Press Releases

Lisbon, 5 April 2006 – Today’s commercial launch of the Vodafone Mobile Connect Card 3G Broadband makes Vodafone the first operator in Portugal to offer its customers 3G Broadband, also know as 3.5G or HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access).

Following successful tests with personal and business customers during March, as from today Vodafone is offering all its customers the new data communications service for laptops, which allows access to the Internet, e-mails and corporate applications at transmission speeds of up to 1.8Mbps in this initial phase, around 4 times faster than that currently available with 3G. In the second phase of the development of this technology by Vodafone, which will occur by the end of this year, the transmission speed could rise to 3.6Mbps.

The new data card, which has been on sale in shops since 13 March, is priced at 249.90 euros, or 199.90 euros with a 12-month contract. As a promotion, Vodafone is also offering as from today special terms for upgrading to the new data card, including a discount of 50 euros for all current Vodafone 3G Mobile Connect Card customers.

The pre-announced new price plans for Vodafone Broadband also come into force today: 3G Broadband 1GB and 3G Broadband 4GB (price plans attached).

Currently, Vodafone’s 3G Broadband network covers the cities of Lisbon, Cascais, Oeiras, Funchal and Ponta Delgada and the principal urban areas of the Algarve, reaching other cities (Oporto, Braga, Coimbra, Aveiro, Leiria, Setúbal, Beja, Évora and Portalegre in June) and urban areas of mainland Portugal and the islands by the end of the year. When a customer moves into areas still without 3G Broadband coverage, the 3G Broadband equipment automatically switches to 3G or GPRS, which are available throughout Portugal.

With the first roaming agreements for this technology already signed, Vodafone is also offering its 3G Broadband service as from today in Germany (Vodafone Germany) and Austria (Mobilkom), and as from April in South Africa (Vodacom).

Vodafone has always been at the forefront of the introduction of new technologies and the development of mobile data services. It pioneered the implementation of the 2.5G (GPRS), 3G (UMTS) and 3.5G (HSDPA) networks in Portugal and was the first operator to offer 3G services in Portugal with the launch of the Vodafone 3G Mobile Connect Card.

3G Broadband Price Plans

* Valid for subscriptions up to 30 June 2006 and applicable until 30 June 2007.
Prices include VAT. Calls outside the pack are billed at 0.05 €/MB.