It was a genuine serious question, I've only really got experience of Vodafone, and they are just as awful as EE, (except they are coupled with a crap performance network)

They've managed to slow the huge PAYG losses they used to see. Olaf never had any time for Orange/T-Mobile PAYG but they seem to be more serious about it now it contributes to 4G numbers. Combined with the contract gains the overall losses aren't so bad. They look even better when M2M is included, an area where all the networks are seeing growth.

Mine was a joke response.

EE is the best network out there if you look at it from a technical standpoint.
From a customer service stand point I would say O2 is the best.
From a value for money stand point I would say Three and EE.

Overall I'd say EE and Three are the two best at the moment.

7 million looks likely. Biggest in Europe as they say but are all the users capable of using 4G i.e. 4G handset and tariff or is it just everyone on a 4G tariff?

It's everyone on a 4G tariff. EE is a network of it's own.

I got my hands on a report recently that said there are now more than 11 Million 4G subscribers in the UK as of Q3 2014. EE still have around ~50% market share which is great. Vodafone still have the lowest number of subscribers. O2 and Three have over 2 million each.

Hopefully O2 and Voda will update us in November what their 4G customer is.

There are ~50 million 3G subscribers and around ~83 million total mobile subscribers in the UK.

50% of all data usage is now being used for streaming as of Q3 2014.
It's estimated that a total of ~36 million smartphones will be shipped in the UK this year. A ~9% increase due to better spec low cost smartphones and due to 4G smartphone upgrades. So far there have been over 25 million smartphones shipped in the UK with Samsung, Apple and Sony accounting for the top 3 manufacturers.

EE are now selling a range of 2G only handsets so if someone goes here and buys this which comes with a 4G sim they are classed as a new 4G customer even though they can only use 2G (I'm not even sure if it has GPRS). Does have an FM radio though.
http://shop.ee.co.uk/mobile-phones/p...0-payg/details

Same with Vodafone I believe.

Operators will specify if they are including 4G handset with a 4G tariff like Three and O2 do.

Vodafone's CFO said their 4G numbers were active users with a 4G device and 4G plan.

Presumably if EE are counting everyone on EE then using the same method Three have more 4G customers then them (at least for a few months).

Three have over 2.3m customers on a 4G tariff with a 4G device. 4G tariff applies to everyone so technically that's all 8 million + customers.

And thanks for the clarification regarding Vodafone. Hadn't really looked into it myself.

As far as I'm aware, EE are now the largest 4G network in Europe in terms of customer base. Now if only they'd finish rolling out those 18,000 4G sites they were supposed to have done by now.

I'm going to be buying an EE tariff soon once 800Mhz and VoLTE starts to roll out next year.

That's my point though. If EE have a 4G customer base of 5.6m counting everyone then it's not the biggest in Europe if you count Three the same way.

I did not notice EE had started selling 2G and 3G devices. That confuses the branding a lot! EE have got themselves into a horrible muddle! Everything Everywhere on a £2.49 handset is not really a runner!

I still think that the Orange and T-Mobile brands are going, and perhaps sooner rather than later. If EE is going to be put up for sale then the new customer is buying the EE brand and doesn't want anything else that confuses matters. Indeed, DT and FT don't want their brands being associated with EE anymore either.

It does seem that EE will have made a fair few quid for both parties, but for the consumer it did perhaps destroy two very strong brands (especially Orange) but business is business!

EE brought forward their year end results announcement by a week to coincide with BT's announcement. These are for Q4 2014.


EE results for the quarter ending December 2014 (2014 Oct-Dec). Comparatives are with the previous quarter (2014 Jul-Sep) and the same quarter a year ago (2013 Oct-Dec).

