Vodafone

Corporate brand

Unclaimed Request correction

British multinational telecommunications group operating mobile and fixed networks under the Vodafone brand.

Last updated October 28, 2026

AI crawler reads

No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.

Overview

Vodafone is the brand of Vodafone Group Plc, a London-listed British telecommunications group. It operates mobile and fixed networks and also licenses the brand to local partner markets. Those national and partner-market operators, including the former Vodafone Cameroon service, are separate entries.

History

Vodafone is the consumer brand of Vodafone Group Plc, a British multinational telecommunications company. The business began inside Racal Electronics as Racal Telecom in 1982. On 1 January 1985 it placed the first cellular call on the United Kingdom's commercial mobile network and launched the Vodafone name, formed from voice, data and phone. In 1991 Racal Telecom demerged and listed as Vodafone Group Plc. A 1999 merger with AirTouch, followed by the 2000 acquisition of Mannesmann, turned the listed company into a multinational group with mobile and fixed networks of its own and partner-market licences in other countries. The group is headquartered in London and listed in London under the ticker VOD. National operators and partner markets that use the Vodafone name, including the former Vodafone Cameroon service run with Afrimax from 2016 to 2017, are separate operating entities and are not this entry.

2000
Mannesmann acquisition
[1]Vodafoneen.wikipedia.org
After the 1999 AirTouch merger, Vodafone acquired Mannesmann in 2000 and became a multinational telecommunications group.
1991
Demerger and listing as Vodafone Group
[1]Vodafoneen.wikipedia.org
Racal Telecom demerged from Racal Electronics and listed as Vodafone Group Plc.
1985
Vodafone launches on the UK cellular network
[1]Vodafoneen.wikipedia.org
On 1 January 1985 Vodafone made the first call on the United Kingdom's commercial cellular network and launched the brand.

Products and positioning

Multinational telecommunications group, distinct from its national operators and partner markets.

Telecommunications
Mobile and fixed telecommunications
Vodafone Group provides mobile voice and data, 5G, fixed and fibre broadband, and business connectivity through its own networks and partner markets.

Controversies

2021
Vodafone fined over phone-number transfers and handset unlocking delays
Vodafone was fined €13,000 after pleading guilty at Dublin District Court to 12 sample counts concerning delays in transferring landline numbers and providing mobile-phone unlocking codes. It also agreed to pay €20,000 towards ComReg's costs.
Source
2020
Italian authority orders fine against Vodafone over telemarketing practices
Italy's Data Protection Authority ordered a fine of more than €12.25 million against Vodafone's Italian arm over aggressive telemarketing practices and alleged violations of the GDPR. The order concerned telemarketing conduct and alleged non-compliance with the EU data protection regulation. The authority issued the penalty against the Italian subsidiary of Vodafone.
Source
2020
Arbitration tribunal rules in Vodafone's retrospective tax dispute
The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague ruled in Vodafone's dispute with Indian tax authorities that the Income Tax Department's conduct breached fair and equitable treatment and violated India's bilateral investment treaty with the Netherlands.
Source

2026-11-02
AWS Wavelength becomes available in three German cities[8]AWS Wavelength在德国三座城市推出datacenterdynamics.com
Reported: 2026-11-02
AWS announced general availability of AWS Wavelength on Vodafone's 4G/5G network in Germany, with Wavelength Zones available in Berlin, Munich, and Dortmund.
2026-10-19
AST SpaceMobile and European operators sign letters of intent[9]AST SpaceMobile与欧洲运营商签署意向书morningstar.com
Reported: 2026-10-19
AST SpaceMobile said it signed letters of intent with Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefónica and Vodafone to explore a potential joint bid for Mobile Satellite Services spectrum and coordinate spectrum access and service deployment.
Unconfirmed
Vodafone spins off tower assets as Vantage Towers[10]沃达丰将通信塔资产分拆为 Vantage Towersdatacenterdynamics.com
Reported: 2026-10-15
Vodafone spun off its telecommunications tower assets into Vantage Towers, which holds around 68,000 towers across nine European markets. The article says Vodafone will remain the majority owner.
Unconfirmed
Vantage Towers and Crystal Almond agree to combine Greek tower infrastructure[10]沃达丰将通信塔资产分拆为 Vantage Towersdatacenterdynamics.com
Reported: 2026-10-15
Vodafone announced a deal with Crystal Almond to combine their tower infrastructure in Greece under Vantage Towers Greece. Vodafone will pay €25 million for a 62% share, while Crystal Almond will own the remaining 38%; completion was expected by the end of 2020, subject to regulatory review and approval.
2022-02-07
Cyberattack disrupts Vodafone Portugal services[11]网络攻击导致 Vodafone Portugal 服务中断lightreading.com
Reported: 2022-02-08
Vodafone Portugal was hit by a deliberate cyberattack that began Monday evening and was still affecting several mobile and fixed services at the time of reporting. Vodafone said it had no evidence so far that customer data had been compromised.
Weekdays and relative dates follow the original report; their exact calendar dates have not been verified.
2022-02-01
Vodafone teams up with Intel on OpenRAN[12]Vodafone 与 Intel 合作开发 OpenRANthehindu.com
Reported: 2022-02-01
Vodafone teamed up with Intel and other silicon vendors to design its own chip architecture for OpenRAN network technology.
Unconfirmed
Vodafone, Qualcomm and Thales team up to develop iSIM technology[13]Vodafone、Qualcomm 与 Thales 合作开发 iSIM 技术mobilenewscwp.co.uk
Vodafone teamed up with Qualcomm Technologies and Thales to develop iSIM technology and demonstrated a working smartphone featuring it.
2021-12-13
Ericsson and Vodafone partner on Spain 5G lab[14]爱立信与沃达丰合作推出西班牙5G实验室devdiscourse.com
Reported: 2021-12-13
Ericsson said it joined forces with Vodafone to launch the Vodafone 5G Lab in Madrid, Spain, as a space for developing 5G applications and services.
2021-12-09
Vodafone fined over phone-number transfers and handset unlocking delays[6]Vodafone fined over phone-number transfers and handset unlocking delaysrte.ie
Reported: 2021-12-09
Vodafone was fined €13,000 after pleading guilty at Dublin District Court to 12 sample counts concerning delays in transferring landline numbers and providing mobile-phone unlocking codes. It also agreed to pay €20,000 towards ComReg's costs.
2021-11-30
Vodafone Ireland launches online repair service[15]Vodafone Ireland推出在线维修服务siliconrepublic.com
Reported: 2021-11-30
Vodafone Ireland launched an online repair service that lets smartphone and tablet users arrange device collection and delivery across Ireland.

Showing the 10 most recent.

Sources104 sources

Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/vodafone · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled

Overview

History

Products and positioning

Controversies

Recent events

Related entries

Sources104 sources