Having spent the year like other enterprises dealing with a commercial environment turned upside down by Covid, 2020 saw UK operator Three laying the groundwork for a 5G network initially focused on consumer-centric services, with a pivot later towards better addressing the business sector. The results of this can be seen with the Three Business B2B arm of the operator announcing that it has now reached a million customers.
Explaining the achievement, Three Business said that is has grown quickly by meeting the “growing connectivity demands of customers with fast, reliable 5G connectivity, straightforward pricing, and digital tools and support” that were “once only available to large enterprises”.
Speaking at the launch of the business unit in December 2020, Three UK CEO Robert Finnegan said that a press forward into business mobile was overdue, as it was a sector that Three UK was “not actually in” at that moment in time.
He added that he saw the business sector as offering “a massive opportunity for growth within the UK”, and that in addition to investing in platforms to get into the sector, Three UK had recruited high-level executives who had been industry experts in the business sector at other mobile network operators (MNOs).
“We’re going to build on the promises we’ve made [in 2020], particularly around our network, enhancing the network experience and enhancing all other experiences for our customers,” he said. “We’re going to continue with the 5G roll-out with Ericsson at pace and expand within the business category.”
The company also believes that development of a strong UK-wide partner network and direct B2B channels have been key components of this growth, along with recruiting “key industry talent” experienced in scale-up situations. Moreover, the operator noted that building its own IT capability to target the B2B sector has allowed it to build a lean and agile operation that is able to deliver excellent quality at affordable prices.
“We are delighted to achieve this significant milestone and even more pleased to see the market responding positively to what we have to offer. Our exceptional growth over the past four years has been driven by staying true to our principles – to focus only on what customers need and to deliver it to a high standard and for great value,” said Mike Tomlinson, managing director of Three Business.
“Technology has helped us to keep costs down even when scaling quickly. All of our partners share our vision and we are grateful for their support. Thank you to all our customers, we will continue to do our utmost to deliver for you.”
The near future could be pivotal for Three Business as it will witness the completion of the operator’s long-delayed merger with Vodafone. In December 2024, after a drawn-out investigation, the UK’s Competitions and Markets Authority (CMA) cleared the merger, subject to legally binding commitments, and is now expected to formally complete in the first half of 2025.
The two companies have committed to investing £11bn to create what they claim is one of Europe’s most advanced 5G networks. The aim is to reach 99% of the population and benefit more than 50 million customers.