Vodafone acquires and partners to help it transform into more than just a mobile company

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Vodafone has beefed up its enterprise capabilities by buying two companies and striking a strategic partnership with a third.

The mobile phone giant announced today that it has acquired Aspective and Isis Telecommunications, while also teaming up with Fiberlink in a three-year deal that kicks off in January.

No financial details or timescales for completion have been disclosed, but Elaine Roberts, Vodafone's head of enterprise marketing confirmed that a phased approach, based on the company's successful integration of Yes Telecom earlier this year, would be adopted.

The acquisitions and collaboration are part of Vodafone's Mobile Plus strategy, which was announced in May this year.

As part of that strategic initiative, the mobile giant is aiming to focus on the three key areas of access, applications and service.

The three deals announced today each fit into those categories.

"I think what Arun Sarin [Vodafone's chief executive] announced in May was a fantastic and very clear strategy," said Roberts.

"It shows we are moving away from our previous strategy of mobile only. This announcement absolutely demonstrates our commitment, particularly in the UK, to get behind that strategy and execute it.

"It shows our commitment to become the communications provider of choice. Why is the time right now? It's what our customers are asking for and we are responding."

Vodafone already has a history of working with Isis Telecommunications so is confident customers won't be impacted by the change.

"In this case, perhaps it's more about what Isis can bring to Vodafone as it has a strong offering of bespoke services to small and medium businesses, which we identified as a gap in our portfolio," added Roberts.

Aspective, on the other hand, hasn't worked with the mobile giant before. It will form a key part of the company's strategy by enabling it to offer other applications, such as customer relationship management (CRM) or sales force applications, around Vodafone's current email offering.

The three-year partnership with Fiberlink is designed to simplify customers' connectivity and give them a single point of contact in Vodafone rather than having to deal with multiple companies.

"It's more than just simplifying billing," added Roberts. "We're aiming to deliver the best customer experience, with Vodafone managing it. We want customers to have real choice and not be taken down a technology cul-de-sac."

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