Original article Total Telecom:Read More

Press Release

[Copenhagen, Denmark, June 24, 2026]‌ At the DTW 2026, Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison (IOH), in partnership with Huawei, won the “Excellence in AI & data for business impact” award for the new Generation intelligent operations solution AUTINOps based on the AI-Native Framework for Intelligent Operations. Leveraging cutting-edge technologies such as Digital Twin Network (DTN), Multi-agent collaboration, and Domain Specific Model (EDNS 2.0), the solution addresses the complex challenges of network operations in Indonesia, establishing a benchmark for AI-Native-driven operations transformation in the global telecom industry.

IOH and Huawei are committed to joint innovation centered on value and technology, pioneering the deployment of the AUTINOps solution across IOH’s network. This initiative elevates technology, processes, and organization through comprehensive intelligent transformation. By applying data governance framework of “Identify-Analyze-Optimize-Retain,” along with full-domain DTN and EDNS 2.0. These enable real-time, network-wide visibility, supporting fault management and predictive risk prevention. Through core capabilities such as multi-agent collaboration, dynamic chain-of-thought, and domain knowledge management, the solution achieves an 80% one-hop closure rate for fault-handling and reduces mean time to repair (MTTR) by 15%. In terms of network quality, availability improved from 99.3% to 99.7%, and site traffic loss decreased by 15%.

Simultaneously, both parties redefined the operations model, streamlining the original nine-step manual process into a two-step intelligent closed loop. This transformation facilitated the skill upgrade of over 400 operations personnel and cultivated 65 “digital employees,” establishing a new intelligent operations paradigm characterized by “humans supervising/enhancing AI Agents to execute and close tasks.”

The solution has been deployed at scale across all IOH network domains, including wireless, microwave, IP, transport, and energy, with annual agent calls exceeding 2 million, supporting communication services across more than 17,000 islands in Indonesia. Furthermore, based on project practices, IOH and Huawei have contributed 15 new standards, protocols, and methodologies to TM Forum, providing reusable practical experience for the digitization operations transformation of global operators.

IOH and Huawei Win “Excellence in AI & Data for business impact” Award

This TM Forum Excellence Award reaffirms Huawei’s technical strength and deployment capabilities in intelligent operations. Huawei will continue to explore and practice Agentic Operations together with leading operators like IOH, accelerating the journey towards ANL4 and implementing a new operations paradigm driven by value.

The post Indonesia’s Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison and Huawei Win TM Forum 2026 Excellence in AI & Data for business impact Award appeared first on Total Telecom.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Broadband and mobile operator Virgin Media and O2 (VMO2) have this morning set out their new Green Transition Plan, which claims to reveal how it will achieve Net Zero carbon emissions across its full value chain, while reducing its environmental impact, by their current target for the end of 2040.

Admittedly keeping tabs on all these “green” initiatives has become a bit of a choir, particularly when you have operators like VMO2 attaching several different labels for helping to achieve the same thing every few years and months. For example, we had the “Better Connections Plan“ between 2022 and 2025, then we recently had the “Responsible Business Plan” to 2030 (ESG strategy) and now the “Green Transition Plan“.

Suffice to say it can be a real pain to wade through all the waffle, but the focus this time seems to be on “sharing a long-term approach to becoming a low-carbon business“, which admittedly is what we thought the original plan was also attempting to do.

As before, the “new” plan includes a range of measures to decarbonise, support nature recovery, strengthen the resilience of its network infrastructure to climate risks, and drive device reuse and recycling. Once again this mostly seems to consist of summarising the expected impacts of their existing initiatives.

Climate – reducing the impact of our network:

➤ Near-term decarbonisation: By 2030, Virgin Media O2 will reduce Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 90% and Scope 3 emissions by 50%. It has already reduced Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 63% against its 2020 baseline.

➤ Long-term net zero: Achieve net zero carbon emissions across its full value chain by the end of 2040.

