BT, Toshiba and Equinix Link UK Data Centres with Quantum-Secure Network
ISP BT and partner Toshiba have today announced that they’ve worked with Equinix to achieve the UK’s “first data centre to data centre connection” using their new quantum-secured metro fibre optic network, which they claim will provide businesses that use these facilities with the ability to “protect their data against future sophisticated quantum attacks“. Just to recap. BT and Toshiba have spent years developing a quantum-secure network that can even harness Openreach’s “standard” fibre...
Telecoms Minister Updates on Effort to Limit UK Broadband Poles via Infrastructure Sharing
The UK Government’s Minister for Telecoms, Sir Chris Bryant, yesterday held a round table meeting with a small selection of network operators in an effort to try and drive home the need for greater “infrastructure sharing” in order to “end the deployment of unnecessary telegraph poles” when rolling out new gigabit-capable broadband ISP networks. Just to recap. The UK has long been home to several million poles (i.e. they’re a common sight in many areas), which are often around 9 metres high...
CMA Demands Changes for Vodafone and Three UK to Merge
The Competition and Markets Authority has this morning revealed their provisional view on the outcome of their in-depth Phase 2 investigation into the proposed merger between mobile operators Three UK and Vodafone. This warns that it will only be able to approve the deal if the pair agree to key concessions that protect consumer prices and network competition. Under the originally proposed deal (here), Vodafone would retain a 51% slice of the business and CK Hutchison (Three UK) are to hold...
Devon and Somerset Update on Wessex Internet’s Full Fibre Build
After a long period of silence, the state aid funded Connecting Devon and Somerset (CDS) programme has finally issued a new progress update on their contract with UK broadband ISP Wessex Internet, which has been tasked with rolling out a new gigabit-capable full fibre (FTTP) network across some rural parts of the region. Just to recap. The Phase 2 CDS contract, which was awarded at the end of 2020 (here) and initially supported by £4.7m of public investment (partly from the Building Digital UK...
Connected Britain Reveals 2024 Broadband Award Winners
The annual Connected Britain Awards 2024 (Total Telecom) have once again taken place this week, which among other things saw full fibre and fixed wireless ISP Wildanet scoop he coveted “Broadband Provider of the Year” award, while Brsk won the “Full Fibre ISP Innovation Award” and CityFibre was named for the “Project Rollout Award“. All of the organisations that entered – spanning across various different categories – were assessed by a large panel of judges, which included key figures from...
Ofcom Finds Three UK Misses First Rural 4G Mobile Coverage Target
The UK telecoms regulator, Ofcom, has today published its first report on the progress of the £1bn industry-led Shared Rural Network project (i.e. extending 4G mobile (broadband) to cover 95% of the UK by the end of 2025), which confirms that Three UK is the only mobile operator to miss the first coverage target for Partial Not-Spot (PNS) areas. Just to recap. The SRN – supported by £501m of public funding and £532m from operators – involves both the reciprocal sharing of existing masts in...
BT Report HUGE Rise in Malicious IP Scanners Across UK Network
Telecoms and broadband ISP giant BT has today revealed that their UK network is logging 2,000 signals of potential cyber-attacks a second (200 million per day), while malicious scans of online (Internet Protocol) networks and devices have surged by over 1,234% in the last year alone. The data, which was unveiled at BT’s Secure Tomorrow cybersecurity festival at its Adastral Park research site, showed that web-connected devices are scanned over 1,000 times a day by known malicious sources – an...
Deal Brings Gigabit Broadband to 200,000 Social Homes in Manchester UK
The Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, has today told the Connected Britain event in London that a new framework (wayleave) agreement has been reached with several network operators that will help to spread full fibre gigabit broadband across 200,000 social housing properties within the combined authority. At this stage there doesn’t appear to be an official press release available. But Thinkbroadband are reporting that the new agreement is being supported by Virgin Media (via...
One Touch Switch: An inflection point of opportunity
Viewpoint Article by Jarlath Finnegan is Group CEO of AllPoints Fibre Networks (APFN) As the industry approached the launch of One Touch Switch (OTS) on 12 September, there was an increasing amount of commentary on its perceived faults and features. Regardless of which side of that debate we stand, at APFN, we see OTS as an inflection point which should give pause for thought to all of us involved in the industry. Over the past ten years, our backers have poured billions of pounds of...
Broadband ISP Vodafone UK Reminds of £100 Switching Incentive
Mobile operator and UK ISP Vodafone has today celebrated the launch of faster One Touch Switching (OTS) between home broadband providers by reminding new customers that they will offer up to £100 towards exit fees with your old ISP, which should make it easier for those still stuck in longer contracts to migrate. Nearly all of the market’s largest broadband and phone providers, as well as many smaller players (i.e. those that lock you into a longer minimum contract term), will typically levy...