Ben
30th March 2005, 05:29 PM
http://news.ft.com/cms/s/aaf39bf6-9b0d-11d9-90f9-00000e2511c8.html
By Mark Odell
Published: March 22 2005 20:58 | Last updated: March 22 2005 20:58
The UK mobile phone market is becoming so competitive it could claim its first high-profile victim next year, according to Peter Erskine, the chief executive of O2.
Along with the three other established mobile network operators - Vodafone, Orange and T-Mobile - O2 is having to fight to retain customers in the face of a highly aggressive thrust into the market by 3 UK, a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa. Meanwhile, the established network providers face the threat of further erosion at the bottom end of the market, as Virgin Mobile and other so-called virtual operators who piggy-back on others' networks compete for custom with low-cost packages unburdened by the infrastructure costs.
By Mark Odell
Published: March 22 2005 20:58 | Last updated: March 22 2005 20:58
The UK mobile phone market is becoming so competitive it could claim its first high-profile victim next year, according to Peter Erskine, the chief executive of O2.
Along with the three other established mobile network operators - Vodafone, Orange and T-Mobile - O2 is having to fight to retain customers in the face of a highly aggressive thrust into the market by 3 UK, a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa. Meanwhile, the established network providers face the threat of further erosion at the bottom end of the market, as Virgin Mobile and other so-called virtual operators who piggy-back on others' networks compete for custom with low-cost packages unburdened by the infrastructure costs.