11th Oct 2013 06:18
LONDON (Alliance News) - BT Group PLC will offer 4G smart-phone connections bundled with broadband, landline calls and pay television in a deal with EE, the Guardian newspaper reported late Thursday.
BT, which sold off the O2 mobile network 10 years ago, will re-enter the consumer mobile phone business by renting space on EE's masts from next year, the Guardian said.
Mirroring the Virgin Media model, BT will offer customers 4G smart-phone connections, home broadband, landline calls, and pay TV, which could give it an edge over rival British Sky Broadcasting Group PLC, which does not offer mobile deals.
In 2001, BT became one of the few big European national telecoms groups to pull out of mobile when its subsidiary Cellnet was rebranded O2 and spun off as a separately listed company.
Earlier this year, BT spent nearly GBP190 million buying spectrum in February's 4G auction and splashed out on Premier League football rights for its sports channels.
The multi-year deal with EE ends BT's current deal with Vodafone Group PLC and will begin in 2014. It was unexpected, the Guardian said, as many thought O2 would receive the deal.
Initially, BT will test the network on its 88,000 staff worldwide, who will transfer on to EE's network. After that, offers will be rolled out to consumers.
By Tom McIvor; [email protected]; @TomMcIvor1
Copyright 2013 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
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