News

Telecoms networks and broadband communications

• May 23, 2018 23 May'18

  Government pledges full-fibre broadband for all by 2033

  In a speech to the CBI, chancellor Philip Hammond pledges to build a nationwide FTTP network by 2033

• May 22, 2018 22 May'18

  Qualcomm and Facebook working on FWA broadband

  Qualcomm is to integrate a number of its chipsets with Facebook’s Terragraph technology to build fixed wireless access broadband solutions for urban areas

• May 21, 2018 21 May'18

  Openreach launches Scottish fibre training school

  Openreach has launched its Scottish engineering school in Livingston as it prepares to train 400 new broadband specialists to run its full-fibre roll-out

• May 18, 2018 18 May'18

  Three ditches 3G mobile phones

  Three has become the first of the big four UK mobile operators to stop selling 3G mobile devices

• May 18, 2018 18 May'18

  GDS seeks advice on migration from Public Services Network

  The Government Digital Service has started the process of moving public sector organisations away from the Public Services Network

• May 16, 2018 16 May'18

  BT and EE to converge fibre broadband, 4G networks

  BT’s consumer unit has launched a network convergence strategy designed to make the most of its national fibre and 4G network assets

• May 15, 2018 15 May'18

  Vodafone CEO Colao steps down

  Long-serving Vodafone CEO Vittorio Colao will step down in October after just over a decade in charge

• May 15, 2018 15 May'18

  Openreach starts countdown to the end of analogue phone services

  Openreach has started a consultation on the future of telephony services as its parent signals plans to switch off analogue PSTN phone services in seven years' time

• May 14, 2018 14 May'18

  MPs demand 4G mobile network coverage obligation for rural areas

  The Rural Business All-Party Parliamentary Group has written to Matt Hancock calling for the government to put legally binding targets in place for 4G mobile network coverage

• May 11, 2018 11 May'18

  KCOM picks Amdocs to enhance network transition

  East Yorkshire and Humberside’s incumbent telco to implement new service delivery platform as it upgrades its network

• May 10, 2018 10 May'18

  Connectivity problem hits thousands of Post Office branches

  Post Office branches unable to connect to Horizon computer system for several hours after morning opening time

• May 10, 2018 10 May'18

  BT to shut London HQ and cut 13,000 jobs

  Another round of cuts comes as BT struggles to reposition itself for sustainable long-term growth

• May 09, 2018 09 May'18

  Vodafone becomes largest next-gen broadband player in Europe

  Vodafone has acquired the operations of Virgin Media parent Liberty Global in four European markets, giving it access to 110 million homes and businesses

• May 08, 2018 08 May'18

  Virtual tripwire to keep elephant poachers out of Zambian national park

  Cisco and Dimension Data are working to protect Zambia’s at-risk elephant population after a successful pilot project in South Africa

• May 03, 2018 03 May'18

  Fibre network breakthrough has implications for data security

  Researchers have devised a new protocol that they claim vastly extends the range of quantum key distribution over fibre networks

• May 03, 2018 03 May'18

  TalkTalk worst for broadband customer satisfaction

  Ofcom has released statistics on communications service provider customer service metrics, and TalkTalk does not come out of it well

• May 01, 2018 01 May'18

  Gulf Cooperation Council smart city initiatives garner momentum

  The Middle East is a hotbed for smart city developments, with activities in the region maturing and adapting to what citizens want

• May 01, 2018 01 May'18

  Three starts to prepare core network for 5G

  Mobile operator Three has enlisted SSE Enterprise Telecoms to bring 20 core datacentres on-net as it prepares to start rolling out 5G

• May 01, 2018 01 May'18

  Bristol’s historic bridge pressed into service for rural broadband

  Gigaclear is running cables underneath Bristol’s historic Clifton Suspension Bridge to bring ultrafast full-fibre services to forgotten communities

• April 30, 2018 30 Apr'18

  Over a million homes can now access FTTP, says Ofcom

  Access to viable broadband services continues to improve across the UK, according to Ofcom

• April 30, 2018 30 Apr'18

  Yorkshire and Humber region awards HSCN contract to Redcentric

  Network services provider Redcentric wins the first major regional Health and Social Care Network contract as procurements around England gather pace

• April 30, 2018 30 Apr'18

  Even the smallest of Dutch towns are becoming smart

  An increasing number of Dutch towns and cities use street sensors and big data to tackle societal problems. From smart lighting to artificial intelligence that spots violent behaviour in surveillance footage, smart technology is booming in the ...

