O2 in profile
About Telefónica
Telefónica is a major global telecommunications company. It provides a range of fixed, mobile and internet services to more than 200 million domestic and business customers mainly in Europe, Latin America and Africa and employs 233,000 people.
Based in Spain, expansion over the past 15 years has led to strong growth outside the Iberian home market. Telefónica is the leading operator in Brazil, Argentina and Chile and has a substantial presence in most other Latin America countries, including Peru, Colombia, Mexico, Uruguay, Panama and Venezuela.
The European operations outside Spain now include the O2 mobile, fixed line and broadband businesses in the UK, Germany, Ireland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and the Isle of Man, which collectively form Telefónica O2 Europe.
Telefónica O2 Europe
- 35.2 m mobile customers 1, up 10 per cent on 2005
- 38.4 million customers in total 1
- £7,498m revenues 3 6
- 29,366 employees 4
- £726m cost of employment 3
- £1,583m capital expenditure 3
- £279m taxes paid 3
Awards and recognition:
- Peter Erskine named Chief Executive of the Year for Marketing at the 2006 Marketing Week Effectiveness Awards.
- Investor in Excellence award at London Excellence Awards.
- iNOVA award for online Mobile matters website.
O2 UK
Mobile, broadband
- 17.633m customers 1
- 12,126 employees 2
- 25 per cent total market share
Key events in 2006:
- Added 1.65 million new customers in 2006.
- Opened a fourth call centre in Glasgow 5 and began to employ 1,500 new customer service centre employees and 500 new employees for our retail stores.
- Acquired UK broadband company, Be*.
- Acquired nearly 300 The Link stores from DSG (formerly Dixons), adding over 90 of them to our retail property portfolio which now has around 400 stores.
- Introduced My Europe cost-efficient international price plans, covering 33 European countries.
Awards and recognition:
- Voted Best Network 2006 by readers of Mobile Choice Magazine.
- Awarded Best Network and Best Mobile Service at the What Mobile Awards 2006.
- Best Large Retailer of the Year and Best Mystery Caller for Customer Service - Mobile News Awards.
- Voted Most Loved Brand in Mobile by Marketing magazine.
- No. 1 customer satisfaction rating (UK Customer Satisfaction Index, The Mobile News survey run by Aura; JD Power & Associates).
- Rated 5th Best Large Company to Work For by The Sunday Times, with a special award for health and wellbeing in the workplace (March 2007).
- Named among the top 30 great places to work by Great Place to Work® Institute, published by Financial Times.
- O2 Pension Plan voted Scheme of the Year (medium sized) at the Professional Pensions Awards and Scheme of the Year (small and medium sized) at the Pension Management Awards.
- Grand Prix award at inaugural Green Awards for innovative 'letterbox packaging'.
- Supply Chain wins Environmental Improvement Award at the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) Annual Awards for Excellence 2006.
- Wins 'Best Use of Wireless' for Live 8 campaign at 2006 New Media Age Effectiveness Awards.
- Wins Technology and Telecoms prize, 2006 Marketing Week Effectiveness Awards.
- Gold Award at IPA Advertising Effectiveness Awards.
O2 Germany
Mobile, broadband
- 11.025m customers 1
- 4,997 employees 2
- 2808m Euro service revenue
- 19,000 DSL customers
- 13 per cent total market share
Key events in 2006:
- No. 1 customer satisfaction rating (source: Kundenmonitor® Deutschland 2006).
- With Telefónica Deutschland as part of O2 Germany, Telefónica O2 Europe is able to offer mobile, IP-telephony and DSL broadband services in the German market.
- Introduced further new Genion 'homezone' S/M/L-tariffs, the leading mobile alternative to fixed-line services in the German market, with 3.9 million customers.
- Added 1,256,000 net new customers in 2006.
- Joint venture with Tchibo Mobile achieved a total of 827,000 customers. 1
- Reduced our carbon footprint by 40 per cent.
- In February 2007 offered 'My Europe Top' roaming price for holidaymakers to 19 countries.
Awards and recognition:
- Voted into the Top 10 of Europe's best workplaces in the Great Place to Work® Institute survey.
