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...
Altnets Seek to Streamline MDU Fibre Installations for UK ISPs via New System
The tediously named telecoms procurement specialist, Altnets (the company, not the sector), has launched a new system that attempts to address some of the complex engineering and compliance challenges that UK broadband ISPs face when installing in large residential buildings (MDUs / blocks of flats etc.), while also making those deployments more efficient. The FTTXcellence B2ca MDU system claims to be the “only product of its kind” and one that features B2ca-rated cables, the highest Euroclass...
SBA Communications buys 7,000 Millicom sites for $975m
News The deal will make SBA Communications “the leading tower company across all of Central America”, according to CEO Brendan Cavanagh Florida-based tower infrastructure company SBA communications has purchased 7,000 telecoms towers situated across South America from Millicom, in a deal worth $795 million. The sites are located in Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, El Salvador, and Nicaragua, and are expected to bring SBA an annual revenue of $129 million, with $89 million projected in cash flow...