PRESS RELEASE
- O2 shakes up the mobile landscape yet again as it unveils it’s revolutionary O2 custom plans
- O2 custom plans give customers complete control and flexibility over how and when they pay for their device
- Customers can select their airtime plan, choose how much they pay upfront and how they want to spread the remaining cost of their device– from 3 months up to 36 months
Wednesday 29th August 2018, London: A new way of paying for your devices comes to the market today as O2 shakes up the old habits of the mobile industry. The move responds to customers’ commitment phobia towards fixed contracts and the increasing need for flexibility.
From today, O2 pay monthly customers will have a new way of paying for their devices with the freedom to tailor an individual plan to suit their needs and lifestyle, choosing how much they pay for their new device upfront combined with the ability to spread the remaining cost of their device from 3 to 36 months, all at 0% APR. This means every O2 customer gets the best value regardless of their contract length and will never pay for a device they already own, proving once more that O2 is the true customer champion as the only UK mobile network operator to offer this level of flexibility and transparency. This latest innovation builds on O2’s flexible tariffs, launched last November, which give customers the ability to increase or decrease the cost of their airtime plan each billing month, depending on how much data they anticipate using.
To help customers explore the different ways that they can tailor their plans O2 has launched an online calculator (hyperlink). Using the calculator, new and existing customers can flex their upfront costs, contract duration and airtime plans to understand which option best suits their individual needs.
Nina Bibby, CMO, O2 said: “In 2013, we revolutionised the market with the launch of O2 Refresh which separated the cost of customers’ device and airtime plans. Our custom plans mark the latest step in breaking away from one size fits all approaches, recognising that all our customers are different and individual, and so are their needs. As the first UK mobile network operator to offer this level of transparency, flexibility and control we’re giving even more power to the consumer.
“Our revolutionary custom plans give new and upgrading customers the freedom to tailor an individual plan to truly suit their needs and lifestyle, with the added peace of mind that the plan they sign up for will continue to be right one for them.”
Gone are the days of only being able to select fixed contracts. Customers will now be able to build a plan to suit them. With O2 custom plans they can choose:
- They can define their upfront payment.
- How many months they want to spread the remaining balance of their device from anywhere between 3 and 36 months (in one-month increments) at 0% APR.
- Their airtime tariff; and as their data needs change they can also change the tariff up or down per monthly billing cycle.
O2 devices are also now supplied unlocked from their sim and regardless of how many months customers choose to repay their device cost over, the total cost will remain the same. With our custom plans, O2 does not penalise customers by adding interesor charging early termination fees, and customers are free to pay off their device in full, at any time. Furthermore, customers who want to upgrade can unlock the value in their latest device via O2 Recycle.
Customers can keep track of their data usage through the My O2 app. Data usage in the UK will be updated on the app every 30 minutes, while data usage in Europe may take up to 24 hours to update. This enables our customers to keep check their monthly usage to ensure they’re on the best value airtime plan for them and make the decision if they need to move their tariff up or down to suit their needs.
Custom plans are available on all pay monthly devices. For more information on custom plans, visit: www.o2.co.uk/custom-plans
About O2
O2 is a mobile network operator and the principal commercial brand of Telefónica UK Limited, which is part of the global telecommunications group Telefónica S.A, headquartered in Spain and operating in Europe, and North, Central and South America.
O2 was awarded Best Network Coverage in 2018 by uSwitch and with over 32 million connections to the network, it runs 2G, 3G and 4G services across the UK, as well as operating its nationwide O2 Wifi service.
The company is the network of choice for mobile virtual network operators such as giffgaff, Sky Mobile and Lyca Mobile as well as managing a 50:50 joint venture with Tesco for Tesco Mobile.
O2 has around 6,700 employees and over 450 retail stores and sponsors England Rugby, The O2 and 19 O2 Academy music venues across the UK. Through a comprehensive sustainability strategy O2 is also creating work experience opportunities for 16-24 year olds via its GoThinkBig platform, enabling customers to reduce their impact on the environment by recycling their old devices through O2 Recycle and, in partnership with the NSPCC, helping parents to keep their children safe online.
O2 is the only mobile operator in the 2018 Social Mobility Employer Index and was named as one of the best places to work in the 2018 Glassdoor Employee’s Choice Award.
