Mobile Operator Lycamobile UK to Invest GBP250m into Growth

UK-based Lycamobile, which is a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) with operations in several countries, has today announced that they’ll invest £250m over the next 3-years in order to “transform” into a “digital service provider delivering diverse, multimedia experiences that put changing consumer expectations first.”

Admittedly, the introduction for this investment makes Lycamobile’s (or Lyca Mobile, as it’s referenced in the press release) future direction sound more like a video provider than a low-cost mobile operator with a penchant for international calling. But luckily they do provide a bit more detail to help explain all this.

The plan, they state, is to develop a “new set of differentiated products, content and services” (the word “bespoke” is also used to describe this), which they hope will grow their appeal across a wider cross-section of mobile subscribers as they target “major growth in the UK and international mobile markets.”

Apparently, this will all be underpinned by a new “industry-leading digital infrastructure” via a collaboration with IBM and SAP, which seems to be more of a reference to their internal systems and the development of a “commerce cloud to enhance service delivery.” The operator will also agree new content partnerships with “renowned consumer-focused media platforms” (possibly a vague reference to streaming providers).

On top of that, they’ll use the investment to continue their expansion into new markets, such as by developing a 4G network in Uganda and building on existing MVNO operations in key markets across Asia and Latin America. All of this is expected to be reflected in a new brand identity, although sadly the press release didn’t include any images of this (£25m is going on both that and a massive advertising campaign).

Navanit Narayan, Lyca Group CEO, said:

“This investment is testament to our commitment to transform the business and take our services to a wider audience. Covid-19 has expedited the emergence of a new set of consumer mobile behaviours and values. Customers expect more diverse, differentiated and value-added services – and there’s a real opportunity for us to deliver exactly that as we look to grow our market share in the UK and beyond.

Our ambition will help us attract new customers and further demonstrate the benefits of partnering with Lyca Mobile to global mobile network operators. We are also proud that, as a UK-based multinational, we are in a position to inject such significant investment into the economy.”

As a first step in delivering this new “customer-first vision“, Lycamobile has also announced an “aggressive new product that delivers real value to users.” Customers in the UK will now be able to buy 50GB of data (mobile broadband), unlimited calls and texts, and 100 international minutes at just £12 for 30 days.

Furthermore, customers of this package will also benefit from being able to share their data with friends and family (i.e. you can gift part of your allowance to other Lyca Mobile users), which is new to Lyca but does already exist across a number of other operators.