Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

The Government’s Building Digital UK (BDUK) agency has tweaked the eligibility criteria for their Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme (GBVS) again, which among other things now requires that a home or business must have existing available broadband download speeds of less than 1Gbps in order to be eligible (previously it was 100Mbps).

Just to recap. The GBVS typically offers grants worth up to £4,500 to help remote rural or poorly served urban homes and businesses get a gigabit-capable broadband (1Gbps) ISP service installed, which as above, is now also available to areas with speeds of “less than 1Gbps” – assuming there are no near-term plans for a gigabit deployment in the same area (either via private or state-aid funding).

The GBVS is currently only open to a limited number of areas across the United Kingdom (i.e. Derbyshire, Birmingham and the Black Country, Merseyside and Greater Manchester, Greater London, Scotland and the Isle of Wight.) and, until recently, it was also focused almost exclusively on catering for the hardest to reach rural areas. But in March 2025 this scheme was also opened up to help tackle some poorly served urban areas too (here).

The latest changes to voucher eligibility, which somewhat slipped under our radar when they were quietly introduced a week ago, include the removal of the rurality clause in order to enable premises under the urban extension of the scheme to be included in projects, as well as urban premises identified through BDUK’s related market engagement process.

As above, the threshold for the existing speed at a premises (home or business) has also increased from 100Mbps to 1Gbps, although the requirement for a “step change” in service speed remains in place (reflecting at least a doubling of speeds).

The rules also now state that premises deemed to be under construction or built within the last two years are ineligible for vouchers, which is perhaps because the law now requires that developers of most new build homes should already be ensuring that such properties are built to a gigabit-capable standard. But there are some exceptions to that law, so there may be cases where this tweak is unhelpful (e.g. smaller individual house builds in very remote areas).

Finally, the classification rules are now aligned to the rest of Project Gigabit and there are two additional ways for BDUK to assess whether a home or business is likely to receive gigabit capable broadband without public subsidy (i.e. local intelligence gathered by BDUK, and all premises at the same location are now ineligible for the GBVS if one premises at that location can already access gigabit broadband).

However, it’s unlikely that any of this will have a huge impact on the scheme’s progress, not least because the limited (highly variable) level of availability doesn’t exactly help, and it’s now much less user-friendly / accessible than it once was (BDUK previously scrapped their availability checker and now require people to first manually identify a local supplier from deep within the scheme’s info. pages).

The eligibility criteria changes apply to new projects submitted from 5th June 2025 onwards and will not impact existing approved projects.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

The boss of Liberty Global (Mike Fries), one of the parents behind UK broadband provider Virgin Media (O2) and associated network builder nexfibre, has reportedly claimed that the UK Government’s Business Secretary, Jonathan Reynolds MP, expressed that he was “anxious” for them to step in and rescue struggling alternative networks.

The past couple of years have been more than a little bumpy for the market’s many altnets. On the one hand, they’ve continued to drive positive competitive change and have built full fibre (FTTP) broadband lines to millions more premises – Summary of UK Full Fibre Builds. Many consumers are thus already able to enjoy the benefits, which is often reflected by faster speeds and lower prices.

According to INCA’s most recent report (here), full fibre broadband coverage delivered by altnets grew by 27% in 2024 to reach 16.4 million UK premises (or 15.2m if you exclude overbuild between the altnets) and could grow to 18.6m in 2025. But that growth rate of 27% also represented a slowdown from the 57% reported in 2023. This is because many altnets have also had to slow their deployments and make redundancies, while at the same time re-focusing toward efforts to grow customer take-up.

The above situation has been fuelled by a combination of factors, such as rising build costs, competition from rivals (e.g. overbuild, price discounts), the challenge of generating a viable level of take-up and the difficulty of securing fresh investment while interest rates remain stubbornly high. As a result, we’ve already seen a fair bit of consolidation in the market and plenty of job losses from various network operators.

On top of that, there’s also been some related disruption to the Government’s own Project Gigabit contracts (examples here, here and here) and yesterday’s 2025 Spending Review saw their target for delivering 99% UK coverage of gigabit-capable broadband being put back from 2030 to 2032. Suffice to say that the strains of this market are already well understood.

According to a new FT (paywall) piece today, the CEO of Liberty Global, Mike Fries, has now insinuated that the Government’s Secretary of State for Business and Trade, Jonathan Reynolds, is “anxious” for large network operators to acquired (merge) the UK’s struggling altnet broadband providers before they could collapse.