➤ Carbon-free power: Support the UK’s energy transition by sourcing 100% carbon-free energy from UK sources and driving energy efficiency across its operations.

➤ Climate resilience: Building and operating more climate-resilient broadband and mobile networks.

Circularity – Extending the life of technology:

➤ Supporting every device to ‘live twice’: Virgin Media O2 will continue to drive the UK’s circular economy so technology, such as smartphones, tablets or consoles, can be given a second life and repaired, recycled or refurbished and sold as ‘like new’ products. This reduces demand for critical materials, supports business resilience and increases customer choice.

➤ Refurbished growth: Aim to double the number of people buying refurbished devices from Virgin Media O2 by 2030.

➤ Recycling: Aim to double the number of people recycling unwanted devices via O2 Recycle by 2030.

➤ Reuse culture: The company will build on its partnership with Coventry City Council by championing a device reuse culture in 30 cities by 2030, supporting programmes and initiatives to keep tech in use for longer and support digital inclusion. This means devices will be reused locally and passed to people who need them, creating social value and preventing electronic waste.

The plan is said to be underpinned by 14 ‘transition levers’ that will help the company reach its goals as quickly and efficiently as possible. These include working with its supply chain to cut carbon and waste from network and customer equipment, sourcing carbon-free energy, improving the energy efficiency of customer devices, and continued investment in its networks which will support the UK’s Net Zero transition.

Dana Haidan, Chief Sustainability Officer at Virgin Media O2, said:

“Our Green Transition Plan is a milestone in Virgin Media O2’s journey to become a more resilient, lower carbon business.

It’s a long-term commitment backed with action across many interconnected areas where we’re working to reach net zero, give technology a second life, and build and operate climate-resilient networks.

Embedding responsible business into every decision Virgin Media O2 makes is key, as we reduce our environmental impact, help protect the planet, and keep our customers connected.”

The new plan does also contain a useful update on the progress that VMO2 has been making toward their target, which we’ve pasted below to save you needing to read through the document.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

British telecoms and broadband giant BT Group has this morning announced that they’ve signed an agreement with Verizon Communications to combine their respective international enterprise operations into a 50:50 joint venture. Both operators will hold equal voting rights and Verizon has agreed to pay BT an equalisation payment of $625m (£473m).

The new JV, which is expected to “unlock significant scale efficiencies across the combined global network and service operations“, will focus on serving multinational organisations. It is expected to serve more than 3,000 customers across more than 180 countries, representing approximately £3bn ($4bn) in combined annual revenue.

“Designed specifically for a cloud-first world in the age of AI, the joint venture brings together BT International, which serves multinational customers with secure and resilient communication and network services around the world, with Verizon’s international enterprise wireline arm, which provides secure connectivity to enterprises worldwide … At the same time, the parent companies will be better able to focus on their domestic markets, while providing support to the new joint venture as equal shareholders,” said the announcement.

As part of this, Martijn Blanken has been appointed CEO-designate of the new joint venture (effective from 1st Sept 2026). Martijn has almost three decades in senior leadership positions across telecommunications, technology and digital infrastructure at Telstra, Openwave Systems, EXA Infrastructure and KPN. Meanwhile, Clive Selley will continue to lead BT International as CEO, ensuring continuity in readiness for the creation of the JV.

Allison Kirkby, CEO of BT Group, said:

“The world’s leading brands and international organisations trust BT International to connect them across the world. Bringing together this expertise and heritage with Verizon’s deep relationships with multinationals will create a stronger, scaled connectivity partner – one that has the reach, innovation and investment to succeed. Customers will benefit from new, secure and resilient connectivity platforms, which are designed for the age of AI and sovereign where it matters. It will create new opportunities for our people and long-term value for our owners. Today’s announcement marks a major milestone for BT International, and an important step forward for BT as a whole, as we deliver on our UK-focused strategy.”

