03/09/2001

BT Wireless to be renamed ‘O2’

British Telecom (BT) has announced it is to rename its BT Wireless mobile phone business 'O2'.

The name change comes ahead of the demerger of the mobile business from BT, which is expected to take place in November.

The name change will eventually spell the end for the variety of well-known brands currently controlled by the BT Wireless group. These include Cellnet in the UK and Digifone in the Republic of Ireland.

BT's mobile phone internet portal Genie will also be relabelled under the new name.

The rebranding exercise will begin as soon as the demerger of BT Wireless from the rest of BT is agreed over the next few months.

The aim is to have all the mobile operations renamed O2 by spring next year.

Analysts believe the new company will be worth around £15 billion, making it large enough to go straight into the FTSE 100 index of the UK's largest companies.

The exact date of the spin-off is expected to be announced on Wednesday September 5. (MB)

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