54-524: Vodafone Ireland Limited , a wholly owned subsidiary of Vodafone Group , is a mobile phone network, broadband and TV provider in Ireland . It was created when the Vodafone Group bought Eircell , the mobile arm of Telecom Éireann . As of September 2019, Vodafone has 26% of broadband subscribers (including 40% of fiber to the premises subscribers), and 43% of mobile phone subscribers. The company operates
108-470: A 10% stake, strong investor demand led Vodafone to nearly double the sale. Bharti Airtel , increased its stake in Indus to about 49% by purchasing around 1% of the shares. Vodafone sold 484.7 million shares at 310-341 rupees each, generating 153 billion rupees. The sale reduced Vodafone's stake in Indus from 21.5% to 3.1%. Following a period of worldwide expansion which began in 1999, in the 2010s Vodafone entered
162-587: A 35% share of Mannesmann , owner of the largest German mobile network. To gain antitrust approval for the merger, Vodafone sold its 17.2% stake in Mannesmann's German competitor, E-Plus . On 21 September 1999, Vodafone agreed to merge its US wireless assets with those of Bell Atlantic Corp to form Verizon . The merger was completed on 4 April 2000, just a few months prior to Bell Atlantic's merger with GTE to form Verizon Communications . In November 1999, Vodafone made an unsolicited bid for Mannesmann, which
216-642: A fair basis. In relation to terrestrial television and radio, the commission acts in conjunction with Coimisiún na Meán (formerly the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland ). After the enactment of the Broadcasting Act 2009 RTÉ and TG4 authorities were disbanded and now come under Coimisiún na Meán's remit. ComReg is also tasked with enforcing wireless telegraphy legislation, in particular the Wireless Telegraphy Act, 1926 , in relation to use of
270-522: A full range of voice, SMS, MMS and mobile data services using a 2G GSM 900/1800 network and a 3G UMTS 900/2100 network capable of offering a range of broadband services including DC- HSPA + which can deliver up to a theoretical 43.2 Mbit/s. Their 4G network was launched in October 2013. Vodafone claims over 99% of the island of Ireland is covered by their 4G network within the Republic. Vodafone 4G operates on
324-613: A majority holding, despite disputes by local trade unions. In April 2011, Vodacom rebranded with the Vodafone logo. On 29 December 2003, Vodafone signed a Partner Network Agreement with Kuwait's MTC group. The agreement involved co-operation in Bahrain and the branding of the network as MTC-Vodafone. In November 1998, the Vodafone Egypt network went live under the name Click GSM, and was rebranded to Vodafone in 2002. On 8 November 2006,
378-437: A mass-market product. From early 1997 Eircell faced competition from Esat Digifone , then a joint venture between Denis O'Brien 's Esat Telecom Group and Telenor of Norway. In 2000, Vodafone made an offer for the company to Eircell's parent, Eircom , which saw the company demerge from Eircom plc into a separate plc, Eircell 2000 plc (trading name: Eircell Vodafone), which was then acquired by Vodafone. In 2002, Eircell Vodafone
432-641: A period of retrenchment and simplification of its operations. On 23 September 2016, Vodafone extended its activities to Cameroon by signing a partnership with Afrimax, a 4G-LTE telecommunications operator in Africa. Vodafone Cameroon Launched a "Youth Program" in the Universities to support and encourage the Cameroonian students. The partnership ceased to operate in September 2017 following the withdrawal of its license by
486-622: A primary listing on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index . The company has a secondary listing on the NASDAQ as American depositary receipts (ADRs). The name Vodafone comes from vo ice da ta fone (the latter a sensational spelling of " phone "), chosen by the company to "reflect the provision of voice and data services over mobile phones". In 1980, Ernest Harrison , then chairman of Racal Electronics Plc –
540-413: A prosuicide site – on the mobile phone networks Vodafone, O2, 3 and Meteor. All four networks allowed access. In January 2009 it was revealed that Ireland was nearly the most profitable market in the world for multinational mobile operators like Vodafone. In April 2009, the company admitted to overcharging 100,000 of its Irish customers a total of €900,000 by incorrectly billing them. In August 2010, it
594-495: A shareholding of 65%. In January 2021, Vodafone obtained a license to establish and operate public telecommunications services in Oman . In September 2021 Vodafone in Oman signed an agreement with Ericsson to deploy, operate and maintain 4G and 5G core and radio access (RAN) greenfield network and an agreement with Netcracker Technology to deploy Netcracker Digital BSS. Vodafone will be
