News
U.K. incumbent offers smartphones from Apple, Samsung, others; plans marketing campaign.
BT on Wednesday announced the launch of pay monthly mobile plans, making a range of smartphones available to customers.
Prices range from £25 per month for older or more basic models – including certain Samsung Galaxy devices and the iPhone 5S – for 400 minutes and 500 MB of data, to £51 per month for higher-end phones – the iPhone 6S Plus, for example – with unlimited voice and SMS and 15 GB of data. Some devices are available for free while others carry a one-off payment of anything from £9 to £430.
BT broadband customers get a £5 discount on all plans.
The move significantly extends BT’s mobile offerings, which to date have been restricted to relatively low cost SIM-only plans.
BT launched 4G mobile services as an MVNO on EE’s network in March last year and by the end of September said it had signed up in excess of 200,000 customers. Since that date, it has completed the acquisition of EE, thereby adding the U.K.’s largest mobile network to its portfolio.
"Just over a year ago we launched some of the U.K.’s best value SIM-only offers from just £5 a month," said John Petter, chief executive of BT Consumer, in a statement.
"Now we’re going one step further with our fantastic value pay monthly mobile phone contracts with extra savings for loyal BT broadband customers," he said.
BT added that this next step in the evolution of its mobile offering will be backed by a "nationwide advertising campaign on TV, cinema, radio, and posters, digital and social media."
The development has naturally raised questions over the future of EE in the mobile market. Some suggest that BT launching contract mobile services under its own brand could be the beginning of the end for the EE name, but BT itself has given little indication of such an outcome.
