• Two-thirds of Brits say slow and unreliable broadband is their pet peeve
• 3.7m UK homes still don't have full fiber (60% of which are in cities)
• Vodafone's 5G/full fiber can now reach 26 million homes

Vodafone says it's researched what bothers UK consumers the most, with 67% of citizens stating that slow and unreliable broadband is now their biggest pet peeve.

The issue is so significant, Vodafone found, that more than 20 million people say they would consider moving home to secure a better broadband connection, with many regions yet to receive full fiber rollout.

With hybrid working now commonplace and other factors like connected devices all driving traffic higher, 87% of Brits now consider fast broadband essential for daily life.

Vodafone believes 5G Broadband could plug current fiber gaps

In response to growing concerns over slow and unreliable broadband, the company, which recently merged with Three, has launched its own mobile broadband package to provide customers with cellular connections throughout their homes as an alternative to cable connections.

According to the firm, more than 26 million UK homes can now access full fiber or 5G broadband on its network, which it says is more than any other UK provider.

Cellular connections play an important part in the rollout of full fiber – those 5G networks already exist for smartphone connectivity, however around 3.7 million UK homes are still limited to old copper cables or part-fiber. Interestingly, it's not necessarily a rural issue, with three in five of those remaining homes actually located in cities.

Mobile networks already play a role, with half (49%) of Brits using a smartphone hotspot when broadband is an issue. Having this type of connection available via a router or a mesh Wi-Fi network would enable all devices to connect – not just those within reach of a smartphone (when the smartphone is home).

"This launch means we’re giving customers real choice: full‑fibre broadband where it’s available, and powerful 5G Broadband where it’s not – plus, better options for anyone just wanting speed with ease and flexibility," VodafoneThree said.

Vodafone's website is now showing 5G Broadband deals supporting up to 150Mbps, priced from £19 to £29 per month for 30-day and 24-month contracts.

• ISAC allows smartphones to detect unconnected objects without interfering with connectivity services
• Echo-based pulses let mobile networks visualize their surroundings, like bats in the dark
• ISAC trials successfully detected people and objects without disrupting mobile functions

Integrated Sensing and Communication, or ISAC, is a technology which converts ordinary smartphones into radar-like sensors capable of detecting unconnected objects in real time.

Vodafone and Tiami Networks are testing ISAC to explore how smartphones could warn people about nearby dangers.

The pair are also examining its potential to monitor crowded areas, detect intruders, and support tasks in industrial and environmental settings.

Vodafone and Tiami test ISAC

The new system relies on echo-based pulses, similar to the echolocation bats use to navigate dark environments, allowing mobile networks to visualize their surroundings without additional hardware.

Users could theoretically receive alerts about crowded spaces, nearby hazards, or other dangerous situations simply through their devices, and industries and public facilities could monitor intruders, unauthorized drones, or environmental risks.

ISAC could track natural disasters and monitor livestock, offering real-time insights in areas that are hard to observe directly, and could also create 3D maps using smart glasses, detect contaminated food, and assist robots in understanding human hand gestures.

Although ISAC is expected to play a central role in future 6G networks, which may begin operating around 2030, the technology can function over existing 5G infrastructure.

Vodafone and Tiami Networks conducted trials at Vodafone’s Málaga R&D facility in Spain, employing Tiami’s PolyRAN software to turn base stations into wide-area sensors.

“Our vision for PolyRAN is simple. Deploying ISAC should be as seamless as enabling a software application within a 5G network without disrupting existing connectivity services," said Amitav Mukherjee, CEO and Founder of Tiami Networks.

"Testing with Vodafone allows us to evaluate realistic performance and deployment pathways with a leading operator that is deeply engaged in 6G research.”

During these trials, unconnected objects and even people were successfully detected across a live 5G network without causing any interference to voice calls, messaging, or internet usage.

This means ISAC’s adoption does not require a complete network overhaul, making the technology more immediately applicable.

The trials also explored interoperability between different vendors’ hardware and software through Open RAN-compliant antennas.

This flexibility allows mobile networks to integrate new sensing capabilities through software updates rather than expensive equipment replacements.

By transforming base stations into intelligent edge computing platforms, operators can perform advanced environmental sensing alongside traditional connectivity services.

Beyond industrial or urban monitoring, ISAC could influence personal safety and everyday convenience.

Business phones may alert users to hazardous conditions in crowded transport hubs or to hidden maintenance issues, such as burst pipes, within buildings.

“Our 6G-ready test shows that your phone could soon do a lot more than connect you. It could be used to help keep you safe wherever you go,” said Marco Zangani, Director of Network Strategy and Architecture, Vodafone.

The technology could also support privacy-conscious public applications, for example, counting visitors in a shopping mall without relying on cameras.

While the full scope of ISAC remains to be proven, initial trials indicate that turning ordinary smartphones into active environmental sensors is technically feasible.

• Most business leaders believe their employees would fall for a phishing attack
• Workers commonly reuse work passwords for personal accounts
• AI scams and deepfakes are increasingly concerning

New data from Vodafone Business has revealed more than 10% of UK organizations would probably not survive if they were hit with a cyberattack, and while this may sound like a fairly low promotion by itself, it's set against a backdrop of evolving attacks and poor cybersecurity practices.

Nearly two-thirds (63%) agree that their business's risk of cyberattacks has risen over the past year, and most leaders (71%) believe at least one of their workers would probably fall for a phishing attack.

However, even though we're in an era of rapidly evolving threats, the report indicates that some basic cybersecurity measures can still serve to protect companies.

British businesses are still at risk of cyberattacks

One such practice is the use of strong and unique passwords. The study found that staff reuse work passwords on up to 11 personal accounts as well, making a single breach far more devastating.

And as for the current state up and down the UK, not even half (45%) have ensured that all staff have been through basic cyber awareness training.

But change could be on the horizon, with 89% agreeing that high-profile attacks last year (like those on M&S and Jaguar Land Rover) made them more alert.

There's also an increasing awareness of AI scams and deepfakes, with 70% now more suspicious of video calls claiming to be from senior leaders.

"Many steps - such as avoiding password reuse and enhancing staff training - are relatively simple to implement," VodafoneThree Business Director Nick Gliddon wrote.

The UK Government is also launching a second Telecommunications Fraud Charter later this year, with the hope of boosting the UK's defense against sophisticated cybercrime.

• Complex modelling is required to judge if devices can handle AV1
• Software decoding drains batteries while hardware support remains limited to high-end phones
• Encoding AV1 at scale adds major energy demands to data centers

The world’s largest platforms are rallying around a new video codec, betting that it will make watching clips and streams on phones smoother and less data-hungry.

Google, Meta, YouTube, and Vodafone have all put their weight behind AV1, a technology they claim can compress video streams by about 30% compared with older codecs.

The white paper the companies co-authored sets out a vision of more efficient mobile networks and happier viewers - yet beneath the technical promises, the rollout looks far from straightforward.

A new codec with big ambitions

AV1 is not new; it was first published in 2018 by the Alliance for Open Media, but it has gathered momentum only recently.

Companies say it can deliver the same quality at lower bitrates or higher quality at the same bitrate, a combination that looks appealing as video now makes up around 70% to 80% of mobile data traffic.

For operators facing mounting demand, the appeal is clear. Fewer bits mean less congestion, which in theory allows smoother playback for customers and savings on infrastructure upgrades.

For viewers, the catch is that decoding AV1 smoothly often requires dedicated hardware support, something mostly confined to high-end smartphones today.

While devices such as the iPhone 15 Pro, recent Pixel phones, and flagship Samsung models support AV1 in hardware, mid- and low-tier handsets often do not.

Software decoders like the open-source dav1d can fill the gap, but they come with compromises: higher battery drain, heavier CPU use, and no support for full digital rights management on premium video.

Even the companies backing AV1 admit that the best experience still depends on widespread hardware support, which may take years to reach budget devices.

Another wrinkle is that ensuring good playback on lower-cost devices often requires complex modeling by content providers.

Platforms must decide whether a given phone can handle AV1 at a certain resolution without stuttering or overheating, adding layers of engineering effort.

Some chipmakers have begun providing optimized software decoders tuned for their systems, but consistency remains a problem.

Without a universal benchmark, performance is unpredictable, making the technology harder to deploy smoothly at scale.

The benefits of AV1 are real in theory: smaller files, better quality, and less strain on mobile networks.

If adoption accelerates, these top platforms will achieve vast reductions in European traffic, measured in hundreds of petabytes a year.

Yet the details matter. Encoding AV1 at scale consumes large amounts of data center energy, which shifts the efficiency burden upstream.

In the end, AV1 may well become the dominant standard, especially as its successor AV2 looms on the horizon.

For now, although the ambition is clear, the gap between plans and execution means mobile viewers might not feel the promised benefits for quite some time.

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• VodafoneThree will use Ericsson and Nokia tech to upgrade its networks
• 4G customers have already seen boosts of up to 40%
• 5G should be almost everywhere by 2034

VodafoneThree has announced a multi-billion pound deal with Ericsson and Nokia to expand and improve its UK networks.

The collaboration, which comes weeks after the official completion of its mega-merger, marks one of Europe’s largest privately funded infrastructure builds, and will cover over 17,000 sites across the UK.

This will consist of 10,000+ sites benefitting from Ericsson’s RAN and core network solutions, and a further 7,000+ sites getting Nokia’s RAN equipment.

Ericsson and Nokia will help improve VodafoneThree’s network

The company declared that 4G speeds have already been boosted by up to 40% for the seven million Three and SMARTY customers using its networks, and just three months into the merger, customers are already able to automatically use each other’s network and roam at no extra cost.

Looking ahead, VodafoneThree has plans to tackle 16,500 square kilometers of not-spots across the UK. By the end of the first year after merging, nearly three in four customers should have access to the company’s fastest 5G speeds, expanding to 90% by year three and 99.95% by 2034.

Network expansion plans are also slated to deliver economic benefits, with the UK economy set to be boosted by up to £102 billion between 2025 and 2035 thanks to better infrastructure access for energy, financial services, manufacturing, security and technology companies.

To help with the expansion, VodafoneThree has signed up a further four partners to support site builds nationwide: Beacon, Circet Wireless, M Group and WHP Telecoms.

VodafoneThree also anticipates generating up to 13,000 jobs as part of its expansion, across engineering, construction and maintenance over the eight-year roadmap.

Ericsson CEO Börje Ekholm welcomed the partnership as an opportunity to “power [VodafoneThree] with the most advanced programmable network products, software and solutions in the world.”

Nokia CEO Justin Hotard noted the chance to provide the UK with “industry-leading network solutions” to meet customer and growing AI demands.

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• Parental concerns over screen time grow as kids spend four hours online during the summer holidays
• The Secure Net update only helps UK families, despite Vodafone operating in over 20 countries
• Unstructured screen time rises during school breaks, sparking fresh demand for digital boundaries at home

As the summer holidays bring more freedom and fewer routines, children are spending much more time online, but new research has warned on the risks this could bring.

A report from VodafoneThree revealed screen time among 8 to 17-year-olds has risen to as much as four hours of unstructured use per day, a 42% increase compared to during the school term.

While some of this time is spent staying in touch with friends or occupying long journeys, nearly two-thirds (65%) of UK parents have expressed concern over the digital habits of their kids during school breaks and the overall impact on them.

Digital safeguards for kids arrive, but not for everyone

In response, VodafoneThree plans to release a major update to its Secure Net app offering enhanced parental control features designed to help families manage device use more easily.

