O2 sign removed from music venue as Three takeover finalised

Mobile network sends out invites for celebration of ‘exciting new era for live music’

A crane removing the O2 sign from the Dublin venue this morning. Photograph: Daniel Flynn
A crane removing the O2 sign from the Dublin venue this morning. Photograph: Daniel Flynn

The O2 signage on top of the Dublin music venue formerly known as the Point Depot has been removed following Three Ireland's acquisition of the mobile network.

Three Ireland yesterday formally completed its €780 million takeover of the rival network, more than a year after the deal was announced.

A construction crane this morning plucked the O2 sign from the top of the premises ahead of an expected rebrand next week.

The O2 venue in Dublin awaits a new name after mobile network Three Ireland took over rival O2. Photograph: Alan Betson/The Irish Times
The O2 venue in Dublin awaits a new name after mobile network Three Ireland took over rival O2. Photograph: Alan Betson/The Irish Times
A crane removing the O2 sign from the Dublin venue this morning. Photograph: Daniel Flynn
A crane removing the O2 sign from the Dublin venue this morning. Photograph: Daniel Flynn

Three Ireland this week sent out invitations asking guests to “join us on stage to celebrate the start of an exciting new era for live music in Ireland”.

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The event, which takes place next Wednesday will be held at “Ireland’s biggest, most exciting music venue”.

The Point was refurbished in 2007 and reopened as the O2 in 2008 after the mobile network paid €25 million for the naming rights of the venue for a decade.

Similar instances in which the traditional name of a venue has been stripped to make way for corporate branding include the renaming of Landsdowne Road stadium after an insurance company and the renaming of the Grand Canal Theatre after a natural gas company.

Dan Griffin

Dan Griffin

Dan Griffin is an Irish Times journalist