O2 (UK)
Telefonica UK Limited, trading as O2 UK (stylised as O2), is a British telecommunications services provider, headquartered in Reading, England which operates under the O2 brand.[3] It is owned by VMED O2 UK Limited, a 50:50 joint venture between Telefónica and Liberty Global. O2 is the UK's largest mobile network operator, with 23.8 million subscribers as of May 2023.[4]
- O2 UK (2002–present)
- BT Cellnet (1999–2002)
- Cellnet (1985–1999)
- Telecom Securicor Cellular Radio Limited (1985–1999)
- BT Cellnet Limited (1999–2002)
- O2 (UK) Limited (2002–2008)
- Telefónica O2 UK Limited (2008–2011)
- Telefonica O2 UK Limited (2011)[1]
1985 (as Cellnet)
John Carrington
Reading, England, UK
United Kingdom
Lutz Schüler (CEO)
- giffgaff
- Tesco Mobile (50%)
History[edit]
Overview[edit]
The company was formed on 7 January 1985[5] as Cellnet, a 60:40 joint venture between BT Group and Securicor. Cellnet was one of the first two mobile networks in the UK, alongside Vodafone. In 1999, BT acquired Securicor's share of Cellnet and the company was later rebranded as BT Cellnet.[6] In June 2000, BT Cellnet launched the world's first commercial General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) service.[7] The company, together with BT Group's mobile telecommunications businesses in Germany, Ireland and the Netherlands, was part of the BT Wireless division. This was spun off from the BT Group in 2002 to form a new holding company, mmO2 plc, which introduced the new "O2" brand for the businesses. In 2005, mmO2 plc was renamed O2 plc.[8]
O₂ plc was purchased by the Spanish telecommunications company Telefónica in 2006 for £18 billion. Under the terms of the acquisition, Telefónica agreed to retain the "O₂" brand and the company's UK headquarters.[9] O2 plc was renamed Telefónica O₂ Europe in 2007 and then Telefónica Europe plc in 2008,[10] and became the holding company for Telefónica's operations in the UK.[11]
Former operations[edit]
Fixed line and broadband[edit]
Alongside mobile telephone services, the company also provided fixed line services and home broadband.
O2 purchased Be Un Limited, an internet service provider in the UK, for £50 million in June 2006.[49] O2 retained the Be brand, and launched a separate O2-branded broadband service on 15 October 2007, using the Be network.
O2 announced in June 2011 a fibre optic broadband service designed to compete with the BT Infinity product, using FTTC technology.[50]
BSkyB agreed on 1 March 2013 to buy the fixed telephone line and broadband business of Telefonica UK, trading under the O2 and Be brands. The company agreed to pay £180 million initially, followed by a further £20 million after all customers had been transferred to Sky's existing business. The sale was subject to regulatory approval in April 2013,[51] and was subsequently approved by the Office of Fair Trading on 16 May 2013.[52]
Marketing[edit]
Branding[edit]
The BT Cellnet consumer brand was renamed O2 – the chemical symbol for an oxygen molecule – as were all the group's other businesses (other than Manx Telecom). The rebranding was overseen by the Lambie-Nairn design agency, which developed the idea of the company supplying services that were essential, much the same as oxygen is essential for life. The company logo and associated graphics were designed using air bubbles to present this concept. The bubbles were photographed by London-based photographer Jonathan Knowles.[56] In 2002, O2 used Leftfield's dance track "Release the Pressure" in their ads.[57]
O2 adopted the slogan "See what you can do" in 2002 after the company's demerger from BT. In April 2008, the slogan changed to "We’re better, connected".[58] In July 2013 the slogan changed to "Be more dog",[59] followed by "More for you"[60] in June 2016 and "Breathe it all in" in September 2018. After the merger of Virgin Media and O2's parent companies, older variations of the slogans returned, now being shared with Virgin Media. The 2008 slogan "We’re better, connected" returned in November 2021, and March 2023 saw the return of O2's original slogan "See what you can do". All of O2's marketing campaigns to date have been created by London advertising agency VCCP.
Environmental record[edit]
In February 2009, O2 became the first mobile telecommunications provider to be certified with the Carbon Trust Standard in recognition of its commitment to reduce its carbon footprint. O2 attained the standard after saving 47,000 tonnes of carbon over the previous three years through its energy efficiency measures, including a £1.4 million distribution of smart metering technology across the company's cell sites, offices and retail stores, and upgrades to more energy efficient systems across its mobile phone network. In addition to distributing energy efficient LED lighting and boiler system controls, the company was also able to reduce energy use by removing air conditioning units from some of its cell sites and reducing computer monitor standby times.[65]
O2 is a voluntary participant in the 10:10 climate change campaign, which required participants to cut their carbon emissions by 10 per cent by the end of 2010, and has since broadened its approach to include a range of projects focused on carbon reduction and renewable energy.[66]
Controversy[edit]
In July 2016 Cyber Security company Insinia raised fears that customer data from an O2 cyber breach was being sold on the dark web. O2 denied this was true telling the BBC: "We have not suffered a data breach. Credential stuffing is a challenge for businesses and can result in many company's customer data being sold on the dark net".[67]
In October 2017, an inquiry was launched in the UK concerning overcharging customers for handset sales integrated with the data and call charges. Responding to questions, O2's CEO indicated that the company's billing allows for separation of handset charges and telephony/data charges. He added that "if we can do it, they can do it too" in reference to Vodafone and EE, O2's biggest competitors and the UK's top three mobile-telecoms companies.