“Unstructured screen time tends to naturally rise during the summer holidays, so we’ve teamed up with Digital Awareness UK to offer practical, parent-friendly guidance,” said Nicki Lyons, Chief Corporate Affairs and Sustainability Officer at VodafoneThree.

“Combined with our Secure Net service, which offers the most comprehensive parental controls of any major UK network, families can feel more confident navigating the digital world together and enjoy a safer, more balanced summer break.”

The Secure Net app, which currently offers basic filtering and protection, will soon allow UK parents to manage both mobile and home broadband connections through a single interface.

Its goal is to create a simpler way for families to limit access to inappropriate content, reduce distractions, and encourage healthier routines.

The app features include “Pause the Internet,” “Bedtime Mode,” content filters, and a “Focus Time” setting that blocks certain apps during study periods.

While VodafoneThree describes the tool as offering the most complete set of parental controls among major UK networks, it is not a substitute for other forms of digital protection.

The app does not include antivirus or ransomware protection, and its main function is to control access rather than detect threats.

Families hoping to improve overall digital safety may still need separate software to protect against malware or more sophisticated attacks.

However, despite its global reach, the company is making the updated app available only to its UK customers at no additional cost.

This raises questions, particularly given the universal nature of the issues involved.

Parents across parent company Vodafone's many markets face similar concerns about screen time, harmful content, and lack of oversight, but they are left out for now.

"We know that the summer holidays can be a challenging time. This can't always be avoided, but without structure, it can lead to greater exposure to online harms, mental health effects, and unhealthy tech habits that are difficult to undo,” said Emma Robertson, CEO of Digital Awareness UK.

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• Vodafone employees have been reminded to be in office 8 days per month
• Company policy has been in place since the pandemic, but enforcement is being ramped up
• Many other tech firms have removed flexible or hybrid work policies

Vodafone employees have been warned must spend at least 8 days per month in-office, or face missing out on bonuses and other perks.

Workers were sent a “Hybrid Working at Vodafone” memo, seen by The Register , which outlined the policy and told staff that they could face disciplinary action if these guidelines are not followed.

Vodafone’s policy still allows workers some flexibility, as employees are expected to be in office 2-3 times per week, but can work from home on the remaining days - and workers are advised to attend team days to “help teach members to form a pattern”.

Hybrid policies

"Employees who are not fully compliant with our hybrid working policy by the end of Q1 may be subject to disciplinary action in line with policy,” the memo says.

“Continued non-compliance with attendance expectations could result in a final written warning, which would mean individuals are not meeting the minimum performance standards and therefore would not be eligible for a bonus in 2026 or in subsequent years in which a final warning is given."

Vodafone passed on a statement, confirming that the memo was a reinforcement of an existing policy.

“Vodafone’s hybrid working policy has been in place since 2021, with all employees expected to be in the office 2-3 times a week, or at least 8 days a month," the company said. "This allows flexibility for staff, and for them to benefit from in-office collaboration.”

Vodafone is not the first to enforce a policy like this, with firms like Dell opting for one step further and ending hybrid work altogether, putting in full-time return-to-office orders.

This is despite the fact that studies have shown nearly all of us are much more productive when we work from home, with 50% of leaders introducing flexible working styles, and 82% planning to continue this.

Firms such as Amazon are enforcing return to office orders, despite almost all staff unhappy with the policy, with 73% of employees responding this made them consider moving jobs.

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• Vodafone has just passed a major landmark for satellite video calls
• It's demoed a "space video call" using a standard smartphone
• The service will roll out later this year, though there's no pricing yet

Vodafone has announced that it's hit a new milestone in the race to end frustrating cellular 'dead zones' – with what it's calling the "world's first space video call" using a standard mobile phone from "an area of no coverage."

Those qualifiers are important because Starlink and T-Mobile demoed a video call made through X (formerly Twitter) using unmodified phones last year. So Vodafone's claim is specific to making video calls from areas like the remote part of Wales where its demo took place.

Still, it's certainly a significant moment and a big step on Vodafone's path towards adding satellite connectivity to its network by the end of this year in the UK and across Europe "from later in 2025 and 2026."

Rather than replacing existing networks, direct-to-mobile satellite connectivity aims to be a helpful extension that could eliminate "not spots" (or dead zones) in rural areas and also, according to Vodafone, "vast stretches of surrounding sea."

Vodafone claims that its satellite experience "mirrors the experience of existing 4G and 5G mobile networks", although the demo phone call (which you can watch in the video below) certainly showed evidence of lag and low-res footage. We may have to wait for the full roll-out to get a better idea of quality.

The service is provided by BlueBird satellites from Vodafone's partner (and SpaceX rival) AST SpaceMobile. The system is based on five satellites and Vodafone calls it "the first and only mobile broadband network in space" that works directly with standard smartphones.

Rivals systems, like T-Mobile and Starlink's, are currently limited to text messages, although video calls and mobile data are on the roadmap. With AT&T and Verizon also working with AST SpaceMobile to provide a similar service in the US, satellite calling looks ready to take off globally in 2025.

How much will it cost?

The big unknown of Vodafone's satellite connectivity and rival systems is how much they'll cost. Vodafone hasn't yet commented on pricing, only stating that it'll start rolling out the service "following further tests this Spring" (so between March and June).

The need for satellite coverage, particularly video calls, depends greatly on where you live. In the UK, Ofcom has estimated that 9% of the country "lacks good quality 4G coverage from any operator". But those who live in urban areas will also be familiar with phone network "dead zones" caused by interruptions between cell towers.

Apple's iPhones and now Android phones like the Google Pixel 9 series have received free Emergency SOS Satellite features, which can be potential lifesavers. iOS 18 also introduced the ability to text anyone via a satellite connection, plus the option of getting roadside assistance.

It's possible that those services will eventually need a subscription, but Apple hasn't started charging yet. So, the question for mobile networks like Vodafone is how many people will need full mobile broadband via satellite compared to the emergency features that are currently available for free from Apple.

Still, we're not complaining about getting more connectivity options, and competition will hopefully drive the prices of satellite-based services down in the long term.

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Vodafone has confirmed the completion of the sale of its Italian business (Vodafone Italy) to Swisscom AG in a deal with €8 billion ($8.3 billion).

Switzerland’s Swisscom, primarily operating in its home country through its self-named network and mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) such as Coop Mobile, already has some market share in Italy with its Fastweb brand, which it partly acquired in 2007 (€3 billion for 82%) before fully acquiring in 2010.

As part of the deal, Vodafone has agreed to continue providing certain services in Italy for up to five years post-completion.

Vodafone sells off Italian subsidiary to Swiss giant

The company confirmed that the proceeds of its sale would go toward reducing the Group’s net debt.

Walter Renna, CEO of Swisscom’s Fastbweb, will head the new Fastweb + Vodafone brand.

The sale of its Vodafone Italy follows the sale of its Spanish business in late 2023 – the Zegona Communications deal was worth €4.1 billion in cash.

At the time, company CEO Margherita Della Valle said the sale would “enable [Vodafone] to focus [its] resources in markets with sustainable structures and sufficient local scale.”

Vodafone has also had a busy few months in the UK, following CMA approval of its merger with Three at the beginning of December 2024. The deal, set to benefit “tens of millions of consumers and businesses,” will see the two former network giants invest £11 billion ($13.7 billion) into the UK’s 5G infrastructure.

Margherita Della Valle commented: “Today’s approval releases the handbrake on the UK’s telecoms industry, and the increased investment will power the UK to the forefront of European telecommunications.”

Speaking about the sale of Vodafone’s Italian business, Swisscom CEO Christoph Aeschlimann said: “The improved positioning in Italy will create long-term value for all stakeholders – thanks to growing cashflows and dividends in the future.”

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After a year-long investigation, Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has given approval to the Vodafone-Three merger, a deal worth £15 billion ($19 billion).

By consolidating their UK operations, Vodafone and Three hope to become a market leader with 29 million customers, making the merged firm even bigger than EE, which claims to have 25 million customers.

As part of the process, the CMA stipulated that the two companies must “sign binding commitments to invest billions to roll out a combined 5G network across the UK.”

Vodafone-Three merger given the go-ahead

Under the agreement, Vodafone will have a 51% stake, with Three owner CK Hutchison taking the remaining 49%.

Previously concerned about the potential for higher prices due to decreased competition and less advantageous terms for virtual network providers, the CMA concluded: “The group has confirmed it is now satisfied that the proposed network commitment, supported by shorter term protections for both retail and wholesale customers, resolve its competition concerns.”

The CMA says that by upgrading their networks over the course of the next eight years, Vodafone and Three’s work would actually boost competition. As a component of the terms set out by the CMA, Vodafone and Three must also cap their mobile tariffs and data plans for three years to protect customers against sharp price rises in the early years of the merger.

Stuart McIntosh, chair of the independent inquiry group leading the investigation, commented: “Having carefully considered the evidence, as well as the extensive feedback we have received, we believe the merger is likely to boost competition in the UK mobile sector and should be allowed to proceed – but only if Vodafone and Three agree to implement our proposed measures.”

Vodafone CEO Margherita Della Valle said: “Consumers and businesses will enjoy wider coverage, faster speeds and better-quality connections across the UK, as we build the biggest and best network in our home market.”

Given that Virgin Media O2 agreed earlier in 2024 to a long-term network-sharing agreement with Vodafone and Three, subject to the now-approved merger, an anticipated 50 million UK customers will see the benefits.

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Private 5G networks, where individuals or companies set up their own cellular connections, could potentially provide a viable alternative to Wi-Fi. 

Vodafone, which wants to make 5G-based mobile private networks (MPNs) more accessible to the 22 million SMEs across Europe, first unveiled a Raspberry Pi-powered prototype of a 5G network-in-a-box at MWC 2023, and followed it up with an improved version at this year’s event.

Produced in collaboration with Lime Microsystems, (whom Vodafone first partnered with on Open RAN technology back in 2017), the LimeNET Micro 2.0 Developer Edition, a crowd-funded series of private 5G base-station kits, is on sale now through Crowd Supply, with prices ranging from $800 to $12,000.

Faster, better connections

The modular radio platform uses the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 and LimeSDR XTRX for computing and RF capabilities respectively, and features a LimePSB RPCM planar system board. There’s also a deluxe version that includes an Amarisoft 5G stack and core, two smartphones, and ten SIM cards, offering a turnkey private 5G network solution.

Private 5G networks have been shown to deliver connections up to ten times faster than Wi-Fi in high-load networks and they offer security and mobility benefits. Santiago Tenorio, network architecture director at Vodafone, gave an example to IEEE Spectrum of how it could be used in a bakery. “You don’t need a password. You don’t need a conversation [with a clerk behind a counter] or a QR code. You simply walk into the bakery, and you are connected to the bakery’s network,” he said.

Talking about the challenge that comes with developing a private 5G base station, Ebrahim Bushehri, CEO and founder of Lime Networks, said, “The solution had to be ultraportable and with an optional battery pack which could be mounted on drones and autonomous robots, for remote and tactical deployments, such as emergency-response scenarios and temporary events.”

At the time of writing, there are still 22 days left to fund the project, which has a $1 goal. “Crowdfunding,” Bushehri told IEEE Spectrum, “is one of the key indicators of community interest and engagement. Hence the reason for launching the campaign on Crowd Supply to get feedback from early adopters.”

