EU Block Three UK and O2 Mobile Merger – A Concession Too Few

[speedyrite]

I wonder what the implications of this decision will be for Sky's MVNO service which is due to start by the end of this year (2016)?

I think they were going with O2, but if Virgin Media's owner Liberty makes a bid for O2 then maybe that will be less desirable?

And there was also talk of going with a combined Three/O2, contingent on that deal going through, but that will be dead in the water now!

As a Sky shareholder and customer, I'm still concerned that Sky MVNO is looking a bit "too little, too late".

[Scubbie]

Admittedly I'm currently with Three, but the signal is good where I live. 4G is in this area but I'm just outside it's coverage for Three.

A friend, who lives nearby, has terrible reception from all the providers, yet he lives in a built-up area.

[speedyrite]

I've always found Three's coverage to be adequate everywhere I needed it, mostly (but not exclusively) in cities. No 4G coverage from Three at the home location, but their 3G signal has recently improved following some mast works (so have disconnected the Home Signal box that they gave me a while back, when the local mast was suffering some intermittent problems). Have also found Three's "Feel at Home" offer very useful during some overseas travels. Just about to be out of contract again, so will stick on the current deal (in preference to committing for another 12 months) while I wait and see how things develop.

[lettice]

Admittedly I'm currently with Three, but the signal is good where I live. 4G is in this area but I'm just outside it's coverage for Three.

A friend, who lives nearby, has terrible reception from all the providers, yet he lives in a built-up area.

Funny you say that, three is hopeless round here so I here so many times.
4g has been here from all the others for a few years now and pretty much covers the whole Solent area from Chichester to Bournemouth and up to Winchester at a high speed.
Have a few work colleagues who persisted with three till recently, but their coverage was generally poor throughout the country.
Had to tell them to get a better network, as it was affecting their day to day work, they are constantly on the road across the UK.
They are both on Vodafone now, same as me and its been faultless since.

Not sure I really see three as one of the big players, to me its just a weird small player compared to Vodafone, o2, tmobile (now ee/bt)
Would not ever consider it myself for a mobile network, perhaps its moved on from its funky image. But not seen anything to make me change that.

Sky should buy out virgin, make a bid for o2, then they will have a mobile network and their own (non BT) broadband/landline network, not going tp happen though, but a nice dream

[Scubbie]

lol - Sky buy out Virgin - I can't see that ever getting past the Monopolies Commission, let alone Ofcom or the EU.

When in your area I've found the coverage to be Ok outside. Inside was variable at best. I just put it down to the specific location as the friend had poor reception from her provider too.

Certainly had Hutchinson been allowed to purchase O2, both Three and O2 would have been able to pool their resources and provide a better overall network for everyone.

Both T-Mobile and Orange did this. They later combined into one company and now that company is going to be bought by BT Plc.

Of course EE is upset as they sold some of their spare signal spectrum to Three, thus preventing arch rival Vodafone from getting their hands on it.

As I've mentioned previously though, Hutchinson bought O2 Ireland a few years back. They already owned Three Ireland. Had the UK allowed this sale to go through I can't see how it would have harmed things in the way it has been reported in the press.

Now if you really want to check things, why is the price for Mobile broadband virtually identical for all the UK providers? That smells like a cartel.