Both CityFibre and Liberty Global/VMO2 have previously already signalled a strong desire to consolidate (here and here), with others like Netomnia also considering expansion via further consolidation, so this is not a new prospect. But the idea that the Government may also be nudging them to do this does put a different spin on things.

Mike Fries told an industry conference on Tuesday:

“I was on the phone with Jonny Reynolds … the other day and he gets it: It’s not a good moment for the UK right now if fibre customers lose service and fibre investors lose money. They’re anxious to see us and others [get] involved here, you know, and we will.”

However, an aide to Reynolds said there was no record of any such comments being made, with the aide adding: “No one at the meeting remembers him [Reynolds] saying this. It seems that something might have been inferred from Johnny’s warm tone, but this is a commercial decision for [Liberty Global], not for us.”

In fairness, Liberty Global and Virgin Media do have some history when it comes to criticising or using robust language against altnets (example), so it’s perhaps not surprising that Fries may be keen to talk down their opponents in the sector again.

On Tuesday Fries similarly claimed that many many “desperate” altnets had dropped prices as a “last gasp” to survive and that, ultimately, they didn’t have the scale required. The latter point may be true for some players, but scale alone is not a guarantee of sucess either. As for low pricing, that has been a common factor for many years to help boost take-up vs established players and we haven’t seen this change much over the past year.

At the same time it’s worth noting that VM/nexfibre’s position is currently struggling with its own set of problems after joint venture partner Telefonica launched a strategic review, which has already impacted the operator’s ongoing deployment of FTTP broadband lines via nexfibre (here). Virgin Media has separately had some difficulty with losing customers from their broadband base – recent price hikes didn’t help (here) – and their plans for opening up Virgin’s existing network to wholesale via a new company (NetCo) have recently been paused.

Speaking of those NetCo plans, on Tuesday Fries said that the timing of Telefonica’s review was “highly unfortunate” and “not a well thought out position”. Fries added that the two sides would have to make a decision on whether to continue in the Joint Venture or “do something different” within the next 24 months, which in this fast-paced market is a worryingly long window of time to lose before arriving at a decision.

The truth is that the whole market, including VM/nexfibre, is currently under plenty of strain and almost everybody is busy adjusting strategies around that.

Original article Total Telecom:Read More

News

AT&T is celebrating after the company achieved a major goal of passing 30 million serviceable locations across the United States.

By: Brad Randall, Broadband Communities

A major milestoe is being celebrated by AT&T after the company passed the halfway mark to their goal of reaching 60 million fiber passings across the United States.

AT&T announced reaching the benchmark earlier this week, which accompanied a statement from John Stankey, AT&T’s CEO.

He said the acconmplishment is a testament to the hard work from teams at AT&T.

“We’re proud to now pass more than 30 million fiber locations — halfway to our goal of reaching approximately 60 million homes and businesses across America,” Stankey said.

He also said AT&T has built the nation’s largest and fastest-growing fiber network.

“Our investments in fiber are fueling economic growth and creating jobs, while delivering the fast, reliable connectivity Americans expect – backed by the AT&T Guarantee,” Stankey also stated.

Recent growth in AT&T’s fiber network has occurred for a number of reasons, according to the firm.

The company cited growth “organic growth” to their regional fiber networks and their joint venture with Gigapower as some main drivers of growth.

Additionally, AT&T’s release said, “commercial open-access agreements, public-private partnerships and recently announced plans to acquire substantially all of Lumen’s Mass Markets fiber business,” have all contributed to AT&T’s continued fiber growth.

The deal with Lumen Mass Markets, reported in May, will see AT&T acquire “substantially all” of Lumen’s Mass Market fiber business, the company previously announced.

AT&T’s release at the time said the deal will see the acquired assets held by a new, fully owned subsidiary named NetworkCo.

The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2026. The deal also remains subject to regulatory approval, AT&T’s release explained.

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Learn more about Broadband Communities Summit 2025 in Houston.

Original article Total Telecom:Read More

For customers like Colin Walker, who lives in the hamlet of Willitoft to the South of York, the difference has been life-changing.

“It’s like winning the lottery. It has given me access to the world, within a second,” said Colin. “Getting full fibre broadband has made us part of the rest of the world, but I can still live in the countryside and keep my distance.”

