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Latest Key Developments

Ofcom Preps Strategic Review of UK 4G and 5G Mobile Networks

11th May, 2021 (7 Comments)

Ofcom has today set out the terms of reference for their future UK mobile strategy review, which will examine how the regulator can adjust their approach in order to improve 4G and 5G based mobile (mobile broadband) network connectivity for consumers and businesses over the next 5 to 10 years.

ISP BT to Launch Cheap New UK Fibre Broadband Social Tariff

3rd May, 2021 (64 Comments)

BT has today announced their intention to launch a new social tariff called “Home Essentials” for UK people on Universal Credit (and other means-tested benefits), which will give eligible customers a 36Mbps “fibre broadband” (FTTC / FTTP) service and 700 minutes of included phone calls for just £15 per month.

Ofcom Reveal Final Results of UK 5G Mobile Spectrum Auction

27th Apr, 2021 (23 Comments)

The telecoms regulator, Ofcom, has today published the final results from their recent £1.38bn auction of 5G friendly radio spectrum in the 700MHz and 3.6-3.8GHz frequency bands, which includes a few key changes from last month’s principal stage. Better mobile broadband coverage and speeds are expected.

Ofcom Will Stop Requiring UK Phone Providers to Offer Local Dialling

23rd Apr, 2021 (29 Comments)

Ofcom has today launched a second consultation on the future use of UK telephone numbers, which among other things proposes to remove the obligation on phone operators to provide a “local dialling” facility (this requirement is less relevant on modern internet based networks) and to prohibit “cash for calls” schemes.

New Government Changes to Boost 5G Mobile Cover in England

20th Apr, 2021 (20 Comments)

The Government has today begun a consultation on their proposed changes to Permitted Development (PD) rights for mobile infrastructure, which seeks to extend 5G and 4G (mobile broadband) coverage in rural areas of England via key changes (e.g. allowing taller masts of up to 30 metres and softening planning permission).

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Openreach Update on Solutions for UK FTTP Pole Capacity Issues

17th Apr, 2021 (40 Comments)

Earlier this year we reported on an increasingly common example of how network capacity problems on Openreach’s UK telegraph poles can prevent people from ordering a new Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband service via their ISP (here). Today we share a little more detail on the operator’s plan for tackling this.

CMA Provisionally Clears Virgin Media UK and O2 to Merge

14th Apr, 2021 (16 Comments)

The UK Competition and Markets Authority has today “provisionally” cleared the proposed £31bn (total enterprise value) mega merger between broadband provider Virgin Media (Liberty Global) and mobile operator O2 (Telefonica), which will light the fuse on a major £10bn project to extend “full fibre” FTTP and 5G mobile services.

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New UK Gigabit Voucher Scheme Terms Add Satellite and Caveats UPDATE

6th Apr, 2021 (16 Comments)

As part of their £5bn Project Gigabit programme the UK Government will this week (8th April) start a new rural focused £210m gigabit broadband voucher scheme. A quick look at the new Terms and Conditions for this reveals some key changes, such as the inclusion of satellite, a £100k funding cap on project changes and other caveats.

Openreach UK Raise Copper Line Prices to Fuel Full Fibre Rollout

31st Mar, 2021 (75 Comments)

As expected (or feared) Openreach (BT) has today announced a series of wholesale price increases for UK ISPs that use certain legacy copper line broadband, FTTC (VDSL2, G.fast, SOGEA) and phone products, which are intended to help the operator to afford their £12bn roll-out of 1Gbps Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) technology.

Ofcom UK Makes Changes to Rules for Landline and Mobile Calls

30th Mar, 2021 (8 Comments)

The UK telecoms regulator, Ofcom, has today published a final statement on their latest Wholesale Voice Markets Review 2021–26 (WVMR), which among other things has set some new caps on call termination charges and deregulated other areas.

BDUK Start Open Market Review for UK Project Gigabit Phase 1

25th Mar, 2021 (18 Comments)

The Government’s Building Digital UK team has today launched an Open Market Review (OMR) for Phase 1b and 1a of their new £5bn Project Gigabit broadband roll-out scheme, which is the process used to identify the commercial coverage plans for 1Gbps networks over the next 3 years (i.e. confirms where public money will be needed).

Gov Starts GBP5bn UK Gigabit Broadband and Voucher Schemes UPDATE

19th Mar, 2021 (53 Comments)

The UK Government has today revealed new details of how their £5bn gigabit broadband roll-out scheme will work and rebranded it as “Project Gigabit“. As part of that they’ve also confirmed £210m for an extension of their rural Gigabit Voucher scheme and £110m to connect up to 7,000 rural GP surgeries, libraries and schools.

BDUK Consults on Gigabit Broadband Coverage in Essex UK

18th Mar, 2021 (6 Comments)

The Government’s Building Digital UK team has today begun a new consultation to help them identify what existing or planned commercial gigabit-capable broadband coverage exists in Essex (England), which will help to establish the areas where public investment may be needed to deploy the service.

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Ofcom Unveils 2021 Changes to Boost UK Full Fibre Broadband UPDATE

18th Mar, 2021 (55 Comments)

Ofcom has today published the outcome of their Wholesale Fixed Telecoms Market Review 2021-26 (FTMR), which sets out how various changes (Dark Fibre Access, copper retirement, regulation that varies by geographic area etc.) will be used to boost UK investment in “full fibre” broadband and high capacity Ethernet services.

Preliminary Winners of Ofcom’s UK 5G Mobile Auction Revealed

17th Mar, 2021 (42 Comments)

Ofcom has today revealed the winners from the “principal stage” of their latest 5G focused mobile (mobile broadband) spectrum auction for the 700MHz and 3.6-3.8GHz bands, which saw operators spend a total of £1.356 billion across the various bands and EE (BT) appears to have gobbled up the most (£452m).

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The New UK Telecoms Security Bill is Starting to Look a Bit Ugly

16th Mar, 2021 (10 Comments)

At present most of the mentions you’ll see around the UK Government’s new Telecoms Security Bill (TSB) tend to involve Huawei’s ban (here) and its impact upon FTTP broadband or 5G mobile networks, but as time goes on it’s becoming increasingly clear that the bill hides a number of other nasty surprises.

Cityfibre Name 285 UK Areas for GBP4bn Gigabit Broadband Rollout UPDATE

12th Mar, 2021 (98 Comments)

Alternative network builder CityFibre has today confirmed the full list of 285 UK cities, towns and villages where they plan to deploy their new 1Gbps capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTHP) broadband platform, which will work alongside ISPs like Vodafone and TalkTalk to cover 8 million homes and businesses. Rural areas will also benefit.