Three UK's owner is reportedly plotting a £9 billion bid for O2

[viridis]

"Telefonica-owned O2 has quietly become the subject of interest from Three UK owner Hutchison Whampoa. According to The Sunday Times, the UK mobile market could quite soon shrink from four major operators to just three, after talks between the two companies reportedly progressed to a point where Hutchison Whampoa is ready to make a £9 billion bid for Britain's second-biggest carrier."

http://www.engadget.com/2015/01/18/hutchison-whampoa-o2-acquisition/

[Anonymous]

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@MI5 wrote:
Here too.....

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Not where I am  

Just used O2's coverage checker, and it came up with this info for 4G:

Good outdoors. Patchy indoors. Not good for mobile broadband.  

[MI5]

I get EE and Three 4G at home but I have to travel around 5 miles to get O2 4G. Fortunately it extends to my office.

[Anonymous]

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@MI5 wrote:
I get EE and Three 4G at home but I have to travel around 5 miles to get O2 4G. Fortunately it extends to my office.

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I'm sure O2 will catch up eventually, but as I mentioned yesterday, this could end being a fantastic network anyway, if all the media speculation proves to be true. I'm only on PAYG, so it wouldn't bother me in the slightest if O2 were to be rebranded as a result of any such takeover. It would be interesting to see how pay monthly customers might be affected though.

[MI5]

I get the feeling that Telefonica don't care anymore so any injection of new blood/interest can only be a good thing.

[viridis]

Exactly, sit and fester or become something pushing for dominance?

[anticpated]

It's a shame. I might as well become a complete clone and get an iPhonw.

[Anonymous]

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@jezza1234 wrote:

it is my understanding that Three has no major plans to roll out 4G anytime soon as there data network already runs just fractionally short of 4G speeds so wht invest all that money when you can just go out and buy a network that has a 4G rollout plan?

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From what I have seen by the coverage maps, Three are considerable further on with their 4G coverage than what O2 are, especially in my neck of the woods.

Areas close to me with EE are showing 4G in the next six months and Three (admittedly not as far on with their 4G plans as EE) are showing some areas 20 or so miles away from me as getting 4G in the next six months.

With O2. The nearest place to my town than has 4G is over 90 miles away.

I would like to think that if such a take over goes ahead, 4G coverage will spread at a faster rate than what O2 are currently doing. I agree that Three's 3G data network is fast and their 3G coverage is much better than O2.

Come October, if I can get 4G in my area with either Three or EE, then I'll be leaving O2. O2 can't provide any information as to when areas will get 4G, apart from up to and including 2017.

[jonsie]

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Come October, if I can get 4G in my area with either Three or EE, then I'll be leaving O2. O2 can't provide any information as to when areas will get 4G, apart from up to and including 2017.

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The simple reason I went with EE...

[anticpated]

I looked at a couple of coverage maps and ee is the only one who states 4g in my local area.

3 makes no such claim. Now that o2 has updated all contracts to 4g in a way only having 3g support would be a step backwards.

I have another year on this contract to make my mind up on whether to jump ship or not.

[jonsie]

Jump or go down with the ship like any respectable captain....unless you work for Costa