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#1732884461575648-490: A trade agreement with the Chilean Entel PCS Chile, in which Entel PCS has access to the equipment and international services of Vodafone, and Vodafone will be one of the trademarks of Entel for the wireless business. This step will give the Vodafone brand access to a market of over 15 million people, currently divided between two companies: Telefonica Movistar and Entel PCS. In August 2013, Vodafone has started
702-510: A wholly owned subsidiary of Vodafone Ireland. On 22 July 2009, BT Ireland agreed to transfer its consumer voice, broadband data and small business operations in Ireland to Vodafone, leap-frogging the company into a leading role as a fixed-line broadband operator in the country. Under the terms of the deal Vodafone leased capacity on BT's fixed line network for the services. Vodafone Vodafone Group Plc ( / ˈ v oʊ d ə f oʊ n / )
756-583: Is a British multinational telecommunications company . Its registered office and global headquarters are in Newbury, Berkshire , England. It predominantly operates services in Asia, Africa, Europe, and Oceania. As of October 2024 , Vodafone owns and operates networks in 16 countries, with partner networks in 46 further countries. Its Vodafone Global Enterprise division provides telecommunications and IT services to corporate clients in 150 countries. Vodafone has
810-520: The Premier League team Manchester United F.C. in football from 2000 until the 2005–06 season. In 2007, Vodafone entered into a title sponsorship deal with the McLaren Formula One team (previously Vodafone sponsored Scuderia Ferrari in 2002 until 2006), which traded as "Vodafone McLaren Mercedes" until the sponsorship ended at the end of the 2013 season. On 1 December 2011, it acquired
864-734: The Reading -based Bluefish Communications Ltd, an ICT consultancy company. The acquired operations formed the nucleus of a new Unified Communications and Collaboration practice within its subsidiary Vodafone Global Enterprise , which was to focus on implementing strategies in cloud computing , and strengthen its professional services offering. In April 2012, Vodafone announced an agreement to acquire Cable & Wireless Worldwide (CWW) for £1.04 billion. The acquisition gave Vodafone access to CWW's fibre network for businesses, enabling it to offer unified communications to enterprises. On 18 June 2012, Cable & Wireless shareholders voted in favour of
918-634: The 5G MiFi M1100 in Qatar. It is the first commercially available 5G mobile hotspot in the region. On 28 January 2009, the group announced a partner network agreement with Du , the second-largest operator in the United Arab Emirates. The agreement involved co-operation on international clients, handset procurement, mobile broadband etc. Vodafone's network partner in Canada was Rogers Wireless . but has since changed to Telus On 11 May 2008, Vodafone sealed
972-654: The 80% that it did not already own of Astec Communications, a service provider with 21 stores. In January 1997, Whent retired and Chris Gent took over as CEO. In the same year, Vodafone introduced its Speechmark logo, composed of a quotation mark in a circle, with the Os in the Vodafone logotype representing opening and closing quotation marks and suggesting conversation. On 29 June 1999, Vodafone completed its purchase of American service provider AirTouch and changed its name to Vodafone AirTouch Plc. The merged company commenced trading on 30 June 1999. The acquisition gave Vodafone
1026-431: The 800/1800 network offering speeds of up to 75 Mbit/s. They have also built a new kind of 4G called 4G+ which enables speeds of 225 Mbit/s on devices that support this and the initial roll out of this service was in major towns and cities first becoming more widespread over time. Vodafone 4G is available to over 6 cities and 500 towns in Ireland making Vodafone the strongest and most widespread 4G service offered in
1080-525: The Communications Regulation Act, 2002 the Minister for Communications, Marine, and Natural Resources appoints the chairperson and up to two other commissioners of ComReg. Currently the commissioners are Garrett Blaney, Helen Dixon and Robert Mourik. Sectors regulated by ComReg include post , telecoms , internet , cable television , terrestrial television , radio and domain name under
1134-447: The Communications Regulation Act, 2002 (No. 20 of 2002), S.I. No. 510 of 2002 Communications Regulation Act 2002 (Establishment Day) Order 2002 and other acts. For a full list of legislation underpinning ComReg's responsibilities. ComReg set prices, allocate frequencies, and issue licenses to those involved in these sectors and provides statistical data, consumer product price comparisons to assist consumers in achieving value for money on
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#17328844615751188-546: The Director of Telecommunications Regulation ( ODTR ), amongst other bodies. The ODTR was established in 1997 to take over the licensing and regulatory functions of the Minister for Transport, Energy and Communication which related primarily to broadcasting and communications. The first (and only) Director of Telecommunications Regulation was Etain Doyle , who was subsequently appointed Chairperson of ComReg, on its establishment. Under
