Vodafone 1999 Annual Report Download - page 9

UK Operations
The number of data customers continued to grow, with successes in telemetry and
gaming for the company’s unique packet technology, increasing the total number of
customers on the network to over 65,000 at the year end and making it the largest
such specialised data network in the UK. Managed GSM data communication
services continue to be provided to over 5,000 British Gas engineers and a number
of other major customers and two key contracts have been secured for parcel carrier
logistics. Further orders have been received from the vehicle telematics/positioning
industry where the company is the principal supplier for managed services and this is
expected to be a significant contributor to growth in the future.
A unique GSM product has been launched which will allow managed data services to
be extended directly to customers’ premises. The product has been type approved and has been well received in the
market place both for its remote management and its user programmeability features. It is especially suited to unattended
locations where site visits are difficult or costly. A number of units are currently on trial by customers.
Paging
Vodafone Paging had another successful year, maintaining its market share and profitability in an increasingly competitive
market. The total units supplied are now approaching 500,000, including ‘subscription’ and ‘calling party pays’ pagers.
During the year a new network was installed, providing increased capacity and enhanced services.
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Distribution
The re-organisation of Vodafone’s distribution companies,
which was announced in July 1997, placed the Group in an
excellent position to capitalise on the explosive growth of the
mobile telecommunications market. In the last financial year, the
distribution businesses generated a net growth of customers at
over five times the level of the previous year.
In Vodafone Retail, average connections per store grew steadily
throughout the year to more than double the rate achieved in the
previous year. Improvements in customer service and productivity
enabled the stores to increase sales despite considerable
competition from the distribution of pre-paid products by traditional
high street retailers. Over 80 Vodafone Retail stores currently offer
electronic top-ups at point of sale to Pay As You Talk customers. It is
expected that this service will be rolled out to all Vodafone Retail shops during the summer and will be launched with a
number of multiple retailers over the next year.
Vodafone Retail has continued its programme of new store openings and re-locations aimed at improving Vodafone’s
presence in major cities and key shopping malls. Many of the new flagship stores are in locations such as Oxford Street,
London, Bluewater Park in Kent, and the Trafford Centre, Manchester.
In August 1998, Vodafone Retail opened the doors of its virtual store, making 24 hour shopping via the internet a reality
for its customers. Expanding into the field of e-commerce, the virtual store - at www.vodafone.co.uk – offers a
comprehensive on-line mobile phone store. Adding to customer convenience, the store now offers almost any Vodafone
product found on the high street, including ‘Pay As You Talk’ phones, all-in-one mobile phone packages, contract phones,
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