Quickline, the rural broadband provider, was awarded the contracts for West Yorkshire and the York area (Lot 8) and South Yorkshire (Lot 20) in 2024 under the UK Government’s Project Gigabit programme.

Each contract includes phased delivery targets. By the end of March 2025, Quickline was required to connect 6,273 funded premises in West Yorkshire and the York area. This target was surpassed, with 6,426 homes and businesses connected, including premises in communities such as Harden, near Bingley and Bradshaw, near Thornton.

In South Yorkshire, the first milestone target of 3,621 addresses isn’t due until the end of June, but as of 31^st March, Quickline has achieved this number, well ahead of schedule. Communities benefiting include Barnby Dun, near Doncaster, Ealand, Keadby, and Todwick.

When including the addresses Quickline has reached as part of its commercial build across rural West and South Yorkshire, more than 30,000 addresses now have gigabit-capable connectivity.

Colin added: “If you can’t access decent internet nowadays, you are just left behind and forgotten – so being connected to full fibre broadband has made a massive difference to us.”

Telecoms Minister Chris Bryant said: “Quickline’s exceptional progress in Yorkshire shows what can be achieved when government and industry work together to tackle digital inequality, ensuring people like Colin can make the most of the modern world no matter where they live.

“By exceeding these first milestones and connecting over 10,000 government-funded properties ahead of schedule, we’re already delivering on our commitment to level up digital infrastructure across the country, creating a more connected Britain where geography is no barrier to opportunity.”

Dan Hague, Project Gigabit Delivery Director at Quickline, said: “These contracts are complex by nature, often involving challenging rural builds and limited existing infrastructure. That’s why we’re proud to not only hit, but exceed, our first milestones – particularly so in South Yorkshire.

“We’re still in the early stages of our Project Gigabit contracts and have a long way to go, and we remain focused on staying on track and delivering the broadband connectivity that rural communities across Yorkshire and Lincolnshire need and deserve.

“Thanks to the commitment of our teams and build partners, we’re connecting thousands of premises and making real progress on closing the digital divide.”

Project Gigabit is the UK Government funded programme enabling hard-to-reach communities access fast, reliable, gigabit-capable broadband, reaching parts of the UK that might otherwise miss out on upgrades to next-generation speeds.

Original article Total Telecom:Read More

The award followed a thorough evaluation of MLL’s business, financial and compliance credentials, including adherence to education standards, as well as the quality, innovative features, value for money and breadth of its portfolio of services. These are now available via the DfE approved Everything ICT service including not only networks provision and professional services but also its wide range of market leading cyber, voice, cloud and broadband solutions. 

“Strategically, as a growing supplier of technology solutions to MATs and schools, Everything ICT is a prerequisite framework for MLL,” said David Robson, Head of Bid Management, MLL Telecom. “It is one of only a handful of DfE-approved frameworks for Telecoms and Broadband and is therefore widely known as a trusted source of supply for MATS and schools nationwide.”

He added: “We will be working hard to leverage the advantages it offers us including the benefit of allowing our products and services to be accessible to other public sector key markets served by MLL, such as healthcare and local councils. Furthermore, the Direct Award facility will be attractive to those of our customers looking to easily extend existing network services contracts or to add new services.”

A DfE-approved Framework for schools, Everything ICT can be used by any public sector organisation. It has become popular with areas such as Health because of the ease of use, the wide range of trusted suppliers and compliance with procurement regulations.

Original article Total Telecom:Read More

Openreach is calling on businesses across the UK to accelerate their migration to digital

networks as the January 2027 PSTN switch-off deadline approaches. With the transition

now in its final phase, businesses and Communications Service Providers (CSPs) still

relying on legacy systems risk being left behind.

Many businesses continuing to rely on outdated PSTN infrastructure risk both their

operational effectiveness and bottom lines. As legacy networks are decommissioned,

systems such as payment terminals, security alarms, ISDN systems, and landline phones

will cease to work, potentially leading to significant disruptions.

James Lilley, Director of All IP at Openreach, said: “The nationwide transition to an All-

IP network is a huge undertaking, and ensuring vulnerable users are protected during the

shift has been a priority. Now that we are confident we have addressed those needs and

can safely transition vulnerable customers, the deadline is set. It’s time for businesses to

act and unchain their networks from legacy infrastructure. The digital world won’t wait for

those that stall. Every day of delay risks disruptions, higher costs, and missed

Opportunities.”

