UK-based cable carrier Virgin Media showed how convergence is done on Wednesday as it unveiled its first ever Mobile Broadband offer.

The new service adds another string to Virgin’s bow, which already includes cable broadband, fixed line telephony, IPTV, and mobile services via the Virgin Mobile MVNO.

Mobile Broadband from Virgin Media is available on an 18 month contract and comes with a free USB dongle and a 3GB monthly data cap for £15 per month. Outside the allowance, data is charged at £15 per GB and Virgin reckons speeds of up to 3.6Mbps are achievable.

Virgin’s offering puts it on a par with 3 UK, which made waves with its own mobile broadband offerings.

Speaking of which, another member of the 3 Group, 3 Italy, is giving web giant Yahoo a leg up into the mobile market. This week the duo launched Yahoo! Internet Key, which is a co-branded USB stick, giving access to 3’s mobile network.

Under this deal, Yahoo is offering 10GB of traffic for Eur19 per month and speeds of up to 7.2Mbps. The dongle is free on a 23 month contract.