Home » UK ISP News Archive » Monthly Archives: September 2018 (89 Posts Found)

ISP News Archives for September 2018

Ofcom Proposes Options to Improve UK Mobile Network Coverage

14th Sep 2018 (9 Comments)

Ofcom has today published the technical advice that they recently submitted to Government, which proposes a number of ways in which near universal UK Mobile (3G, 4G, 5G) coverage might be achieved (public subsidy, rural wholesale access etc.), beyond what will be established via their forthcoming auction of the 700MHz band.

Virgin Media UK Discount 108Mbps Broadband and Phone to £29

14th Sep 2018 (48 Comments)

Cable broadband and TV operator Virgin Media UK are for a limited time offering their VIVID 108Mbps ultrafast broadband and phone package at just £29 per month for the first 12 months of service (£47 per month thereafter) to new customers, but this promotion is only available to order until 30th September 2018.

Shropshire UK Won’t Achieve Universal Superfast Broadband by 2020

14th Sep 2018 (27 Comments)

A new report on local economic growth will next week warn Shropshire County Council in England of the “disappointing” news that their goal of providing all homes and businesses in the region with access to “superfast broadband” (30Mbps+) by 2020 is “no longer likely [to] be achieved,” but it should get there eventually.

Five ISPs Express Interest in Delivering 10Mbps UK Broadband USO

13th Sep 2018 (22 Comments)

Ofcom has revealed that only BT (Openreach), KCOM, Hyperoptic, Quickline and Broadway Partners have expressed a formal interest in becoming suppliers for the new Universal Service Obligation (USO), which from 2020 will make it possible for anybody in a slow speed area to request a broadband speed of at least 10Mbps.

ECtHR Rules UK Mass Internet Surveillance of Citizens Unlawful

13th Sep 2018 (10 Comments)

The European Court of Human Rights has today ruled that the United Kingdom’s mass surveillance programmes, which came to light in 2013 after ex-NSA employee Edward Snowden leaked significant details to the press, were unlawful and “incapable of keeping the ‘interference’ to what is ‘necessary in a democratic society’“.

Government to Protect Free EU Mobile Roaming Regardless of Brexit

13th Sep 2018 (9 Comments)

The UK Brexit Secretary, Dominic Raab, has this morning confirmed that both Vodafone and Three UK have committed to retain free EU mobile roaming after Brexit and that the Government would “legislate for a limit on roaming charges” in the event of a no-deal outcome.

Government Hints at Future UK 5G Mobile Testbeds and Trials

13th Sep 2018 (2 Comments)

The UK Government has this week posted a brief update on their £200m national 5G Testbeds and Trials (5GTT) programme, which summarises all of their existing projects to test the future ultrafast wireless broadband technology and also hints at their plans for the next 12 months.

Threat of Internet Censorship Remains as EU Softens Copyright Law

12th Sep 2018 (9 Comments)

The European Parliament has today voted to approve a mildly softened version of Article 11 (aka – “link tax“) and Article 13 (aka – “upload filters“) in their proposed new Copyright Directive, which among other things places restrictions on the sharing of news content and threatens mass automated internet censorship.

Ofcom UK Appoint Ex-BT Man Mansoor Hanif as New CTO

12th Sep 2018 (7 Comments)

The UK telecoms and media regulator, Ofcom, has today announced that former BT / EE Director Mansoor Hanif has been appointed to become their new Chief Technology Officer (CTO), effective from 17th September 2018. He takes over the position from Steve Unger, who departed Ofcom in June.

Cityfibre Appoint FTTH Development Boss for Edinburgh and Stirling

12th Sep 2018 (0 Comments)

Fibre optic network builder Cityfibre has appointed Elaine Doherty to be the City Development Manager for Edinburgh and Stirling in Scotland, which is due to benefit from a joint £110m project with UK ISP Vodafone to deploy a new 1Gbps capable Fibre-to-the-Home (FTTH) broadband network.

Vodafone Reveal UK Prices for 1Gbps FTTH Home Broadband UPDATE

12th Sep 2018 (55 Comments)

ISP Vodafone has today revealed how much UK consumers will need to pay in order to access their new 1Gbps capable Fibre-to-the-Home (FTTH) based “Gigafast Broadband” network, which is initially being rolled out to cover 1 million homes in up to 12 of Cityfibre’s existing cities by the end of 2021.

Vodafone’s UK ISP Broadband Speed Guarantee Ads Ruled Misleading

12th Sep 2018 (0 Comments)

A mix of consumer complaints, including one from rival ISP BT, has resulted in the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) banning a website, radio and TV advert – featuring actor Martin Freeman – for Vodafone’s fixed line home broadband service after its “Ultimate Speed Guarantee” feature was found to be “misleading.”

ITU and UNESCO See Steady Progress on Global Broadband Targets

11th Sep 2018 (0 Comments)

The ITU and United Nations (UN) Broadband Commission for Sustainable Development has today published their latest annual report. This broadly highlights the progress that is being made in on-going efforts to spread affordable broadband connectivity across the world and suggests various ways to boost the effort.

EE Refarm UK 3G Spectrum Bands into Ultrafast 4G Mobile Broadband

11th Sep 2018 (35 Comments)

Mobile operator EE (BT) has today confirmed that they’ve begun the process of re-farming (converting) their existing 3G mobile services in the 2100MHz radio spectrum band, which means that they can instead be used to help boost 4G data (Mobile Broadband) speeds and reliability.

B4RN Set to Hit 5000 Rural UK FTTH Broadband Connections Target

11th Sep 2018 (14 Comments)

Plucky rural ISP B4RN (Broadband for the Rural North), which has spent the past 6 years deploying a 1Gbps capable community built and funded “full fibre” (FTTH) broadband network to remote homes in several counties across England, looks set to hit their 5,000 connections target by around the end of this month.

Delays Bog Down Gigaclear FTTP Broadband Rollout in Crazies Hill

10th Sep 2018 (7 Comments)

It’s two years since full fibre UK ISP Gigaclear announced that they could deploy their 1Gbps Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband network to the rural village of Crazies Hill in Berkshire (here), which beat Openreach (BT) and Virgin Media to the punch. Sadly the local residents are still waiting.

Zen and Plusnet Come Top of 2018 Biannual MSE Broadband Survey

10th Sep 2018 (9 Comments)

Internet and phone providers Zen Internet and Plusnet have come top in a new biannual UK MSE survey of ISP customer service quality. Sadly the news isn’t so good for those at the opposite (bottom) end of the table, where TalkTalk and the Post Office could both be found.