Home » UK ISP News Archive » Article Tag: Politics (3100 Posts)

Articles for Category Tag - Politics

Construction worker repairing a broken water pipe on the concrete road.

Gov to Trial Running UK Fibre Broadband Lines via Water Mains

9th August, 2021 (40 Comments)

The UK Government (DCMS) has today unveiled a new £4m ‘Fibre in Water‘ project trial, which will experiment with connecting homes, businesses and mobile masts to gigabit-capable broadband in “hard-to-reach areas” (e.g. remote rural) by running Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) style lines through the water mains.

Ofcom Provisionally Clears Openreach FTTP Broadband Price Cut

6th August, 2021 (14 Comments)

As expected Ofcom, the UK telecoms regulator, has today launched a final consultation on Openreach’s (BT) recently proposed plan to introduce a “major” change to the wholesale pricing of their gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband products for ISPs (details), which could result in cheaper prices for consumers.

Concern as UK Full Fibre AltNets Risk Missing Out on Rates Relief UPDATE

3rd August, 2021 (1 Comment)

Back in April 2017 the UK Government introduced a welcome 5-year holiday on business rates for new fibre optic (FTTP) broadband infrastructure, which is due to expire next year. But now concerns have been raised that some alternative network (AltNet) ISPs may not yet have the necessary certificates to benefit.

New 1Gbps FTTP Broadband Network Goes Live in Colchester UK

2nd August, 2021 (4 Comments)

VXFIBER (inc. subsidiary LilaConnect) has today announced that their new gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband ISP network in the large town of Colchester (Essex, England) has started to go live, with some 1,200 homes across Berechurch and Shrub End now able to get it installed.

Gigabit shiny bubble sign with shadow on white background

Gov Publish Next Phase of UK Rural Gigabit Broadband Rollout Plan

2nd August, 2021 (32 Comments)

The UK Government will today publish the next phase (inc. Phase 1a, 1b and 2) of their £5bn Project Gigabit programme, which in this batch aims to spread 1Gbps capable broadband ISP networks to a further 1.85 million rural premises (2.2 million confirmed so far) across 26 counties in England. Gigabit vouchers have also been boosted.

Wessex Internet’s FTTP Broadband Goes Live in Dorset Villages

29th July, 2021 (4 Comments)

A number of villages in rural parts of Dorset (England) have begun to go live on a new gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband network, which comes after local ISP Wessex Internet secured additional subsidised voucher funding from Dorset Council and the Dorset Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP).

Parliamentary Committee Starts Scrutinising UK Online Safety Bill

29th July, 2021 (2 Comments)

A new cross-party “super committee” has today begun to scrutinise the UK Government’s new Online Safety Bill (Online Harms), which aims to have Ofcom clampdown on “harmful” online content (e.g. hate speech, bullying, terrorism, conspiracy theories etc.), while precariously trying to balance that with freedom of speech.

Fiber optical cable detail isolated on white background

INCA Sees UK Membership Boom on Full Fibre AltNet Surge

28th July, 2021 (0 Comments)

The Independent Networks Co-operative Association (INCA), which represents alternative broadband networks (AltNet), has seen its UK membership balloon skywards after gaining 32 members in 2021 so far. The growth reflects a surge in new AltNets, many of which are building their own Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) infrastructure.

Anger Over Netomnia’s Use of Telegraph Poles in UK FTTP Builds UPDATE

28th July, 2021 (53 Comments)

Netomnia, which is working to make their 10Gbps capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband ISP network available to 1 million UK premises by 2024 (here and here), are facing complaints in a number of their build areas after residents began objecting to the erection of new telegraph poles “without their knowledge or consent.”

Three UK Seek Policy Reform to Connect Rural Areas via 5G WiFi

26th July, 2021 (14 Comments)

Mobile operator Three UK, supported by research from CCS Insight, has today called on the Government not to overlook the benefits of “5G WiFi” in their plan to rollout gigabit-capable broadband across the country. Apparently, 5G based Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) could do it “faster and for half the cost of fixed lines.”

Lords Committee Warn Online Safety Bill Threatens Free Speech

22nd July, 2021 (9 Comments)

The House of Lords Communications and Digital Committee has today published the outcome of its recent inquiry into freedom of expression, which warns that the UK Government’s new Online Safety Bill (Online Harms) is a “threat to free speech” due to its clampdown on “legal but harmful” content and “would be ineffective.”

Cross-Party UK MPs Consult on ECC Changes to Boost Fibre Rollout

22nd July, 2021 (1 Comment)

The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Broadband and Digital Communication has launched a new inquiry, which will examine how reforms to the Electronic Communications Code (ECC) could help boost the deployment of “full fibre” broadband in rural and urban areas across the UK.

Ofcom UK Opt Not to Propose Regulated Social Broadband Tariff… Yet

22nd July, 2021 (12 Comments)

Ofcom has today revealed the conclusion of their latest bout of research into the impact of affordability and debt on broadband ISP customers, which found that around 2 million UK households “struggle to afford internet access.” But they aren’t going to force a regulated social tariff onto the industry.. yet.

woman customer complaints call center vector illustration eps 10

New UK Consumer Protection Rules May Help Broadband ISP Users UPDATE

20th July, 2021 (1 Comment)

The UK Government will today launch a new consultation on ‘Reforming Competition and Consumer Policy’, which among other things promises several new protection measures that could also be extended to help “tackle consumer rip-offs and bad business practices” in the broadband ISP and mobile (telecoms) sector.

Ofcom Tells BT to Improve 10Mbps UK Broadband USO Quotes

16th July, 2021 (32 Comments)

Ofcom’s investigation into BT’s compliance with their obligations under the new Universal Service Obligation (USO) for broadband has concluded that “some customers have been asked to pay materially higher amounts than they should have been.” As a result, they’ve asked the ISP to make a few improvements.

BDUK Consults on Gigabit Broadband Coverage in Cornwall UK

16th July, 2021 (2 Comments)

The UK Government has just launched another Public Review, this time for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly in South West England, which aims to identify any existing or planned commercial coverage of gigabit broadband ISP networks. The review will help to establish the areas where public investment may be needed to deploy the service.

fibre optic cables and computer keyboard 2020 123rf

New ITS Technology Full Fibre Network is Live in Scunthorpe UK

15th July, 2021 (0 Comments)

At the start of this year ITS Technology, supported by the North Lincolnshire Council (NLC), began building a new 10Gbps capable “full fibre” Ethernet and broadband network to serve local businesses in the industrial town of Scunthorpe (Lincolnshire). The good news today is that this network has now gone live.