Dan Schulman, CEO of Verizon, said:

“Our international customers require secure, flexible connectivity that works seamlessly across borders and cloud environments. When we thought about how to best support them, this joint venture was the clear answer: a cutting-edge, AI-ready and secure platform run by a single global organization dedicated to their needs. At the same time, our relationship with those customers will stay equally strong as we continue to directly provide them with the connectivity they need in the U.S.”

The transaction is currently expected to complete sometime in 2027, albeit subject to the usual regulatory clearances and other customary closing conditions. BT and Verizon hope the JV will create a stronger platform for growth and accelerate the rollout of next-generation connectivity platforms.

The new JV will be incorporated in the Bailiwick of Jersey and headquartered and tax resident in the United Kingdom. Goldman Sachs acted as lead financial advisor to BT, with Deloitte as transaction services advisors and Freshfields LLP as legal counsel. Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC acted as financial advisors to Verizon and Kirkland & Ellis LLP acted as legal counsel.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

In news that will not come as a great surprise to ISPreview’s readers. A new MSE survey of 47,000 tariffs – all from UK mobile and broadband providers with the biggest market share – has found that Ofcom’s latest policy to improve the transparency of mid-contract price hikes actually seems to have resulted in consumers paying more for their service.

At the start of last year the UK telecoms and media regulator, Ofcom, began requiring telecoms providers to adopt a new approach to mid-contract price hikes, which finally did away with the old and sometimes confusing percentage and inflation-based model – replacing it with one that require providers to set out such price rises “clearly and up-front, in pounds and pence, when a customer signs up” (here).

On the surface this seemed like a good idea, not least because it made annual price hikes clearer and more transparent. On the flip side, it also made it more difficult for providers to balance price rises across lots of different packages, which resulted in many providers adopting a flat price rise – set at the same level for every package.

For example, BT were the first to jump by increasing the monthly broadband price that customers pay by a flat £3 extra – effective from March or April each year (the level of increase varies a bit between providers), which was later increased to £4 after inflation remained higher than forecast (here). Many other providers have since adopted a near identical approach.

The problem with this approach, which we’ve raised many times before on these pages, is that it has a tendency to hit those on the cheapest broadband and mobile packages the hardest (i.e. if you pay £20/month then a £4 rise equates to a 20% price hike each year), while only giving a reprieve to the smaller portion of consumers who take more expensive packages (e.g. if you pay £60 then a £4 rise equates to a 6.67% increase) – not very fair to those on cheaper packages.

Results of the new study

According to the new study of 47,000 tariffs from UK mobile and broadband providers, which was conducted by Martin Lewis and MoneySavingExpert (MSE), some three in four were found to be worse off under Ofcom’s new system than they would have been under the previous inflation-linked approach.

In addition, in almost all cases, “all customers faced above-inflation price rises under the new system” and “those who suffer most are those who have tried to keep their costs down by choosing cheaper tariffs“.

Impact on a selection of broadband contracts

Martin Lewis said:

“This was frustratingly predictable. Let’s be plain, it provisionally looks like the regulator’s intervention resulted in most contracts costing more. Transparency only goes so far, we don’t want customers overpaying just because they were told about it first.

The solution has always been bleedin’ obvious. Just ban above-inflation mid-contract price hikes. Of course, many, including me, would prefer a ban on any mid-contract rise, as the price you sign up for should be the price you pay over the length of the contract. Yet that risks possible market distortion, as firms may lift initial prices as a provision against unexpected costs mid-contract.”

Sadly the government has, thus far, only seemed inclined to pay lip service to this problem, such as through their soft voluntary Telecoms Consumer Charter (TCC), while at the same time saying they have “no plans to ban in-contract price rises” for UK consumers taking broadband, mobile and phone services (here).

One difficulty for the industry is over the question of how you ban mid-contract hikes without also disrupting the ability of providers to offer a diverse range of attractive first-contract-term style service discounts. In a competitive market this can help to attract or retain customers, while also supporting the growth of new alternative networks against established incumbents.