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The planned merger between Vodafone and Three is set to face an "in-depth investigation" from the UK's competition watchdog over fears the deal may negatively affect the market.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has confirmed it will be holding a further probe into the planned £15bn/$19bn merger.

In its announcement, the CMA said the action was taken after an examination of current information which it says brought it to the conclusion that the deal, "may be expected to result in a substantial lessening of competition within a market or markets in the United Kingdom."

Vodafone-Three probe

The announcement follows a warning in March 2024 that the CMA was set to launch a further investigation into the deal unless Vodafone and Three could provide "meaningful solutions" to initial concerns surrounding the deal.

Chief among the worries is that the deal, which would take the number of major mobile operators in the UK from four to three, would particularly harm smaller MVNOs, who may find it harder to negotiate good deals for their customers from a shrinking pool of providers.

The two networks had anticipated the CMA's move but said they remained confident the merger will deliver "significant benefits for competition, customers and the country."

The CMA has set a deadline of September 18, 2024 to complete its investigation.

The merger was announced in June 2023, with plans to form a new £15bn-valued telco giant and "create one of Europe's leading 5G networks."

Vodafone was set to be the slight majority owner of the new combined group, currently known as MergeCo, controlling 51%, with CK Hutchinson keeping the remaining 49%. 

The two companies were also keen to highlight the advantages of combining their two 5G networks for consumers and businesses alike, with MergeCo intending to invest over £6 billion in the first five years, and £11 billion over a ten year plan, to create a best-in-class 5G network, supporting between 8,000 and 12,000 new jobs in the wider economy.

MergeCo also expects to deliver up to £5 billion per year in UK economic benefit by 2030, supporting the digital transformation for schools, hospitals and businesses, with its standalone 5G network will cover every school and hospital in the UK by 2030, helping deliver the Government’s stretch ambition as set out in the Wireless Infrastructure Strategy.

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Vodafone and Microsoft have announced a new 10-year strategic partnership that will see them jointly aim to offer scaled digital platforms to over 300 million businesses, public sector organizations, and consumers across Europe and Africa.

As part of the deal, Vodafone has committed to a $1.5 billion investment in cloud and customer-focused AI services over the next decade with Microsoft.

The two-way relationship also has Microsoft “intend[ing]” to invest an undisclosed sum into Vodafone’s IoT connectivity platform, which is set to become its own standalone business by April.

Microsoft and Vodafone want to accelerate digital transformation

Margherita Della Valle, Vodafone Group chief executive, said: “This unique strategic partnership with Microsoft will accelerate the digital transformation of our business customers, particularly small and medium-sized companies, and step up the quality of customer experience for consumers.”

The alliance aims to overhaul Vodafone’s customer experience, develop digital and financial services for businesses, and revamp the company’s global data center cloud strategy.

Vodafone also hopes to expand its platform, ultimately connecting more devices, vehicles, and machines.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella added: “This new generation of AI will unlock massive new opportunities for every organization and every industry around the world.”

Five key areas of collaboration have been identified by the companies, beginning with Vodafone’s digital assistant, TOBi, which is set to be supercharged by generative AI powered by Microsoft Azure OpenAI.

Tighter connections will also be forged between Vodafone and Microsoft in terms of IoT, and Vodafone has shared plans to modernize its data centers on Microsoft Azure.

Moreover, the two tech titans hope to help SMEs that use their services to grow, with a particular focus on the African continent where digital literacy, upskilling, and youth outreach programs are set to be deployed.

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A Vodafone engineer by the name of José Guevara has just made history by becoming the first person to take a space-based 5G internet voice call. 

In a press release shared, Vodafone said it successfully completed the call trial, together with AST SpaceMobile (a US-based publicly traded satellite designer and manufacturer).

Guevara, located in Spain, took the call coming from Hawaii, and used an ordinary Samsung Galaxy S22 smartphone, just like the one anyone can purchase, to do so. The call was done via AST SpaceMobile’s BlueWalker 3 test satellite. According to Vodafone, this is the “largest commercial communications array deployed in low Earth orbit.”

Improving connectivity around the world

In parallel, AST Space Mobile also tested mobile internet through the same infrastructure and apparently broke its previous record. This time around, the researchers achieved a download rate of almost 14Mbps, it was said, with Vodafone adding that this new technology has the potential to bring mobile internet to even the remotest of regions around the planet. 

Commenting on the news, Margherita Della Valle, Vodafone Group Chief Executive, said the company wants to “close the mobile usage gap” for millions of people in Europe and Africa: “By making the world’s first space-based 5G call to Europe, we have taken another important step in realizing that ambition. We’re excited to be at the forefront of space technology through our partnership with AST SpaceMobile.”

This test marks yet another important milestone in AST SpaceMobile’s goal of launching five commercial BlueBird satellites, scheduled for Q1 2024. By using low Earth orbit satellites for this type of connectivity, the telco hopes to bring mobile communication - both voice and data - to places where physical infrastructure hasn’t been laid (or is challenging/expensive due to the landscape).

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As Vodafone prepares for its big merger with Three, it has revealed strong financial results and announced a brand new Chief Executive Officer (CEO).

Reporting on its finances, Vodafone says it experienced revenue growth of 3.7% for the year, or 1.8% if Turkey is excluded. For the fourth quarter of the year, the growth was 1.9% or 0.5%, respectively. 

When it comes to foreign markets, Vodafone reported broad-based service revenue improvement across almost all European markets, with service revenue significantly improving in Germany (-1.3% for the year, or -2.8% for the quarter), mostly supported by broadband price increases.

New CFO

For Vodafone Business, service revenue growth accelerated to 4.5% for the year, driven by a strong performance in digital services (Q4: 2.9%).

At the same time, the company announced that its search for a new CFO is finally over and that Luka Mucic will take the helm starting September 1, 2023. 

Margherita Della Valle, soon-to-be ex-CEO, said she was thrilled about the news: “He has a strong track record of international leadership, corporate repositioning and value-creation. Luka is joining us at a critical time as we undertake the transformation of Vodafone,” she said.

Mucic was the CEO of SAP SE between 2014 and 2017, and the company’s CFO from 2014 until March 31, 2023. He is also a member of the Supervisory Board of Heidelberg Materials AG. He was previously a non-executive director of the Board of Qualtrics International.

One of Mucic’s biggest tasks in the near future will be the transformation of Vodafone. Recently, the company announced plans to cut 11,000 jobs and restructure into a leaner, more agile business.

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Ericsson and Vodafone have begun installing new 5G antennas in the UK, seeking to improve capacity, coverage, and performance. 

According to a press release, the antennas will not create an additional footprint.

As per the announcement, the antennas being installed are AIR 3218, compact active-passive antennas with an integrated radio and multiband passive antenna technology, all in one single enclosure. 

Game changer

By combining radio and antenna in a single unit, the antennas can easily be installed on a rooftop, tower, wall, or pole, the two companies said. That should make site upgrades and acquisition simpler, and 5G deployment faster - especially in places where building regulations and planning laws presented a roadblock. The two companies expect AIR 3218 to be deployed across 50 sites within Vodafone’s UK network this year. They also said they expect a 30% saving in site acquisition and build time. 

“This is a game changer for Vodafone and the UK deployment of 5G Massive MIMO,” commented Evangelia Tzifa, Chief Technology Officer, Networks & Managed Services, for Ericsson UK and Ireland. “Together, we are increasing 5G capacity without growing visual antenna footprint on site. By being able to do more with less, we are bringing the benefits of next-generation connectivity to more people in the UK, but also reducing any impact on the environment and continuing our journey to break the energy curve”.

As mobile networks speed up 5G deployments, consumers become more data-hungry. As the amount of data traffic increases, and the number of 5G subscribers grow, operators will require more flexibility, spectrum efficiency, and energy savings, the announcement argues. With a single antenna footprint and Massive MIMO (multiple-input multiple-output) technology, the two organizations hope to achieve just that. 

5G is expected to be more disruptive than Artificial Intelligence (AI), as businesses deploy countless internet-connected devices, sensors, smart hardware, and more.

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Vodafone has joined forces with SandboxAQ to make sure future business smartphones and connections are safe from the threats that hackers with quantum computers may pose. 

In a press release, Vodafone explained that quantum computers have the theoretical capability to break through today’s encryptions and thus allow threat actors to read sensitive data. That may include identity information, payment information, and more. 

In fact, Vodafone argues that hackers are most likely already stealing and storing encrypted data today, in anticipation of the “quantum revolution” which will enable them to quickly decrypt and read the stolen data. Government-held information seems to be among the data being stolen by hackers today, it was said.

Quantum safe VPN

To make sure businesses beat the hackers and the quantum revolution to the curb, Vodafone and SandboxAQ (which is a spin-off from Alphabet, the parent company of Google) conducted a proof-of-concept test for a quantum safe Virtual Private Network (VPN). 

VPN networks are the staple of today’s corporate security, allowing millions of workers worldwide to securely access company systems via their endpoints. The two firms ran the test using standard smartphones, connected to the VPN specifically adapted using cryptography algorithms from The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). 

NIST, part of the U.S. Department of Commerce, has been working for some time now on the development of new cryptography algorithms better suited for quantum computers. 

The two companies tested the impact of post-quantum cryptography on everyday activity, such as web browsing, social media and chat application use, video and audio streaming, and mobile gaming using PQC-enabled mobile handsets, explained Vodafone’s Head of Research and Development Luke Ibbetson.

The best-fit PQC algorithms selected for standardization by (NIST) were found to perform well in the telecommunications setting, the researchers explained. Their impact on the quality of service was minimal. 

As a result, the researchers concluded that the use of hybrid classical/PQC algorithms for the security processes that use a cryptographic key exchange could be the way forward. NIST is also considering a second group of PQC algorithms, for digital signatures. Vodafone and SandboxAQ believe traditional signature algorithm can be used together with hybrid key-exchange.

Vodafone and Three have officially announced plans to merge in a move that is set to hugely shake up the UK mobile market.

In a statement, Vodafone and CK Hutchinson, the owner of Three UK, confirmed a deal that should see the formation of a new £15bn-valued telco giant and, "create one of Europe's leading 5G networks."

Vodafone is set to be the slight majority owner of the new combined group, known for now as MergeCo, controlling 51%, with CK Hutchinson keeping the remaining 49%. 

Vodafone-Three merger

Margherita Della Valle, Vodafone Group Chief Executive, described the merger as being “great for customers, great for the country and great for competition.”  

“The merger is great for customers, great for the country and great for competition. It’s transformative as it  will create a best-in-class – indeed best in Europe – 5G network, offering customers a superior experience," she added. 

"As a country, the UK will benefit from the creation of a sustainable, strongly competitive third scaled operator – with a clear £11 billion network investment plan – driving growth, employment and innovation. For Vodafone, this transaction is a game changer in our home market. This is a vote of confidence in the UK  and its ambitions to be a centre for future technology.” 

“Today’s announcement is a major milestone for CK Hutchison and for the UK," added Canning Fok, Group Co-Managing Director of CK Hutchison. "Three UK and Vodafone UK  currently lack the necessary scale on their own to earn their cost of capital. This has long been a challenge  for Three UK’s ability to invest and compete." 

"Together, we will have the scale needed to deliver a best-in class 5G network for the UK, transforming mobile services for our customers and opening up new  opportunities for businesses across the length and breadth of the UK. This will unlock significant value for  CK Hutchison and its shareholders, realise material synergies, reduce net financial indebtedness and further  strengthen its financial profile.”