The steps to make the transition are clear: Review, Test, and Switch. Businesses should

start by reviewing their connectivity estate to identify any equipment still relying on PSTN.

Testing this equipment can be done for free at Openreach’s test labs, ensuring

compatibility with All IP networks. Finally, businesses should switch to a digital solution as

soon as possible. Openreach is offering a range of resources to help businesses through

the transition, including support for edge cases and temporary solutions if needed.

Businesses still unsure how they are impacted by the switch-off should contact their service

Provider.

The PSTN switch-off deadline is set for January 2027, although some CSPs have earlier

dates including December 2025, and businesses that wait will face mounting costs, security

risks, and missed growth opportunities. Openreach urges all businesses to make the move

today and unlock the full potential of next-gen communication technologies that will power

the future of business.

For more information on how to start the transition, visit our website

About Openreach

We’re the people that make the net work.

Our wholesale broadband network – the UK’s largest – supports more than 680 service providers like BT, SKY, TalkTalk, Vodafone and Zen to provide broadband, TV, phone, data and mobile services to their customers.

Any company can access our network through equal pricing, terms and conditions, and our team of around 28,000 people help deliver services to every community in the UK.

Right now, we’re investing £15bn to build a new ultrafast, ultra-reliable Full Fibre broadband network to 25 million homes and businesses by the end of 2026. Work is on track, with the company intending to go even further – to as many as 30 million premises by the end of the decade – assuming conditions for investment remain supportive.

We’ve already reached 18 million premises and we’re passing thousands more every week. And we’re retraining thousands of our existing engineers to help build, connect and maintain the new network.

Our new network will help Openreach and its customers to dramatically cut emissions, with research suggesting nationwide Full Fibre broadband could save 400 million commuter trips every year. We’re also switching our commercial fleet – the UK’s second largest – to zero emissions by 2031.

We’re a wholly owned and independent subsidiary of the BT Group and for the year up to the end of March 2025, we reported revenues of £6.157bn.  

Find out more at www.openreach.com.

Original article Total Telecom:Read More

Indianapolis, IN – June 11, 2025 – Rural Tower Cooperative, a for-profit agricultural cooperative dedicated to bridging the digital divide, announces its portfolio of GIS-qualified rural parcels available for telecom companies seeking to expand broadband infrastructure. With pre-screened sites across the midwest including Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri, New York, Ohio, and Virginia, the cooperative offers telecoms a streamlined path to deploy 5G towers and fiber networks in unserved BEAD and RDOF zones.

Rural Tower Cooperative connects motivated landowners with telecom providers at no cost to farmers, using advanced GIS analysis to identify parcels with optimal terrain, road access, and power proximity. “Our mission is to accelerate rural broadband by providing telecoms with ready-to-lease sites,” said David Christophersen, General Manager. “Our parcels are vetted to meet ISP needs, saving time and costs in site acquisition.”

Telecom companies, including ISPs and tower operators, can access these parcels through Rural Tower Cooperative’s efficient lead generation process, ensuring exclusive, high-value opportunities. The cooperative’s model supports federal initiatives like USDA ReConnect, positioning it as a key partner for broadband expansion.

For inquiries or to explore available sites, contact David Christophersen at in**@************op.com Visit https://www.ruraltowercoop.com for more information.

About Rural Tower Cooperative
Rural Tower Cooperative is a for-profit agricultural cooperative based in Indiana facilitating rural broadband deployment by connecting landowners with telecom providers. Our database of GIS pre-screened sites combined with motivated landowners is designed to help telecom companies accelerate deployment for RDOF/BEAD projects nationwide.

Media Contact
David Christophersen
General Manager, Rural Tower Cooperative
(317) 606-1025
in**@************op.com

Original article Total Telecom:Read More

News

The newly merged operator has rival BT (EE) firmly in its sights, dubbing itself ‘The Nation’s Network’

Last week, after nearly three years of regulatory scrutiny, the £16.5 billion merger of Vodafone UK and Three finally closed. The move creates the UK’s largest mobile operator, with 27 million customers, and reduces the number of national operators from four to three.

But what does this all mean for customers?

Quite a lot, as VodafoneThree’s CEO Max Taylor was quick to emphasise at a launch event in London yesterday.

“The industry has lost pace and purpose. Meanwhile, our country has never needed this more. To help fix the digital divide and to support UK PLC with the digital transformation needed to drive productivity and growth. This is the moment when everything changes,” he said.

