BT share price: Telecoms giant announces virtual mobile network deal with EE

iNVEZZ.com, Wednesday, March 26: BT Group Plc (LON:BT.A) announced yesterday that it has finalised a deal with EE for the provision of mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) services to BT customers and employees based in the UK. EE would replace Vodafone Group Plc (LON:VOD), which until now has served as BT’s virtual mobile operator in the UK.

According to some analysts, the deal with EE opens the way for BT to sell mobile services to consumers for the first time in more than a decade.
In today’s trading BT shares fell 0.3 percent to 382.80p as of 9:50 UTC.
**Deal**
BT decided to seek a new mobile partnership last year. In October BT and EE announced that they had reached an exclusive agreement and the two companies have now finalised the deal. The UK telecoms giant said that it will carefully manage the transition from its current MVNO provider Vodafone to EE, in order to ensure a smooth changeover for customers.

Under the multi-year contract BT mobile customers will be able to access EE’s 2G, 3G and 4G services. EE has the largest 4G network in the UK, covering 70 percent of the country’s population across 175 towns and cities.
The financial terms of the deal haven’t been disclosed.
**Mobile services**
Some analysts believe that the deal will allow BT to sell mobile services to customers for the first time since the company exited the consumer mobile business in 2001 when Cellnet was rebranded as 02.

The company said that it currently provides a range of mobile services, primarily to large corporate clients, the public sector and small and medium-sized enterprises. The company also mentioned that it has a strong Wi-Fi presence that it plans to build on.
Expectations are that BT will start offering mobile services as part of a bundled package of its other products, including television and broadband. In doing so the company would face competition from companies such as Virgin Media.

The Wall Street Journal quoted David Dyson, chief executive of Three, who opined that it’s too early to assess the impact of the deal between BT and EE.
“There is already a very healthy MVNO market [in the U.K.] with Virgin and Tesco. It’s an extra competitor that comes in [with] a fairly large retail customer base already,” Dyson said.
He added, however, that BT’s large wi-fi coverage could give the company an edge over other mobile providers.
**As of 11:48 UTC buy BT shares at 381.00 pence**
**As of 11:48 UTC sell BT shares at 380.80 pence**