In a press release, the two companies highlighted the advantages of combining their two 5G networks for consumers and businesses alike.

They expect MergeCo to deliver up to £5 billion per year in UK economic benefit by 2030, supporting the digital transformation for schools, hospitals and businesses, with its standalone 5G network will cover every school and hospital in the UK by 2030,  helping deliver the Government’s stretch ambition as set out in the Wireless Infrastructure Strategy.

MergeCo also intends to invest over £6 billion in the first five years, and £11 billion over a ten year plan, to create a best-in-class 5G network, supporting between 8,000 and 12,000 new jobs in the wider economy.

Analysis: A major disruption - for better or worse?

Rumors of Vodafone/CK Hutchinson merger have been ongoing for quite some time now, and triggered major moves in the market, with Della Valle's predecessor Nick Read, stepping down due to not being able to consolidate the UK market, which frustrated shareholders.

Less than a month ago, Della Valle announced the company would be cutting 11,000 jobs in an effort to become more agile on the market.

The deal is still pending regulatory approval in both the UK and CK Hutchinson's home nation of Hong Kong, with some observers not viewing the further reduction of the number of UK network operators very kindly.

If the deal does end up going through, the resulting group will become the biggest mobile operator in the UK, with some 27 million customers. That would place it above BT’s EE and VM O2, as well as Liberty Global, which some analysts have predicted could disrupt the UK market significantly.

“This long-awaited mega merger represents the biggest shake-up in the UK mobile market for over a decade," noted Kester Mann, Director, Consumer and Connectivity, CCS Insight. 

“The deal makes plenty of sense as both providers are sub-scale. As separate entities, it would have been near impossible for either to grow enough organically to come close to challenging BT or Virgin Media O2 for size. Inevitably however, there will be widespread fears over job cuts.”

 “An £11 billion network investment plan will seek to allay regulatory concerns. But this deal will still face a major challenge to win approval. At this stage, I believe it is too difficult to call either way.”

 “The prospect the deal leads to higher prices will be a major concern for the CMA. Vodafone and Three may have shot themselves in the foot by recently hiking tariffs by up to 14.4%.”

 “My view is that the deal should be approved. It is better to have three strong providers than two that are dominant and two that are sub-scale. Blocking it could thwart the long-term development of the UK’s telecoms infrastructure.”

 “A marriage of convenience makes sense. Scale is key to help lower costs and improve margins," noted Paolo Pescatore from PP Foresight.

"It will take years before we see the real fruits of this deal come to fruition. The question is, can the UK wait that long? However, convergence still remains the achilles heel if this does get over the line. It would create a mobile champion that could increase competition in the wholesale segment of the market and become a partner of choice for MVNOs.”

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Vodafone and CK Hutchinson - the owner of Three - are about to announce a merger in the UK, according to a report from Reuters. The news agency said the deal could be announced either this Friday, or early next week.

Apparently, the deal will be in line with what was reported in October last year - namely that Vodafone would own the majority of the combined group (51%), with Hutchinson keeping the remaining 49%. 

It was also said that the new company would be valued at approximately $18.6 billion, debt included. 

Shareholder pressure

The story of the Vodafone/CK Hutchinson merger has been ongoing for quite some time now, and triggered major moves in the market. 

Some argue that former Vodafone CEO, Nick Read, stepped down due to not being able to consolidate the UK market, which was one of his major goals. This inability frustrated shareholders, which resulted in the change at the helm.

The new CEO, Margherita Della Valle, stepped in and has been feeling the pressure to improve the company’s performance. Less than a month ago, Della Valle announced the company would be cutting 11,000 jobs in an effort to become more agile on the market.

The deal also raised some concerns, as the regulators did not view the idea of reducing the number of network operators in a major market such as the UK kindly. The deal is still pending regulatory approval, Reuters added. 

On the other hand, Hutchinson’s CFO, Frank John Sixt also said that finalizing the deal was “extremely difficult.”

If the deal does end up going through, the resulting group will become the biggest mobile operator in the UK, with some 27 million customers. That would place it above BT’s EE and VM O2, as well as Liberty Global, Reuters claims.

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Via: Reuters

By the end of the decade, some 3.3 billion Internet-connected devices (IoT devices) will be trading money and data directly, a new report from telecommunications consultants STL Partners claims. 

That’s up from 88 million devices next year, representing a 3750% increase in roughly six years, or “meteoric growth”, as the report’s authors put it. 

The practice is being dubbed the Economy of Things (EoT). This subset of IoT, the researchers claim, will make up more than 10% of the overall IoT market and will experience a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 68%. 

Cars and charging stations trading data and money

While all kinds of internet-connected devices will make up EoT, the majority of the data is expected to come from connected vehicles, the report further states. 

The logic behind the forecast is that vehicle telematics is “relatively mature” already, and that the data connected by vehicles is valuable for others in the ecosystem. Explaining how EoT might work in the automotive industry, the researchers state that connected vehicles could communicate and coordinate with charging points, parking space sensors, and traffic lights, directly via EoT.

Furthermore, STL Partners anticipates more than 1.2 billion EoT-enabled smart grid devices by 2030, which is 40% of the total opportunity forecast, as well as 700 million supply chain devices. In this segment of the industry, AI-powered tools can analyze IoT-generated data to predict surges in demand for energy, and sell spare capacity back to the grid. 

Vodafone is among the organizations that anticipate the growth of the EoT market, and to that end has built an EoT platform last year called Digital Asset Broker. 

Other companies with an eye on the rising EoT sector include banks and financial organizations. Mark Williamson, Global Head of FX Partnerships & Propositions, HSBC, said “there are so many opportunities with the EoT so it is important to think about where it will progress fast in its first stages. There is a lot of interest and penetration in the motoring and EV worlds, and this will be a key starting point.”

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BT has announced it will be reducing its workforce by up to 40% by the end of the decade. Given that its current workforce of employees and contractors is roughly 130,000 strong, that would mean up to 55,000 people may be laid off. 

BT Chief Executive Officer Philip Jansen said that by the end of this decade, the company will have a "much smaller workforce" and a "significantly reduced cost base". In the next decade, BT will be “a leaner business with a brighter future,” Jansen added.

The media are also saying that BT is focused on expanding its fiber network which, unlike the current copper network, will be more reliable and would require less maintenance. Just migrating to fiber could help BT reduce its workforce by 15,000 people. 

New hardware and software

Furthermore, BT will be adding more artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for its customer support department, which will also help it cut down on staff. Finally, general company restructuring will also help it reduce its workforce.

In its latest yearly earnings report, the company reported a 12% decrease in profit, hitting £1.7bn.

Earlier this week, it was reported that Vodafone is looking to reduce its workforce by roughly 10%, or 11,000 jobs. The process would take roughly three years. Vodafone's new CEO Margherita della Valle said the company was looking to “simplify” itself, and job cuts are part of that plan, as she claims the company’s performance “has not been good enough”. 

"To consistently deliver, Vodafone must change,” she said. "My priorities are customers, simplicity and growth. We will simplify our organization, cutting out complexity to regain our competitiveness."

The company recently reported €45.7 billion in sales, a small rise, but also reported a fall in pre-tax profits, leading analysts to expect a “broadly flat” financial year for the company. 

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Via: BBC

Vodafone will reduce its staff by 11,000 positions in the next three years, the company revealed in its latest financial results

Vodafone's new CEO Margherita della Valle is looking to “simplify” the organization, and job cuts are part of that plan, as she claims the company’s performance “has not been good enough”. 

The cuts are equal to around 10% of Vodafone's entire workforce, with losses set to come across multiple countries, with Germany and Italy confirmed to be affected alongside the UK.

Regaining competitiveness

Previously chief financial officer, Della Valle became Vodafone CEO in January 2023 after former CEO Nick Read suddenly left his post. 

"To consistently deliver, Vodafone must change,” she said. "My priorities are customers, simplicity and growth. We will simplify our organization, cutting out complexity to regain our competitiveness."

When Vodafone decided to give Della Valle the position of CEO, analysts saw it as a “deviation” in the company’s strategy, Reuters reported at the time. Analysts were expecting someone from the outside, rather than inside the company, to “shake things up” after Read’s seemingly failed attempt at revitalizing the firm. 

The company recently reported €45.7 billion in sales, a small rise, but also reported a fall in pre-tax profits, leading analysts to expect a “broadly flat” financial year for the company. 

Vodafone recently confirmed it was in talks with CK Hutchinson, parent comnpany of Three UK, over a merger which could fundamentally change the telecoms landscape in the UK. If the deal comes through, the company will be the world’s biggest mobile operator, counting some 28 million customers. 

Vodafone also recently hit the headlines following its move to switch off its 3G signal in some parts of the UK, becoming the first UK mobile phone network to do so.

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Vodafone and CK Hutchinson, parent comnpany of Three UK, are expected to announce a merger which could fundamentally change the telecoms landscape in the UK.

As per the Financial Times, the new entity should be valued at approximately $18.86bn ($11.3bn equity value and $7.54bn debt).

If the deal comes through, the company will be the world’s biggest mobile operator, counting some 28 million customers. 

Investor pressure

It would also bring the number of mobile operators in the UK down to three, which is something regulators previously blocked, the publication reminds (In 2016, a merger between Three UK and O2 was blocked). 

Finally, the deal would see CK Hutchinson, which is a Hong Kong–based business, leave the UK market. 

The news of the two companies combining first broke a year ago when the Financial Times reported Vodafone facing investor pressure to offload underperforming assets and go after deals in competitive markets (the UK, Italy, Spain). Since then, the deal has been postponed multiple times, like when chief executive Nick Read departed in 2022. Vodafone has been seeking a replacement ever since.

If the deal does come through, Vodafone would hold 51% of the new company, with CK Hutchinson holding the remainder. Once Vodafone UK combines with Three UK, CK Hutchinson would sell its stake to Vodafone, as well. However the entire process, according to the media, could take at least another year, as regulators take their time with the approval process.

The biggest issue for regulators, the Financial Times further states, is that a consolidated market might lead to a concentration of power and rising prices. Earlier this year, it says, most UK mobile operators increased their tariffs by roughly 14%.

So far, both companies avoided commenting to the press about the news.

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Via: Financial Times

Vodafone has developed a “prototype” 5G network built onto a Raspberry PI using an “advanced silicon chipset”, and is hailing it as a means for small businesses and homes to get online cheaply.

Announcing the prototype in a press release and promotional video, the company claims that the product will offer a portable 5G network “for the cost of a wi-fi router”.

The news follows Vodafone’s announcement in 2022 of its partnership with over 20 chip vendors, including Intel, Qualcomm, Broadcom and ARM, aimed at producing new Open RAN-compliant products and services, such as within the mobile private network (MPN) sector, at Vodafone’s European R&D Center in Málaga, Spain. 

Vodafone's “democratization” of MPNs 

Vodafone’s prototype works by fitting a Raspberry Pi 4 with a 5G-compatible radio circuit board produced by UK company Lime Microsystems, turning the Pi into a base station that can become part of a private network, an extension of a larger MPN, or connect to Vodafone’s public networks.

While an exciting development, it’s important to note that MPNs have been around for some time, with Cisco having detailed its own plans for a private 5G network platform at 2022’s MWC conference.

That being said, it’s encouraging that Vodafone wants to bring compact and portable MPNs to the masses. It notes that the technology is, so far, mostly used by large businesses who need a large-scale network to connect several devices at once. 