Finding a balanced approach that preserves some discounting, while still being easy to understand and apply in a way that’s fair across lots of different package tiers, is not an easy task. But much like MSE, we remain broadly in favour of a ban on mid-contract hikes. Finally, inflation has since fallen back a bit over the past year, so we’re waiting to see if any big providers reduce their mid-contract hikes later in 2026.

Take note that there is some choice in the market, so not all providers adopt a policy of mid-contract hikes, although the current system is common amongst the largest players and most consumers use those.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Rural-focus internet provider B4RN (Broadband for the Rural North), which is a community built and supported network that has so far deployed their 10Gbps full fibre (FTTP) lines to cover 32,000 rural premises in England (up from 30k in Apr 2025), has now grown its customer base to 15,700 (up from 15k in Sept 2025).

B4RN is a registered Community Benefit Society, which means they can’t be bought by a commercial operator and profits must go back into the community. The operator has already expanded their full fibre network to cover various remote rural parts of Lancashire, Cheshire, Cumbria, Northumberland, Essex, Norfolk, Suffolk, Yorkshire, Northumberland and County Durham – often with the direct help of local volunteers (building and shares).

The latest progress has been shared as part of an update to bondholders reflecting on the impact of B4RN’s 2019 Triodos investment bond and the long-term growth achieved across its rural network since then. As part of that the bank’s corporate finance team structured and raised a £3.3m bond, which helped B4RN scale its network. This was often also used to underpin their applications to the government’s Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme (GBVS).

The provider originally says they set out plans to connect an additional 9,700 properties across 28 communities through its 2019 bond raise. Since then, B4RN says they’ve “significantly exceeded those ambitions” while also securing more than £20m in Government Project Gigabit funding.

Since 2019, B4RN has also:

• Increased its Net Book Value of network build from approximately £8m to around £35m
• Achieved an average take-up rate of 50% across its network
• Expanded its workforce from around 27 employees to more than 80
• Connected more than 309 community assets free of charge, including schools, village halls, places of worship and community-owned facilities
• Received seven industry awards recognising both its fibre deployment and community-led delivery model

Tom Rigg, CEO of B4RN, said:

“When we set out our ambitions in 2019, we knew there was enormous untapped potential within rural communities, but what has been achieved by our very own volunteers and communities since then has exceeded even our own expectations.

Together with our volunteers, champions, landowners, and customers we’ve built infrastructure that is delivering long-term economic and social value in areas that have historically been overlooked by traditional investment models.

We’ve always believed that if communities and investors take a long-term view together, rural infrastructure can be both sustainable and transformational. The progress we’ve made since 2019 is proof of that.

There’s been a lot of discussion across the market about the challenges of rural connectivity and infrastructure delivery. What our model demonstrates is that when communities are genuinely involved, and when investment is aligned to long-term outcomes, sustainable growth is absolutely achievable.”

Despite having a relatively small premises passed count, it’s worth noting that B4RN’s physical fibre network is geographically still quite large due to the wide open remote rural areas they tend to serve.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Customers of TalkTalk have informed ISPreview that, after pausing the sale of new hybrid fibre FTTC (VDSL2 / SOGEA) broadband lines to new subscribers (here), the ISP has also stopped providing their IP-based Digital Voice (phone) service to new customers too. But those aren’t the only products they’ve paused.

A quick look at the related information page on TalkTalk’s website confirms that Digital Voice is “only available to existing customers on our Full Fibre plans. Digital Voice is a flexible, more reliable home phone service. As opposed to traditional phone lines, Digital Voice runs through our superfast Full Fibre broadband” – an unusual move given the urgent transition away from old analogue phone services (PSTN/WLR).

