600 VodafoneThree UK sites now offer integrated coverage

Just over two months since it began operations following the merger of two of the UK’s leading telcos, VodafoneThree has announced that, as part of its £11bn investment programme, it has switched on over 600 sites that allow legacy Vodafone and Three customers to use both networks at no extra cost.

Vodafone and Three first announced plans to merge in June 2023. The new combined business – 51% owned by Vodafone Group and 49% by CK Hutchison Group Telecom (CKHGT) Holdings – is the biggest mobile network operator in the UK, with 27 million customers through the combined entities.

VodafoneThree will operate a multi-brand mobile strategy in the consumer market, with Vodafone, Three, VOXI, Smarty and Talkmobile remaining. Vodafone will be the only brand for business customers, offering one team able to tailor systems to a customer’s needs, with the ambition to become the UK’s biggest converged network for business.

VodafoneThree claims to be the only UK operator with a quarter-by-quarter, year-by-year, guaranteed plan to reach 99.95% 5G standalone (5G SA) population coverage by 2034. The 5G SA network build-out plan is front-loaded so that it will hit 90% population coverage from a current baseline of 47% by the end of the third year, and up to 50 million people will have access to its fastest 5G speeds in just one year.

Through the use of the company’s multi-operator core network (MOCN) technology, customers’ devices will automatically connect to the best coverage available, effectively giving them access to two networks at no extra cost. VodafoneThree believes this will see customers of both brands experience improved coverage, reliability and speed when using 4G and 5G networks.

Customers do not need to do anything to benefit from the new technology, as VodafoneThree engineers are using a weighted set of criteria to manage capacity and maximise customer benefits without having an impact on the existing service. For business mobile customers in particular, this is claimed to result in smoother day-to-day operations, with connectivity that keeps staff, services and customers connected everywhere they need it.

Through the sharing of combined spectrum, VodafoneThree said that within two weeks of beginning business, seven million Three and Smarty customers received a 4G boost, with an average improvement in 4G data speed of up to 20% and 40% in some key towns and cities, thanks to the integration of combined spectrum.

Three key benefits are said to stand out from the sharing: peak period improvements; the elimination of 4G notspots; and enhanced 5G coverage. With the MOCN, at busy times for the network, customers will be moved from a busy site to one that is able to provide the required level of performance. It is also designed to simultaneously relieve the strain on the busy site, providing a better experience for all customers.

By providing 4G coverage to 16,500km of the UK where it wasn’t previously available to either brand’s customers, VodafoneThree said it can eliminate notspots across an area 10 times the size of London and that around 71% of the UK population (circa 50 million) will have access to VodafoneThree’s fastest 5G speeds by the end of year one, thanks to bringing the networks together and an accelerated 5G roll-out plan. 

The first stages of the technology are being activated remotely, enabling faster deployment across Vodafone and Three’s networks. Some masts can be upgraded remotely with MOCN technology, with what is effectively a software upgrade. Others, however, will need to have new hardware fitted to them. The company accepted that completing such hardware upgrades, especially in remote areas of the country, will take time.

Commenting on the integration programme, VodafoneThree chief network officer Andrea Donà said: “Bringing our networks together marks a major milestone for VodafoneThree, unlocking greater capacity, reducing 4G notspots and expanding 5G coverage. Just weeks into the roll-out, millions of customers are already seeing the benefits of a nationwide boost, powered by our spectrum integration and Multi-Operator Core Network technology. It’s a clear signal of VodafoneThree’s ambition and ability to move at pace to deliver a new era of connectivity.”