But it also wants that to change, claiming that smaller businesses, and even households and individuals, could stand to benefit from the ease-of-setup, portability and privacy of MPNs.

Santiago Tenorio, Director of Network Architecture for Vodafone, notes that the prototype, developed, is aimed at bringing “big data technologies” to small businesses throughout Europe.

“The next step,” he says, “is to take ideas like this to a place where they can be developed and eventually produced. Our door is open to interested vendors.”

Vodafone will demonstrate a 5G network running on a Pi device at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, on Monday 27 February, 2023.

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Four of the biggest telecoms companies in Europe are forming a new alliance to create a vast network of targeted advertising.

Vodafone Group is leading the venture, which also consists of Deutsche Telekom, Orange and Telefónica, and will allow customers to opt-in to sharing their phone numbers with other brands so that they can advertise to them. 

The move has been approved by the European Commission, which says it is satisfied the plan adheres to its General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), stating that it will, "allow brands and publishers to recognize users on their websites or applications on a pseudonymous basis, group them under different categories and tailor their content to specific users' groups."

Networks vs big tech

Vodafone explained that ""The platform is specifically designed to offer consumers a step change in the control, transparency and protection of their data, which is currently collected, distributed and stored at scale by major, non-European players."

This is in reference to big tech companies, whom the EU has been unhappy with for years due to their dominance and policies regarding data collection and user privacy. Recently, the it conceived new legislation to reign in the power of Apple, Google and Meta.

Speaking on this new venture, the EU found that there was no issue of unfair competitive advantage within Europe. 

The venture, which has yet to be officially names, has already been trialed, and the four companies claim that personalized ads are possible whilst retaining user privacy. 

It will be headquartered in Belgium, which, funnily enough, is home to the headquarters of the EU as well. Each of the telcos will have an equal 25% stake, and there is no confirmed date as to when it will begin. 

Although under the guise of concern for protecting user privacy, the companies are perhaps more concerned about the aforementioned dominance of big tech in their success in monetizing their customers, making use of phone networks to do so without compensating them. 

Again, the EU stepped in, suggesting that Google and others should pay towards building and maintaining networks, such as 5G. Of course, they complained, citing the fact that they all ready pay for other infrastructure costs, such as the underwater cables used for the internet. 

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Vodafone has become the first UK broadband provider to offer a Wi-Fi 6E-enabled router to its customers, promising the new technology will enhance wireless internet coverage in the home.

Wi-Fi 6E represents the latest development in wireless connectivity, using high-level 6GHz spectrum to enhance speeds, increase capacity, and reduce latency. These result in multi-gigabit transmission rates that allow businesses and households to make the most of their full fibre connections.

Given most consumers use equipment supplied by their broadband provider, the arrival of the first compatible routers is significant and Vodafone hopes it will give it a technological advantage over the competition.

Vodafone Wi-Fi 6E

The ‘Vodafone Ultra Hub’ and the ‘Super Wi-Fi 6E’ are available with the operator’s ‘Vodafone Pro II’ price plans, which offer speeds of up to 910Mbps, and promise to connect up to 150 devices simultaneously.

The router will automatically switch to Vodafone’s 4G network if there is a fixed line outage and the company promises that if any customer cannot receive a signal throughout their entire home, they will be able to leave their contract without penalty.

“Vodafone Pro II sets the new standard for the UK broadband market,” said Vodafone consumer director Max Taylor. "It combines the UK’s fastest and most reliable Wi-Fi technology in the all new Vodafone Ultra Hub router with the UK’s largest full fibre footprint.”

Vodafone’s footprint claim is based on the fact that its services are powered by a combination of Openreach and CityFibre’s wholesale networks, rather than its own infrastructure.

Meanwhile BT is not a customer of CityFibre and Virgin Media O2’s gigabit network still largely comprises cable technology, although it does plan to roll out fibre to the premise (FTTP) across its entire footprint before the end of the decade.

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Global mobile industry body the GSMA is creating a ‘Post-Quantum Telco Network Taskfroce’ that will look to address the security of telecommunications networks as quantum computing develops.

IT giant IBM and mobile operator Vodafone have signed up as initial members of the group, which will define the requirement, identify dependencies and create a technological roadmap for quantum-safe networking standards.

“The GSMA Taskforce’s goal is to bring together leading global communication services providers with experts from IBM, Vodafone and other operators and ecosystem partners to understand and implement quantum-safe technology,” said Alex Sinclair, GSMA Chief Technology Officer.

Commercial network

“By working together to establish consistent policies, we can define quantum-safe approaches that protect critical infrastructure and customer data, complementing our ongoing security efforts to increase resiliency in future networks.”

Whereas classical computing architectures store information in binary (1 or 0) bits, quantum computing uses subatomic particles’ ability to exist in multiple states at the same time.

This means quantum computers can store significantly more information and compute issues much more quickly.

However, there are concerns that the technology could render industry standard encryption measures obsolete – something that could have huge implications for communications networks.

The technology industry has therefore shifted its attention towards the development of quantum-safe encrypted communications that mitigates the risk of cybercriminals stealing sensitive information that could be decrypted by quantum computers in the future.

The scale of the task at hand is illustrated by recent World Economic Forum estimates that more than 20 million devices will need to be upgraded or replaced within the next two decades.

“Quantum computing is by far the biggest revolution in computing since the 1950s, and most of it will have a positive impact on our industry and society as we move towards fully automated networks,” said Luke Ibbetson, head of R&D at Vodafone. “It has the potential to solve highly complex optimisation challenges which may allow us to further fine-tune our networks for an even better customer experience.

“At the same time, future quantum computing could inherently undermine the cryptographic principles relied on today. That is why Vodafone is committed to working with the GSMA and other members of the GSMA Post-Quantum Telco Network Taskforce to protect and secure customer data with the timely adoption of quantum-safe solutions, policies, and standards.”

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Vodafone is bundling communications, collaboration, and security tools into a single subscription for SMBs, promising a ‘first of its kind’ package that will provide businesses with greater flexibility and simplicity than managing multiple services.

The Vodafone Pulse Connect proposition combines business-grade broadband, unlimited calls, the Microsoft 365 suite of applications, along with security from Lookout and Cisco Meraki.

SMBs can personalise packages so they only pay for the services they need, and they can add and remove up to a fifth of their workforce without incurring an additional fee. This means they aren’t penalised for changing circumstances.

The Economy of Things 

On top of this, Vodafone also offers businesses rewards and discounts, bringing additional value to the proposition.

“With high energy costs and the cost of living rising significantly, the ability to have some level of flexibility with their business solutions has become increasingly important to SMBs who want to be able to quickly adapt to business and economic fluctuations,” said Andrew Stevens, Head of UK SMB at Vodafone.

“With Vodafone Pulse Connect, we have combined our market leading connectivity, security, collaboration, and cloud calling tools all into one ultimate package to help SMBs focus on what matters most – being reliably and securely connected to their customers without the complexity.

“And, with only one monthly bill covering all these services to think about, SMEs can invest their time and resources where they’re needed most.”

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Vodafone is boosting its Internet of Things (IoT) capabilities with new satellite technology that can locate connected devices and autonomous vehicles to within centimetres rather than metres.

The ‘Vodafone GNSS Corrections’ platform combines the operator’s global IoT network with technology developed by Topcon that corrects inaccuracies from global navigation satellites systems (GNSS) using a network of thousands of reference stations across Europe.

These reference stations calculate and correct potential discrepancies in GNSS data using cloud-based software.

The Economy of Things 

Greater precision is seen as critical to the development of Vehicle to Anything (V2X) technology which allows vehicles to speak to each other and roadside infrastructure in real time, as well as for autonomous machinery and robotics.

This new capability could enable a raft of services from autonomous lawn mowers to real-time telematics.

The two companies are now inviting selected customers to join trials in Germany, Spain and the UK with a view to rolling it out across all markets in the future.

“As new technologies like autonomous cars and connected machinery continue to evolve, Vodafone is providing the critical connections to support these new services with greater precision, more safety and at scale,” said Justin Shields, director of Vodafone Business platform and solutions.

“Our customers want to be able to better locate their devices, and the collaboration with Topcon complements our existing asset tracking and fleet telematics solutions.”

“At Topcon, we are proud to be partnering with Vodafone to bring high accuracy correction services to enable V2X applications to operate at the accuracy needed to help improve road safety, especially for vulnerable road users,” added Ian Stilgoe, vice president of Topcon Global Emerging Business.

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Vodafone hopes a new artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) platform built on Google Cloud will dramatically enhance its ability to use intelligence in its back-end and consumer-facing operations.

The new ‘AI Booster’ platform can handle thousands of ML models a day, providing the scale necessary for the operator to use the technology across its global markets.

The capability of the platform accelerates development time from around five months to just four weeks, enhancing Vodafone’s agility and the ability to deliver new services for both its internal teams and its customers. Areas of interest include customer experience, network performance and research and development.  

Vodafone AI

“It is easier said than done to embed AI and ML into the fabric of the organisation and rapidly build and deploy ML use cases at scale in a highly regulated industry,” explained James Ma, Head of Technical Account Management, Telco, EMEA at Google Cloud. “Accomplishing this task means not only having the right platform infrastructure, but also developing new skills, ways of working, and processes. “

“As a technology platform, we’re incredibly proud of building a cutting-edge MLOps platform based on best-in-class Google Cloud architecture with in-built automation, scalability and security,” added Ashish Vijayvargia, Analytics Product Lead at Vodafone.

“The result is we’re delivering more value from data science, while embedding reliability engineering principles throughout.”

AI Booster builds on a global data platform built by the two organisations last year. The ‘Nucleus’ platform houses a system ‘Dynamo’ that collects and migrates information from Vodafone's various repositories around the world into a single cloud-based resource. This ‘data ocean’ provides the vast amounts of data that the ML models on AI Booster rely on to function.

Vodafone is also moving its entire SAP environment and all of its Big Data and Business Intelligence workloads to Google Cloud, while it is also using cloud-based performance management tools across its entire operation.

“Vodafone’s flourishing relationship with Google Cloud is a vital aspect of our evolution toward becoming a world-leading tech communications company,” said Cengiz Ucbenli, Global Head of Big Data and AI, Innovation and Governance at Vodafone. “It accelerates our ability to create faster, more scalable solutions to business challenges like improving customer loyalty and enhancing customer experience, whilst keeping Vodafone at the forefront of AI and data science.”

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Telecoms giant Vodafone is testing a new way to track people’s online activity and, as usual these days, some people aren’t really fond of the words “tracking” and “online” being put in the same sentence.

The operator is currently testing an advertising ID system dubbed TrustPid, which works by creating a fixed ID for every customer at the Internet Service Provider (ISP) level, and then associating all user activity with that ID. 

The profile, which will be formed with input from multiple parameters, will then be used for the distribution of targeted, personalized advertising. The company says that there is no way for the system to be bypassed at the browser level, by blocking cookies or masking the IP address. 

Free internet means ads

For Vodafone, the math is simple - if the internet is to remain free, the users are to remain the product:

"Consumers appreciate the idea of a 'free' Internet, but this comes with a trade-off: publishers need a sustainable revenue model, meaning that it becomes essential to add subscription paywalls or rely on advertising to maintain free access to high-quality content," the official TrustPid website says.

As usual, when it comes to tracking, the idea of privacy pops up. Vodafone says TrustPid will assign each user “random numbers” reducing the risk of individuals being directly identified. For some, however, these assurances are insufficient. 

