Virgin Mobile customers to be moved over to O2 this year

VMO2 is rearranging itself into neater mobile and broadband units a year and a half after the merger of Virgin Media and O2.

Migrations will take place over the air throughout 2023 without the need to swap out sims, and  some customers will also receive unlimited texts, voice calls, and either double the data or get unlimited data for the same amount they were already paying – which is nice.

The first batch of customers to be nudged over will be told in February, and they’ll also be given access to Priority from O2 and the ‘extra roaming destinations and continued inclusive EU roaming’ that existing O2 customers get.

From a technical standpoint the move has already happened – at the end of last year the entire Virgin Mobile base transferred over to using the O2 network, so all data, voice and text traffic is already being run through it pipes. This move is about bringing the billing plans over.

“This is a major milestone moment for Virgin Media O2 as our Virgin Mobile customers start moving over to O2 plans, receiving added value and benefits on top,” said Gareth Turpin, Chief Commercial Officer at Virgin Media O2 said. “Our teams will guide customers through every step of the migration, and we’re laser focused on making sure this all occurs in the most hassle-free way possible. With all of our mobile brands now powered by the award-winning O2 network, we are making fantastic progress in our integration plans while continuing to deliver a range of knockout mobile services that cater for all needs.”

Virgin Media and O2 merged in June 2021 offering another combined broadband and mobile organisation to rival the conjoined force of BT and EE who got married way back in 2016.  At the time of the announcement, it pledged to spend at least £10 billion over the following five years on infrastructure.

This follows similar moves by BT to organise its various assets into more compartmentalised forms – a sort-of rebrand in April last year meant EE become the flagship brand for consumers, and BT as more of a b2b facing operation.

Get the latest news straight to your inbox. Register for the Telecoms.com newsletter here.