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Troubled OneWeb Hope to Expand LEO Broadband Constellation

27th May, 2020 (4 Comments)

British-registered space company OneWeb has today shunned its on-going bankruptcy woes by submitting a modification request to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which would enable them to to increase the number of LEO broadband satellites in their constellation up to 48,000!

EE UK Launch New Unlimited Style Reserve Mobile Data Feature

27th May, 2020 (7 Comments)

Mobile operator EE has today launched a new “Reserve Data” feature alongside their latest range of 5G ready ‘Smart’ and ‘Smart SIM’ Pay Monthly mobile plans, which will effectively enable customers to continue using internet (mobile broadband) services – at a slower speed – even if they’ve used up their allowance.

Opensignal Examines 5G Speeds at EE and Vodafone UK vs Rivals

27th May, 2020 (4 Comments)

Opensignal has taken another brief look at 10 mobile operators offering 5G based mobile broadband speeds in the UK, USA, South Korea and Australia to see how their performance compares. Overall even the early 5G deployments are significantly faster than 4G, but download speeds at EE and Vodafone are trailing a bit.

Sky TV UK Finally Goes Live with Delayed 4K HDR Video Support UPDATE

27th May, 2020 (37 Comments)

Customers of Sky’s (Comcast / Sky Broadband) Pay TV service – Sky Q – will be pleased to know that the broadcasting giant will today finally add High Dynamic Range (HDR) support alongside the launch of their new 4K (UHD) Sky Nature channel, but it will gradually be made available for other content too (movies, sport etc.).

2,000 Premises in Peacehaven Get Virgin Media FTTP Broadband

26th May, 2020 (36 Comments)

Broadband ISP Virgin Media UK has officially completed the expansion of their gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network in the East Sussex town of Peacehaven, which means that 2,000 further homes can now access their internet, phone and TV services.

Vodafone UK Extends Free Unlimited Data for NHS to PAYG

26th May, 2020 (5 Comments)

Mobile operator Vodafone UK has confirmed that their offer of free access to unlimited mobile data (mobile broadband) for NHS staff and Care Workers has now been extended to include those using their flexible Pay-As-You-Go (PAYG) services. Previously only Pay Monthly subscribers could benefit.

Ecom’s FTTP Broadband Goes Live in Ledburn, Buckinghamshire

26th May, 2020 (0 Comments)

UK ISP Ecom (Electronic Communities) has confirmed that the first customer has just been connected to their new 1Gbps capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband network in the rural Buckinghamshire community of Ledburn, which was achieved with help from the Government’s gigabit voucher schemes.

COVID-19 – EE Report Reveals Internet Traffic During Lockdown

26th May, 2020 (6 Comments)

EE (BT) has published their latest Mobile Network Data report from February to May 2020, which tracked the changing trends and habits of the UK’s most used internet apps and services throughout lockdown. The report also revealed a 45% increase in data (mobile broadband) use for communication services (WhatsApp, Skype etc.).

ISP Exascale Gives FREE Mesh WiFi to All New Full Fibre Homes

26th May, 2020 (6 Comments)

UK ISP Exascale, which is in the early process of building a new gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband network to reach premises around Telford in Shropshire (with Wolverhampton in the West Midlands and Cheltenham in Gloucestershire to follow), is to start installing a free Mesh WiFi system for all new home customers.

Government Considers Zero Huawei Kit in UK Telecoms by 2023 UPDATE2

23rd May, 2020 (68 Comments)

At the start of 2020 the UK gave broadband ISPs and mobile operators a green light to use only non-core focused telecoms kit from Chinese giant Huawei (here), including a cap to reduce their market share. But new reports allege that the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, could be about to do a dramatic U-turn and shock the industry.

Study Finds Poor Broadband Customer Service During COVID-19

23rd May, 2020 (25 Comments)

A new YouGov survey of 4,344 UK adults, which was commissioned by consumer magazine Which? and conducted during late April 2020, has found that 53% of people had difficulty contacting their broadband ISP in the last month due to the impact of COVID-19, which left some exposed to avoidable price hikes and other problems.

Researchers Push 44.2Tbps Over Fibre via a Single Light Source

22nd May, 2020 (15 Comments)

Australian researchers from Monash, Swinburne and RMIT Universities have broken a new record after they hit a fibre optic data speed of 44.2 Terabits per second (Tbps) by using a single light source. Better yet this feat was achieved using 76.7km of existing Dark Fibre communications infrastructure, rather than a lab test.

M12 Solutions and Intouch Systems Plan UK Full Fibre Rollouts

22nd May, 2020 (7 Comments)

Broadband ISPs M12 Solutions (Giganet) and fixed wireless provider InTouch Systems (Redshelf, ITSwisp and WiSpire) appear to be separately planning for a new or faster deployment of “gigabit-capable” Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) technology, although at present the details remain few and far between.

Granahan McCourt Exits N.Ireland Superfast Broadband Project

22nd May, 2020 (3 Comments)

Northern Ireland’s long awaited £165m Project Stratum, which originally hoped to extend “superfast broadband” (30Mbps+) to cover 97,000 extra premises but is now targeting “approximately” 78,500 premises, has lost one of its three potential bidders in Granahan McCourt. Only BT and Fibrus remain.

Ofcom Sets Out Funding Rules for 10Mbps UK Broadband USO

22nd May, 2020 (14 Comments)

After the fact. Ofcom has today set out the final funding regulations for their legally-binding Universal Service Obligation (USO), which went live in March (summary) – supplied by BT and KCOM – and aims to ensure that people in disadvantaged areas can request a minimum broadband speed of “at least” 10Mbps (1Mbps upload).

ISP BT Updates on Progress Toward Sustainability Targets

22nd May, 2020 (5 Comments)

Broadband and UK mobile giant BT Group (EE, Openreach, Plusnet) has recently issued their annual sustainability report, which among other things reveals that they’ve so far managed to cut their carbon emissions by 42% since 2016/17 (target reduction is 87% by 2030) and are making progress in other areas too.

Classic Video Games Arrive on Sky Q TV and HDR is Imminent

22nd May, 2020 (24 Comments)

Customers of Sky TV UK (Sky Broadband) might like to know that they can now play 20 classic video games for free on their Sky Q set-top-box, such as Tetris, Doodle Jump and Crossy Road. But according to our sources Sky’s delayed High Dynamic Range (HDR) upgrade is also due to appear sooner than expected.. next week.