O2 (UK) first commercial General Packet Radio Service. BT Cellnet, together with BT Group's mobile telecommunications businesses in Germany, Ireland and the Netherlands, was part of the BT Wireless division. This was spun off from the BT Group in 2002 to form a new holding company, mmO2 plc, which introduced the new "O2" brand for the businesses. In 2005, mmO2 plc was renamed O2 plc. O2 plc was purchased by the Spanish telecommunications company Telefónica in 2006 for £18 billion. Under the terms of the acquisition, Telefónica agreed to retain the "O2" brand and the company's UK headquarters. O2 plc became Telefónica
The O2 in 2006. As part of the investment programme, naming rights were sold to O2 plc, and 'The O2' became the official name of the project on 25 May 2005. The £6 million per year deal between O2 plc and AEG included priority tickets and reserved VIP accommodation for O2 mobile customers. The service was also made available to premium ticket holders. O2 plc started talks with AEG in 2005 to have its logo and branding placed on the roof of the dome, but this did not take place. AEG have constantly stated that they wish to abolish the 'Dome' name