SICOM Looks to Expand UK Dark Fibre Network for Businesses
Knaresborough-based network operator SICOM, which often works in partnership with local authorities, private enterprises, national carriers, has revealed that they’re looking to expand their open access Dark Fibre network, which is currently primarily located in several major cities across England, Scotland and Wales. The plan was revealed as part of their applications for Code Powers from Ofcom, which are typically sought to help speed-up deployments of new fibre and cut costs, not least by...
EllaLink announces connection to Start Campus in Portugal
Press Release EllaLink, the first high-capacity submarine cable to directly connect Latin America with Europe, announces the expansion of its network to the Start Campus SINES DC, in Portugal. This strategic move strengthens EllaLink’s presence within the Sines Atlantic Hub, reinforcing the partnership with the largest Data Centre being rolled out in Europe. EllaLink’s new fibre route to Start Campus – through the 1.2 GW capacity SINES DC-, offers customers reaching the Iberian Peninsula...
Business ISP VoiceHost Joins ITS Technology’s UK Full Fibre Network
The ITS Technology Group, which operates wholesale full fibre broadband and Ethernet networks (“Faster Britain“) across urban parts of the UK, has today announced that business voice and data solutions provider, VoiceHost, has joined their network as part of a strategic partnership. The collaboration is intended to help broaden VoiceHost’s own wholesale connectivity portfolio, enabling them to offer their partners a more diverse range of business-grade connectivity solutions. ITS’ network is...
Cornwall UK ISP Wildanet Pilot Carbon Saving FTTP Broadband Build Process
Rural broadband ISP Wildanet, which is deploying a gigabit speed Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network across rural parts of Cornwall and Devon (England), has joined forces with build contractor Dynamic Fibre to help pilot a new cable-laying process that could “dramatically reduce the carbon footprint” of their deployment. The operator, which originally started life as a Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) broadband provider in the same area, has more recently been deploying gigabit-capable full fibre...
Nexfibre: Market consolidation ‘is both inevitable and necessary’
Contributed Article by Rajiv Datta, CEO of nexfibre In today’s digital age, full-fibre broadband is much more than a faster way to browse the internet; it is the backbone of our modern lives and a critical driver for economic growth. Connectivity has become an essential that touches nearly every aspect of our daily routines. A robust fibre market fuels the broader economy by enhancing productivity, fostering innovation, and making the UK more competitive on the global stage. Any healthy and...
Ookla Claim Quarter of UK Smartphone Users Suffer Network Outage at Least Once a Month
A new survey of over 1,000 UK smartphone users by Omdia, which was commissioned by network testing firm Ookla (i.e. Speedtest.net, Downdetector.co.uk), has revealed some of the biggest frustrations that UK Smartphone users have with their devices, with spam calls and messages, slow-loading web pages, and network outages as the top pain points. The admittedly very small survey (i.e. take its results with a pinch of salt) – ‘Smartphone User Trends‘ – claims to have found that 27% of UK...
Study Finds Three UK’s 3G Switch-Off Boosted Speeds, But Hurt Coverage
Mobile network analyst firm Streetwave has used data gathered from across Northumberland (England) and Ceredigion (Wales) to examine the recent switch-off of 3G mobile services in those areas by Three UK, which resulted in median (average) mobile broadband download speeds rising by 22%, but “Essential Coverage” declined by 8%. In case anybody has forgotten, Three UK is due to fully complete the process of switching off their old 3G network by the end of 2024 (here). Mobile operators have...
Brsk Name 5 Areas in Rural West Yorkshire UK for FTTP Broadband Build
Alternative network operator and ISP Brsk has today announced that their 2Gbps Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband network, which already covers “over” 700,000 UK homes and is in the process of being merged with Netomnia (here), is being expanded to cover a further 10,000 “rural” premises in 5 new locations across West Yorkshire (England). The operator has already built their network to pass 130,000 premises across West Yorkshire, while the next batch of 10,000 premises due to join that...
Virgin Media O2 UK Broadband Users Grow to 5.73M as FTTP Adds 281K Premises
The latest Q3 2024 results from Virgin Media (O2) have been published, which shows that they’re home to 5,726,900 fixed broadband customers (up by 16.2k in Q3 vs -12.2k in Q2) and expanded their full fibre (FTTP) network to 281,100 premises – primarily via nexfibre (down from 295k in Q2). VMO2 has also sold a minority 8.3% stake in Cornerstone (worth £186m). According to the latest results, the combined VMO2 and nexfibre fixed broadband network currently reaches 17,770,100 Homes Serviceable...
UK opens national quantum computing centre
News Backed by £93 million from UKRI funding, the National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) is envisaged as a centrepiece of the UK’s quantum strategy The UK’s NQCC officially opened last week by Science Minister Lord Vallance. Located at the Harwell Campus in Oxfordshire, the 4,000-square-meter facility will house 12 quantum computers used for further research into quantum technology. Unlike similar facilities worldwide, the NQCC offers open access to researchers, industry, and students...