Speaking to BleepingComputer, Patrick Breyer, member of the European Parliament and digital rights activist, said tracking people online makes them susceptible to manipulation, and that such practices should be terminated at their inception.

“These personality profiles, which even cover political opinion, sexual orientation, or medical conditions, are a risk to privacy but also to national security, where officials can be blackmailed, and also to democracy, where elections and referendums can be manipulated. A unique ID would allow for monitoring our entire digital lives. These schemes are totally unacceptable, and the trials should be stopped. Democracy is not for sale”.

The test is taking place in Germany, with Bild.de being one of the sites participating in the pilot, and could be rolled out to other territories soon.

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Via: BleepingComputer

Vodafone is working with Google Cloud build a cloud-based network performance platform that will change the way it builds and maintains its infrastructure across Europe.

Performance management tools are used by mobile operators for almost every single process. This includes capacity planning, network optimisation, customer experience, and 5G and edge computing services.

By simplifying its backend systems, acquiring more visibility over data, and the ability to action upon it more immediately, Vodafone believes it will be able to deliver more advanced and reliable mobile services to its customers.

Vodafone network planning

Vodafone Unified Performance Management (UPM) combines Google’s smart analytics, machine learning and AI capabilities with Cardinality.io’s telecom-specific services to collect and analyse billions of data points in 11 countries.

It replaces more than 100 separate network performance applications in 11 countries, providing all of its businesses with a single source of clean data that can be optimised and analysed using artificial intelligence (AI).

“As the needs of our 300 million plus mobile customers evolve so will our network using this new platform,” said Johan Wibergh, Vodafone chief technology officer. “It is a global data hub that gives us a real-time view of what is happening anywhere on our network, uses our global scale to manage traffic growth cheaper and more efficiently as customer data consumption grows by around 40% per year, and supports the full automation of our network by 2025.”

The insight gathered from this repository will be used to plan network construction more effectively, detect traffic patterns, and make decisions and changes to infrastructure within minutes rather than days.

For example, Vodafone will be able to add capacity and integrate network connectivity in response to major events or incidents, manage energy efficiency, and restore services more quickly after a natural disaster. Engineers will also be able to fix issues more rapidly, allowing its technology reams to resolve more problems without the need for human intervention and focus on projects that deliver real change for customers.

Finally, the insight and cost savings afforded by the UPM will allow Vodafone to focus its resources on areas where 5G is most needed.

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Vodafone is inviting consumers and businesses to donate their unwanted technology to people affected by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, building on its previous commitments to support refugees.

The Newbury-based operator has donated 3,000 smartphones and SIM cards and 1,000 portable chargers to charity Refugee Crisis and has extended its ‘Tech Appeal’ so the British public can get involved.

Refugee Crisis provides support and therapy to more than 14,000 displaced men, women and children each year and says mobile technology is crucial for helping refugees adapt to a difficult situation and keep in touch with friends and family.

Vodafone Ukraine

We are working hard to prepare for the arrival of refugees from Ukraine and are ready to help them recover and rebuild their lives after the trauma they’ve faced. It’s brilliant to see companies like Vodafone supporting our work,” said Tamsin Baxter, Executive Director of Fundraising and External Affairs, Refugee Council.

"When you have lost so much, connectivity to those you love is invaluable; these phones could make the difference between speaking to a husband, children or parents who have been left behind, or not. That is absolutely a lifeline.”

Meanwhile, Sky Mobile has pledged to donate £100,000 to the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) to support its efforts in Ukraine. Customers can donate their spare data into in an additional contribution, with 25GB amounting to £10.

Laptops can be donated in store, as can smartphones and tablets which can also be sent through the post with a pre-paid envelope. 

Vodafone already offers free calls to Ukraine and has waived any roaming charges for customers in the country and has also deployed its instant network teams in Hungary and Romania, providing Wi-Fi connectivity to people in refugee centres. Other mobile operators have employed similar measures.

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Phone network Vodafone seems to have suffered a data breach at the hands of the increasignly  infamous Lapsus$ group, without even knowing it. 

The group recently issued a poll on its Telegram channel, asking their subscribers whose stolen data they should dump next - with three options available: Vodafone, Impresa, and MercadoLibre/MercadoPago.

The latter is an Argentinian ecommerce company, while Impresa is a Portuguese media conglomerate which suffered a major data breach in late 2021.

Vodafone investigating

But Vodafone, which is allegedly leading the poll with more than 50% of the votes, says it wasn’t aware of any hack. 

“We are investigating the claim together with law enforcement, and at this point we cannot comment on the credibility of the claim," a Vodafone spokesperson said, adding, "However, what we can say is that generally the types of repositories referenced in the claim contain proprietary source code and do not contain customer data.” 

If Lapsus$ really does come through with the threat, it will leak 200GBs of Vodafone’s source code. We don’t know if any virus or ransomware was used in the attack, or whether or not the company is negotiating with the threat actors. 

Lapsus$ has been wreaking havoc across the business world in these last few months. It has already leaked a huge amount of Samsung’s sensitive data, which would, allegedly, place many of its endpoints at risk. 

It also leaked a terabyte of data from Nvidia recently, including usernames and passwords of tens of thousands of Nvidia employees. Furthermore, it claims to have used the data to create a tool that circumvents the hash rate limiter placed on the Nvidia RTX 30-series video cards.

The tool, on sale for $1 million, would allow Ethereum miners to use the cards in their full capacity, rather than half of it, as is currently the case. 

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Via: CNBC

Vodafone has launched a blockchain-backed platform that allows connected devices to make secure transactions on a user’s behalf, promising to offer a common framework for the ‘Economy of Things’.

The Digital Asset Broker (DAB) looks to use the scale of Vodafone’s Internet of Things (IoT) platform, to provide automated transactions for individuals and businesses who don’t have to build their own infrastructure.

The DAB assigns a device a unique digital identity so it can communicate with other devices on the platform and pay for goods and services using digital wallets secured by SIM card technology.

The Economy of Things 

The blockchain verifies connections as trustworthy, and all payments are made over encrypted connections.

Vodafone hopes its DAB service will solve the challenge of connected devices and infrastructure operating in isolation, opening up new revenue opportunities for businesses. For example, a connected car could interact with a smart car parking space to make a reservation and payment.

In addition to Vodafone’s 140 million global IoT connections, the DAB will provide secure links to third party platforms and device ecosystems, to include as many industries as possible, including automotive, energy, manufacturing, and logistics.

“We are building in-house new, scaled platforms for our customers across Europe and Africa. This, our latest platform, will drive the new Economy of Things where everyday objects and devices can negotiate, buy and sell services on our behalf,” said John Wibergh, Vodafone’s chief technology officer. 

“We are actively talking with many other companies to rapidly expand partnerships and widen the ecosystem worldwide to include other features and payment schemes.”

A pilot of the service is now live in Vodafone’s hometown of Newbury, allowing electric vehicles to communicate with compatible charging points.

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Several major UK mobile operators are waiving charges for calls made to and from Ukraine following Russia’s invasion of the country.

EE, O2, Three and Vodafone have all confirmed that calls made from the UK to Ukraine will be free of charge, while anyone roaming in the country will not be subject to any additional fees for making calls or texts or accessing mobile data.

“Effective immediately, Vodafone UK is crediting all calls to Ukraine and waiving any roaming charges for Vodafone UK customers currently in Ukraine,” tweeted Vodafone UK CEO Ahmed Essam. “We stand in solidarity with all Ukrainian people at this worrying time.”

Mobile operators Ukraine 

“We are deeply troubled by the events taking place in Ukraine and know that some of our customers or their loved ones and friends may be directly affected,” confirmed Virgin Media O2 Lutz Schueler. “As the situation continues to unfold, we recognise that connectivity will play a crucial role and we want to provide support to those who need it.

“To help any of our customers in Ukraine and ensure customers in the UK that need to contact someone in the country can do so, we have removed charges for data use in Ukraine and will also credit charges for calls and texts to and from Ukraine and the UK.”

BT Consumer CEO chief executive Marc Allera also confirmed that a similar arrangement would apply to customers on BT, EE and Plusnet, while Three has also confirmed it will not apply any additional fees.

Some of the operators have specified the arrangement lasts for a certain period but that this will be under constant review.

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A non-fungible token (NFT) of the world’s first ever text message has sold at auction, raising €100,000 for charity.

An NFT is a unique digital asset that can be anything from an image, an article or a media file and are stored and traded on the Blockchain.

The distributed nature of Blockchain eliminates the need for a centralised body to authenticate and verify transactions, increasing visibility and transparency, making it easier to determine ownership, and reducing the risk of fraud.

Vodafone NFT

This particular NFT offered bidders the ownership of a unique, detailed replica of the SMS, which was sent on the Vodafone network on 3rd December 1992. The auction was run by Aguttes Auction House in France, with funds raised for UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency.

“The first printed book, the first phone call, the first email – all these inventions have changed our lives and communication in the world,” said Auction house founder Maximilian Aguttes. “This first text message received in 1992 is a historic testament to human and technological progress – we are delighted to be able to support the sale of this landmark piece of history for this cause.”

“We’re proud to be bringing together a major technology innovation from our past with cutting-edge technology of today, to help people in desperate need of support,” added Vodafone UK CEO Ahmed Essam.

The message in question was sent by Neil Papworth, a 22-year-old British engineer who used his computer to send “Merry Christmas” to an Orbitel 901 mobile phone. The technology was built into the 2G standard as a universal service, allowing anyone with a compatible handset to send a 160-character message to anyone else.

The feature was hugely popular and at its peak in 2011, more than 39.7 billion texts were sent in just three months in the UK. However, SMS has since been superseded somewhat by over-the-top (OTT) messaging applications like WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger, as well as business applications like Microsoft Teams and Slack.

A successor SMS called Rich Communication Services (RCS) has been developed to combine the universality of texts with the rich media features of OTT applications. Supporters include Google and the GSMA but it is probably that the success of any standard would rely on Apple’s involvement.

• If you need unlimited texts in your tariff when you should look at the best mobile phone deals

Hackers managed to break into Syniverse, a relatively unknown company that provides backbone services to major wireless carriers around the world, in a campaign that could have impacted millions of cellphone users, reports suggest.

According to Motherboard, Syniverse forms a critical part of the global telecommunications infrastructure, and counts the likes of AT&T, Verizon, Vodafone, T-Mobile, among its customers.

In a filing with the US Security and Exchange Commission (SEC), the company disclosed that threat actors managed to gain “unauthorized access to databases within its network on several occasions, and that login information allowing access to or from its Electronic Data Transfer (EDT) environment was compromised for approximately 235 of its customers.”

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The incident, which was detected in May 2021, but dates back to May 2016, is discussed in the section where it talks about the risks associated with the company owing to the nature of its business. 

Global privacy disaster?

Syniverse hasn’t discussed the incident outside of the SEC filing, and didn’t respond to Motherboard’s questions about the scope and scale of the breach. 

However a former Syniverse employee disclosed that EDT systems have information on all types of call records. Another anonymous individual familiar with telephone carriers suggests that the Syniverse hackers could have had access to metadata such as length and cost, caller and receiver's numbers, the location of the parties in the call, as well as the content of SMS text messages.

"Syniverse has access to the communication of hundreds of millions, if not billions, of people around the world. A five-year breach of one of Syniverse's main systems is a global privacy disaster," security researcher Karsten Nohl told Motherboard.

