
One of the UK’s largest alternative full fibre broadband networks, Netomnia (Substantial Group), has confirmed to ISPreview that they plan to merge their two retail internet providers into a single brand. The move means that Brsk’s operations will now become part of YouFibre and adopt the same branding – reflecting the strong performance of the latter brand.
In case anybody has forgotten. Netomnia (YouFibre) and Brsk originally operated as separate companies – both with their own full fibre networks and vertically integrated retail ISPs. But this changed in June 2024 after the two operators, which shared a connected investor in the shape of Advencap, announced their intention to merge and create one of the market’s largest altnets (here).
Netomnia’s combined network with Brsk currently covers over 3 million premises as ready for service (up from 2.8m in Q3 2025) and is home to a total customer base of 450,000 (up from 400k) – take-up of 15% (up from 14%). Crucially, their network coverage has now hit the 3 million premises milestone mentioned in the note above (i.e. still expanding coverage by c.1 million premises per year).
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Since the merger Netomnia has continued to operate YouFibre and Brsk as semi-separate retail ISP brands, although they’ve steadily been coming closer together (e.g. adopting similar routers and similar pricing, albeit with some variation) and reducing duplication. Despite this, YouFibre has remained the biggest of the two, while Brsk’s recent data breach probably didn’t help on the reputation side of things (here).
Suffice to say that we weren’t too surprised when industry sources started informing us that Netomnia had notified staff that the Brsk brand and operations would be merged into YouFibre, which is often what happens post-merger. The operator has now officially confirmed this development to ISPreview.
Jeremy Chelot, Group CEO, said:
“Since bringing the businesses together in 2024, we have seen unbelievable growth and a clear alignment around our shared strategy and values. Both ISP businesses have built strong reputations with a similar proposition and service standard however, moving forward under a single brand is a natural progression that allows us to focus our investment, build on the trust we have earned, and create an even stronger platform for long-term growth. Most importantly, it enables us to serve our customers with greater clarity, scale and confidence.”
Giorgio Iovino, co-founder of Brsk, said:
“I’m incredibly proud of the contribution that Brsk has made to the UK broadband market over the last 5 years.
We have built a strong reputation as one of the UK’s most credible and customer-focused broadband challengers. Thank you to all our teams and partners that have got us here. It’s time for the next chapter in our journey and that is to move from a regional player, join forces with YouFibre, to become a true national challenger brand.
With our aligned service propositions, shared target audiences and a deeply aligned customer-first culture, the combination creates a powerful force in the UK broadband market.”
The business will continue to be led by Group CEO, Jeremy Chelot, and joint Managing Directors, Ryan Battle (Marketing and Sales) and Giorgio Iovino (Customer Experience and Field Services). The leadership team is said to remain focused on delivering its core mission of providing “fast and fair broadband for its customers … [and to] become a true national challenger brand“.
Netomnia states that there will be “no immediate changes” to Brsk customers’ contracts, plans or pricing, points of contact, or day-to-day operations. A phased transition to the unified brand will take place over H1 2026 (our sources say it will begin from 1st March), ensuring a “smooth and considered experience for Brsk customers“. But some questions remain, such as over whether or not YouFibre will adopt Brsk’s Netgem based pay TV solution.
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The news comes shortly after Netomnia was linked to a possible future c.£2bn merger with bigger rivals (here), which appears to be attracting competing interest from CityFibre and VMO2 (nexfibre). But it remains unclear whether or when a deal with either party may be reached. Netomnia, due to its size and competitive position, is somewhat regarded as one of the altnet market’s potential kingmakers for consolidation.
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With its low cost per premise it would seem to be more likely to be a target for acquisition than a consolidator. As Jeremy would no doubt say “Why should I buy your network for £1000 per premise when I could build it myself for £250?”. The alternative would be to acquire stressed assets at fire sale prices as they become available.
Not a shock. I signed up for Brsk just a couple of weeks ago, and while the router was branded with Brsk and I log into the Brsk portal, everything else was YouFibre – my IP address is allocated to them, and my connection goes through their infrastructure. The router is identical to what YouFibre issue.
I really hope they don’t end up as part of VMO2, though. I think that’d be a migration away for me, as they would undoubtedly start whacking the prices up by a fiver every few months as Virgin do.
Would be nice if Netomnia did wholesale, I’m currently with Zen bia BT wholesale so no 1.6Gbps, and Netomnia is building so would be nice to stay with Zen via Netomnia network
Wonder if this was decided a long time ago or if the data breach changed their minds