KCOM Issue Progress Update on FTTP Build, Copper Migration and More UPDATE

Macquarie-backed UK ISP KCOM, which is the dominant telecoms operator in Hull and is also expanding their full fibre (FTTP) broadband network further into East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire (England), has today celebrated their 120th anniversary and revealed that their network, which is home to 150k customers, now covers 305,000 premises (up from 297k in March 2023).

In case anybody has forgotten, KCOM announced a second network roll-out programme in September 2022 (here), which was due to expand FTTP to another 50,000 premises. Since then, they’ve added premises in the following locations to their fibre network: Barrow, Barton, Brayton, Bridlington, Brigg, Broughton, Crowle, Driffield, Epworth, Goole, Goxhill, Haxey, Hibaldstow, Hornsea, Howden, Kirton Lindsey, Market Weighton, Messingham, Nafferton, Pocklington, Scotter, Scawby, Selby, Withernsea.

The 2022 expansion programme also included a commitment of £17m to help migrate customers from their old copper line based broadband and phone services to their new full fibre network. At the time, around 14,000 of their customers were still on copper-based products, but this has now changed.

According to today’s update, some 40% of copper voice customers have already been migrated to fibre voice services, with particular care given to vulnerable customers. We had expected KCOM to complete this process before Openreach, but it seems to be taking them a bit longer than expected, which is not all that surprising given how many challenges other operators have faced. Extra care often has to be taken to avoid old telecare systems being broken in the process.

Tim Shaw, CEO of KCOM, said:

“Our strategy is underpinned by customer growth and service innovation. We obsess about our customers and work hard every day to provide the best service and online experience in the market. We empower our customers and communities to do more with their connectivity and this makes Hull and East Yorkshire a thriving place to live, work and play.

Through our dedication to improving the in-home and at-work experience for our customers, we’re redefining connectivity. The telecoms sector is evolving quickly across the UK: we’ve seen dozens of new entrants, moves towards consolidation and tougher economics. KCOM is well positioned to achieve sustained success for the long-term. Our focus on serving customers, our deeply engrained expertise and commitment to innovation will keep us at the forefront.”

The announcement also states that KCOM will “start upgrades to provide faster download speeds of up the 10GBps” (they actually mean 10Gbps, not GB for Bytes). But we suspect that reference to 10Gbps may relate more to the theoretical capability of their underlying FTTP network, rather than a specific plan for launching 10Gbps speeds to homes. But we are checking this and will report back.

Otherwise, we also get a general summary of recent developments, most of which we’ve already covered before.

KCOM’s Recent Developments

• More than 305,000 premises on KCOM’s network which, for the first time in its history, straddles the Humber estuary across both East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire. This expansion included 24 more towns and villages prior to the pause.

• Creation of two divisions serving 150,000 customers in ‘Consumer’ and ‘Enterprise’ to drive retail, business and wholesale growth across Hull, East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire.

• 40 per cent of copper voice customers migrated to fibre voice services so far, with particular care given to vulnerable customers in the region.

• First wave trial of infrastructure sharing (PIA) in Hull now successfully underway, working towards a long-term offering that is right for residents and the region.

• Launch of the Power is all Yours campaign in 2024 to promote KCOM’s fast, secure and resilient network which offers more personalisation, prioritisation and protection for customers’ online lives.

• International collaboration with eero, an Amazon company, that sees KCOM redefine the in-home broadband experience for customers.

• Bringing a national telecoms brand, Telecom Acquisitions Ltd, into the region as a partner and increasing the dynamism of the region’s broadband market through wholesale access.

• Underpinning the region’s public services, recently winning contracts as the partner of choice for Hull City Council, East Riding of Yorkshire Council, Humber Fire and Rescue, and Hull University Teaching Hospitals.

• Reduction of more than 10 per cent in direct carbon emissions since the 2021 baseline.

• More than £30,000 in grants via the KCOM Foundation and 800 volunteer hours to support digital empowerment in Hull, East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire since 2021.

UPDATE 10:21am

KCOM has confirmed to ISPreview that, due to the changing economic climate (e.g. high interest rates), they’ve “paused” network expansion activity to focus on growth within their existing footprint and innovating in customer experience.

Speaking of which, the 10Gbps reference above is said to be more reflective of their investment in “future capability” (i.e. their XGS-PON fibre upgrade). But one of our readers (Miken) did notice a recent wholesale change (here) that suggests a new product line up may be coming. This would offer symmetrical speeds of up to 530Mbps, then uploads capped at 550Mbps for the 795Mbps and 954Mbps products (average advertised speeds).

We expect more details on their XGS-PON network upgrades around Christmas.