- Ranked 9th in Germany's Best Employers 2006 awards, published by Capital.
- Special award for our health activities.
- Successfully reached the first level ('Committed to Excellence') of the 'Levels of Excellence' recognition programme run by the European Foundation of Quality Management (EFQM).
O2 Ireland
Mobile
- 1.632m customers 1
- 1,787 employees 2
- 35 per cent total market share
Key events in 2006:
- Added 30,000 net new customers in 2006.
- First operator in Ireland to abolish roaming charges between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland for all customers.
- Introduced new price plans such as 'Business Unlimited' providing free O2 to O2 calls and 1-cent calls and texts at weekends
- Announced our sponsorship of the Ireland rugby team in May 2006 and sponsored the Ryder Cup 2006.
- First mobile operator in Europe to offer Napster mobile.
- First Irish operator to begin customer trials for mobile-TV in early 2007.
- Worked towards the launch in 2007 of partnership between O2 and Tesco Mobile - Ireland's first pure mobile virtual network operator (MVNO).
- Launch of competitive My Europe roaming tariff, covering over 20 countries including the USA.
Awards and recognition:
- Voted Best Company Overall to Work For in Ireland and among the 10 best companies to work for in Europe, March 2006.
- Won Chambers Ireland President's Award 2006 for Best Workplace CSR project for a multinational company.
- Commended by Association of Certified Chartered Accountants (ACCA) for Corporate Responsibility report 2005-06.
Telefónica O2 Czech Republic
Mobile, fixed line, broadband
- 4.864m mobile customers 1
- 7.937m customers in total 1
- 9,276 employees 2
Key events in 2006:
- Telefónica O2 Czech Republic created, comprising merged fixed-line and mobile businesses and new mobile TV services.
- O2 brand launched successfully in September 2006.
- Included for the first time in Telefónica O2 Europe's corporate responsibility reporting in 2006.
Manx Telecom
Mobile, fixed-line and internet services
- 71,000 customers 1
- 322 employees 2
Key events in 2006:
- An independent internet services provider, Manx Telecom has a portfolio of internet access, hosting products and services, and supports the Government's 'e-island' strategy.
- Launched the world's first commercial super-speed 3.5G (HSDPA) mobile internet service.
- Provided increased coverage of high-speed broadband to 99 per cent of island residents.
- Certified as being a 'carbon neutral' company.
- Launched new post-pay price plans to encourage customer loyalty.
Awards and recognition:
- Manx Telecom wins 'Investor in Excellence' accreditation at British Quality Awards.
Airwave
Secure digital communication for Britain's blue-light services and other public service customers
Contracted by more than 200 public-safety organisations, with around 165,000 current users.
In April 2007, Airwave was sold to Guardian Digital Communications Ltd, a new company wholly owned by Macquarie.
Key events in 2006:
- Won major new contracts, including Fire and Rescue in England, to bring all three of Great Britain's blue-light services onto the Airwave network.
- Public-safety organisations, including the British Transport Police and the Highways Agency, as well as the Ministry of Defence Police also use the network.
- Won the contract to serve London Underground and Channel Tunnel Rail in early 2007.
- Certified as being a 'carbon neutral' company.
Telefónica O2 Slovakia
Mobile services
On 2 February 2007 Telefónica O2 Slovakia launched its commercial service. In the first 12 days over 110,000 active customers were acquired.
O2 Slovakia will be included in future O2 corporate responsibility reporting with effect from January 2007.
1 As at 31 December 2006.
2 People in post as at 31 December 2006.
3 Comprising the results of O2 UK, O2 Germany, Telefónica Deutschland, O2 Ireland, Manx Telecom, and Airwave for the 11-month period ending 31 December 2006; excluding Telefónica O2 Czech Republic (unaudited figures).
4 People in post as at 31 December 2006, excluding Telefónica Deutschland and O2 Asia employees
5 The Scottish Executive has supported the new Glasgow O2 customer service project with an offer of Regional Selective Assistance worth around £7.0 million.There was no further significant financial assistance across Telefónica O2 Europe in 2006.
6 Retained earnings are not disclosed. As a privately owned company we do not report this figure publicly.
