Utiq announces UK launch through Virgin Media O2 and Vodafone partnerships
Privacy-first advertising platform activates fifth European market with telco-backed infrastructure enabling cookieless targeting.
The digital advertising sector gained a significant development on June 25, 2025, as Utiq announced the operational launch of its telco-powered advertising platform in the United Kingdom. The Brussels-based company's expansion into the UK market was enabled through network signal partnerships with Virgin Media O2 and Vodafone, marking the fifth European market to receive the service.
The partnerships allow Utiq's infrastructure to deliver deterministic, privacy-first advertising capabilities across traditionally non-targetable environments. These include Safari and Firefox browsers, where conventional third-party cookie tracking faces restrictions.
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Summary
Who: Utiq, a Brussels-based advertising technology company backed by Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefónica, and Vodafone Group, launched its privacy-first advertising platform in the UK through partnerships with Virgin Media O2 and Vodafone.
What: The launch enables deterministic, privacy-first advertising targeting across traditionally non-targetable browser environments like Safari and Firefox, using telecommunications network signals rather than third-party cookies or fingerprinting techniques.
When: The operational launch was announced on June 25, 2025, following activation of network signal partnerships with the two UK telecommunications providers.
Where: The UK becomes Utiq's fifth European market, joining existing operations in Germany, France, Spain, and Austria, with partnerships across 28 telecommunications operators.
Why: The expansion addresses growing demand for privacy-compliant advertising solutions as the industry transitions away from third-party cookies, enabling brands and publishers to maintain targeted advertising capabilities while respecting user privacy through explicit consent mechanisms.
"Through Utiq's privacy-first solution, our partnership will enable advertisers to engage more effectively with UK consumers," said James Hardy, Digital Director at Virgin Media O2. "An individual must choose to opt in to this service, meaning it is fully open and transparent, and consistent with our commitment to providing responsible digital experiences for our customers."
According to documents released on June 25, 2025, Utiq's system operates through explicit user consent mechanisms. The platform requires individual opt-in before any advertising signals can be processed, differentiating its approach from probabilistic or fingerprinting-based techniques commonly used in the industry.
The UK deployment represents Utiq's most significant market expansion since its initial launch in mid-2023. The company now operates across five European markets: Germany, France, Spain, Austria, and the United Kingdom. These markets collectively represent substantial telecommunications infrastructure coverage across Western Europe.
Technical infrastructure and market positioning
Utiq's approach centers on telecommunications network signals rather than browser-based tracking technologies. The company partners with 28 telecommunications operators across its operational markets, including founding shareholders Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefónica, and Vodafone Group.
The technical architecture processes what the company describes as "Authentic Audiences" through encrypted addressability signals. These signals enable brands, publishers, and platforms to maintain targeted advertising capabilities without relying on third-party cookies, device fingerprinting, or other probabilistic identification methods.
"Utiq's approach eliminates the need for third-party cookies, fingerprinting, or other probabilistic techniques, allowing the industry to move forward with confidence and ensuring better marketing performance and ROI in the premium open internet," said Sara Vincent, Managing Director at Utiq UK.
The system operates through two primary technical components: consenthub and consentpass. The consenthub serves as a centralized portal where users can manage their privacy preferences and consent settings. Consentpass facilitates real-time secure signal matching between telecommunications providers, publishers, and advertisers.
According to technical documentation, the platform generates two types of signals: "martechpass" and "adtechpass." These signals enable personalized marketing experiences while maintaining compliance with privacy regulations. The system explicitly excludes several common industry practices, including data onboarding, maintaining identity graphs, accessing personally identifiable information, and cross-industry identity resolution.
Industry context and market implications
The UK launch occurs amid significant changes in the digital advertising ecosystem. Recent industry developments have highlighted growing privacy concerns and regulatory pressures affecting traditional advertising technologies. Google's announcement of IP address protection in Chrome's Incognito mode, scheduled for May 2025, represents one example of how major platforms are responding to privacy requirements.
The telecommunications-backed approach positions Utiq differently from conventional advertising technology providers. The company's infrastructure leverages network-level signals that operate independently of browser policies or operating system restrictions. This positioning becomes particularly relevant as platforms implement increasingly restrictive privacy controls.
