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Articles for Category Tag - Politics

5g and mast uk tower microwave mmwave by 123rf

Ofcom to Open UK 5G Mobile Auction of 26GHz and 40GHz Bands on 17th Sept

3rd September, 2025 (9 Comments)

The telecoms regulator, Ofcom, has today revealed that they will begin accepting applications from network operators for their auction of the 26GHz and 40GHz millimetre wave (mmW) bands from 17th September 2025. The large chunk of radio spectrum will be used by mobile operators to deliver faster 5G data (broadband) services.

Cityfibre Purle Optical Fibre Cable and Engineer

Concerns Raised Over Progress of Kent UK’s Project Gigabit Broadband Rollout UPDATE

30th August, 2025 (22 Comments)

The Kent County Council (KCC) in England has complained to the UK government about a “lack of progress” being made on the region’s Project Gigabit broadband rollout contract for rural communities. The £112m (state aid) contract for this was awarded to CityFibre in early 2024 (here), which committed to extend full fibre to 50,000+ hard-to-reach premises.

Poverty Alliance Warns UK Social Broadband ISP Tariffs Suffer Critical Flaws

29th August, 2025 (13 Comments)

The Digital Poverty Alliance (DPA) has published a new briefing that warns how Social Tariffs from UK broadband and mobile providers, which offer significant cost savings to those on state benefits (e.g. Pension Credit, Universal Credit etc.), continue to suffer from three “critical flaws” – minimal awareness, inconsistent quality and affordability.

Fiber optics network cable lights abstract background 123rf

INCA Warns Altnets Need Certainty and Delivery from UK’s Digital Sector Plan

29th August, 2025 (5 Comments)

The Independent Networks Co-operative Association (INCA), which represents many of the UK’s alternative broadband networks, has today posted somewhat of a belated welcome to the new Digital and Technologies Sector Plan. But they also warn that “further clarity is needed” on how the Government will support competition as FTTP rollouts slow and consolidation pressures grow.

openreach-engineers-on-a-rural-countryside-lane

Gov Boost Value of Openreach’s UK Project Gigabit Broadband Framework by £400m UPDATE

29th August, 2025 (11 Comments)

The Government has modified the Single Supplier Framework agreement that they awarded to Openreach (BT) last year under their Project Gigabit broadband roll-out scheme (here). The deal was originally valued at “up to” £800m and designed to help upgrade 312,000 premises in some of the hardest to reach UK areas to FTTP. But this has just been boosted in value to £1.2bn.

Internet and UK Telecoms Security Picture by 123rf

Gov Set to Update 2022 UK Telecommunications Security Code of Practice

28th August, 2025 (7 Comments)

The UK Government’s Department for Science, Innovation & Technology (DSIT) has proposed to update their Telecommunications Security Code of Practice (2022). This sets out what sort of specific security measures public telecoms providers (broadband, mobile etc.) must take in order to protect their networks from attack and data breaches.

UK Banks Set to Take Losses on Loans to Alternative Broadband Networks

28th August, 2025 (18 Comments)

In news that will surprise none of ISPreview’s regular readers. Several major UK banks, such as NatWest and Lloyds, among others, have confirmed that they’re setting aside funding to cover loans that were issued to alternative fibre broadband networks (altnets) and which are now deemed unlikely to be repaid in full.

Fibrus Confirm Completion of £200m Northern Ireland Fibre Broadband Contract

27th August, 2025 (2 Comments)

Infracapital-backed UK ISP Fibrus today confirmed the completion of their £200m (state aid) Project Stratum contract in Northern Ireland, which helped to spread their gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband network to 81,000 addition premises in poorly served rural areas “on time and within budget.”

GoFibre Aims to Cover 250,000 UK Premises with FTTP Broadband in 3 Years UPDATE

24th August, 2025 (5 Comments)

Edinburgh-based ISP and network builder GoFibre recently published their annual accounts to the end of 2024, which among other things revealed that their revenues increased by 71% to £2.02m (2023: £1.17m). The operator now expects their roll-out of FTTP broadband in rural Scotland and North England to reach a footprint of 250,000 premises “in the next 3 years“.

