Fastr Broadband Adopt ADTRAN’s 10Gbps FTTP Kit for York UK Rollout
Alternative network ISP Fastr Broadband (formerly UK Fibre Networks) has announced that they’ve adopted ADTRAN’s hardware and services to underpin their ongoing roll-out of a 10Gbps capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network in central York (England), which is aiming to cover around 8,000 homes and businesses in the city centre. Based on our earlier article (here), Fastr’s network expansion began in the Gillygate area of York during January 2024 (Phase 1) and has since expand into the...
Intel presses pause on European chip fabs
News The news follows Intel’s disappointing Q2 results last month US chipmaker Intel has said it will pause its plans for new chip factories in Germany and Poland for two years, citing lower-than-expected demand and financial pressures. Intel had announced plans to build a €30 billion factory in Magdeburg, Germany, and a €4.6 billion facility in Wrocław, Poland in 2022 and 2023, respectively. Both projects were heavily subsidised by the respective national governments, with the European Union...
CEO of Freedom Fibre Elected as Honorary Fellow at the Royal Academy of Engineering
The CEO and Co-Founder of alternative UK full fibre broadband operator Freedom Fibre, Neil McArthur, has just become one of 71 leading figures in the engineering and technology fields to be elected as a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering. Following its AGM on 17th September 2024, the Royal Academy of Engineering announced the group consisting of 60 Fellows, 6 International Fellows and 5 Honorary Fellows, each of whom has made exceptional contributions to their own sector, pioneering...
London Internet Exchange Sees Record Traffic Pass 10Tbps
The London Internet Exchange (LINX), which handles a key chunk of UK and global data traffic through their switches via around a thousand members (broadband ISPs, mobile operators etc.), has today reported that they set a new peak record for data traffic yesterday when the aggregate total topped 10.69Tbps (Terabits per second). The new 10.7Tbps peak, which was officially recorded on Tuesday 17th September 2024 at 8:45pm, appears to have been largely driven by football fans heading online to...
ASA Bans Vodafone UK Broadband Ads After Rival ISP BT Complains
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has banned several Vodafone broadband adverts after BT lodged complaints, which claimed that the ISP was being “misleading” by claiming that customers could “switch from BT to Vodafone and get the same broadband for less” (emphasis on the “same broadband” part). But that wasn’t the only issue. The adverts themselves – reflecting several promotions via TV, Twitter (X) and the operator’s own website – related to Vodafone’s “Great British Broadband...
SubOptic, Sparkle and University of Genoa team up for world’s first subsea cable degree
Press Release Besides the implementation of the world’s first academic specialization course on submarine cables, the agreement includes collaboration on joint initiatives for the sector’s development Sparkle, the first international service provider in Italy and among the top global operators, the University of Genoa, one of the oldest in Italy and one of the best in the world on marine and maritime issues, and the SubOptic Foundation, a philanthropic organization that aims to promote...
BlueBirds take flight: AST SpaceMobile satellites enter orbit
News The five new Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites are the first step in providing mobile coverage to ‘not spots’ across the USA AST SpaceMobile has successfully launched its first five BlueBird LEO satellites, which will ultimately form part of a constellation aimed at delivering direct-to-device (D2D) connectivity to mobile subscribers. The five satellites carry antenna arrays that each cover around 700 square feet, making them the largest ever deployed by a commercial space craft. For the...
Softbank and Intelsat partner to launch global 5G network
News The deal comes just a month after Softbank’s deal with Eutelsat Japanese conglomerate SoftBank and Intelsat have announced a new partnership to develop a hybrid network solution combining satellite and terrestrial communication technology. This, the companies say, will create a “Ubiquitous Network” that offers seamless mobile connectivity, even in areas without regular mobile coverage. This new system will allow users to stay connected using just one device and account, whether they...
Altnet ISP Pulse Fibre Expands UK Broadband Reach via DW Utilities
Alternative broadband provider Pulse Fibre, which is currently aiming to complete over 250,000 unique “full fibre” (FTTP) connections into new build dwellings and MDUs (here), has signed a new partnership with multi-utility provider DW Utilities that should help to spread their service across more of the UK. The new collaboration will enable DW Utilities to offer a full range of utility services to some of the sites they serve, by integrating Pulse Fibre’s lightning-fast full fibre broadband...
EE UK Makes New Wi-Fi 7 Smart Hub Pro Broadband Router Available
Mobile network operator and UK ISP EE (BT) has today made their new Qualcomm powered WiFi 7 router (Smart Hub Pro) and wireless booster (Smart Wi-Fi Pro), which were soft launched earlier this month (here), available to both new and existing customers of their fixed line home FTTP broadband packages. In case anybody has forgotten, WiFi 7 introduces a number of new features, such as using the extra 6GHz channel with 320MHz of channel bandwidth for much broader capacity (Wi-Fi 6E is 160MHz), as...