The change appears to have occurred sometime between April and May 2026, while the provider’s official information page makes no mention of this being a temporary state. Nevertheless, TalkTalk has informed ISPreview that it is merely “temporarily paused“, which has been attributed to the same change as the FTTC pause (i.e. it relates to their ongoing work to fully adopt the Kraken customer management platform).

Kraken is designed to empower their customer care specialists to more quickly and effectively review customer account details and take actions that would previously have involved long and complicated processes. So hopefully all of this disruption should be worthwhile.

Existing customers with Full Fibre and Digital Voice are unaffected, and existing Full Fibre Data-Only customers will apparently “soon” be able to add Digital Voice when re-contracting. But for now it’s not available to new customers and TalkTalk haven’t said when that will change. Credits to John to being the first to report this to us.

We’ve since asked TalkTalk whether there are any other products that have been paused in the same way for new customers and were informed that they’ve also temporarily paused sales of their optional add-on services (e.g. SuperSafe, TalkTalk TV, Total Home Wi-Fi) to new customers – all as part of setting up and migrating customers to Kraken. But the ISP could not tell us when this pause would end, only that it would be “soon“.

In addition, last week saw TalkTalk announce that their support teams would no longer be available via X (Twitter): “Please note, from 30 June 2026, our customer service team will no longer respond to posts or messages here on X. To get the quickest and most effective help, TalkTalk customers should contact us via http://talktalk.co.uk/myaccount, the TalkTalk app, or by giving us a call.”

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Network analyst firm Streetwave has published the partial results from a new study that compared the real-world mobile network (4G, 5G) and mobile broadband performance from EE, O2, Vodafone and Three UK across the District Line, which runs from Whitechapel to Wimbledon.

The tube journey involved in this study typically connects Whitechapel to Wimbledon – lasting over 50 minutes – and goes through zones 1-3. Streetwave is understood to have taken their portable data collection equipment onboard for one of these trips, thus the results below should be considered fairly anecdotal, albeit still interesting.

The test itself was conducted on 28th April 2026 and started at 4:58pm from Whitechapel, with the train being full during the rush hour journey. Streetwave then recorded the Basic Coverage scores for each operator, which reflects locations where mobile users can access data speeds of above 1Mbps download, 0.5Mbps upload, and below 100ms (milliseconds) of latency (i.e. supporting only the most basic of use cases or needs).

Basic Coverage Scores on District Line to Wimbledon

1. EE – 55%
2. Vodafone – 44%
3. O2 – 36%
4. Three – 34%

Put another way, the company’s simulated passenger on each mobile network spent the following amount of time WITHOUT a dependable internet connection on the journey: Three UK – 34 minutes, O2 – 33 minutes, Vodafone – 29 minutes and EE – 23 minutes. In addition, Streetwave also provided ISPreview with the mobile broadband speeds for each operator on the same trip.

Original article Total Telecom:Read More

Press Release 

Huawei with TM Forum and 12 Operators, Jointly Releases the New-Generation Intelligent Operations White Paper 4.0‌ 

[Copenhagen, Denmark, June 23, 2026]‌ At the DTW Ignite 2026, Huawei in collaboration with TM Forum and 12 global operators, jointly released the New-Generation Intelligent Operations White Paper 4.0. This white paper focuses on Agentic Operations, integrating practical achievements from multiple global operators. It elaborates on the AI-native operations architecture, implementation pathways, and business value, aiming to accelerate the construction of a new paradigm for ICT operations, unleash new value, and enable a leap for operational intelligence. 

Since the first version was released in 2023, Huawei has released four generations of white papers, continuously evolving along the operational transformation path of “network-centric,” “service-centric,” and “value-centric.” Based on technological advancements and industry pain points, White Paper 4.0 proposes an AI-Native intelligent operations value proposition: value-driven, with Digital Twin Network (DTN) and Domain Specific Model (EDNS 2.0), and a new paradigm of intelligent operations featuring Hybrid Team + Agentic Process. 

