TENS of thousands of mobile phone users on the Vodafone and Three networks in the north could see their bills come under a single provider.
It comes as Vodafone and Three network owner CK Hutchison have agreed to merge their UK businesses, following talks that have been ongoing since last year.
But any deal to create a new European 5G giant will will need approval from the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).
Vodafone will own 51 per cent of the combined business, leaving CK Hutchison the minority stake.
The new merged business says it will invest £11 billion in the UK over the next decade.
Vodafone has been going through a transition period since its former chief executive Nick Read stepped down at the end of last year. Vodafone appointed Margherita Della Valle as permanent CEO in April to transform the business.
The combination of Vodafone’s UK business and Three UK will reduce the number of mobile operators in the country to just three, after major consolidation in the telecommunications sector in the past few years.
Vodafone and Three were lagging behind larger rivals EE, which is owned by BT, and O2, which is owned by Telefonica and Liberty Global via a joint venture.
BT acquired EE in 2016, while Telefonica and Liberty Global launched Virgin Media O2 in 2021.
The CMA, which needs to ratify the move, last month moved to block Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of gaming firm Activision Blizzard.
