Vodafone spending spree pays dividends as profits boom

Turnover was also up, increasing 32 per cent to £10.2 billion.

Vodafone's subscriber base also jumped by 55 per cent, although that includes customers acquired through the hostile acquistion of Mannesmann in April this year.

The company now claims 65.6 million customers worldwide. That figure tops 116 million when companies in which Vodafone owns a stake are included.

The company has spent over £11bn on mobile licenses in Europe this year, but according to Chris Gent, the company's chief executive, the majority of the 3G licenses in which it is interested have now been purchased.