White Paper 4.0 distils a “Three-Stage, Six-Step” methodology encompassing data governance, process re-engineering, and organizational transformation, along with a four-stage data governance framework of “Identify-Analyze-Optimize-Retain.” Simultaneously, leveraging DTN and EDNS 2.0, continuously scans network and service status in real-time, identifies risks, and generates remediation plans. This ensures the effectiveness of backup and disaster recovery mechanisms at the T0 moment, guaranteeing stable service operations. By eliminating risks at the T-1 moment and enabling rapid fault recovery at T0, it establishes a “dual protection” for intelligent operations. 

Based on this framework, a new operational paradigm is redefined: shifting from humans utilizing tools to execute and close tasks, to humans supervising/enhancing AI Agents to execute and close tasks. Through intelligent agents, massive-scale tasks such as inspections and fault handling are automated, allowing personnel to shift focus to high-value work like complex problem-solving and agent development/optimization. Several operator practices have already been implemented, achieving an agent one-hop closure rate of over 80%, supporting the dual enhancement of network and service quality. 

Danwill Duan, President of Huawei ICT Assurance and Operation Services Domain, stated: “Agentic Operations is an inevitable trend in the evolution of network operations. White Paper 4.0 consolidates the exploration achievements of the entire industry. We hope to take this as an opportunity to collaborate with more partners to effectively address challenges, create greater value, and accelerate the journey towards AN L4.” 

In the future, Huawei will continue to collaborate with global operators and standards organizations, deepen technological innovations in Domain Specific Models, Digital Twins of Networks, and AI Agents, continuously improve the new-generation intelligent operations framework, and accelerate the transformation of technological innovation into operational benefits.

President of Huawei ICT Assurance and Operation Services Danwill Duan 

Interprets White Paper 4.0‌ 

Official Download Link for the New-Generation Intelligent Operations White Paper 4.0:‌ 

https://inform.tmforum.org/research-and-analysis/reports/new-generation-intelligent-operations-an-ai-native-reinvention 

The post Deepening the Transformation Process, Ushering in a New Era of Intelligent Operations‌ appeared first on Total Telecom.

Original article Total Telecom:Read More

Press Release 

[Copenhagen, Denmark, June 24, 2026] At Digital Transformation World (DTW) 26, Huawei, in collaboration with TM Forum and GSMA Intelligence, hosted the 5th Green & Resilience Development Forum, bringing together industry leaders to explore the sustainable development of communications networks. The forum featured in-depth discussions on the Green Network Index (GNI), AI-powered energy efficiency, and resilient architecture practices, collectively charting the course toward green and resilient networks.

Executive Vision: Green + Resilience as Dual Engines for Future Networks

Tim Niu, President of Huawei’s Network Consulting and System Integration Department, delivered the opening remarks, warmly welcoming distinguished guests and partners from around the world. The forum’s theme—”AI-Driven Green & Resilience: New Blueprint for Zero-Carbon and Reliable Network Architecture”—underscored a critical paradigm shift: green networks are no longer optional but essential. Resilience serves as the baseline for sustainable networks, while AI acts as the accelerator toward the 2030 zero-carbon vision.

“Huawei is committed to collaborating with industry partners worldwide, leveraging ‘green + resilience’ as dual engines to advance the GNI standard and the Hedera architecture,” Tim stated. “Together, we will build networks that are low-carbon and measurable, resilient and verifiable, and evolvable and sustainable.”

Industry Consensus: Green Transformation of Communications Networks is Imperative

Peter Jarich, Head of GSMA Intelligence, presented the Green Network Index Round 2 findings. The second round introduced an enhanced measurement methodology and comprehensive indicator system covering entire networks, individual networks, and stations. Over 20 mobile and fixed network operators participated in this initiative. Additionally, the GNI digital platform has been launched, providing operators with case studies for sustainable development planning and benchmarking.

