ExclusiveConnecting London Car Telephones to TheFonecast.com Opinion The Fonecast - June 4, 2026 It was 1996 when I started working at the Cricklewood head office of Peoples Phone [writes Mark Bridge], initially in a sales support role before becoming part of the Marketing team. The company was an independent mobile phone retailer with a growing network of high-street shops and connected customers. In November 1996 the company and its customer base were acquired by Vodafone, which had already taken over the Talkland retail business and was soon to add Astec to its portfolio.
ExclusiveOfcom helps protect customers against unexpected roaming charges News Mark - November 3, 2024 New rules from UK telecoms regulator Ofcom will protect customers when they use their mobile phone on a foreign network. In addition, customers will be alerted if they are inadvertently roaming, perhaps because they're near an international border.
ExclusiveGlobal smartphone market is set for recovery, says new forecast News Mark - November 23, 2023 A new forecast from research specialists Canalys shows the smartphone market is set to recover next year. Worldwide shipments declined by 12% last year but that decline is expected to slow to 5% this year.
ExclusiveVodafone and Three plan to merge their UK businesses Networks and operators Mark - June 20, 2023 Vodafone Group plc and CK Hutchison Group Telecom Holdings Limited have agreed to combine their UK telecommunication businesses, respectively Vodafone UK and Three UK. The merger will create a large new network operator to compete with Virgin Media O2 and EE.
ExclusiveUK mobile payment service Paym to close in March 2023 News Mark - December 18, 2022 UK mobile payment service Paym will close on 7th March 2023. The service, which allowed users to make and receive payments using their mobile phone numbers, was launched in 2014.
ExclusiveAn extra 74 percent of nothing is still nothing Opinion Mark - June 11, 2010 Mark Bridge writes Ah, the joys of multiplying by zero. I was reminded of my school maths lessons when I saw a news release from Orange UK this week. Steve Wallage, Head of Sport Partnerships and Services for Orange UK was quoted as saying “Based on the surge in demand for mobile TV during the Ashes last summer, we expect viewing figures could rocket by at least 74% during the World Cup”.
ExclusiveMobile payments: solutions get dumber while cards get smarter? Opinion Mark - June 11, 2010 Mark Bridge writes: Last week I spotted a couple of mobile-related news stories that involved payment company MasterCard. One came from CPI Card Group, which had introduced a “next-generation, MasterCard-approved payment tag” (a.k.a. 'sticker') that enabled “any mobile device to be used to make payments anywhere using the worldwide contactless MasterCard PayPass standard” (by sticking it on the back).
ExclusiveHotel doors open with mobile phones... but it's not like WarGames Opinion Mark - May 26, 2010 Mark Bridge writes: I loved the film WarGames. I saw it in the cinema when it came out… and developed a minor crush on Ally Sheedy as a result. If you don’t remember the film – or haven’t seen it – the plot centres on a young computer hacker who almost starts World War III while playing an illicit online game of Global Thermonuclear War with a military computer.
ExclusiveApple, Google - or the rest? It's time to take sides! Opinion Mark - May 21, 2010 Mark Bridge writes: It’s time to take sides. Are you with Apple… or are you against them? Sorry, sitting on the fence is no longer acceptable. Not sure? Okay, try this one for size. Are you with Google… or are you against them? Still undecided? Right – here’s your third choice. Are you with the Rebel Alliance?
ExclusiveA lukewarm mobile payment solution doesn't benefit anyone Opinion Mark - May 20, 2010 Mark Bridge writes: It's not often that a news story about the Apple iPhone prompts me to remember a bible verse... but this week was an exception. The story was in The Washington Post and it was headlined 'Apple's iPhone does well without being the best'. “Very true,” I thought, as I remembered something similar I'd written last summer.