £35 a month. Lower priced contracts like O2 SIM only 15GB for £8 a month, value perks as much as 582.5 per cent after two years.  O2 customers are always guaranteed, over the length of their contract to make a profit from the perks on offer, says USwitch.

Three’s perks are worth £257.08 overall when factoring in the cost of the contract. Three offers several high-value deals to their customers which are mainly one-off perks, including 50 per cent off Moonpig, 30 per cent off Molton Brown and £10 off UberEats.

Perks after 12 months for Three’s SIM only 3GB £5 a month contract will be worth 549.8per cent of the contract cost. The perks included with the O2 SIM only £6 per month 4GB deal are worth over double that at 1,256.7 per cent of the cost of the O2 contract.

 Vodafone’s customers can earn up to £206.08 in their first month, Perks include a half-price Wine52 order, three months free Spotify Premium and £30 off a Haven Holiday, among many other deals.

]]> https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/news/article/o2-top-network-freebies-says-uswitch/feed/ 0 https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/news/article/giffgaff-adds-data-sim-goodybags/ https://mobilenewscwp.co.uk/news/article/giffgaff-adds-data-sim-goodybags/#respond Wed, 07 Dec 2022 11:07:55 +0000 https://mncwp.tailrd.cloud/giffgaff-adds-data-sim-goodybags/ The news means over 2.5 million (72 per cent) of the network’s customers will have more choice and greater value

Giffgaff has revealed its Black Friday deals on devices from now until December 6.

Top deals on new phones include:

• Samsung Galaxy A04’s for £129 or £4.96 per month over 24 months
• Samsung Galaxy A33 for £269 or £10.80 per month over 24 months
• iPhone 12 64GB for £269 or £25.38 per month over 24 months
• iPhone 13 5G 12GB for £729 or £29.50 per month over 24 months
• Sony Xperia 10 IV for £249 or £9.96 per month over 24 months
• Moto G62 for £149 or £5.80 per month over 24 months

Top deals on refurbished phones include:

• iPhone 8 64GB (Grade C) for £99
• iPhone XR 64GB (Grade C) for £169 or £6 per month over 24 months
• iPhone 11 64GB (Grade C) for £249 or £9.34 per month over 24 months
• Samsung Galaxy S10 128GB (Grade C) for £149 or £5.17 per month over 24 months
• Samsung Galaxy S20 5G 128GB (Grade C) for £249 or £9.34 per month over 24 months

Phones are combined with a flexible giffgaff goodybag (SIM-only monthly package), with the Samsung Galaxy A04s available for as little as £10.96* per month at 0% APR. All goodybags come with unlimited UK calls and texts.

All giffgaff refurbished devices come with a minimum 12-month warranty and 80 per cent battery health.

UK consumers could save an average of £204 by opting for a refurbished phone, reveals research by giffgaff.

The data also shows that if every adult in the country due to buy a new phone this year chose a refurbished one instead, users could save £4.5 billion.

Of those surveyed, 66 per cent reported phone costs as a concern and 33 per cent said price rises were causing them stress.

Meanwhile, 45 per cent of respondents said they were more likely to use refurbished tech than they were a few years ago, with 35 per cent having purchased one in the past few years.

However, there are still misconceptions about refurbished devices, with 55 per cent perceiving refurbished phones as older models and 37 per cent thinking they have poor battery life and no warranty.

“At a time when people are feeling the rising cost of living, refurbished devices can be a great option,” said giffgaff CEO Ash Schofield.

“Our research shows that whilst a number of people see refurb tech as a viable option, quite a few are missing out on the savings because of outdated misconceptions.

“We want to bust these myths about battery life, outdated models and lower quality devices, and help the nation manage their finances to get more of what they want and need.”

Giffgaff members can take part of Samsung’s recycling scheme which gives customers cashback rewards of up to £200 when they buy from a range of Samsung devices while recycling old devices.

Customers can recycle their old phone through Samsung by visiting www.samsungpromotions.claims/recyclerewards and once Samsung have validated their details, they will have 14 days to return their old mobile phone before receiving a cashback reward. 

Those who want to recycle a working phone can do so through giffgaff https://www.giffgaffrecycle.com/ with an average price of £111 for each phone recycled.

The offer runs from June 8- July 12 for giffgaff members and the devices on offer are:

• Samsung Galaxy S22 (from £35.72/month, £25 upfront): £200 cashback
• Samsung Galaxy S21 FE (from £31.16/month, £20 upfront): £200 cashback
• Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G (from £27.80/month, £20 upfront): £200 cashback
• Samsung Galaxy A53 5G (from £18.20/month, £20 upfront): £100 cashback