All articles by Joseph Purnell
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Weekly Briefings
Vodafonewatch Weekly: UK merger complete, hard work begins now
Latest from Vodafone as VodafoneThree strategy laid out; Commscope named VodafoneZiggo’s DOCSIS upgrade vendor; group appoints CFO Luka Mucic replacement; Procure & Connect breaks ground at Luxembourg logistics hub…
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Network & Infrastructure
AST SpaceMobile enters India with Vi D2D satellite deal
Pair of Vodafone interests sign deal to advance subcontinental direct-to-device satellite connectivity.
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People
Microsoft and ex-Telefónica exec Pilar López named Vodafone CFO
Luka Mucic’s replacement named as Pilar López, who will join from Microsoft and bring 15 years of experience at Vodafone rival Telefónica.
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Weekly Briefings
BTwatch Weekly: BT navigates changing UK telco landscape
Latest from BT, including a firmed-up leadership team at new overseas B2B unit BT International; TalkTalk takeover mooted; Consumer tackles CX with 4,000+ AI bots; and BT braces for newly scaled VodafoneThree impact…
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People
Vodafone Peoplewatch: El Sayed takes global IT post; VodafoneThree changes emerge
30+ senior and strategic movers across Vodafone, including Ahmed Elsayed’s new Africa- and Europe-wide technology role; top leadership appointments at the combined VodafoneThree; newcomers from rivals in Germany; former CEOs Aldo Biso and Hannes Ametsreiters make moves…
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People
VodafoneThree names new head for youth brand VOXI
Tom Hoare appointed to lead one-million-customer VOXI sub-brand, bringing commercial know-how and experience from rival BT.
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Network & Infrastructure
Liberty and Vodafone ‘aligned’ on Dutch towers sale — Fries
Liberty Global CEO Mike Fries suggests a sale of VodafoneZiggo’s tower assets is moving forward, with an appointment made to lead the process and co-parent Vodafone onboard.
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Network & Infrastructure
VodafoneThree seeks ‘convergence opportunity’ with FWA plan, fibre altnet deal
Newly combined UK mobile giant sees promise in fixed, too, signing Community Fibre agreement to reach a total of 22.5 million FTTP premises. VodafoneThree expects the fixed broadband base to double, while Community Fibre “optimistic” about industry-leading take-up rates…
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People
BT Peoplewatch: Bas Burger names his BT International lieutenants
40+ senior and strategic changes across the group, including an all-new BT International top-team under Burger’s leadership; changes at Jon James’ Business branch; a HR return for Alison Wilcox; CFO swaps at Digital and Networks; more…
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Weekly Briefings
Vodafonewatch Weekly: CEO Della Valle’s slow-cooker recipe
Latest from Vodafone and its global interests, including a deep dive into the group’s FY24–25 results. CEO Margherita Della Valle continues to talk a big game, but questions remain about the overall strategy; VodafoneThree emerges as new scaled UK mobile giant; Safaricom tees up in-market M&A; Vodacom rejigs executive structure; Vodafone Germany hits new lows…
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Financial & Performance
Vodafone FY24–25: Della Valle’s to-do list isn’t shrinking
Vodafone CEO Margherita Della Valle offers candid summary of the group’s FY, but appears broadly satisfied with progress thus far and remains optimistic about prospects to the end of the decade. Claims of an imminent reversal in Germany; UK merger complete; and an improved revenue mix across the group are among the drivers…
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Financial & Performance
Vodafone FY24–25 spend: investment on the rise
Capex jumps 8% after a drop-off, with network investment among the priorities. Troubled German OpCo maintained spend despite losing €1bn from earnings in two years…
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Financial & Performance
Vodafone FY24–25 in-depth: another challenging year en route to German revival
CEO Margherita Della Valle emphasises the various ‘transitions’ Vodafone has navigated over the past two years, putting mixed financials in perspective…
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Financial & Performance
Vodafone FY24–25 guidance: group ‘insulated’ against macro aggro
Management talks up group’s ability to defend against the worst of FY25−26’s geopolitical turmoil, with supply chains and cash flow protected from ‘economic volatility’…
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Weekly Briefings
BTwatch Weekly: chops and changes in CEO Kirkby’s first year
Latest from BT as the group reports on FY24–25, with CEO Allison Kirkby talking up progress made since she was appointed. Business has been restructured; more investment pledged to Openreach fibre build; and Consumer’s short-lived one-brand strategy has been uprooted…
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People
Vodacom hands Egypt CEO a remit to scale African portfolio, drive strategy
Vodafone Egypt CEO Mohamed Abdallah adds International Markets to his remit in a move intended to ‘unify’ cross-border operations.
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Financial & Performance
BT FY24−25 Spend: ‘on and off’ contractors help keep cost-cutting on track
BT’s long-running cost-cutting campaign is in full swing, with headcount cuts driving the savings. Capex continues to rise despite earlier promises, but the (revised) peak is in sight…
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Financial & Performance
BT FY24−25 In-depth: another year of transition
Group CEO Allison Kirkby has called the past year one of ‘transition’, but insists a turnaround is imminent. ‘Revenue pressure’ (see, decline) reflects a challenging FY for all divisions, but strategic and structural change at the Group may have set it up for delivery next FY and beyond…
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Financial & Performance
BT FY24−25 Guidance: free cash flow ‘inflection point’ in touching distance
Group misses revised revenue targets, and expects another fall to come, but groundwork has been laid for elusive ‘predictable growth’ two years out…
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Financial & Performance
BT FY24−25: no longer a newcomer, CEO Kirkby begins to make her mark
A year of mixed results, but CEO Allison Kirkby claims the strategic tweaks of her first 15 months are having an impact. A management team overhaul, a renewed domestic focus, and an apparent ability to capture investors’ imagination has set the Group on an upward trend, albeit with plenty of work to do to deliver on her vision…