Telecoms companies have long complained about the perceived imbalance of their relationship with major tech companies like Meta, Google, and Netflix, viewing these so-called ‘over-the-top’ (OTT) companies as reaping the financial rewards of their expensive connectivity infrastructure rollouts.
Since at least 2012, European operators have been periodically calling on regulators to step in and force these tech giants to contribute financially to the networks they so rely on, but so far these calls have fallen upon deaf ears.
That is, however, until last month, when European Commissioner Margrethe Vestager announced the EU would investigate whether these tech companies should pay up to ease the burden on operator capex…
Netomnia Add 3 New Towns and Villages to UK Full Fibre Rollout
Network builder Netomnia, which is being supported by UK broadband ISP partner YouFibre, has today confirmed that their 10Gbps capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP / XGS-PON) network is being extended to cover homes and businesses in the three towns and villages of Oldham, Dalton in Furness and Doddington. The operator, which has so far secured £418 million […]
TIM’s voluntary retirement scheme set to cut 1,200 jobs
Around the end of 2021, Italian incumbent operator TIM was under enormous pressure from stakeholders to make major changes to the organisation, having failed to achieve notable improvements to its financial performance for numerous years. Couple this with a divisive €10.8 billion takeover offer from US private equity firm KKR and it was clear that the company was at a significant crossroads…
Ofcom outlines the future of UK phone boxes
It goes without saying that in the UK – and indeed most developed countries – that mobile connectivity is largely taken for granted. The UK’s 4G networks cover more than 99% of the country, with mobile internet used daily by over 90% of the population.
Nonetheless, thousands, perhaps millions, of UK citizens remain reliant on older technologies like landlines and payphones for their connectivity needs, making retiring these legacy services very difficult for operators.
BT, for example, announced in November last year that they planned to switch off their existing landline services (PSTN and ISDN) in 2025…
Ofcom outlines the future of UK payphones
It goes without saying that in the UK – and indeed most developed countries – that mobile connectivity is largely taken for granted. The UK’s 4G networks cover more than 99% of the country, with mobile internet used daily by over 90% of the population.
Nonetheless, thousands, perhaps millions, of UK citizens remain reliant on older technologies like landlines and payphones for their connectivity needs, making retiring these legacy services very difficult for operators.
BT, for example, announced in November last year that they planned to switch off their existing landline services (PSTN and ISDN) in 2025…
Ofcom Moves to Protect Essential UK BT and KCOM Phone Boxes
Ofcom has today introduced new rules that aim to protect public phone boxes (payphones) – specifically those built by BT and KCOM – when they exist in areas with “poor mobile signals or high accident rates“. In addition, payphones will now require battery backup so that they can keep working after the switch to digital […]
Orange Poland signs 10-year network expansion deal with Nokia
Nokia today announced that it has won a ten-year extension to its contract with Orange Polska (Orange). The move will support Orange’s strategy of delivering best-in-class services to its customers.
Under the contract, Nokia will upgrade all existing networks including equipment supporting phasing out Orange&rsquo…
Helios Towers & Rakiza to purchase Omantel towers
Today, London-based independent tower company Helios Towers has announced that it has found a partner with which it intends to purchase Omantel’s mobile tower business.
Helios Towers is now set to purchase a 70% stake in the Omantel-owned holding company, while Rakiza Telecommunication Infrastructure, a wholly owned subsidiary of Oman Infrastructure Fund…
Ex-Openreach MD to become G.Network CEO
Last month, G.Network announced that its CEO and co-founder, Sasho Veselinski, would be stepping down from the business for “personal reasons” with immediate effect.
The company’s COO and fellow co-founder, David Sangster, has since been acting as interim CEO while the company searched for a full…
Three UK in Huge Hike to Standard Charges on PAYG Mobile Plans
Customers of mobile network operator Three UK, specifically those who still take their Pay As You Go (PAYG) plans, have begun to receive a new notification that informs them of another significant price hike to their standard rates for calls, text messages (SMS) and data usage (mobile broadband). At present Three UK charges PAYG customers […]