First 3G Voice Call

Vodafone Group PLC
17 April 2001


2001/059

17 April 2001

VODAFONE UK MAKES FIRST 3G VOICE CALL

Vodafone UK today announces that it has successfully conducted the UK's first
live voice call over its third generation (3G) network. Together with
Ericsson, Vodafone UK's principal 3G infrastructure supplier, the call was
made yesterday from a prototype 3G mobile from one of Vodafone's six chosen 3G
handset manufacturers, over Vodafone's initial 3G network of 30 radio base
stations in the Thames Valley.


'Our announcement of the first 3G voice call marks yet another significant
milestone in the development of our multimedia services and forms part of our
rollout plans for 3G mobile,' commented Gavin Darby, Chief Operating Officer
of Vodafone UK. 'We successfully launched our GPRS (General Packet Radio
Service) network on 2 April which provides customers with faster data-speeds,
'always on' connectivity and greater cost effectiveness as we introduce
billing based on quantity of data transferred rather than time 'on-line'.'

He continued, 'The introduction of GPRS is an integral part of the evolution
towards 3G, enabling the development of Vodafone's 3G and GPRS services and
applications.  We are already seeing the introduction of new and innovative
services that customers can benefit from here and now.  The advent of a new
generation of mobile multimedia services will enable our customers to live
more of their lives through their mobile device and we are delighted to be at
the forefront of these developments.'

'Ericsson is very proud to be principal supplier to leading operators like
Vodafone that want to pioneer and get a head start in the highly competitive
new market of GPRS (2.5 G) and 3G,' said Mats Dahlin, Executive Vice President
and Head of Ericsson's Mobile Systems Division.  'It is a sign of confidence
in Ericsson's ability to bring the latest mobile technology to work, using
global and stable standards in which Ericsson has been a major driving force
since the birth of mobile telephony. '

A progressive roll out of Vodafone's 3G network has been underway since Autumn
2000 and it is anticipated that commercial 3G services will be launched in the
second half of 2002.  At launch it is likely that major conurbations and
transportation routes will be the principal focus and by 2007, Vodafone hopes
to have exceeded its licence obligation of covering 80% of the UK's
population.

Dual mode handsets (3G/GPRS) are key to Vodafone's strategy for delivering
real 3G services to customers at launch.  Vodafone is working together with a
number of different terminal manufacturers such as Casio, Ericsson,
Mitsubishi, Motorola, Nokia, Panasonic and Siemens to achieve this aim.


                                    -ends-

For further information:

Tim Brown, Group Corporate Affairs Director
Melissa Stimpson, Head of Group Investor Relations
Jon Earl, Investor Relations Manager
Darren Jones, Investor Relations Manager
Tel:  [phone]


Lulu Bridges
Tavistock Communications
Tel:  [phone]


Paula Wagstaff, Director of Communications
At Ericsson Limited
Tel:  [phone]
E-Mail: [e-mail]