O2 has entered the Mobile Wifi arena with O2 Pocket Hotspot , a new pocket-sized device and tariff that will enable anyone to get a “Wifi hotspot in their pocket”. The new service launches on 2 August 2012.

The new device enables up to five devices to connect simultaneously, sharing mobile internet access.

The device is the perfect partner for a growing number of Wifi-enabled mobile devices that consumers increasingly want to be able to use on the move – including tablets, games consoles and cameras, as well as conventional laptop users. It will mean customers can use all their internet-connected devices on the move.

The new device will come with two Pay & Go data options: a daily top-up and 1GB or 2GB bundles (both of which have a 30 day term).
Offering a Pay & Go mobile Wifi solution means that O2 Pocket Hotspot customers can get some of the most competitive rates available for mobile internet access without having to sign up to 12 month (or longer) contracts.

Gary Booker, GM Consumer at O2 says of the launch:
“We saw a big gap in the market for a Mobile Wifi package that offered lower start-up costs and competitive data.
“Customers have told us that they want access to the web on the go, but that they don’t always want to sign up for year-long contracts or to buy lots of data from the outset. O2 Pocket Hotspot has been designed to cater for exactly those needs: lowering up-front costs and offering customers lots of options when it comes to the amount of data they buy – what they need, when they need it.”

Starter package costs: O2 Pocket Hotspot

Device Cost     Starter Data     Data Cost     Total Cost
£59.99    Pay daily (200MB/day)    £2.04    N/A
£59.99    1 GB (lasts 30 days)    £10.21    £70.20
£59.99    2 GB (lasts 30 days)    £15.32    £75.31

Ongoing cost: O2 Pocket Hotspot Pay and Go data

Data     Cost     Term
1 GB     £10.21    30 days
2 GB     £15.32     30 days

O2 Pocket Hotspot offers 802.11b/g Wi-Fi connectivity. Gary Booker added:
“There are growing numbers of consumers wanting to be able to use the devices they get internet access on at home while they’re on the move.
“Whether tablet users who want access to the web, gamers who want to carry on playing wirelessly while they’re on the move or business customers who are fed up with slow connections on trains or hunting down the nearest WiFi point, O2 Pocket Hotspot is the ideal solution.
“Because you can connect up to five devices at once, we also think that this product will appeal to students who want a fast connection but don’t have a telephone line for home broadband or even those who want internet access out of the range of their home router – in the garden for example.”

To find out more, visit: http://www.o2.co.uk/broadband/mobile-broadband/o2-pocket-hotspot
-Ends

Hope&Glory PR
t: 020 7566 4797
m: 07940 570288
e: james.gm@hopeandglorypr.com

For more information contact:

O2 Press Office
O2
t:01753565656
e: pressoffice@o2.com

About O2 in the UK
O2 is the commercial brand of Telefónica UK Limited and is a leading communications company with over 23 million customers – read more about O2 at www.o2.co.uk/news. O2 runs 2G and 3G networks and was the first to trial 4G/LTE, reaching speeds of over 100Mpbs, as well as owning half of Tesco Mobile. It also operates O2 Wifi, O2 Health, O2 Unify, O2 Media and has recently launched the O2 Wallet. O2 employs over 11,000 people in the UK, has 450 retail stores and sponsors The O2, O2 Academy venues and the England rugby team. Telefónica UK Limited is part of Telefónica Europe plc which uses O2 as its commercial brand in the UK, Ireland, Slovakia, Germany and the Czech Republic and is a business division of Telefónica SA.

Journalists can contact the Virgin Media O2 press office on:
press@virginmediao2.co.uk 01753 565656
Virgin Media
press enquiries
press@virginmedia.co.uk
O2
press enquiries
pressoffice@o2.com