However, the former Syniverse employee suggests the breach is probably more embarrassing than devastating since nothing untoward seems to have come out of it in over five years.

“Not saying nothing bad happened but it sounds like nothing did happen,” opines the former employees.

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Via Motherboard

The relaxation of Covid-19 related restrictions is driving a revival in in-store smartphone sales according to figures from Kantar, which also show that 5G is an increasingly important factor in consumer purchases.

Like many other businesses, electronic retailers and mobile operator stores were forced to close during the early stages of the pandemic in 2020, with many only re-opening their doors once government lockdown and social distancing measures were eased.

As a result, smartphone sales shifted to retailer’s online channels and online specialists. However, the closure of physical stores was one of several key factors that saw the mobile phone market contract last year.

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Smartphone sales

Kantar says the proportion of in-store sales versus other channels grew by at least 10 percentage points in the US and most key European markets in the second quarter of 2021. In the UK, the figure was 13 points quarter-on-quarter, and the US recorded a 7-point increase.

“As Covid-19 vaccinations continue to roll-out, and businesses open with reduced restrictions, more consumers are high-street shopping,” said Jennifer Chan, Insight Director for Kantar, who explained different kinds of shoppers exhibited different behaviours.

For example, in-store shoppers are more likely to hold onto their device for as long as possible and prefer to buy brands they are familiar with when compared to online customers. Unsurprisingly, the former group are also more likely to want someone to show them how to use their device – something that is far easier in store.

In the UK, all four major operators have made adjustments to their stores to make them as safe as possible for returning customers.

Kantar also noted that 5G is becoming a much more important driver in new handset sales.

Operating market share is fairly stable in Europe and Australia, however iOS was able to increase its share of the American and Chinese markets by two percentage points, while Japan – traditionally a strong market for Apple – saw Android increase its share by five points thanks to strong performances from Oppo and Sharp.

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Vodafone has reported a 3.3% increase in service revenues for the first quarter, as it benefited from the easing of lockdown restrictions, growing customer numbers, and a subsequent rise in roaming revenues.

The Newbury-based operator reported service income of €9.39 billion for the three-month period, as it increased the number of mobile connections on its European networks to 113 million.

Contract customers rose from 64.5 million to 65.6 million year-on-year, while broadband subscribers increased by 400,000 to 25.6 million. The number of converged customers across all markets is 7.9 million – up from 7.4 million.

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Vodafone revenues

In the UK, service revenues rose by 2.5% to £1.3 billion, with the company adding 29,000 broadband customers and 65,000 contract mobile subscribers.

The loss in roaming income had affected all operators as business travellers and tourists were forced to stay at home. But with the resumption of international travel, roaming revenues jumped by 56% year-on-year. However, this revenue was still down by 54% compared to pre-pandemic levels.

Nonetheless, Vodafone is happy with the performance and says it is on track to deliver its full year target of between $15 billion and €15.4 billion.

“I am pleased to report that we are back to service revenue growth in Europe, as well as Africa. This growth was broad-based within both Consumer and Business segments, with the vast majority of our markets contributing. This is a result of our commercial and operating momentum built over the past 3 years as part of our strategic transformation.

“In Europe, the operating and retail environment has not yet returned to normal conditions, but we are delivering a good service revenue performance. In our Business segment, we are seeing stronger growth with our public sector and corporate customers, whilst further building a pipeline of demand for our digital services, such as IoT, security and cloud.

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Vodafone is rolling out machine learning technology that can detect and correct network problems before they impact customers across its European infrastructure.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is increasingly vital for mobile operators looking to manage more complex network environments in the 5G era.

Operators need to be able to automatically provision services such as network slicing and dynamically allocate capacity around the network. The rollout of software-defined networking and cloud-based core infrastructure makes this possible.  

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Vodafone AI network

Vodafone’s ‘Anomaly Detection System’ is based on technology developed by Nokia Bell Labs and uses intelligent algorithms to sense when a mobile cell area is exhibiting unusual behaviour that could affect network quality.

The service is hosted on Vodafone’s cloud platform, which provides engineers with detailed analytics that will allow them engineers to fix problems such as congestion, interference, high latency, and call quality more rapidly. But the system will also be able to proactively address issues itself.

So far, Vodafone has deployed the system across 60,000 4G sites in Italy and will roll it out across Europe by early 2022 as part of a wider network transformation. The expectation is that the company will be able to automatically detect 80% of all network and capacity issues.

“We are building an automated and programmable network that can respond quickly to our customers’ needs,” said Johan Wibergh, Vodafone CTO.

“As we extend 5G across Europe, it is important to match the speed and responsiveness of this new technology with a great service. With machine learning, we can ensure a consistently high-quality performance that is as smart as the technology behind it.”

“We are pleased to celebrate the first commercial deployment of our solution with Vodafone, running on the public cloud,” added Raghav Sahgal, Nokia’s President of Cloud and Network Services.

“By analyzing network data our machine-learning algorithms can detect anomalies impacting network operations and performance, helping Vodafone engineers to pre-empt and rapidly resolve issues.”

In the UK, Vodafone’s Network & Development Director Andrea Dona told TechRadar Pro earlier this year that automation was essential if it wanted to become a provider of services beyond telecoms. He said that the massive growth of data simply cannot be supported by traditional approaches to network management and capacity expansion.

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Vodafone’s Narrowband-IoT network (Nb-IoT) now covers 98% of the UK’s landmass, strengthening the operator’s bid to be a leader in IoT connectivity.

The company has been one of the biggest supporters of NB-IoT, a Low Power Wide Area Network (LPWAN) technology designed for use cases where power consumption and battery life are more important factors than bandwidth.

Mass IoT projects deploy sensors across a wide geographic area, often in hard-to-reach places, and are designed to be untouched for several years. Any change to that plan, such as a battery replacement, is either logistically challenging or upsets the economics of the entire project.

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Vodafone IoT

Although traditional mobile networks have a clear advantage over other forms of IoT connectivity like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Sigfox, they use more energy. The propagation and power consumption characteristics of NB-IoT ensure it can connect devices that need to be in place for more than five years.

For applications that require a stronger signal, coverage drops to 87%, but Vodafone will see if it can extend its network on a case-by-case basis.

Vodafone sees NB-IoT as complementary to its other connectivity services, such as 4G 5G, which can deliver greater bandwidth and a constant connection. This, it argues, allows it to offer flexible, tailored services for customers bade on their needs.

“NB-IoT is a part of our network that is often overlooked, but it but it is becoming increasingly important, bringing data from a growing variety of devices  to power decision-making in more organisations,” said Anne Sheehan, Business Director, Vodafone UK.

“This is a network which has been designed for low-bandwidth devices, allowing for coverage that goes beyond 4G, and devices where battery life could be extended to as long as ten years. In IoT, customers might want to use our 4G network for real-time, data-intensive analytics, while others might need a connectivity solution for non-time sensitive use cases, such as environmental monitoring.

“We have invested in NB-IoT because we want to offer our customers the right tools for the right job, in a way which is affordable and accessible for every customer.”

Vodafone is also building outs its NB-IoT network across its European networks and has held roaming trials with other mobile operators.

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Vodafone has launched a Multi-Edge Computing (MEC) service in the UK, paving the way for business customers to deploy 5G applications, such as real-time data analytics and AI, IoT, and virtual reality (VR), that rely on guaranteed performance.

5G networks promise faster speeds and greater capacity that will allow for more reliable mobile connections.

However, it is the promise of lower latency that will enable the most revolutionary use cases such as smart city applications, telemedicine, and mixed reality.

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Vodafone 5G edge

But in order to deliver this lower latency, operators are decentralising their infrastructure and virtualising network functions so they can be moved closer to the customer. Edge computing allows data to processed nearer to the point of collection, even at a base station level, which lowers the time of transmission significantly.

Vodafone is one of several operators that senses a business opportunity, especially as it seeks to transition from being a mere telecoms provider into a genuine technology company.  

The Newbury-based operator’s MEC service is enabled by Amazon Web Services (AWS) Wavelength, which brings compute and storage capabilities to the edge of the network, meaning data can be collected, processed, and sent back within 10 milliseconds.

London, Oxford, Cambridge, Bristol and Cardiff are the first cities to benefit, with Vodafone promising to extend availability to Scotland and northern England in 2022.

“We are taking our business beyond the traditional boundaries of telecoms connectivity services so that we can bring customers amazing new services,” said Anne Sheehan, Business Director at Vodafone UK. 

“Edge Compute and 5G is a combination no other service provider can deliver in Europe, which means we can offer something unique to our customers.  We’ve already seen new services being developed by our trialists – the potential for completely new ideas enabled by this combination is massive.”

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Vodafone managed to record a profit last year despite ongoing challenges caused by the Coronavirus across its key European markets.

Lockdown restrictions and reduced international travel hit purchases of new smartphones and roaming income and contributed to a 2.6% fall in Group revenues to €43.8 billion.

However, Vodafone said it was pleased with stable service revenues and the contribution of the German and Central European businesses acquired from Liberty Global. The operator’s digital and efficiency efforts also saved €500 million across the business.

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Vodafone revenues

The company now has 65.4 million mobile customers and 25.6 million broadband customers across the continent, while deepening engagement reduced churn, increases ARPU (Average Revenue Per User), and saw average data consumption increase from 5.7GB to 7.2GB.

Meanwhile, the €2.3bn proceeds generated from the flotation of the were used to reduce debt.

The €536 million profit compares favourably with the €455 million loss it reported last year (largely driven by a write down at Vodafone’s Indian joint-venture), and the firm is happy with what it considers to be a “resilient performance” given the wider economic climate.

Group CEO Nick Read said its focus was on delivering the next phase of its strategy to become a next-generation connectivity and digital services provider across Europe and Africa with a medium-term ambition to drive returns through growth acceleration.

“We have delivered on the first phase of our strategy to reshape Vodafone as a stronger connectivity provider – including the simplification of the group to Europe and Africa, the successful IPO of Vantage Towers, the fast roll out of our next generation mobile and fixed networks, share gain in broadband subscriptions and continued reduction in customer churn,” he said.

“Our digital transformation initiatives have generated savings of €0.5 billion over the year and the integration of the assets acquired from Liberty Global is well ahead of plan. The world has changed. The pandemic has shown how critical connectivity and digital services are to society. Vodafone is strongly positioned and through increased investment, we are taking action now to ensure we play a leadership role and capture the opportunities that these changes create.

“The increased demand for our services supports our ambition to grow revenues and cash flow over the medium-term. We remain fully focused on driving shareholder returns through deleveraging, improving our return on capital, and a firm commitment to our dividend.”

In the UK, revenues fell by 5.1% to €6.2 billion due to the same factors affecting other markets. However, churn fell from 14.1% to 13%, and the company added 219,000 mobile contract subscribers and secured 192,000 net additions to its broadband service, aiding a 5.6% rise in revenue. 

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Vodafone and Google Cloud are building an “industry-first” global data platform in a move that will accelerate the operator’s digital transformation efforts and demonstrates the growing convergence of the telecoms and technology industries.

The ‘Nucleus’ platform will house a new system called ‘Dynamo’ that collects and migrates information from Vodafone's various repositories around the world into a single cloud-based resource.

Vodafone is also moving its entire SAP environment and all of its Big Data and Business Intelligence workloads to Google Cloud.

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Vodafone Google Cloud

This aggregated database can then be used to improve Vodafone's network, drive operational efficiencies, and speed up the deployment of new, personalised services for customers in all markets.

