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Latest Key Developments

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Freedom Fibre Drops Out of Project Gigabit Broadband Contract for Cheshire UK

7th Mar, 2025 (26 Comments)

The Government’s Building Digital UK (BDUK) agency has just unexpectedly announced that alternative network provider Freedom Fibre has “mutually agreed to terminate” the £43m (state aid) Project Gigabit broadband roll-out contract for Cheshire (Lot 17), which would have expanded a full fibre (FTTP) network to 15,000 premises in hard to reach areas.

Openreach to Start Closure of 105 National UK Exchanges in April 2025

28th Feb, 2025 (67 Comments)

Network operator Openreach (BT) has confirmed that they will kick off their project to close around 4,600 of their legacy exchanges from 1st April 2025, starting with the introduction of a “stop sell” on new service provisions for an initial batch of 105 sites (due to complete by around 2030/31). This will impact various broadband, PIA and Ethernet services from ISPs.

Broadband and Mobile Providers Pledge to Help UK Gov Improve Digital Skills

26th Feb, 2025 (0 Comments)

The UK government has today set out its plan for increasing digital skills to help “deliver growth and opportunity for all“, which among other things includes various pledges from key ISPs and mobile operators (e.g. BT, CityFibre, Vodafone etc.) to help support the initiative and break down the digital divide that still exists for many people.

GoFibre Win Project Gigabit Broadband Rollout Contract for Scottish Borders UPDATE

20th Feb, 2025 (5 Comments)

Edinburgh-based ISP GoFibre has secured a third contract under the UK government’s £5bn Project Gigabit scheme, which is worth £26.2m (state aid) and will see them expand their gigabit speed Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband network to cover around 11,000 premises across hard-to-reach rural areas in the Scottish Borders and East Lothian regions.

Ofcom Propose to Share Upper 6GHz Band for UK Mobile and WiFi

13th Feb, 2025 (11 Comments)

After conducting more research, the UK telecoms regulator, Ofcom, has today formally begun to consult on a proposal that will allow low power indoor WiFi and mobile broadband (4G, 5G etc.) networks to “share” access to the upper 6GHz radio spectrum band (6425 to 7125MHz). But full implementation could take years.

New Gov Action Plan Supports Vulnerable Users in UK Digital Phone Switchover

12th Feb, 2025 (20 Comments)

The UK government has published its revised Telecare National Action Plan (TNAP), which will require major UK broadband and phone providers (e.g. BT, Virgin Media, Vodafone and Sky Broadband) to go further with protecting vulnerable telecare users when upgrading legacy phone lines to new digital (IP based) networks.

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BDUK Reopens Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme to Devon UK UPDATE

11th Feb, 2025 (12 Comments)

The Government’s Building Digital UK (BDUK) agency has made a change today that re-opens their Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme (GBVS) for parts of Devon in England, which means that local homes and businesses in poorly served rural areas can apply for big grants to help get a much faster broadband ISP network installed.

First Hints of New UK Gov Measures to Tackle Broadband Pole Complaints

10th Feb, 2025 (33 Comments)

The UK Government will shortly attempt to deliver on their pledge to “end the deployment of unnecessary telegraph poles” (here) by publishing an updated Code of Practice for broadband operators to follow, which will set out new guidance on the divisive issue. We now have a good idea of what that new code will include.

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Openreach and Nokia Claim UK’s First Live Test of 50Gbps Broadband UPDATE

5th Feb, 2025 (47 Comments)

Network access provider Openreach (BT), working alongside new 50G PON technology from strategic supplier Nokia, has this morning announced that they’ve “successfully tested” the United Kingdom’s “first live” 50Gbps speed broadband connection from a residential property in Ipswich (Suffolk, England).

Ofcom Grant UK Licence for Amazon’s Project Kuiper Broadband Satellites

3rd Feb, 2025 (0 Comments)

Ofcom has today grant Amazon’s Project Kuiper a UK Earth Station Network Licence (ESNL), which will support their effort to launch a global mega-constellation of satellites in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) to deliver affordable ultrafast broadband and mobile (4G, 5G) services. The UK telecoms regulator also made more spectrum available in the 28GHz and 32GHz bands.

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UK Phones Providers Introduce Tougher Blocking of Foreign Scam Calls

29th Jan, 2025 (10 Comments)

Ofcom has confirmed that, from today, UK phone providers (fixed line and mobile) are expected to have implemented changes that aim to block scammers who call from abroad and imitate UK landline numbers (i.e. spoofed calls). Further measures are also expected to follow “later this year“, which will tackle spoofed mobile numbers.

Cross-Party Inquiry Examines Threats to Undersea UK Internet Cables

27th Jan, 2025 (0 Comments)

The Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy (JCNSS) has launched a new UK inquiry that will see cross-party MPs and Lords examine the growing threats to undersea fibre optic cables, which are described as being the ‘backbone’ of the world’s internet (broadband, mobile etc.) systems.

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Ofcom Begin Process of Imposing Age Verification on UK Internet Sites

16th Jan, 2025 (52 Comments)

The UK telecoms and media regulator, Ofcom, has today moved forward with implementation of the government’s tedious new Online Safety Act (OSA) by publishing industry guidance on how websites and social media services should introduce “effective age checks“. The goal is to prevent children from encountering online porn and protect them from other harmful content.

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Ofcom to Improve Handling of UK Broadband and Phone Complaints UPDATE

15th Jan, 2025 (5 Comments)

The UK telecoms regulator, Ofcom, has today proposed to make it quicker for people to access Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) providers, which are third-party ombudsman schemes that help consumers to resolve complaints with their phone providers, broadband ISPs and mobile operators.

Swansea Bay City Deal Seeks Support for Better Broadband Infill Project

10th Jan, 2025 (0 Comments)

The Swansea Bay City Deal’s Digital Infrastructure Programme has launched a new Prior Information Notice (PIN), which is seeking feedback from suppliers that might be interested in helping to provide “affordable” gigabit broadband to poorly served premises in the Swansea Bay City Region (Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, Swansea, and Neath Port Talbot).

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BT Win Four More UK Project Gigabit Broadband Rollout Contracts Worth £289m

2nd Jan, 2025 (17 Comments)

The UK government has today confirmed the expected news that BT Group (Openreach) have been formally awarded several new Type C (Cross-Regional) Project Gigabit broadband roll-out contracts. This will help upgrade internet connectivity across more parts (hard to reach rural areas) of Shropshire, Herefordshire, Wales, Devon, Somerset, Essex and North East England, and Worcestershire.

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Openreach Publish Updated Dec 2024 UK FTTP Broadband Build Plan

20th Dec, 2024 (45 Comments)

Network operator Openreach (BT) has today updated the build plan for the ongoing roll-out of their 1.8Gbps Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband ISP technology, which is the first update since May 2024 when they added 517 new UK locations to their deployment. But this update mostly just reflects changes and progress with their existing locations.