1242-535: The Irish mobile phone networks defined by the access codes 088 (analogue TACS system) and 087 (digital GSM 900 system) from 1984 until its transfer to Vodafone in 2001. Usage of the service remained low until it became a separate subsidiary, Eircell Limited , in 1997. In October 1997, Eircell introduced the analogue prepaid pay as you go system under the Ready To Go brand, and turned mobile communications in Ireland into
1296-545: The MVNO operation in Brazil, as a corporative M2M operator. Commission for Communications Regulation The Commission for Communications Regulation ( ComReg ) ( Irish : An Coimisiún um Rialáil Cumarsáide ) is the general communications regulator for Ireland , covering almost all possible types of communications. Founded on 1 December 2002, ComReg took over from the Office of
1350-623: The Mannesmann board agreed to an increased offer of £112 billion, then the largest corporate merger ever. The EU approved the merger in April 2000 after Vodafone agreed to divest the 'Orange' brand, which was acquired in May 2000 by France Télécom . On 28 July 2000, the Company reverted to its former name, Vodafone Group Plc. On 17 December 2001, Vodafone introduced the concept of "Partner Networks", by signing TDC Mobil of Denmark. The new concept involved
1404-615: The Racal Strategic Radio Ltd subsidiary was established. Jan Stenbeck , head of a growing Swedish conglomerate, set up an American company, Millicom Inc , and approached Gerry Whent in July 1982 about bidding jointly for the UK's second cellular radio licence. The two struck a deal giving Racal 60% of the new company, Racal-Millicom Ltd, and Millicom 40%. Due to concerns of the Government of
1458-651: The UK's largest manufacturer of military radios – negotiated a deal with Lord Weinstock of the UK General Electric Company (GEC), which gave Racal access to some of GEC's battlefield radio technology. Harrison directed the head of Racal's military radio division, Gerry Whent , to explore the use of that technology for civilian purposes. Whent visited a mobile radio factory run by the US company General Electric (unrelated to UK GEC) in Virginia , that same year. In 1981,
1512-667: The United Kingdom about foreign ownership, the terms were revised, and in December 1982 the Racal-Millicom partnership was awarded the second UK mobile phone network licence. Final ownership of Racal-Millicom Ltd was 80% Racal, with Millicom holding 15% plus royalties, and the venture firm Hambros Technology Trust holding 5%. According to the UK Secretary of State for Business and Trade , "the bid submitted by Racal-Millicom Ltd … provided
1566-712: The Vodafone offer. On 2 September 2013, Vodafone announced it would be selling its 45% stake in Verizon Wireless to Verizon Communications for $ US130 billion. With the proceeds from the deal, it announced a £19 billion Project Spring initiative to improve network quality in Europe and emerging markets, such as India . In June 2017, the company took measures to prevent its advertising from appearing within outlets focused on creating and sharing hate speech and fake news. In January 2020, Vodafone confirmed that it has pulled out of Diem Association (known as Libra Association at
1620-583: The best prospect for early national coverage by cellular radio." Vodafone was launched on 1 January 1985 under the new name of Racal-Vodafone (Holdings) Ltd, with its first office based in the Courtyard in Newbury, Berkshire , and shortly thereafter Racal Strategic Radio was renamed Racal Telecommunications Group Limited. The first non-Vodafone employee to make a UK mobile phone call was comedian Ernie Wise , from St Katharine Docks , London on 1 January 1985. On 29 December 1986, Racal Electronics issued shares to
1674-563: The company announced a deal with Telecom Egypt , resulting in further co-operation in the Egyptian market and increasing its stake in Vodafone Egypt. After the deal, Vodafone Egypt was 55% owned by the group, while the remaining 45% was owned by Telecom Egypt. On 29 January 2020, Saudi Telecom Company (STC) and the Vodafone Group signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the sale of Vodafone's entire 55 percent stake in Vodafone Egypt to STC. With
Vodafone Ireland - Misplaced Pages Continue
1728-572: The country. Their 5G service was launched in 2019. Vodafone Ireland offers a full range of contract (bill pay) and prepay services, including mobile telephony and mobile broadband. The company also offers a range of fixed-line services including traditional telephone services, ADSL2+ , FTTC (VDSL2) and FTTH high speed broadband. These services are delivered using SIRO , Open Eir , and NBI's wholesale access networks with Vodafone's own back-haul capacity. In some areas, Vodafone has made use of Local-Loop Unbundling (LLU) and has its own equipment in
