UK mobile operator EE eyes growth with new retail platform

LONDON (Reuters) - EE, Britain's biggest mobile operator, on Wednesday announced the launch of a sales platform called EE ID that will offer gaming consoles and other electronics to its customers and others.

In Britain's mature mobile market, where EE, owned by UK telecoms giant BT, competes with VM O2, Vodafone and Three, mobile network providers are hunting for new ways to grow.

EE, which is already Britain's largest retailer of smartphones and has 25 million customers many on monthly deals, said the new platform will sell gaming consoles, tablets, upgrade packages and subscriptions to existing EE customers plus the rest of the market.

"It's about giving customers more reasons to be with EE more often, to create more stickiness with the brand," EE Chief Executive Marc Allera said at a press conference.

EE also said it planned to offer an enhanced TV package which would include Apple TV for subscribers, as it seeks to expand sales by offering its existing mobile customers broadband as well as TV services.

EE ID will also offer customers cyber security, home security and insurance products for electronics, said Christian Thrane, EE's managing director of marketing.

"The capabilities we have lend themselves well to do more and start growing revenue in other categories," he told Reuters in an interview.

BT shares were up 1.6% in midday trading, outperforming Britain's bluechip index which was down 0.6%.

EE's push to add consumer revenue comes at a time of proposed consolidation in Britain's mobile market. The current No. 3 and No. 4 players, Vodafone and Three, owned by CK Hutchison, announced plans to merge in June.

They say that together they will be able to invest in new 5G infrastructure to attract customers.

(Reporting by Sarah Young; Editing by Sachin Ravikumar)