Within the next two weeks, existing customers on the Three network are expected to begin feeling the impact of the merged company’s newly combined spectrum holdings, resulting in ‘reliable speeds in more places, with an improvement in 4G data speed of up to 20%’.

Within months, customers on both networks will be able to begin roaming between the two at no additional cost, representing the first step in the networks’ long-term integration. By the end of the year, this process is expected to remove roughly 16,500 sq/km of ‘not spots’ for customers.

Customers of rival networks will have the opportunity to test out VodafoneThree’s improved network, with the company offering a free seven day ‘try before you buy’ eSIM to customers in London, Liverpool, Sheffield, and Belfast. Trial availability will be expanded to new locations in future.

Finally, by next year, VodafoneThree will commercially launch direct-to-device satellite connectivity via their partnership with AST SpaceMobile. This will allow customers to access mobile services anywhere in the country, essentially eliminating not spots entirely.

“[This service will] complement the existing network build, eliminating coverage gaps in places that otherwise couldn’t be reached, leaving no one behind,” said Taylor.

Taylor reiterated the company’s pledge to invest £11 billion to expand and improve its mobile network, ultimately aiming to provide 5G standalone coverage of 99.95% by 2034. Roughly £1.3 billion of this total is expected to be invested this year.

“We will connect every nation, every community, in every corner of the UK. We will build the UK’s best 5G network with an unprecedented £11bn privately funded infrastructure project, laying the digital foundation for our country’s growth ambitions. Benefits for our 27 million mobile customers will start within months, with access to roam across both networks at no extra cost. From big cities to small towns, and everywhere in between, our mission is to build the UK’s best network,” said Taylor in a press release.

“We’re the only operator with a plan like this,” he added on stage at the launch event.

Broadband drive

In addition to dominating the UK’s mobile market in terms of coverage and 5G, Taylor highlighted the opportunities the enhanced network will create for Vodafone’s broadband business.

Vodafone’s ISP business currently has around 2 million subscribers, a market share of roughly 6%. By leveraging Three’s substantial fixed wireless access (FWA) business and cross selling aggressively, Taylor says this figure could be more than doubled to 4.3 million over the next eight years.

To support this goal, VodafoneThree also announced a new wholesale agreement with London-based altnet Community Fibre, making Vodafone’s broadband service available to roughly 1.3 million additional customers.

When combined with Three’s FWA availability, VodafoneThree’s broadband offerings are now available to over 22.5 million homes across the country.

Supporting the growth of the UK economy

Throughout the regulatory approval process with the Competition and Markets Authority, Vodafone and Three had continued to emphasise how beneficial the merger would be for the UK economy. At the launch this week, this messaging was once again front and centre – even including a video message of praise from UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

“I’m delighted that that this huge investment is being made in mobile phone network infrastructure, better connecting people with families, loved ones and work by providing stronger, more widespread 5G coverage. Our Spending Review is all about growing our economy and attracting private investment to deliver on our Plan for Change, and it’s fantastic that VodafoneThree have chosen to join us on our mission of national renewal,” she said.

The merger will reportedly create up to 13,000 new jobs across the UK, including the creation of two new contact centres in Belfast and Sheffield, creating 400 new permanent positions. In contrast, Taylor acknowledged that some retail stores would likely close as a result of the merger but insisted that are “no plans for retail redundancies”.

How is the UK telecoms landscape evolving? Join the dicussion at Connected Britain, 24-25 September in London. Tickets available here  

Also in the news:
SWR deploys Europe’s first ’Rail-5G’ Wi-Fi  
BT accelerates fibre rollout amid cost cuts
AT&T agrees $5.75 billion deal for Lumen’s consumer fibre asset

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

New ISP Carnival Internet UK, which first went live last month (here) and is being backed by global tech company Dotlines (Dotlines UK), has announced that it’s integrating a new suite of hardware and software security products from fellow company Audra Security to “deliver a seamless and secure online experience for households“.

Audra is apparently designed to protect families and small businesses without the hefty price tag or the need for extensive IT expertise. For home users, there will be Audra Safe and AudraVPN, while business customers will get Audra Secure. This reflects an affordable, plug-and-play suite of home and small business internet security products, including routers, VPNs, and firewall solutions designed for easy, IT-free setup

Audra Safe is a Wi-Fi router that makes it easy for households to manage the security of their smart devices and their family’s online safety. It combines standard capabilities of a typical router with enhanced security features and app-based controls. This allows parents to group devices and set rules, such as blocking certain types of content or setting time limits, helping to protect their families and encourage healthy online habits.

