Vodafone and Three given approval to merge

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2024/dec/05/vodafone-and-three-given-approval-to-merge

by rejs7

26 comments

  1. Unsure how this is being allowed given the whole anti monopoly laws..

  2. And if Threedafone backtracks on those investment agreements later will the CMA write them a strongly worded letter

  3. And I am sure their new combined product will somehow manage to combine the high prices of Vodafone and shitty customer service of Three.

  4. Not sure how I feel about this. 

    We use both, Vodafone for our mobiles, and Three for mobile broadband (and our main internet connection at home, with very heavy usage). 

    Vodafone signal is terrible where we live now, and most of Wales where we visit a lot. And when we have a signal, data is slow. Three seem to have better coverage, mostly better speeds, truly unlimited data packages, and can be had very cheaply (good Black Friday deals etc). 

    So we might be an edge case, but not sure if it will help us or not, depending on which operators T&C’s and pricing structure will take precedence. 

  5. I can’t wait until there’s one phone company left called VodafoneThreeBTEEVirginO2

  6. Fingers crossed Three don’t ditch the PAYG free roaming

  7. People think they have to be on a network to get an iPhone on credit and the truth is that you don’t. It’s cheaper to get it from Apple directly on credit with Apple who use Barclays for the loan.

    Then you go on a £15 or £20 a month pay as you go sim that can’t go up £3 every year, ending up £6 more expensive by the end of a two year sim only deal or contract deal.

  8. Vodafone use to be a premium service. They’d pride themselves on being the service of choice for the emergency services.

    Three are the worst provider out there by a significant margin – especially for customer service which is often incomprehensible. It’s true their 5g service in big cities is getting better.

    This is a disaster for Vodafone staff and customers, they’re about to be dragged kicking and screaming in a race to the absolute bottom.

  9. So in three years time the CMA has given the go ahead for:

    * Prices for VodafoneThree customers to go up
    * Prices for MVNO (Asda, Lebara, TalkMobile, Voxi, Honest Mobile, iD Mobile and Smarty) customers to go up
    * One or more of the aforementioned MVNOs complaining about the rise in wholesale pricing making their business unviable and closing down

    Awesome.

    ^(/s in case it wasn’t obvious.)

  10. Nice of them to consolidate two shitty suppliers.

    I switched to Giffgaff and don’t think I’ll switch again for a while.

  11. They have to name it two, seeing as Vodafone has changed to One

  12. What will the new name be? Threedofone? Vodathree? V3?

    V3 sounds catchy. I can make a call on my V3 phone after washing my hair in V5, drinking a glass of V8, fixing the V6 engine in my car, playing a V7 on my guitar whilst avoiding being bombed by either a V1 or V2.

  13. Not sure how to feel about this.

    I’ve been a Three customer for nearly a decade on an unlimited call, text and data SIM only plan that costs me about £21/month.

    When the signal is good, things are great. But there are so many blindspots where I get no signal at all, and it’s especially bad inside some city centre buildings where I get nothing and people on other networks like Vodafone, O2, EE, etc

    Part of me looks forward to also being able to access Vodafone infrastructure soon, but also another part of me saw what EE did after they formed from the T-Mobile/Orange merger and worries that I’m going to get price gouged into switching for a far worse deal than what I currently have.

  14. It would be interesting to see them become more competitive with EE. I love EEs coverage and speeds but despise the cost. If this merger offers comparable service, EE may actually be forced to be more competitive.

    Ended up dumping them recently for O2 which just happens to be very good in my neighborhood. It really did seem like my only option when it came down to it

  15. I’ve been with Smarty for quite a few years now and generally found the service and signal to be completely fine – also pay 6 quid for 50gb of data a month and it includes a decent amount of roaming data included.

    While the improvement in signal quality will be welcomed I’m guessing in a few years time when they’re allowed to start raising prices I can kiss goodbye to my current deal.

  16. >The CMA said the merged company would be subject to legally binding commitments that it spends £11bn on upgrading their combined network, and said the deal would boost competition in the long term. The merger is expected to formally complete in the first half of next year.

    >The chief executive of [Vodafone](https://www.theguardian.com/business/vodafonegroup), Margherita Della Valle, said the approval “releases the handbrake on the UK’s telecoms industry”.
    Under the terms of the deal, Vodafone/Three will have to commit to retaining certain existing mobile tariffs and data plans for at least three years, including on their sub-brands.

    May actually end up with an useable network in Central London

  17. This doesn’t seem like a good thing.

    Reducing competition in a market where the big players are already screwing over their customers can’t lead to better outcomes!

  18. All networks in the UK are crap. Speeds are terrible even in city centres.

    I got faster speeds up a mountain in Kyrgyzstan than i can in Leeds centre

  19. May as well pull down my trousers now and just wait for them to take me for all I’m worth by raising the prices to the max.

    On Three right now and pay £18 for unlimited everything. This will change quickly I reckon.

  20. This is not good for consumers, or availability of coverage.

    Terrible decision.

  21. Three and O2 tried to merge but were blocked.

    Then O2 merged with Virgin media and now Three is merging with Vodafone.

  22. Moved to Vodafone to get away from Three! Goodbye Vodafone !!

  23. Three customer service is awful however I’ve barely had to speak to them in 10 years. I was going to leave as the last year or so the signal has been shocking. However, this seems to be happening across most providers with our dreadful infrastructure

  24. If never had any issues with three I’ve found there customer care to be good

  25. Both very poor with customer service. Both poor coverage.

  26. Can’t wait for us to end up just like the place I’ve left – Canada – with a couple of mobile providers, 1 provider for insurance, electricity, and gas, 1 airline, 2-3 supermarkets… and insane, gouging prices to go with it.

    How this merger was allowed is beyond me.

Comments are closed.