Mobile Operator Lebara UK to Launch 5G After Vodafone Deal
Lebara has today signed a new 3.5-year extension agreement with partner Vodafone UK, which will finally enable the Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) to launch ultrafast 5G services for their customers. Until now they’ve only had access to Vodafone’s slower 4G and older platforms.
As part of the extended partnership, Lebara Group will also use Vodafone’s Sponsored Roaming service to give its customers roaming in 215 countries (Lebara has operations in Germany, France, the Netherlands and Denmark). On top of that, they also plan to launch the 4G Calling feature sometime this year. Unfortunately, the announcement doesn’t say precisely when the new 5G and other features will go live.
Rajesh Dongre, Commercial Director at Lebara UK, said: “Vodafone have been a fantastic partner to work with and have fully supported us with our ambition to broaden our appeal, and the extension to our agreement will allow us to accelerate this approach. Our partnership with Vodafone will also provide some of the very latest innovations, such as 5G, at a time when connected devices are playing an increasingly central role in all our lives.”
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Mark is a professional technology writer, IT consultant and computer engineer from Dorset (England), he also founded ISPreview in 1999 and enjoys analysing the latest telecoms and broadband developments. Find me on X (Twitter), Mastodon, Facebook, BlueSky, Threads.net and Linkedin.
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This is excellent news!
Now if only my area (NLondon) got more than VF’s pathetic B20..
You must be in the O2 host zone then ey.
Like JP said you’re probably in a 02 host area.
Vodafone in Vodafone controlled area 4G is quite good you get 800Mhz 2100Mhz 2600MHz in 02 areas it’s total garbage most time just 800Mhz sure it got good penetration but hopeless for speed and capacity.
To be fair Ryan, Vodafone do OK in most O2 Host areas, normally bands 1 and 20 minimum, but there is odd urban infill areas where B20 is only enabled and rural areas don’t really get the treatment either way when it comes to O2.
Vodafone have started enabling band 8 in rural locations too now.
Should be interesting to see what happens with the CTIL agreement seemingly unwinding, I’ve started noticing O2 building up a rollout plan separate to Vodafone here in Birmingham, could be interesting to see some old O2 sites getting reactivated.
I feel your pain too; I’m in O2 hosted land and its awfully slow with one mast covering 5,000 people with B20 only on its so slowwwwwww
What about wifi calling?
VOXI recently enabled it, Lebara should too.
That’s not something controlled by Vodafone but the operator itself.
How do we get Lebara 5G Unlimited data for £5 a month?
Lol…
[Comment Removed: Please don’t link to conspiracy theories]
5G has been enabled on Lebara, at no extra cost 🙂
https://mobile.lebara.com/gb/en/5g-lebara