Mobile service revenue: £1415m (2014 Jul-Sep: £1411m, 2013 Oct-Dec: £1445m)

Mobile Customers - Total: 24.476m (2014 Sep: 24.489m, 2013 Dec: 24.774m)
Mobile Customers - Contract: 14.901m (2014 Sep: 14.757m, 2013 Dec: 14.350m)
Mobile Customers - Prepaid: 9.575m (2014 Sep: 9.732m, 2013 Dec: 10.424m)

4G Customers: 7.664m (2014 Sep: 5.626m, 2013 Dec: 1.996m)

4G Outdoor Population Coverage: 84% (Double speed 60%).

Still losing customers I see. Wonder if the withdrawal of Orange and T-Mobile contracts will increase it?

So EE have more double speed coverage than O2, Voda and Threes "standard speed".

impressive.

EE also said the mast switch off programme is almost complete.

Hmm they haven't lost to many customers this quarter but I do see your point. They have gained more contract customers so imagine they will be happy in regards to that


Agreed that is impressive but in fairness only thing holding back double speed anyway was realigning spectrum used for 2G to free it up for 4G. Probably couple of other things as well but think that was main one.


I thought this had been completed didn't realise there was any more masts to switch off just thought the remaining Orange masts needed be integrated into MBNL interesting there is still some that need turning off.

There are a few sites which are being kept on because other sites require upgrades that have not been done or are not active yet. Once done these sites will be turned off and decommed. We are not talking many at all. This has happened as the 4G roll out locations and the locations where the upgrades are needed are different and there are so few folk to do mast upgrades at the rate they are doing these ones ended up stuck in the queue.

Thanks man appreciate clarification on the mast decommissioning hopefully we see MBNL integrate remaining orange masts by end of year.

PS we all know the engineers at moment are currently just messing with Devon's Mast making sure it stays down.

There are around ~590 sites left to be switched off as of Jan 1st 2015. Out of a total of ~8,450.

Also.

~4m+ O2
7.7m - EE
3.5m - Three
2.2m - Vodafone

~17.5m total 4G subscribers.
Numbers as of Jan 1st 2015

Yeah perhaps Lucan can tell EE that if they are wondering where all their engineers are, they are camping out at Marley Thatch Farm. Hundreds of them sitting round a camp fire, each taking turns to run up to the cab and randomly flick the "3G on/off" and "Everything on/off" switches.....
Hahahahahahahaha

Seriously..... STILL just GPRS tonight. been like it all day.

The next 6% will be easy peasy.
It's the remaining 8% that's the bugger (Said a spokesperson for EE : )

There's only one that concerns me around here.
If I give you the location and operator ref, can you find out?
I don't spose you can but just checking!

Latest quarterly results for EE.


EE results for the quarter ending March 2015 (2015 Jan-Mar). Comparatives are with the previous quarter (2014 Oct-Dec) and the same quarter a year ago (2014 Jan-Mar).

Mobile service revenue: £1363m (2014 Oct-Dec: £1415m, 2014 Jan-Mar: £1387m)

Mobile Customers - Total: 24.334m (2014 Dec: 24.476m, 2014 Mar: 24.576m)
Mobile Customers - Contract: 14.954m (2014 Dec: 14.901m, 2014 Mar: 14.473m)
Mobile Customers - Prepaid: 9.380m (2014 Dec: 9.575m, 2014 Mar: 10.103m)

4G Customers: 9.345m (2014 Dec: 7.664m, 2014 Mar: 2.885m)

4G Outdoor Population Coverage: 87% (Double speed 67%).

Cheers Japaul.

Now that T-Mo and Orange have been axed it's clear that the majority of customers joining/upgrading will go straight to EE and that's shown with the latest numbers that says 1.68m customers joined/upraded to EE whilst only 0.07m joind or upgraded to a T-Mobile/Orange plan. Next quarter will be the one where that T-Mo/Orange number drops to zero.

So it makes sense that EE now have a very much reachable target of 14 million 4G customers by the end of the year and one that I have no doubt they'll exceed.

4G coverage is coming along nicely and is very close to 90%. The next 10% will be very tough and it'll be good to see how much effort they put in this year to get over 90%+.

Nice to see revenue holding. It's only the drop in prepay revenue that has impacting total revenue, everything else is up.