Do we have any 02 or virgin customers here, what are your thoughts?
Mobile operator O2 and broadband giant Virgin Media are to merge, creating one of the UK's largest entertainment and telecoms firms and a major rival to BT.
Liberty Global, which owns Virgin Media, and Spain's Telefonica, which owns O2, said they had agreed terms for joining forces.
Consumer group Which? called on the Competition and Markets Authority to investigate the deal.
It said the tie-up "could have a significant impact on consumers".
Which? added: "Neither provider stands out in our recent customer satisfaction surveys, and any merger should only be allowed to go ahead if it delivers positive outcomes for consumers."
O2 has about 34 million mobile phone users, while Virgin has about six million broadband and cable TV customers and another three million mobile users.
As well as having its own subscribers, O2 provides the network for Tesco Mobile, Giffgaff and Sky Mobile.
Telefonica chief executive Jose Maria Alvarez-Pallete said: "Combining O2's number one mobile business with Virgin Media's superfast broadband network and entertainment services will be a game-changer in the UK, at a time when demand for connectivity has never been greater or more critical."
'Greater breadth'
Despite Which?'s concerns about the deal, some analysts said customers were set to benefit by having access to more services, although it is unclear whether cost savings from the tie-up will be passed on to consumers.
Ernest Doku, mobiles expert at price comparison website Uswitch.com, said he did not expect customers to lose out.
"It will be interesting to see what this means for existing customers in terms of products and access to extra services, such as O2 Priorities.
"For all customers there is the exciting prospect of greater breadth of entertainment and faster speeds to look forward to."
Karen Egan, telecoms analyst at Enders Analysis, told the BBC's Today programme the deal was "a fortuitous marrying of objectives" for the two parent companies.
Telefonica was "keen to monetise" its stake in O2, while Liberty Global had long believed in combining fixed-line and mobile networks, she said.
The new merged company would now be able to "diversify and match some of BT's innovative products", she added.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-52570593
Mobile operator O2 and broadband giant Virgin Media are to merge, creating one of the UK's largest entertainment and telecoms firms and a major rival to BT.
Liberty Global, which owns Virgin Media, and Spain's Telefonica, which owns O2, said they had agreed terms for joining forces.
Consumer group Which? called on the Competition and Markets Authority to investigate the deal.
It said the tie-up "could have a significant impact on consumers".
Which? added: "Neither provider stands out in our recent customer satisfaction surveys, and any merger should only be allowed to go ahead if it delivers positive outcomes for consumers."
O2 has about 34 million mobile phone users, while Virgin has about six million broadband and cable TV customers and another three million mobile users.
As well as having its own subscribers, O2 provides the network for Tesco Mobile, Giffgaff and Sky Mobile.
Telefonica chief executive Jose Maria Alvarez-Pallete said: "Combining O2's number one mobile business with Virgin Media's superfast broadband network and entertainment services will be a game-changer in the UK, at a time when demand for connectivity has never been greater or more critical."
'Greater breadth'
Despite Which?'s concerns about the deal, some analysts said customers were set to benefit by having access to more services, although it is unclear whether cost savings from the tie-up will be passed on to consumers.
Ernest Doku, mobiles expert at price comparison website Uswitch.com, said he did not expect customers to lose out.
"It will be interesting to see what this means for existing customers in terms of products and access to extra services, such as O2 Priorities.
"For all customers there is the exciting prospect of greater breadth of entertainment and faster speeds to look forward to."
Karen Egan, telecoms analyst at Enders Analysis, told the BBC's Today programme the deal was "a fortuitous marrying of objectives" for the two parent companies.
Telefonica was "keen to monetise" its stake in O2, while Liberty Global had long believed in combining fixed-line and mobile networks, she said.
The new merged company would now be able to "diversify and match some of BT's innovative products", she added.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-52570593
