UK-based telecoms company Vodafone plans to bring back its German ‘Otelo’ brand as a no-frills mobile product to steal market share from rivals and boost revenue, Reuters reports. Otelo was originally a joint venture between utility companies RWE and Veba, offering fixed line services in the country. The company was acquired by Mannesmann Arcor in 1999 and the following year Vodafone acquired the Mannesmann group, as well as a 73.6% stake in fixed line operator Arcor, for EUR180 billion (USD254 billion). Head of Vodafone Germany, Friedrich Joussen, said Otelo hopes to compete with Netherlands-based KPN’s local unit E-Plus, which operates a number of low-priced brands including Simya and Base, as well as incumbent telco Deutsche Telekom’s T-Mobile Deutschland (through low-cost brand Congstar) and Spanish-owned Telefonica O2 Germany (via the fonic brand). The new brand will be sold online only from February this year.

 source:telegeography