1782-413: The data. On 13 November 2007, Vodafone Ireland announced the acquisition of Perlico , a small fixed line phone and broadband services reseller for €80m. This was in line with the strategy of other Vodafone companies across Europe, in buying small fixed-line providers for potential offerings of future converged services. As a result of the acquisition, Perlico was dissolved after the merger, having become
1836-480: The government. On 3 July 2008, Vodafone agreed to acquire a 70% stake in Ghana Telecom for $ 900 million. The acquisition was consummated on 17 August 2008. The same group-led consortium won the second fixed-line licence in Qatar on 15 September 2008. On 15 April 2009, Ghana Telecom, along with its mobile subsidiary OneTouch, was rebranded as Vodafone Ghana . In February 2023, Vodafone Group has concluded
1890-494: The group average, Vodafone customers would see their annual bills falling by an average of €80.47 (€6.71 a month) The European Commission upheld a ruling by the Irish regulatory body, Comreg, that the Irish mobile phone market needed greater competition, and acknowledged that "tacit collusion possibly existed between O2 and Vodafone". A senior manager at Vodafone Ireland in March 2007 was dismissed following allegations that he defrauded
1944-626: The group, and demerge the other 35 per cent to its shareholder. Meanwhile, Vodafone has agreed to make Vodacom its exclusive sub-Saharan Africa investment vehicle, as well as continuing to maintain the visibility of the Vodacom brand. The transaction closed in May/June 2009. On 18 May 2009, Vodacom entered the JSE Limited stock exchange in South Africa after Vodafone increased its stake by 15% to 65% to take
1998-430: The introduction of Vodafone international services to the local market, without the need of investment by Vodafone. The concept would be used to extend the Vodafone brand and services into markets where it did not have stakes in local operators. Vodafone services would be marketed under the dual-brand scheme, where the Vodafone brand is added at the end of the local brand. (i.e., TDC Mobil-Vodafone etc.) Vodafone sponsored
2052-521: The last Irish UMTS licence. Initially restricted to contract ('bill pay') customers, Vodafone extended UMTS to pre-pay 'Ready To Go' customers from 2 June 2005. Analysis by the Sunday Independent in January 2006 showed the massive margins being earned by Vodafone and O2 in the country are costing Irish mobile phone users about €300m a year. If the mobile phone companies were to cut their Irish margins to
2106-479: The local exchange operated in partnership with BT Ireland Numbers issued by Vodafone Ireland usually start with 087 (+353 87), however full number portability is in use in Ireland so the mobile prefix is not a reliable indicator of which network the number is hosted on. Eircell commenced operation in 1986 as the Mobile and Broadcast division of Telecom Éireann . The GSM network went live in July 1993. Eircell handled
2160-550: The merger was approved, asserting the merger would strengthen competition. In November 2024, the Competition and Markets Authority provisionally concluded that the Vodafone and Three Merger could go ahead – if both companies make price promises for consumers and commit to boosting the UK's 5G rollout. In June 2024, Vodafone Group sold an 18% stake in Indus Towers , raising $ 1.82 billion to reduce its debt. Initially planning to sell
2214-511: The mid-2030s, including a spectrum shift to aid Vodafone's $ 19 billion merger with Three UK, which faced a Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) investigation. The deal, involved selling some of its combined 59% of the best 5G spectrum to Virgin Media O2, aimed to address regulatory concerns about reducing mobile networks from four to three in Britain. Vodafone pledged a £11 billion investment in 5G if
Vodafone Ireland - Misplaced Pages Continue
2268-604: The minority shareholders of Vodafone worth £110 million, and Vodafone became a fully owned brand of Racal. On 26 October 1988, Racal Telecom, majority held by Racal Electronics, went public on the London Stock Exchange with 20% of its stock floated. The successful flotation led to a situation where Racal's stake in Racal Telecom Plc was valued more than the whole of Racal Electronics. Under stock market pressure to realise full value for shareholders, Racal demerged Racal Telecom in 1991. On 16 September 1991, Racal Telecom
2322-399: The mobile operator of more than €1m. The company added in a statement: "As the matter is subject to legal proceedings, Vodafone cannot comment further." The National Parents Council criticised mobile phone companies for the lack of information available about filtering. The Sunday Tribune tested access to four separate sites – a pornography site, an Irish escort site, a pro-anorexia site and
