Telecoms firm has gone through multiple identities since being privatised in 1980s

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

It has taken years of development and delays, but BT is finally preparing to unveil its new logo – the letters “BT” in a circle.

The chief executive, Philip Jansen, has confirmed plans to rebrand the telecoms company. On Wednesday BT filed a trademark application with the intellectual property office for a flat, simplistic logo based on branding first created in 2016 (£) when the company was reported to be looking at a new corporate identity.

BT said the new branding was still being finalised and was expected to be rolled out from August.

“We’ve shared our new logo with our colleagues today and will consult them on the detail as we gradually roll it out towards the end of the summer,” a spokesperson said.

“Our CEO has been very clear that the new mark symbolises real change. Making every BT employee a shareholder in the company is the first step towards transforming BT into a national champion that exceeds our customers’ expectations.”

The business has gone through multiple identities since being privatised in the 1980s, ranging from its 1990s Piper logo to the “connected world” globe branding that it has used in various forms since 2003.

The new logo is likely to appear everywhere from BT broadband services to sports channels to products aimed at corporate clients.

Sign up to the daily Business Today email or follow Guardian Business on Twitter at @BusinessDesk

Rebranding a high-profile company can be risky. John Lewis recently changed its logo to emphasise the role of staff while announcing job losses on the same day. Royal Mail was briefly called Consignia in the early 2000s, only to switch back to its old brand.

On Thursday Jansen also confirmed plans to offer staff £500 of BT shares annually, in an attempt to boost morale. Under the “yourshare” scheme starting in July 2020, £50m in shares will be given to BT’s 100,000 employees each year. Staff will have to hold the shares for a minimum of three years.