Global mobile phone companies Vodafone and Hutchison Whampoa are in the process of merging their Australian businesses to cre ate a single entity.

Global mobile phone companies Vodafone and Hutchison Whampoa are in the process of merging their Australian businesses to create a single entity. The move creates a company with 6 million customers and a combined annual revenue of A$4 billion, close in scale to Australia’s two dominant mobile companies, Telstra Corp and Optus (owned by Singapore Telecommunications). The joint venture will operate under the Vodafone brand. The deal involves a deferred payment to Vodafone of A$500 million to realise the difference in value between the two companies.