(Reuters) -Britain’s largest broadband provider BT Group is mulling the launch of a low-cost mobile brand, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
BT is understood to be considering options including creating a new brand, or buying an existing mobile virtual network operator, the newspaper said.
The move is said to follow the rising threat posed by new entrants to the UK telecoms market including Revolut and Monzo, the report added.
A BT spokesperson said in an emailed response that the company regularly reviews its offerings across all their brands, adding that, “at present, we have no plans to change our mobile offering.”
Earlier this year, FT reported that fintech company Monzo announced plans to launch a mobile service. Revolut recently detailed plans for its own mobile virtual network operator in Europe, while British consumer credit firm Lendable launched a monthly 20 pound ($26.84) mobile plan earlier this month.
Executives, including new consumer chief Claire Gillies, who started in April, are understood to believe BT must compete in all segments of the market to remain competitive, the FT report said. BT has also hired Uncommon Creative Studio for conducting a review of its brand, the report further added.
($1 = 0.7451 pounds)
(Reporting by Yazhini MV in Bengaluru;Additional reporting by Ananya Palyekar; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee and Mrigank Dhaniwala)