Nucleus and Dynamo are capable of processing 50TB of data every day, and Vodafone has already identified more than 700 potential use cases, including predictive maintenance, automated service upgrades and rewards, and digital twins.

Ultimately, this means a more efficient network, happier and more engaged customers and increased revenues through retention and new services.

“Vodafone is building a powerful foundation for a digital future,” said Johan Wibergh, Vodafone Group CTO. “We have vast amounts of data which, when securely processed and made available across our footprint using the collective power of Vodafone and Google Cloud’s engineering expertise, will transform our services, to our customers and governments, and the societies where they live and serve.”

Vodafone increasingly views itself as more of an IT company than a mere provider of telecoms services, an ambition that is reflected in its digitisation programme and its investments in 5G.

It believes the adoption of cloud-based technologies and the virtualisation of network infrastructure will make the organisation more data-driven and allow it to roll out services more rapidly – transforming its customer-facing and back-office operations.

The extension of its relationship with Google Cloud is part of this process. The six-year partnership will see more than 1,000 staff from both companies work together in the UK, the US, and Spain, and the firms will look to provide consultancy services to other multi-national organisations looking to better use data across their business.

“Telecommunications firms are increasingly differentiating their customer experiences through the use of data and analytics, and this has never been more important than during the current pandemic,” added Thomas Kurian, Google Cloud CEO. “We are thrilled to be selected as Vodafone’s global strategic cloud partner for analytics and SAP, and to co-innovate on new products that will accelerate the industry’s digital transformation.”

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Vodafone and Ericsson are using drones and Lidar technology to virtualise the process for planning network deployment and site upgrades to make it safer, more efficient, and less damaging to the environment.

Traditional approaches to network construction require a party of structural engineers, radio and transmission planners, acquisition agents, and site designers to travel to the site to collect data and conduct an assessment.

This increases the time and money required to build infrastructure, while the amount of travel increases carbon emissions. In any case, such a gathering has proved challenging during the pandemic.

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5G speed record

Vodafone and Ericsson’s trial of drones equipped with high-definition cameras and Lidar technology – which uses lasers to scan sites in a similar fashion to radar – will allow these site visits to be carried out by a single engineer.

Data is fed into a cloud-based ‘Digital Twin’ – a virtual representation of a physical environment. This allows engineers and planners to collaborate in real time from any location and simulate how any changes will affect the site or the network.

There is no need to climb towers, improving health and safety, while more accurate data reduces the need for repeat visits. Vodafone hopes the use of the technology will reduce CO2 emissions by 1.5 tonnes per 100 sites, while anything that reduces costs is always welcomed by operators who are investing significantly in 5G.

The first phase of the trial will see the system used to capture data from 70 sites due to be upgraded in the near future.

"The introduction of new technology to improve our processes has significant benefits for our own operational efficiencies and reducing our carbon footprint, but it also allows us to deliver on our promise to customers faster,” said Andrea Dona, Chief Network Officer at Vodafone UK. “The less time, which is wasted travelling to sites, the more time can be invested in valuable tasks that improve the digital experience for our customers."

“Our partnership with Vodafone to explore the benefits of Intelligent Site Engineering ensures that speed and sustainability are at the heart of our network rollout in the UK together,” added Björn Odenhammar, CTO, Networks & Managed Services, Ericsson UK & Ireland. “This is a demonstration of our rapid network delivery capabilities and our commitment to build a world-class digital infrastructure that will bring vital 5G connectivity to new regions, boost innovation and provide a foundation for the UK’s future economic success.”

• These are the best 5G phones you can currently buy

Vodafone has switched on Europe’s biggest commercial Standalone 5G network (SA 5G) in Germany, claiming the development will help consumers and businesses realise the full potential of next generation networks.

Nearly all commercial 5G deployments to date have relied on Non-standalone 5G (NSA 5G), which uses new radio technologies but still relies on the underlying 5G core.

SA 5G uses a new virtual, cloud-based core that allows data to be processed closer to the point of collection and enables features like network slicing. This allows for guaranteed speeds, enhanced reliability and ultra-low latency.

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5G speed record

These characteristics will be essential for some of the most revolutionary 5G applications – including the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT). Vodafone has deployed SA 5G in other locations, including at the University of Coventry, but never on this scale.

“We are clearing the way for real-time connectivity. 5G is standing on its own two feet in Germany for the first time,” declared Vodafone Germany CEO Hannes Ametsreiter. “We are the first network operator to put aside the LTE support wheels for 5G - not for internal tests, but for our customers, who can experience real-time connections.”

SA 5G is now available in several major German cities, including Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Leipzig and Munster. In these cities, the operator’s 3.5GHz radio equipment is now connected to a cloud-based core powered by Ericsson’s technology. Testing of the network was done using an Oppo Find X3 Pro smartphone which is powered with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G platform.

Vodafone is touting the potential for SA 5G to transform and enable entirely new industrial and public sector applications and to offer enhanced mobile broadband services. There are other benefits too, not least a 20% reduction in energy consumption when compared to NSA 5G.

These savings not only lower the environment impact of 5G but lower the cost-per-bit of transmission for operators. Ericsson and Vodafone have also converted a data centre in the Frankfurt area to enable cloud data processing that will support customers in the region.

"Our 3.5GHz range 5G network is now completely independent of LTE technology. At initial available locations, it is possible to achieve latency times of 10 to 15 milliseconds – that's as fast as the human nervous system,” added Vodafone Germany CTO Gerhard Mack.

“These ultra-low latency times are now arriving step-by-step to consumers across Germany as we put more and more 5G facilities into operation.”

• These are the best 5G phones you can currently buy

Vodafone is launching a new range of end-to-end Internet of Things (IoT) services as it continues its transition from being a pure telecom business to the wider world of connected technology.

The Newbury-based operator has been one of the most vocal supporters of cellular-based IoT technology, both in terms of product launches and support for industry standards like NB-IoT.

Its investments and scale mean Vodafone is frequently named as one of the leading global IoT providers by analysts. And after years of technology and service development, Vodafone believes the combination of awareness and necessity means IoT is finally ready to become a mainstream proposition.

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The company now hopes that its new services will drive IoT adoption among SMBs, many of whom are interested in IoT, but fear implementation is too complex or expensive.

Vodafone SMB IoT

Disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic has led many businesses to accelerate their digitisation so they can maintain and enhance the customer experience and to identify new opportunities for growth.

Going forward the company sees IoT, along with 5G, as key components of its transformation from a mere provider of connectivity into an IT company that can provide fully integrated services to organisations of all sizes.

“As a group, we want to be a technology [and] communications company,” Anne Sheehan, Vodafone UK Business Director tells TechRadar Pro. “It means connectivity and mobility will always be at the heart of everything we do but we want to move into adjacent areas.”

At the heart of Vodafone’s IoT proposition is simplicity. It says a lack of in-house expertise combined with a belief of long return on investments is stifling demand from SMBs. There is, Sheehan suggests, a view that IoT is only for large enterprises with vast resources.

She says Vodafone is determined to ‘bust’ that myth, not least because the SMB market promises to be one of the most valuable for operators and the company has traditionally been strong in this particular segment of the market.

According to the Federation of Small Businesses, SMBs account 99.9% of the business population and three fifths of all employment. Even if the customers are smaller, its still a huge market for Vodafone to tap into through its existing relationships. 

Its new IoT service for SMBs promises to combine devices, sensors, software, management platform and support into a single offering that can track, monitor and manage assets, and provide complete control over data. The subscription-based model replicates many of the benefits of cloud in that SMBs that have lower access to capital and skills than larger enterprises can still benefit from the IoT.

Vodafone plans to 'co-create' customised services with SMBs, assisted by technology and developers from IoT.nxt, a startup acquired by Vodacom in South Africa whose resources have been made available to the wider group. A secure deployment of IoT.nxt’s platform is now available in the UK, powering the new SMB service.

“At the moment you have to go to [separate] device manufacturers, service providers and software developers,” says Sheehan. “This can be prohibitive and the barriers to entry become high.

“Other organisations might be put off because they think the ROI is too long. Our ambition is to democratise IoT – it doesn’t matter if you’re a small organisation or a big one.

“Awareness is high – around 70% of SMBs [know] what IoT can do. But the challenge is making it affordable and [overcoming the belief] that it’s only for multinationals.”

“We want to be number one for connectivity in IoT globally. We want to be an end to end offering in every market and take global leadership.”

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Vodafone says its financial performance was “resilient” during the first half of 2021, with strong demand for its mobile services offsetting the inevitable impacts of coronavirus pandemic.

Revenues fell by 2.3% to €21.4 billion during the first six months of the year but this was in line with its expectations. Reduced roaming revenues and lower handset sales attributable to lockdown and travel restrictions offset strong underlying momentum, it said.

The company recorded a €1.6 billion profit, boosted by €1 billion gained from the merger of its Australian business. This compares favourably to the €1.9 billion loss it posted during the same period last year – a figure that was affected by costs related to Vodafone Idea in India.

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Vodafone revenues

Vodafone CEO Nick Read told investors it was pleased with the results, citing improvements in customer loyalty, network expansion and the acceleration of efforts to achieve €1.2 billion in cost savings over a three-year period.

As much as €300 million was saved during the past six months, bringing the total saved up to €1.1 billion, while 5G is now available in 127 cities in 9 European countries.

“The results demonstrate the success of our strategic priorities to date, namely increasing customer loyalty, growing our fixed broadband base, driving digitisation to simplify the company and capture significant cost savings, and deliver 5G efficiently through network sharing,” he said.

“COVID-19 and the reduction in roaming revenues, through the significant reduction in international travel, is currently obscuring our underlying commercial progress, with Q2 service revenue growing by 1.5% excluding roaming.

“We are now two years into our longer-term strategy to transform Vodafone into a business that enables a digital society, generating both sustainable growth and attractive returns. We are executing at pace, but there remains more to be done to achieve our goals. Now, more than ever, the connectivity services we provide are critical for society and the demand is growing for our services. I am proud of how our dedicated employees have worked tirelessly around the clock to keep everyone connected.”

• Here are the best Vodafone deals around today

Vodafone will require potential suppliers to detail their social commitments when bidding for contracts, with the company looking to extend its own values further down its supply chain.

The Newbury-based operator has committed to reducing its own environmental impact by 2025 and also wants to improve the lives of one billion people through mobility.

Starting from October, environmental, diversity and inclusion, and health and safety policies (where applicable) will account for a fifth of a suitability evaluation for any tender for services issued by Vodafone worldwide.

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Vodafone social values

The company will ask suppliers to demonstrate measures that promote equality in the workplace and whether there are policies for equal pay and to ensure there is a certain percentage of female employees at all levels.

Suppliers will also be asked about measures taken to reduce carbon emissions and waste, as well as practices that extend product lifecycles or promote renewable energy. There will also be examination of a commitment to science-based targets for reducing emissions.

For contracts where health and safety is a factor, these assessments will account for half of the 20 percent that is taken into consideration.

“We want Vodafone’s supply chain partners to be aligned with and support our desire to build a resilient, sustainable and inclusive digital society,” declared Vodafone Group CFO Margherita Della Valle. “From October 2020, we are evolving our vendor assessment criteria to give significant weighting to our suppliers’ commitments on diversity, inclusion and the environment.

“We will be providing practical support for our smaller suppliers, providing help and tools to ensure that vendors of all sizes have the opportunity to align with our purpose when we consider them for contracts.”

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