2376-683: The sale of its 70% stake in Vodafone Ghana to Telecel Group in a bid to streamline its African portfolio, thus exiting the Ghanaian market. On 24 February 2010, the group signed a partner network agreement with the second-largest operator in Libya, al Madar. On 3 November 2004, the company announced that its South African affiliate Vodacom had agreed to introduce Vodafone's international services, such as Vodafone live! and partner agreements, to its local market. In November 2005, Vodafone announced that it
2430-408: The sale, Vodafone would be exiting the Egyptian market as a telecom operator. Telecom Egypt said that it has no plans to sell its 45% stake. On 21 December 2020, Vodafone announced that had failed to reach an agreement in its discussions with STC regarding the sale of Vodafone's 55% shareholding in Vodafone Egypt. Vodafone sold its shares in Vodafone Egypt to Vodacom in 2022 in which Vodafone has
2484-471: The tagline used was " Red is the new purple, Vodafone is the new name for Eircell ". Vodafone Ireland introduced UMTS services (branded "Vodafone live! with 3G") in 2004, launching the first handsets in November. This meant they were ahead of O2 Ireland and new entrant Three Ireland in launching third-generation services. Mobile network Meteor is rolling out their own 3G / UMTS network, having been awarded
2538-595: The third operator in the Sultanate of Oman. In December 2007, a Vodafone Group-led consortium was awarded the second mobile phone licence in Qatar under the name "Vodafone Qatar". Vodafone Qatar is located at QSTP, the Qatar Science & Technology Park . Commercial operations officially began on 1 March 2009. In February 2018 Vodafone Europe agreed to sell their stake in the Qatar joint venture. On 25 November 2019, Vodafone in collaboration with Inseego Corp. introduced
2592-499: The time), the governing council for the Facebook -created global digital currency initiative. In June 2023, it was announced that Vodafone UK would merge with Three UK ; Vodafone would own 51% of the combined company, and CK Hutchison Holdings 49%. If approved by regulators, the merger will create a group with 27 million mobile customers. On 3 July 2024, Vodafone and Virgin Media O2 announced to extend their network-sharing deal into
2646-481: The €1.9m it overcharged customers and there was little likelihood the remainder would be returned. ComReg said it was monitoring Vodafone's provision of refunds to affected consumers. The Department of Justice advised Vodafone publishing details of data requested by the Gardaí and other Irish authorities might compromise national security and hinder the investigation of serious criminal activity but it subsequently published
2700-416: Was demerged from Racal Electronics as Vodafone Group Plc, with Gerry Whent as its CEO. In July 1996, Vodafone acquired the two-thirds of Talkland it did not already own for £30.6 million. On 19 November 1996, in a defensive move, Vodafone purchased for £77 million Peoples Phone , a 181-store chain whose customers were overwhelmingly using Vodafone's network. In a similar move the company acquired
2754-572: Was in exclusive talks to buy a 15% stake of VenFin in Vodacom Group, reaching agreement the following day. Vodafone and Telkom then had a 50% stake each in Vodacom. Vodafone now owns 57.5% of Vodacom after purchasing a 15% stake from Telkom. On 9 October 2008, the company offered to acquire an additional 15% stake in Vodacom Group from Telkom. The finalised details of the agreement were announced on 6 November 2008. The agreement called for Telkom to sell 15 per cent of its 50 per cent stake in Vodacom to
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#17328844615752808-410: Was rebranded as Vodafone Ireland. In 2001, Eircell closed down its original analogue TACS (088) system, and Vodafone Ireland now operates a purely digital (GSM/UMTS) network. Vodafone saw Eircell undergo a major rebranding exercise on its acquisition by the group. The main rebranding was to associate a shade of deep purple with the company. When Vodafone rebranded with their trademark shade of red ,
2862-470: Was rejected. Vodafone's interest in Mannesmann had been increased by the latter's purchase of Orange , the UK mobile operator. Gent would later say Mannesmann's move into the UK broke a "gentleman's agreement" not to compete in each other's home territory. The hostile takeover provoked strong protests in Germany, and a "titanic struggle" which saw Mannesmann resist Vodafone's efforts. However, on 3 February 2000,
2916-641: Was revealed that the Irish exchequer was facing a demand from the company for a substantial corporation tax refund after it agreed that tax paid in Ireland should have been paid in Britain. The Vodafone subsidiary in question had profits of over €200 million but just 20 employees. In March 2011, Vodafone pleaded guilty to four breaches of the Data Protection Act at the Dublin District Court. Vodafone admitted in June 2012 it had not returned more than half of
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