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.
ExclusiveThis week at The Fonecast: 3rd April 2011 Opinion Mark - April 3, 2011 Mark Bridge writes: Welcome to this week's news summary from TheFonecast.com. In Wednesday's podcast Iain joked that we ought to have a regular Olympics news story because everyone else was talking about the event constantly. Well, following the headlines about introducing WiFi to tube stations in time for London 2012 comes another Olympic news story.
ExclusiveA new Nokia typeface: rearranging the deckchairs... or finding a horseshoe nail? Opinion Mark - March 28, 2011 Mark Bridge writes: Last week Nokia announced a new typeface called Nokia Pure. The new branding will soon start appearing in Nokia's advertising and on Nokia devices as well.
ExclusiveThis week at The Fonecast: 26th March 2011 Opinion Mark - March 25, 2011 Mark Bridge writes: There was big news from the United States this week as Deutsche Telekom decided to sell T-Mobile USA to AT&T. Was it a shotgun wedding or is this a carefully calculated deal designed to benefit consumers? Time will tell – assuming, of course, the merger gets approved by the US regulator.
ExclusiveBT increases fixed-line charges as Mobile Termination Rates fall Opinion Mark - March 21, 2011 Mark Bridge writes: The Terminate The Rate campaign has pretty much run its course. Its aim was to get Mobile Termination Rates reduced. These are the wholesale charges paid when a mobile or fixed-line network connects a call from one of its customers to a rival. Lower MTRs would mean better deals on call charges, the campaign argued.
ExclusiveLondon Olympics mobile phone ban is nothing to be exercised about Opinion Mark - March 20, 2011 Mark Bridge writes: "It's political correctness gone mad, innit?" The terms and conditions for booking tickets to the London 2012 Olympic Games include a warning that certain items are banned. Food, flasks of drink, umbrellas, musical instruments and mobile phones are all on the prohibited list.