Cubic Telecom has signed a Mobile Virtual Network Operator agreement with Vodafone UK, enabling customers with a Maxroam SIM card to use voice, text and data services on the Vodafone network.

Maxroam had previously offered discounted mobile use when abroad but didn’t have an equivalent deal for the UK.

The giffgaff virtual mobile network operation, which runs on O2’s UK network, has introduced BlackBerry services today.

There’s now a ‘goodybag’ tariff option that enables customers to use a full range of BlackBerry services, including BlackBerry Messenger and ‘push’ email, for an additional £3 per month.

giffgaff, the virtual mobile network created by O2 in the UK, has admitted that its unlimited mobile data service is unsustainable in some instances.

The MVNO notes that less than 1% of users account for over a third of its total mobile internet data use; a figure that has parallels with recent research by Arieso.

In today’s podcast we’re talking about Netflix arriving in the UK, Yahoo! picking its new CEO from PayPal, China Telecom setting up an MVNO, data usage growing and mobile payments taking yet another step forward.

You can listen to this week’s edition of The Fonecast on our website audio player, via iTunes, by subscribing to our RSS feed or by downloading the MP3.

Everything Everywhere says China Telecom (Europe) - the China Telecom subsidiary for the EMEA region - is going to launch an MVNO on its network in the next few months. It’s said to be the first time a Chinese telecom operator has launched its own virtual network outside China.

The deal will run via Transatel, Everything Everywhere’s mobile virtual network aggregator.