Marc Einstein, Director of Research at Counterpoint Research, explored how AI is reshaping the sustainability trajectory of telecom operators. Drawing on validated operator data, he highlighted that AI-driven optimization has achieved annual energy savings of 4 billion kWh. Over the past decade, Telefónica has seen data traffic surge by 1,200%, while total network energy consumption decreased by 12%, and energy density ratio declined by 92% compared to 2015. Green is no longer merely a compliance requirement—it has become a strategic foundation for the digital economy and computing power networks.

Lloyd Chan, Vice President of Strategic Transformation at HKT, outlined HKT’s approach to infrastructure development, emphasizing green practices, cyber resilience, and AI enablement. Network modernization, intelligent power supply systems, and resilient architecture design not only improve operational efficiency and mitigate operational risks, but also support AI-era service development and emerging application requirements.

Technological Innovation: AI Accelerates Green and Resilient Development

David Yu, General Manager of Huawei’s Green Resilience Target Network Solution, addressed key industry challenges: accelerating climate change, rising OPEX, and the prevalence of low-efficiency legacy equipment and network outages. Huawei has partnered with industry organizations to establish a green network index and Hedera Architecture, leveraging digital twin capabilities and AI for data governance. The solution is promoting the transformation of traditional wireless base stations into green smart sites and legacy equipment rooms into edge data centers capable of meeting future computing demands, supporting collaborative development across mobile, home, and business (CHB) scenarios—achieving results over 30% ahead of industry benchmarks.

“Green and resilient innovation provides the driving force for carriers to develop high-quality services and maintain a competitive edge.” David noted.

Looking Ahead: Infinite Value in Industry’s Green and Resilient Transformation

Facing dual pressures from global shifts and surging traffic, Huawei has invited GSMA Intelligence, Counterpoint, and HKT to explore this topic together, reaching a consensus: green and resilience are no longer a trade-off—they are shared imperatives. Looking ahead, the industry will move from passive energy saving to active energy intelligence, powered by the GNI standard and AI agent technology, building a digital foundation that is both low-carbon and resilient. Green and resilience are strategic imperatives, not competing options. Huawei looks forward to working with global partners to build a green target network that is zero-carbon, resilient, and built to deliver.

The post AI-Driven Green & Resilience: New Blueprint for Zero-Carbon and Reliable Network Architecture appeared first on Total Telecom.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Network access provider Openreach (BT) has announced that they will shortly reduce the Fixed Fee for Excess Construction Charges (ECC), which are sometimes charged when UK broadband or Ethernet deployments require extra civil engineering work. In addition, they’re also reducing the Connection Charges on Ethernet Access Direct (EAD) lines for businesses.

Sadly, not all new installations are easy and some builds can attract ECCs, particularly those requiring the installation of a dedicated high-capacity Ethernet line (leased line) – these may need extra work to provide you with a service (e.g. running the fibre over a much longer distance than usual).

However, Ofcom’s regulatory rules require that any reduction in ECCs incurred must be reflected in the Fixed Fee that Openreach charges for the service, which is currently set at £708 excluding VAT. The good news is that there was a reduction in ECCs incurred during 2025/26 (here) and so the network operator will cut the Fixed Fee to £516 from 1st August 2026. But this has also had another positive impact.

OR’s Statement on EAD Charges

As a result of the ECC Fixed Fee reduction, Openreach has reviewed its Connection Charges. Having reviewed the ECC Fixed Fee reduction and compliance with the Ethernet basket charge control as a whole, Openreach will be making reductions to EAD Connection charges.

These reductions will apply to EAD up to 1GB services in Area 2 and Area 3, with the level of reduction varying by geographic area. These changes are also reflected in the Ethernet Access Direct (EAD) 1000Mb Local Access alternative pricing for the UK excluding CLA and HNR areas offer via an equivalent adjustment to the offer rental charge (Price List page 8.2.56).

The EAD price reductions are fairly small to modest, but it’s still a welcome development (see EAD Pricing).