AudraVPN is a freemium virtual private network that ensures secure browsing and high-speed streaming for users on the go, across five devices in a single subscription. Finally, Audra Secure is a portfolio of business-specific 2-in-1 router and firewall devices that provide a scalable solution, supporting up to 250 concurrent connected devices.

Users of Audra Secure can manage the devices and rules across multiple locations from a cloud-based central dashboard. With a simple subscription model and pricing plans that span from 1 to 5 years.

Matin Mahbubul, Chairman of Dotlines Group, said:

“We’re pleased to officially launch Audra in the UK, helping individuals and small businesses safeguard their online presence with an easy-to-use, cost-effective solution. Our goal is to provide the best protection at a price point that anyone can afford, whether you’re a busy parent or a small business owner just starting to secure your digital assets.

We know that many households and small businesses are targeted by cybercriminals simply because they don’t have the resources or knowledge to implement advanced security systems. Audra changes that by making security straightforward and accessible, so no IT expertise is required.”

We ran a quick check of Carnival’s consumer broadband packages and found we could add AudraVPN on a 24-month term for £3 extra per month, but there’s no option to add any of the other Audra features to packages that come bundled with Amazon’s eero routers. But you do get the Audra Safe Router and security features included on their cheapest ‘Essentials’ plans.

Dotlines UK has partnered with The Kenton Group for all this, which will serve as the national distributor of Audra Security products throughout the UK.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

The Independent Networks Co-operative Association (INCA), which represents many of the country’s alternative broadband operators, has today set out how it believes the UK should deliver on the government’s recently proposed Digital Inclusion Action Plan (DIAP) to help get more UK people using the internet and improve digital skills.

Just to recap. At the start of 2025 the UK government proposed to address the lack of digital inclusion in some areas via a series of “urgent actions” that it hopes will “begin fixing digital exclusion“. The DIAP includes various things, such as funding for local initiatives targeted to the most digitally-excluded groups (e.g. the elderly and low-income households) and partnering with inclusion charity Digital Poverty Alliance (DPA) to provide laptops to people who are digitally excluded.

The plan has also managed to extract pledges from key technology and telecoms companies (e.g. BT, CityFibre, Vodafone, Virgin Media, Openreach etc.) to help the Government achieve its mission. But some of those were just a continuation of what such operators have already been doing for the past few years.

The government is currently consulting on all of this and considering what more could be done, which is where today’s list of related proposals from INCA could come in handy.

INCA’s Proposals

• The independent network sector working closely with government to develop a plan-of-action to meet 100% coverage and encourage adoption of networks.
• Making tackling data and device poverty as the foundational priority for dealing with digital exclusion – without reliable, fast and affordable access to the internet and access to suitable devices, efforts to upskill individuals or build their confidence to engage with digital services will be fundamentally limited.
• Establish government partnerships with industry to improve digital inclusion and skills at pace. This should focus on areas such as access, participation, and a digital landscape where users feel safe in accessing digital services.
• Government playing a key role in facilitating interaction between industry and local authorities to support digital inclusion actions such as providing free broadband provision to lower-income households.
• Ensure funding from the Digital Inclusion Innovation Fund is awarded to companies and charities that are operating in local areas as they know their communities and therefore will have a greater chance of successful outcomes.
• National public awareness campaigns to support groups who would gain the most from digital inclusion, including refugees and asylum seekers, carers, and care leavers.

INCA CEO, Paddy Paddison, said:

“Our members are already doing incredible work to bring full fibre broadband to underserved regions. But access alone isn’t enough. We need a joined-up national strategy that supports people to get online, stay online, and thrive online.”

Over the years we’ve seen lots of initiatives aimed at improving digital skills and getting more people online, but they often struggle when it gets to the more challenging questions. For example, it’s often overlooked that not everybody actually wants to go online and nobody should be forced to use the internet, even if this may leave them at a disadvantage.

Furthermore, digital skills can change over time with age, as well as disability (the two are often associated). For example, you might be digitally skilled today, but this can go in reverse when you develop a disability (loss of sight, strokes etc.), which can make life a lot more difficult. Society must also have manual backups in the event that our reliance on digital services ends up being lost.