Joint Development Project

Vodafone Group PLC
5 September 2000


 VODAFONE UK AND MICROSOFT ANNOUNCE JOINT DEVELOPMENT OF
           CORPORATE MOBILE INTERNET SERVICES

Vodafone  UK and Microsoft have today announced  a  joint
development  project to drive the expansion of  corporate
mobile  intranet  services and  bring  Microsoft  Outlook
functionality to wireless mobile devices.

Both  companies are collaborating on a European trial  of
new corporate mobile intranet products and services, with
commercial  deployments planned  for  Spring  2001.   The
joint  development  project with  Microsoft  will  enable
Vodafone  to  roll  out these new services  on  a  global
basis, providing worldwide uniformity and consistency  of
service  for  its corporate customers wherever  they  are
based.

Trial  users  will  be  able to  use  familiar  Microsoft
Outlook  functionality to send and receive email  from  a
range of mobile devices, as well as access, in real-time,
their   Microsoft   Exchange-based  calendar,   contacts,
personalised Web content and online information services.

'This  partnership unites Vodafone's leading position  as
the  world's  largest mobile telecommunications  company,
with Microsoft's global expertise in software application
development,'   said  Peter  Bamford,  Chief   Executive,
Vodafone  UK.   'Bringing  additional  functionality   to
mobile  devices further enhances Vodafone's  capabilities
in the corporate market, as more workforces conduct their
business away from the traditional office.'

'This  is  a  very exciting partnership  -  Microsoft  is
committed  to  investing  in relationships  with  leading
operators,  including Vodafone, so that together  we  can
enable  users to access customised corporate services  at
any  time,  any  place and from any  device,'  said  Paul
Gross,  senior  vice  president, Microsoft  Mobility  and
Collaboration Group.

The   services  will  be  developed  based  on   industry
standards including GPRS, WAP, HTML and XML, giving users
unparalleled access to Web content via their mobile phone
and  enabling developers to use their existing  knowledge
to   develop  innovative  mobile  intranet  and  Internet
applications.

The  joint  trial will operate using Microsoft technology
including  Outlook, Exchange 2000, Mobile  Explorer,  SQL
Server  and Windows 2000.  The trial will be carried  out
using   mobile  handsets  powered  by  Microsoft   Mobile
Explorer,  Microsoft's  modular  software  platform   for
mobile phones, which allows users to access a wide  range
of mobile and Internet services.

     
Notes to editors:

About Vodafone
Vodafone is the world's largest mobile telecommunications
company,  with a current market capitalisation of  around
£200  billion. The Group is focused on mobile  voice  and
data  communications, two of the fastest growing segments
in the telecommunications industry. It has a global reach
with  operations in 25 countries and more than 59 million
proportionate customers worldwide.

About Microsoft
Founded  in  1975,  Microsoft  (Nasdaq  'MSFT')  is   the
worldwide  leader  in  software,  services  and  Internet
technologies  for personal and business  computing.   The
company  offers  a  wide range of products  and  services
designed to empower people through great software  -  any
time, any place and on any device.

Microsoft and Windows NT are either registered trademarks
or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States
and/or other countries. Other product and company names
herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.


For further information please contact:

Terry Barwick, Director of Corporate Affairs
Tim Brown, Investor Relations Director
Melissa Stimpson, Senior Investor Relations Manager
Mike Caldwell, Corporate Communications Director
At Vodafone Group Plc
Telephone: [phone]

Lulu Bridges
Tavistock Communications
Telephone:  + 44 (0) 20 7600 2288


Judy Garziglia
Miller/Shandwick Technologies
Tel: [phone]
[e-mail]
Website: www.microsoft.com/presspass