Free Republic

Vodafone, one of the world's largest mobile phone groups, has revealed the existence of secret wires that allow government agencies to listen to all conversations on its networks, saying they are widely used in some of the 29 countries in which it operates in Europe and beyond. The company has broken its silence on government surveillance in order to push back against the increasingly widespread use of phone and broadband networks to spy on citizens, and will publish its first Law Enforcement Disclosure Report on Friday. At 40,000 words, it is the most comprehensive survey yet of how governments monitor...

India could be facing a constitutional crisis, after the government proposed new legislation which would overrule the courts and tax companies for deals retrospectively. Mobile operator Vodafone may have to pay $2.2bn of taxes on a 2007 deal which involved Indian assets, under new government proposals The change, announced in the annual budget, stands to torpedo foreign investment in the country and could force companies such as Vodafone, Kraft and SAB Miller to pay hundreds of billions of pounds of capital gains taxes they hadn’t banked on. Under the proposals set out by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Indian tax authorities...

The Egyptian government ordered all mobile telephone operators to suspend services "in selected areas" of the country, telecommunications company Vodafone said Friday. In a statement, the company said "under Egyptian legislation, the authorities have the right to issue such an order and we are obliged to comply with it." Britain-based Vodafone Group PLC is one of the largest mobile phone operator in Egypt, with more than 25 million subscribers. It said Egyptian authorities "will be clarifying the situation in due course."

LONDON: Arun Sarin has got more than he bargained for when he paid a bomb to acquire Hutchison Essar; he’s getting a taste of ‘how they do business in India’ and he sounds bowled over. Yes, Hutch Essar is adding 1.5 million to 2 million subscribers per month. Yes, Vodafone’s India targets are 100 million in a few years, a market potential that boggles European minds. But that’s not what’s exciting the Vodafone CEO.He’s looking, in India, for the answers to put his high-cost, low-growth European business on the fast track; a reverse transfer of management technology, if you will....

Vodafone buys Indian mobile firm Indian models with mobile handsets India's mobile market is expanding rapidly Vodafone has bought a controlling stake in Indian mobile phone firm Hutchison Essar for $11.1bn (£5.7bn). The deal for 67% of the company gives Vodafone access to India's rapidly growing mobile phone market, where Essar has a share of about 16%. It ends a long bidding war for the Essar stake owned by Hong Kong's Hutchison Telecommunications. UK firm Vodafone is moving into emerging economies to make up for slow growth in mature markets like Europe. According to Vodafone, India is the fastest growing...

Vodafone made a £14.9bn ($27.9bn) loss last year - a record for a UK firm - after writing down the value of assets. It incurred one-off costs of more than £23.5bn after revaluing its German business Mannesmann, which it bought in 2000 for £112bn ($183bn at the time). The firm said it would also cut 400 jobs as part of a move to reduce costs. Excluding one-off costs, Vodafone made a £8.8bn profit and it said its overall performance had exceeded expectations, after adding 21 million new customers. The news of the write-offs was greeted positively by investors, who are...

NEW YORK, Nov 23 (Reuters) - Verizon Wireless said on Wednesday it has filed a lawsuit seeking an injunction against a Florida firm that it charges with sending thousands of unsolicited text messages to Verizon customers' mobile phones. The wireless venture of Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ.N: Quote, Profile, Research) and Vodafone Group Plc (VOD.L: Quote, Profile, Research) said it filed the suit in U.S. District Court in New Jersey after 98,000 spam messages were sent on behalf of Ormond Beach, Florida, firm Passport Holidays telling Verizon customers they had won cruises to the Bahamas. While there have been relatively few...

David Beckham's string of lucrative sponsorship deals seem safe for the moment despite allegations that he had a fling with a personal assisstant.Mobile phone giant Vodafone said, 'It is a private matter for David Beckham to deal with.'Soft drink giant Pepsi refused to be drawn into the controversy.Beckham signed an extension to his multi million pound sponsorship deal with German sportswear manufacturer Adidas last month.A company spokesman dismissed any talk the allegations would impact their relationship with the Real Madrid star as 'silly.'High Street chain Marks and Spencer, which has worked with Beckham or a range of childrens wear, were...

LONDON (Reuters) - Cingular, the second-largest U.S. mobile phone company, has clinched AT&T Wireless, its smaller rival, after outbidding Vodafone Group Plc with a $15-per-share offer, a source familiar with the situation told Reuters. The bid values AT&T Wireless Services Inc., the third-largest U.S. mobile phone group which put itself up for sale on January 22, at about $40.7 billion. "That's what we've been told, but it's a fluid situation," the source said. AT&T Wireless and Cingular are planning to host a morning press conference in the U.S., the source said. Cingular and Vodafone declined to comment, while AT&T...

LONDON (Reuters) - The world's largest mobile phone firm Vodafone Group Plc (VOD.L) and U.S rival Cingular Wireless were poised on Friday for a head-to-head bid battle that could value struggling AT&T Wireless (NYSE:AWE - news) of the U.S. at around $35 billion. As the clock ticks to a 5 p.m. EST (2200 GMT) bid deadline, sources close to talks said Vodafone was putting the final touches on a bid, while Cingular was ready to fight back. But final bid strategies were expected to be left to the 11th-hour. "What happens in these auctions is that everybody is making decisions...