VodafoneThree has launched a portfolio of ‘fast-track’ 5G 5G SA slicing services in the UK for consumers and enterprises, alongside a new internet television service.
Slicing portfolio – Branded as ‘SuperMobile’ (using ‘FastTrack’ on ‘5G+’), the service promises four-times faster download speeds, a 15 Mbps guaranteed minimum speed, and enhanced security.
Enterprise tiers – Includes a National Business Slice for dedicated enterprise capacity and a National Critical Slice (in 2027) for blue-light services, separating business from consumer traffic.
Entertainment hub – Vodafone TV will offer an internet-based entertainment platform featuring over 150 channels, 300 games, 4K picture quality, and Dolby spatial audio integration.
VodafoneThree has launched a portfolio of slicing services on its 5G network in the UK for consumers and enterprises, buried under a whole bunch of branding and marketing jargon. And honestly, even for an industry trade title that has covered this technology for a number of years – through standardisation and testing, and discussion of all the hopes that are pinned on it – it is quite a job to unravel. But the news is this, essentially: VodafoneThree has launched a portfolio of dedicated ‘fast-track’ airtime slicing packages on its standalone 5G (5G SA) network, including variously for consumers, small businesses, large enterprises, and, from next year, government departments and critical services. It has also announced a new internet ‘television’ service.
The UK telecoms group, about to be absorbed by Vodafone in a £4.3 billion takeover of CK Hutchison’s joint-venture stake, called the launch a “shift away from a one-size-fits-all model towards connectivity”. (The new TV service, branded Vodafone TV, sees the group expanding “beyond connectivity”, besides.) Across three separate press releases, there is hardly any mention of AI, except for passing reference to higher-grade connectivity as “AI use cases develop”; the comms line is mostly about better connectivity from “busy commutes to sold-out events”. News its “enterprise-grade” portfolio says nothing of AI at all. All in, the branding works as follows: the network (5G SA) tech is called 5G+; the slicing tech is called FastTrack; and the service is called Vodafone SuperMobile.
As well, VodafoneThree has carved-off two distinct slices of its national 5G SA network for business customers and emergency services, separately, to have dedicated “enterprise-grade” services. These are called National Business Slice and National Critical Slice. The former is the “first national business-only” 5G SA slice of a mobile network, it said; the service is branded as SuperMobile for Business. The latter, when it launches in 2027, is geared for “blue light” organisations, to provide “priority connectivity for first responders and critical public services”. These go with its local-area slicing service, called 5G+ Local Slicing, which launched in April to deliver a contracted level of performance at “high-density” locations – ostensibly “entertainment venues, travel hubs, and logistics sites.”
Its ‘national’ slices separate enterprise traffic from consumer traffic; small business customers, with less than 10 employees, will be directed onto the consumer slice. The enterprise pitch is a little different, more akin to the promise with private on-prem 5G – “to give organisations greater confidence that their people, applications, and critical workflows can stay connected and productive”. It says: “The service delivers measurable performance and business dedicated uplink and downlink capabilities to support demanding workflows such as real-time reporting, video collaboration, field operations and data-intensive applications.” The business slice is also supported by its Network Boost service to even prioritise traffic on 4G and 5G NSA infrastructure outside of 5G SA coverage.
VodafoneThree is promising the following: four-times faster download speeds (“super fast”) than “standard plans in busy areas” (up to 600GB); guaranteed minimum speeds (“super reliable”) of 15 Mbps in 5G SA coverage; and “advanced” and “built-in” security (“super secure”; with its Secure Net Mobile malware/virus blocker, plus native 5G SA encryption). The SuperMobile service is available on all pay-monthly plans, and for a £3 premium on top of its richest (Xtra) plans. There are no exit fees; the security add-ons are free (apparently / for a period at least). VodafoneThree called it a “new category of mobile connectivity”. Enterprise customers can enquire here. VodafoneThree said the service is being “assessed” by various enterprises already.
These include: British Airways, Cadent Gas, Centrica, Co-op Live, Manchester Airports Group, Loganair, TATA Steel, and UK Power Networks; quotes from each can be found here. The firm stated: “Today, VodafoneThree introduces a new choice: connectivity built around quality and performance, creating new value in a market that has traditionally competed on price alone.” Meanwhile, Vodafone TV, available next month (October), is presented as a “new entertainment hub” that combines live, on-demand, and streaming services with gaming, music, and other apps. It sounds like a Firestick equivalent, which works across devices, and comes with 150-odd channels, 300-odd games, plus 4K picture quality, Dolby Vision, and Dolby Atmos.
In the press notes, VodafoneThree referenced its merger (merger-takeover) repeatedly, noting the terms of the original arrangement with CK Hutchison in June 2023: notably, their stated £11bn investment to build a better combined network, branded as The Nations Network, with 5G SA coverage reaching 99 percent of the UK population by 2030 and 99.96 percent by 2034. It cited the progress in its “front-loaded plan” already: 60 percent 5G SA coverage, up from 46 percent; and “optimised spectrum across its portfolio”; elimination of thousands / 16,500km² of network not-spots. It said: “While every customer benefits from [this] investment… Vodafone SuperMobile gives customers the option to unlock an enhanced connectivity experience when they want even more from their mobile.”
Max Taylor, chief executive at VodafoneThree, said: “Vodafone SuperMobile is tangible evidence of what the Vodafone and Three merger makes possible: better connectivity and real choice for customers. The UK needs to go faster, and with the country’s largest, best spectrum holding, and our £11 billion investment we will build a faster, higher-quality network than anyone else. SuperMobile is super-fast, super-reliable and super-secure. Ideal for consumers watching content on-the-go, AI applications or businesses looking to benefit from digital transformation.”
Nick Gliddon, business director at VodafoneThree, said: “Business mobile has traditionally offered the same connectivity experience as consumers, despite organisations increasingly relying on mobile for critical work, customer service, and frontline operations… We’re changing that. We’re giving businesses performance built around how they work, on a National Business Slice that delivers dedicated capacity, assured performance and committed performance targets. Alongside our National Critical Slice for CNI and blue light organisations, it shows how 5G SA can deliver a new standard of priority, resilience and business-critical connectivity across the UK, supporting our ambition to make Vodafone the nation’s network for business.”
