PRESS RELEASE
VODAFONE UK CALLS TIME ON CALL CHARGES
- Talk and text as much as you want and get loads of internet with Vodafone Red
- Our best ever value plans with unlimited calls from £29 a month
- Truly unlimited calls and texts available for all handsets
Vodafone UK is launching Vodafone Red, its best ever value plans, bringing unlimited voice, text and loads of internet to pay monthly customers.
Vodafone pioneered mobile phone calling in the UK when it launched the first commercial service back in 1985. Since then phones have got smaller and smarter, new services have been introduced and the internet has gone mobile, but people still want to chat. Now Vodafone is giving everyone the ability to talk for as long as they want to as many people as they like.
From £29 a month, customers can get unlimited calls and texts, plus 1GB of internet with Red. Customers who want to chat and text as much as they like and get even more internet can choose Red Data, starting at £34 a month, which offers a massive 2GB of internet - double our current highest standard allowance. Vodafone Red plans are available from September 7 across all the handsets that Vodafone supplies, meaning everyone can now benefit from unlimited calls.
Chief executive Guy Laurence said "People want to talk for as long as they like to whoever they want, whenever they want, without having to think about things like how many minutes they are using or what's left in their call bundles. That's why we are calling time on call charges.
We are offering unlimited calls on all the handsets that we sell, making it simple for customers to choose what they want and easy to understand what they are getting. They can just take out their phone and call without any worries."
Unlimited means unlimited
Vodafone Red plans offer unlimited calls to all UK mobiles - not just other Vodafone customers - and standard UK landlines, with no restrictions on how long a customer can talk or how many people they call.
All new and upgrading customers who sign up to a Vodafone Red plan will also be able to take advantage of Data Test Drive, giving them as much internet as they like to use however they like, for the first three months so they can fully explore what their device has to offer. At the end of the three month period we'll let them know exactly how much data they've used and whether the plan they've chosen suits their needs. They will also be able to draw on the expertise of our Tech Team, both in-store and on the phone, and take advantage of Vodafone's innovative RED Box device, which will transfer contacts, text messages and other content to their new phone.
For further information (from 7 September) visit vodafone.co.uk/red
Vodafone made Britain's inaugural commercial mobile phone call on 1 January 1985. The first call was made by Michael Harrison, the son of Vodafone's first chairman Sir Ernest Harrison, when he called his father at one second past midnight. Later that day, Vodafone launched its service with a press photo call starring comedian Ernie Wise dressed up in Dickensian costume and riding on a 19th century Mail Coach in St Katherine's Dock, London. For the first nine days of 1985 Vodafone was the only company with a mobile network in the UK.
Red offers*:
- Better value than O2's On & On (Red: £29/month starting point across more than a dozen handsets with no up-front costs vs £26/month introductory offer on 10 handsets with up-front costs starting at £199)
- Better value and more freedom than Orange's The Works and Panther Extra (Red: £29/month starting point vs £36/month; truly unlimited calls vs 3000 minutes)
- Better value and more freedom than T-Mobile's The Full Monty (Red: £29/month starting point vs £36/month; truly unlimited calls vs 2,000 any network minutes and unlimited calls only to T-Mobile users)
- More freedom than 3's One Plan (Red: truly unlimited calls vs 2000 any network minutes and 5,000 minutes only to other 3 users)
Vodafone Red plans include unlimited calls to UK mobiles on any network and landlines (starting 01, 02, 03) and unlimited standard UK texts. It does not include calls to premium rate, 08 and directory enquiry services. There is no ‘fair usage' policy for unlimited calls and texts but our terms and conditions state that customers are not allowed to sell all or any part of our services to anyone else and we reserve the right to disconnect customers who are engaging in fraud, criminality or activity which would damage or affect the operation of our network or services. Both Red and Red Data allow customers to use VoIP and tethering.
Red and Red Data: what it will cost you.
Both Red and Red Data are available across the full range of handsets we offer, with a variety of wifi bundles. All Vodafone Red plans are for 24 months.
Here are a few examples of the offers available with Red and Red Data:
- £29 a month Red (unlimited calls and texts, 1GB of internet plus 250MB of wifi) or £34 a month Red Data (unlimited calls and texts, 2GB of internet plus 250MB of wifi): Huawei Ascend G300, BlackBerry Curve 9320. No up-front cost.
- £29 a month Red (unlimited calls and texts, 1GB of internet plus 500MB of wifi) or £34 a month Red Data (unlimited calls and texts, 2GB of internet plus 500MB of wifi): HTC One V. No up-front cost.
- £33 a month Red (unlimited calls and texts, 1GB of internet and 1GB of wifi) or £38 a month Red Data (unlimited calls and texts, 2GB of internet plus 1GB of wifi): Nokia Lumia 800 and Samsung Galaxy SII. No up-front cost.
- £37 a month Red (unlimited calls and texts, 1GB of internet and 2GB of wifi) or £42 a month Red Data (unlimited calls and texts, 2GB of internet plus 2GB of wifi) Samsung Galaxy SIII and HTC One X. Some of the handsets at these price points do require a customer contribution (for instance the Samsung Galaxy SIII 16GB device at £37 a month on Red requires a £29 customer contribution).
- £47 a month (unlimited calls and texts, 2GB of internet and 3GB of wifi) Red Data: Samsung Galaxy SIII and HTC One X.
* Competitor information as of 5 September 2012