Prior analysis from the digital advertising industry has noted Utiq's partnerships with 11 major supply-side platforms, including Adform, Equativ, Index Exchange, Magnite, PubMatic, and others. These integrations enable bidstream processing of Utiq's first-party identifiers across programmatic advertising environments.
Marc Bresseel, CEO of Utiq, emphasized the strategic importance of the UK market. "The operational launch in the UK represents another major milestone for Utiq, further solidifying our commitment to building a privacy-first, scalable addressability solution," he said. "Thanks to the network signal partnerships with Virgin Media O2 and Vodafone, we can now reach a significant portion of the UK's mobile device-owning population."
Performance metrics and validation
Previous campaigns using Utiq's technology have demonstrated measurable performance improvements in cookieless environments. Testing conducted with automotive clients showed over 90% of impressions in non-Chrome browsers could be delivered using Utiq's identification system, resulting in a 290% uplift compared to traditional methods.
The validation included re-identification rates up to 61% better than cookie-based targeting approaches. These metrics address specific technical challenges that have emerged as the digital advertising ecosystem transitions away from third-party cookies.
Industry professionals have noted the significance of deterministic identification capabilities across browsers. Svenja Onasch, Head of Data Management at iq digital, previously commented that "the combination of privacy-first, innovative technology and constantly growing reach makes Utiq the ideal partner in our eyes to give advertisers and agencies like GroupM more opportunities to enter into a constant dialog with target groups."
Regulatory compliance and industry positioning
Utiq maintains memberships in multiple European marketing organizations, including various chapters of the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and the German Federal Association of the Digital Economy (BVDW). These affiliations reflect the company's emphasis on industry standard compliance and regulatory alignment.
The system's technical constraints reflect broader industry changes toward explicit consent requirements. According to Utiq's documentation, all data sharing requires explicit user consent under e-privacy regulations. The platform provides layered privacy information through its portal, where users can modify their preferences at any time.
The UK implementation follows successful operational deployments in continental European markets. Industry observers have noted that Utiq's market presence has expanded significantly since its launch, with the service creating encrypted addressability through scaled, deterministic methods focused on users who have explicitly provided consent for marketing purposes.
Publisher partnerships and market entry strategy
According to company announcements, Utiq will soon announce its launch publisher partners in the UK market. The company indicated it is already collaborating with leading digital content owners to ensure strong market entry and establish a foundation for service expansion.
The publisher partnership strategy appears central to Utiq's market penetration approach. Previous expansions in European markets have involved partnerships with prominent digital publishers before full market rollouts. This approach provides advertising inventory access while demonstrating the platform's effectiveness to potential clients.
Sara Vincent noted the significance of publisher collaboration in her comments about the UK launch. She described the partnerships with Virgin Media O2 and Vodafone as providing "access to a scaled, privacy-first identifier solution" that enables the industry to move forward with confidence.
Market expansion timeline and future developments
The UK represents Utiq's fifth operational market, following deployments in Germany, France, Spain, and Austria. Previous reporting has indicated planned expansions to Italy, though specific timelines for additional market launches have not been disclosed.
Industry analysis suggests the UK market represents significant incremental growth potential for telco-powered advertising infrastructure. The market's size and digital advertising sophistication provide opportunities for scaled deployment of privacy-first identification technologies.
The timing of the UK launch coincides with broader industry transitions toward cookieless advertising environments. Recent developments in Chrome's privacy features and similar changes across browsers have created increased demand for alternative identification solutions.
Company leadership has emphasized the long-term strategic importance of the UK deployment. Marc Bresseel described the launch as helping to "accelerate Utiq's mission to create a responsible, privacy-first digital advertising ecosystem" through continued expansion across European markets.
Timeline
- Mid-2023: Utiq launches initial operations in Germany, Austria, France, and Spain
- January 10, 2025: Company announces partnerships with 11 supply-side platforms
- February 12, 2025: Utiq partners with Onetag to enhance privacy-first advertising
- March 21, 2024: Company expands to Italy
- March 27, 2025: Adobe integration demonstrates significant performance improvements
- June 25, 2025: Utiq announces operational launch in UK through Virgin Media O2 and Vodafone partnerships