DHL inks €350m, 80,000 device telecoms deal

O2 parent Telefonica has landed a €350m deal with logistics company Deutsche Post World Net (DPWN), which owns the DHL brand.

The five-year deal will see Telefonica provide DPWN with fixed, mobile and data services communications in the 28 countries, including the UK, that the logistics firm operates in.

The contract will mean DPWN will reduce the number of telecoms suppliers from 84 to one and save €150m over the life of the agreement.

O2 and its counterparts in Spain, the Czech Republic and Slovakia - as well as operators in other contracts Telefonica will partner with - will look after 80,000 mobile devices across the company's 120,000 staff, as well as 60,000 fixed voice lines.

In addition to connectivity, Telefonica will provide DPWN with IT including managed security, web conferencing, unified messaging and fixed mobile convergence.

DPWN will get its own dedicated service centre set up in Prague to oversee the contract, which will run from this summer.