Vodafone ‘preps UK TV service’

Vodafone will unveil plans to enter the UK fixed broadband market in the next few weeks ahead of launching a cloud-based TV service later this year, according to a report in the Financial Times.

According to the FT, citing an unnamed source with knowledge of the plans, Vodafone intends to launch a residential broadband service in the spring, with the TV service to follow. The company will sell a set of simplified mobile, internet and TV bundles, according to the paper.

According to the FT, Vodafone plans to connect its fibre network to about 1,000 BT exchanges, enabling it to reach 80% of the country. The TV service will be a cloud-based offering delivered via a streaming box and will be bundled with mobile services.

Vodafone will use the national fibre network it acquired from Cable & Wireless Communications along with BT Openreach’s recently rolled out fibre-to-the-cabinet network to deliver high-speed broadband to a large potential base.

Vodafone announced publicly late last year that it would launch a TV service in the UK in 2015. Vodafone Europe chief executive Philip Humm highlighted at the time Vodafone’s ability to reach over 50% of UK homes via the Cable & Wireless network.