If you’re a customer of UK mobile networks Vodafone or Three, you may end up benefitting from some key network upgrades that the newly merged companies have just announced. Although both are still currently operating independently, following the completion of the merger in May, the firms are moving forward as one, which now has the largest mobile customer base in the UK at more than 28 million.
On Monday, VodafoneThree announced the next step in its promised £11 billion network investment over the coming years by appointing Ericsson and Nokia to help improve and build on existing mobile network infrastructure.
Once giants of the mobile phone handset market, Ericsson and Nokia now continue to work with operators as network equipment providers. VodafoneThree said the contracts, which also include four British firms, total more than £2 billion.
“We said we would deliver at pace and, just a few months in, we are delighted to announce our strategic partners, Ericsson and Nokia, that will work with us to deliver our ambition of building the UK’s best network,” Max Taylor, CEO, VodafoneThree, said.
“They bring the scale and expertise needed to accelerate the delivery of a resilient, secure, world-class and future-ready network, and together, we are laying the foundations for the UK’s digital future.”
VodafoneThree said the network build will boost the UK economy by up to £102 billion and create up to 13,000 jobs in engineering and construction. 74 percent of these roles would outside of London and the South East.
The announcement comes a month after the firm said it was expanding 4G and 5G coverage across the country for all customers as a direct result of the merger.
The plans form part of VodafoneThree’s goal to reach 99.95 percent 5G Standalone population coverage by 2034. 5G standalone refers to 5G networks with their own core network infrastructure, rather than 5G signals that rely on older 4G infrastructure. These newer networks are said to provide faster speeds for customers and allow mobile providers to host more network traffic, a metric known as capacity.
The end result for customers of Vodafone and Three should be improved network performance, albeit on a time scale of close to a decade from now.
“Today’s networks need new levels of performance, trust, and resilience,” Justin Hotard, President and CEO, Nokia said. “We are pleased that VodafoneThree has chosen our industry-leading network solutions to build a future-proof 5G Standalone network across the UK to meet the needs of customers today, and as the AI supercycle accelerates.”
President and CEO of Ericsson Börje Ekholm said the UK’s digital economy relies on “high-performing” mobile networks. Equipment from the firm will be used to modernise existing 4G and 5G infrastructure as well as work on VodafoneThree’s 5G standalone promise.
