BLUEFACE, THE internet telephony provider, will launch a mobile phone service at the end of next month, having struck a deal with Three Ireland to become a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO).
The service will initially be aimed at Blueface’s existing business customers who want single billing and features such as unified voicemail for all their communications, said Alan Foy, chief executive of Blueface.
Blueface will add features around call reporting and management to the service over the next year to make it attractive to the corporate market, said Foy.
Earlier this month Blueface announced a €1 million investment in research and development, which is being part-funded by Enterprise Ireland.
“We have the best 3G network in the country in terms of coverage and throughput,” said Eoin MacManus, commercial director of Three. “We want to leverage it more so a partnership with Blueface makes sense.”
Mr MacManus said the Blueface deal was likely to be the “first of many” and the network is in negotiation with a number of businesses and organisations to launch services this year.
“Our network has lots of capacity so we want more customers – we don’t mind if we get them direct or through partners,” he said.
Three has invested in its network to make it easier to launch and operate virtual operators. It is also working with British firm X-Mobility, which acts as a go-between for networks and brands wishing to launch an MVNO.
Ireland has relatively few MVNOs compared to other European markets. Only Tesco Mobile, a joint venture between the retailer and O2, and Postfone, which runs on the Vodafone network, have proven successful, with a number of independent ventures having failed to take off in recent years.
The Blueface service will be different than the “classic MVNO,” said Mr Foy, as a lot of work has been done to integrate its network and services with Three’s.
“If an MVNO is just about lower costs, that’s a challenge because it is taking on the networks themselves,” said Mr MacManus. “If they can add value and position themselves differently than the networks it can work.”
Blueface’s mobile service is likely to launch with a choice of about “six business-grade handsets,” said Mr Foy, and it is also looking at providing a leasing option for companies that want to procure a large number of smartphones for staff.
A summer launch of the service in the UK is also on the cards, said Mr Foy. Although primarily a business telephony provider in Ireland, which uses internet routing to lower costs, in the UK Blueface has focused on providing a managed service for large businesses with a significant number of phonelines. “We are effectively building a mini Blueface platform for each customer,” said Mr Foy.
Blueface’s revenues from business customer grew by almost 80 per cent last year, he added.