Rob Bradley, Managing Partner of the Bradley Strategy Group consultancy

Rob Bradley on Consolidation and Fixing the Turbulent UK Fibre Broadband Market

23rd August, 2025 (25 Comments)

The Managing Partner of M&A-focused consultancy firm the Bradley Strategy Group, Rob Bradley, has today spoken to ISPreview as part of a new interview that lifts the lid on the “strategic recalibration” that is currently occurring across the UK’s alternative fibre networks – driving a wave on consolidation to correct for today’s “structurally misaligned market“.

Results of the UK’s Largest Mobile Network Survey for the River Severn Region

21st August, 2025 (5 Comments)

Network analyst firm Streetwave has today published its results from the UK’s “largest mobile coverage survey“, which used bin lorries to test the 4G/5G (mobile broadband) network coverage and speed of each mobile operator across the River Severn Partnership Advanced Wireless Innovation Region (RSPAWIR) – reflecting 33 councils in Wales and England’s West Midlands.

GoFibre funding deal supporters PR 180825

GoFibre Get £125m Funding Boost to Support Scotland Gigabit Broadband Rollout

18th August, 2025 (1 Comment)

Edinburgh-based UK ISP and network builder GoFibre has this morning announced that they’ve secured a huge £125m funding boost from the Scottish National Investment Bank (SNIB) and Hamburg Commercial Bank. The money will support their roll-out of FTTP broadband under the government backed Project Gigabit contracts in South and North East Scotland.

Emtelle UK to Support GoFibre’s £105m FTTP Broadband Build in Scotland

15th August, 2025 (4 Comments)

Fibre optic network supplier Emtelle UK, which is a global manufacturer of blown fibre, cabling and ducted solutions, has been chosen to help supply GoFibre’s new £105m (state aid) Project Gigabit contract for North East Scotland (here), which aims to extend their full fibre broadband (FTTP) network to “around” 63,000 premises in hard-to-reach rural areas.

UK fibre optic gigabit broadband map CoPilot for MJ on 12092024

Gov to Evaluate UK Project Gigabit, Mobile and Full Fibre Broadband Programmes

15th August, 2025 (15 Comments)

In a small but interesting update, the Government’s Building Digital UK (BDUK) agency has announced a string of new studies to evaluate the performance, delivery and value of its various mobile and broadband roll-out programmes – including Project Gigabit, Local Full Fibre Networks (LFFN), Shared Rural Network (SRN) and GigaHubs (extension of LFFN).

TFW Fibre Delivers First Commercial Contract for Railway Fibre Network in Wales

13th August, 2025 (0 Comments)

Network operator TfW Ffeibr (TFW Fibre), which is an arm’s-length initiative setup by Transport for Wales (TfW) and thus the Welsh Government, has today announced the delivered of its “first commercial fibre connectivity contract” with Cloud Centres Networks for the fibre that runs alongside local railways.

Survey Claims 35 Percent of UK Landowners Don’t Want to Host 5G Mobile Masts

13th August, 2025 (18 Comments)

A new survey of 500 national landowners, which was conducted by telecoms investor AP Wireless UK – a company with a strong vested interest in this area, has claimed that 35% of respondents are considering terminating their mobile mast agreements, citing concerns over rent cuts, legal pressure and loss of trust in mobile network operators.

Property, Real Estate, Renting, Houses and UK Broadband

Gov Launches £9.5m Fund to Help More UK People Get Online

13th August, 2025 (13 Comments)

The UK Government (DSIT) has today moved to complement their recently introduced Digital Inclusion Action Plan (DIAP) by launching a new £9.5m Digital Inclusion Innovation Fund (DIIF). The fund is designed to support local authorities, charities and research organisations in helping to get people online who might otherwise struggle.