Customers of O2 were left without access to online services on Monday after a systems problem hit data services.

The number two mobile network said it had experienced issues for about two hours on Monday afternoon, with two or three different systems hit by the problem.

The problem was due to a technical issue and began at about 4pm, the company said. The problem affected customers using mobile data on their phones, and also some broadband customers. Roaming services were also affected.

“The issue was identified and resolved as a matter of urgency and services were restored by 6pm,” a spokesman said.

The service disruption came only days after rival network Three Ireland suffered similar problems. Its network suffered an outage, the first since it entered the market in 2005, after third-party provider Virgin Media suffered a transmission link failure. The problem was blamed on a software upgrade.

Three's problem surfaced on the same day it was announced its parent company Hutchison Whampoa is to buy O2 Ireland from Telefonica in a deal worth €780 million.