Cellhire breaks customer record at Olympics

The York-based company, which specialises in short-term communication solutions for major global events, signed up over 20,000 corporate and private customers during the games.

More than 20 teams competing in the Olympics, including Team GB, the French and the German teams, signed up for the service.

Customers were able to make phone calls from London at a considerably cheaper rate than if they travelled there and used their normal tariffs.

As well as the competing teams, Cellhire signed up 16 international sports committees including Argentina and New Zealand.

It also signed up a number of key sponsors, but couldn’t name them for commercial reasons.

Cellhire said its global office network helped it to pull off what was an unprecedented global logistics operation for the company.

Matt Bennett, Cellhire’s managing director, said: “We’re delighted with our level of sales for this summer’s games. It really is a credit to our international teams to have generated so much UK bound business from all areas of the globe.

“Our clients coming to London have had our whole range of communications solutions at their disposal from smartphones and mobile internet devices to satellite phones to your regular everyday mobile phone.”

Visitors travelling to London were effectively given a UK mobile number, so there were no roaming charges.

Customers were given a variety of SIM cards, including the O2 network, which lasted for the period of the tournament from July 27 to August 12.

Cellhire said an increase in demand for data bundles contributed significantly to overall orders with the majority of customers taking an additional data bundle.

The company provided on-site assistance during the Olympics and offered 24/7 customer and technical support throughout the tournament.

Cellhire’s chairman and chief executive Tim Williams said: “Providing such a high level of support coupled with significant savings on roaming has given Cellhire the competitive edge in 2012.”

Mr Williams said that most of the orders are business to business, but it has also signed up a number of large travel companies.

Two thirds of mobile phone users unwittingly leave themselves vulnerable to international roaming charges when they travel abroad, according to price comparison website uSwitch.

This automatically happens when a mobile is switched on in a new country.

The minute a phone has been detected on an overseas network, expensive roaming rates could start kicking in, according to uSwitch.

“Even if you’re careful with your mobile phone abroad and avoid making unnecessary calls, you can still be charged simply to receive a call or pick up a voicemail message,” said a uSwitch spokesman.

Cellhire is now gearing up for the London Paralympic Games at the end of August and the FIFA World Cup in two years’ time.

It signed up over 3,000 corporate and private customers during Euro 2012, including the English, Spanish and French football teams as well as broadcasters BBC and BSkyB.

Price comparison website uSwitch warned that football fans in the Ukraine could face daily costs of £35 a day for ten minutes of calls, five texts and a two-minute voicemail.

Cellhire said that it offered the same amount of calls, texts and voicemail for less than £4 a day, a huge saving of 88 per cent.

The company negotiated terms with mobile phone operators in Poland and Ukraine to secure the deals.

Formed in 1987, Cellhire’s headquarters are in York, with additional offices in London, France, Germany, Japan, Russia and throughout the US.

It has service agreements with 100 network partners in over 40 countries.

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