Vodafone Connect Home Broadband Now Available To All UK Customers

Vodafone’s home broadband service is now available to all of its existing UK mobile customers following a limited launch earlier this summer.

Vodafone Connect makes use of the company’s business cable network, which it acquired from Cable & Wireless in 2012, and the open-access BT Openreach network, giving it a fibre footprint of 22 million homes and businesses.

Residents in Manchester, Berkshire and parts of Hampshire and Surrey have had access to since June, with users in Essex, Hertfordshire and Yorkshire added over the past few weeks. All existing Vodafone customers will get £5 off all packages and will only pay half price for the first 12 months, excluding their line rental.

Vodafone Connect launch

The company first announced plans to enter the market late last year as it seeks to keep up with rivals in a converging communications market which can offer ‘quad play’ packages of landline, broadband, mobile and television services.

The Newbury-based operator hopes its ‘Connect’ router and companion app will be a key differentiator in what is a crowded marketplace, offering users greater control over their network.

The app, available for iOS and Android, shows which devices are connected to the network, can set up a guest network for visitors, set time limits for certain family members and give priority to a particular device for up two hours. The router also uses beamforming technology to deliver a stronger signal to compatible machines.

“We have had great feedback on our broadband service from the customers involved in our regional launch,” said Jeroen Hoencamp, Vodafone UK CEO. “We are looking forward to many other customers taking us up on our great offer and joining us on our journey to be the UK’s leading providers of entertainment services.”

Fibre investments

Vodafone has invested heavily in fixed infrastructure across Europe, building fibre networks in Italy, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands and Ireland and acquiring Spanish cable provider Ono and Kabel Deutschland in Germany. In total it has 12.3 million fixed users across the continent.

It hopes the investments will allow it to compete with rival quad-play players across Europe, increase revenue, foster customer loyalty and limit the damage from any fall in mobile revenue. The firm is also investing£n into its 2G, 3G and 4G infrastructure.

Further acquisitions could be on the cards however. Earlier this year, Vodafone confirmed it was involved in talks with US cable giant Liberty Global about a possible “asset exchange”, sparking speculation Virgin Media was in the operator’s sights.

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