Purchase of stake in Iusacell

Vodafone Group PLC
8 January 2001





5 January 2001


  Vodafone to Acquire 34.5% Equity Stake in Mexico's Grupo
                          Iusacell
                      for $973 million

Vodafone Group Plc ('Vodafone') announces today that it will
acquire a 34.5% equity stake in Grupo Iusacell, S.A. de C.V.
('Iusacell'),  the  second  largest  wireless  operator   in
Mexico. The shares will be purchased from the Peralta  Group
for $973.4 million (£648.2 million) (note 1).

Iusacell  has  over 1.5 million subscribers and  68  million
covered  POPs  in  four of Mexico's nine regions,  including
Mexico  City.   Iusacell also owns licences to  provide  PCS
services  in  two  regions in northern Mexico,  covering  an
additional 11 million POPs.

This  investment  will provide Vodafone with  a  significant
stake  in  the  second largest Latin American country.   The
Mexican  mobile market, with nearly 100 million  total  POPs
and  an estimated year end 2000 wireless penetration of 13%,
is expected to experience significant growth in the future.

The   acquisition   will  partner  Vodafone   with   Verizon
Communications   Inc.  ('Verizon'),  which  currently   owns
approximately 37% of Iusacell.  The two companies  are  also
partners in Verizon Wireless, a U.S. joint venture in  which
Vodafone owns a 45% stake.  Verizon Wireless is the  largest
wireless   company  in  the  U.S.,  with  over  26   million
subscribers  and  240 million POPs, and it currently  enjoys
international roaming agreements with Iusacell as well as  a
common CDMA technology platform.

William  Keever, President of Vodafone Americas  Asia  Inc.,
commented:

'This  is  a  significant investment as it marks  Vodafone's
entry  into the Latin American market and a continuation  of
our global expansion strategy.  We believe that Iusacell  is
one of the most advanced and best managed wireless operators
in  Mexico, and that the company will see strong growth over
the  next several years as it benefits from the global trend
towards  increasing wireless penetration  and  usage.   With
only   2.2%  company  subscriber  penetration  in  its  four
cellular   regions,  Iusacell  represents  an  extraordinary
growth opportunity for Vodafone.'

'We are delighted to have Vodafone join us as an investor in
Iusacell,'   said  Fares  Salloum,  Verizon's  President   -
International,  The  Americas.  'We  already  have  a  close
working relationship with Vodafone in the United States  and
Europe.   We look forward to working with Vodafone  to  help
Iusacell  achieve  its full potential.  We  also  have  been
pleased  to  work with the Peralta Group, and we  value  its
contribution to Iusacell's development and growth.'

The  purchase price of $973.4 million (£648.2 million)  will
be  paid  in  cash from Vodafone's existing resources.   The
transaction,  which  has  been  approved  by  the  Board  of
Directors  of  Vodafone, is expected to close in  the  first
quarter  of 2001, subject to, among other things, regulatory
approval by the appropriate governmental authorities and the
signing  of  an  acceptable  shareholder  agreement  between
Vodafone and Verizon.

Lehman  Brothers  acted  as the sole  financial  advisor  to
Vodafone in this transaction.

ABOUT VODAFONE

Vodafone  Group Plc (Vodafone Group Plc, FTSE: VOD.L;  NYSE:
VOD)  is  the  largest wireless operator  in  the  world  by
subscribers, and has a presence in 25 countries across  five
continents.   At  the  end of December  2000,  Vodafone  had
approximately  78.7 million proportionate subscribers  (Note
2).

For  further information on Vodafone Group Plc, please visit
the website at www.vodafone.com

ABOUT GRUPO IUSACELL

Grupo  Iusacell,  S.A. de C.V. (Iusacell, NYSE:  CEL;   BMV:
CEL) is a leading independent telecommunications company  in
Mexico.   It provides wireless cellular service in  four  of
Mexico's  nine  regions  in the central  portion  of  Mexico
(including Mexico City) covering a total of 68 million POPs,
representing  approximately  69%  of  the  country's   total
population.   Iusacell  also owns licenses  to  provide  PCS
services  in  two  regions in northern Mexico,  covering  an
additional   11  million  POPs.   Iusacell  is   under   the
management and operating control of subsidiaries of  Verizon
Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ).

For  further  information on Grupo Iusacell  S.A.  de  C.V.,
please visit the website at www.iusacell.com.mx.

ABOUT THE MEXICAN TELECOMMUNICATIONS MARKET

*  Mexico  is  the second largest telecommunications  market
   in  Latin America with a total population of close to 100
   million.

*  The implementation of Calling Party Pays (CPP) in May  of
   1999   has  bolstered  subscriber  growth,  with   mobile
   penetration increasing from 3.5% in December of  1998  to
   approximately 13.3% today.

*  Mexico  has  experienced significant growth in  the  year
   2000 with over 5 million mobile subscriber additions.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

Vodafone Group Plc
Tim Brown, Group Corporate Affairs Director
Melissa Stimpson, Senior Investor Relations Manager
Jon Earl, Investor Relations Manager
Tel:  [phone]

Tavistock Communications
Lulu Bridges
Tel:  [phone]


Lehman Brothers
Perry Hoffmeister, Managing Director
Head of Global Wireless Communications
Tel:  [phone]


FOOTNOTES:

Note 1: For  purposes  of translation, an exchange  rate  of
        1.5018   USD/GBP  has  been  used  throughout   this
        release.

Note 2: On   a  proportionate  basis  i.e.  based  upon  the
        percentage   shareholding  of   Vodafone   in   each
        company.