Mobile operators Vodafone and Telefónica, which owns O2 Ireland, have announced plans to co-operate in an effort to save money.
The companies have agreed to share their network infrastructure in Ireland, Germany, Spain and the UK. They say the agreements will save them hundreds of millions of euro over 10 years.
They say customers should see benefits from improved coverage, particularly for mobile broadband, while the move will also reduce the environmental impact of their networks.
In Ireland, each company will open up all of its network sites for use by the other, while they will jointly build any new infrastructure. This means the firms will shares masts, antennae, sites and power supply.
