Verizon Wireless starts paying out for Vodafone

After the sale rumours that followed Vodafone last year over its stake in Verizon Wireless, it looks like the decision to hold onto 45 percent of the US operator has paid off. According to the Financial Times, Vodafone has revealed it expects to start receiving dividends from its share in Verizon Wireless again from next year.

The paper reports Verizon Wireless last issued dividends back in 2005, it handed over £923 million, with the company deciding subsequently to pay down debt rather than issue dividends and quotes an analyst as suggesting that Verizon should indeed start paying out next year but at a lower level than previously.

So does this make it more or less likely that Vodafone will sell? After all, if it holds on longer, it’ll get to see some pay back for its investment. But, the resumption of dividends also means that its stake could fetch a higher price if Vodafone decided to put it up for sale. And then there’s the question of the 700Mhz spectrum auction, which Verizon Wireless emerged victorious from. While it got itself a juicy section of spectrum, it also shelled out a lot for the privilege. There’s got to be some heads being scratched at Vodafone right now.

Recently Published

Question: When is the only time a traffic jam is good news in the UK?

Answer: When you're sitting in the back of an Uber and you need reliable mobile signal. Boom! Sad, isn't it, dear reader? Travel all around...

Ah yes, an S23 with a BlackBerry Bold Keyboard: Exactly what I (think) I need

I was playing with Midjourney, the AI/photo generation service and I asked it to show me what a Samsung S23 would look like with...

It’s ok, your moon photos aren’t fake, they are just enhanced – quite a bit

Have you taken a photo of the moon recently? I almost did, the other day, when I spotted a fabulous moment here in Dubai....

Don’t move! You’ll jinx it! This looks like a tiny bit of innovation in the mobile world

It has been quite a while since I’ve seen anything in the mobile industry that’s caused me to want to write much. Just look...

The new BlackBerry movie trailer is here

Were you a BlackBerry fan? Of course you were. At some point, almost everyone was. I still remember the days and the joy that...

Airalo: The easy way to roam globally with a data eSIM

Shortly before I began my FinTech & Banking Tour around the GCC, I popped into the Apple AppStore and searched ‘eSim’. I wondered if...