• April 27, 2018 27 Apr'18

  BT risks ‘fading away’ in full-fibre future, says Ofcom CEO

  BT risks being consigned to the dustbin of failed tech companies if it messes up the transition to full-fibre broadband networks, says Ofcom CEO Sharon White

• April 26, 2018 26 Apr'18

  O2 reveals plans for new 4G mobile spectrum

  O2 has already turned on 100 new mobile sites since winning big in the Ofcom spectrum auction, and hopes to activate 900 more this year

• April 26, 2018 26 Apr'18

  NCSC shows support for common standards for secure communication

  The UK cyber security authority is supporting an industry drive towards common standards for secure communication by joining an industry organisation that aims to achieve this goal

• April 24, 2018 24 Apr'18

  Full-fibre broadband specialist CityFibre acquired for £538m

  Full-fibre broadband specialist CityFibre is to be bought by a Goldman Sachs-backed consortium as it seeks more cash to fulfil its expansion plans

• April 24, 2018 24 Apr'18

  Unified communications supplier Mitel bought by VCs

  Unified communications and networking technology supplier Mitel is to be acquired by affiliates of Searchlight Capital Partners for $2bn

• April 24, 2018 24 Apr'18

  Vodafone CityFibre broadband venture gathers pace

  Residents of four more cities – Coventry, Edinburgh, Huddersfield and Stirling – will be hooked up to the ultrafast full-fibre broadband service in the coming months

• April 23, 2018 23 Apr'18

  Community Fibre gets £25m to fund broadband in London

  Broadband supplier receives backing from the National Digital Infrastructure Fund to bring full-fibre services to 100,000 more properties across London

• April 18, 2018 18 Apr'18

  BT to supply European air navigation network

  BT has been selected to provide the upgraded air traffic management network across Europe

• April 18, 2018 18 Apr'18

  Twilio offers IoT developers programmable mobile connectivity

  Developers of internet of things applications and devices will be able to use the Twilio Programmable Wireless mobile communications platform to build mobile connectivity into their services

• April 17, 2018 17 Apr'18

  Huawei invests in 5G mobile networks, but eases back on the hype

  Telecoms supplier Huawei has been updating the industry on its 5G vision at its annual Analyst Summit in Shenzhen, China, but shied away from making bold predictions

• April 17, 2018 17 Apr'18

  Huawei wants to unlock ASEAN’s digital potential

  The Chinese technology supplier is working with communications service providers such as Converge in the Philippines to bolster their networks to support new digital services

• April 12, 2018 12 Apr'18

  O2 and Arqiva begin small cell roll-out in London

  Mobile operator will use small cells to boost 4G mobile network data capacity in busy areas, such as around stations

• April 05, 2018 05 Apr'18

  5G mobile spectrum auction raises £1.3bn

  The principal bidding stage in Ofcom’s latest mobile network spectrum auction has concluded, raising more than £1bn for the Treasury

• April 04, 2018 04 Apr'18

  LGA proposes full-fibre broadband kitemark for homebuyers

  The Local Government Association has urged housing developers to adopt proposals for a fibre-to-the-premises broadband kitemark for new-build homes in rural areas

• March 28, 2018 28 Mar'18

  Government sets deadline for affordable 10Mbps broadband

  Ofcom set the task of implementing the rules that ensure everyone in the UK can access affordable high-speed broadband by 2020

• March 26, 2018 26 Mar'18

  Swedish industry contributes to 5G evolution

  Swedish industrial companies have played a role in the development of Ericsson’s 5G services in the country

• March 23, 2018 23 Mar'18

  Scottish village rolls out FTTP broadband at half normal cost

  Residents of the remote village of Balquhidder in Stirlingshire have banded together to roll out a full-fibre broadband network at just half the cost of a normal fibre network build

• March 22, 2018 22 Mar'18

  Colt pioneers blockchain in telco voice wholesaling

  Colt Technology Services and Hong Kong Telecom’s international unit PCCW Global teamed up to trial the use of blockchain in wholesale voice settlements

• March 22, 2018 22 Mar'18

  Canadian broadband expertise speeds Gigaclear fibre dig

  Rural broadband provider Gigaclear has enlisted Canadian firm Lite Access Technology to assist in the roll-out of full-fibre services to 10,000 properties in Oxfordshire

• March 22, 2018 22 Mar'18

  CityFibre consumer broadband collaboration hits Peterborough

  CityFibre is returning to one of its earliest Gigabit City projects with Vodafone in tow to upgrade thousands of homes in Peterborough to gigabit-capable full-fibre broadband

• March 22, 2018 22 Mar'18

  Uber autonomous vehicle death raises questions for UK law review

  Uber suspended testing of autonomous vehicles in North America after one of its cars struck and killed a pedestrian this week, and the tragic accident raises big questions in the light of the UK’s ongoing legal review of self-driving cars

• March 21, 2018 21 Mar'18

  Train leasing firm demos mobile edge computing for smart trains

  Rolling stock leasing company Angel Trains is demonstrating edge computing over a wireless mesh network to make life easier for its customers’ on-board staff

• March 20, 2018 20 Mar'18

  Case study: Stationery firm gets things moving with FTTP broadband voucher

  Nuco, a Midlands-based supplier of paper and stationery products, has improved its business agility and is moving its IT into the cloud thanks to the government’s full-fibre broadband connection voucher scheme

• March 20, 2018 20 Mar'18

  Ofcom opens 5G spectrum auction

  Ofcom has opened the bidding in the auction of spectrum to support 4G and 5G mobile networks

• March 19, 2018 19 Mar'18

  Gatwick Airport turns to driverless tech to keep staff moving

  Gatwick Airport plans to trial driverless technology to move staff around the airfield, in the hope of creating an Uber-like service to cut costs and emissions

• March 19, 2018 19 Mar'18

  Southwark brings full-fibre broadband to council estates

  London’s Southwark Council has enlisted Hyperoptic to deliver FTTP broadband services across its housing portfolio

• March 16, 2018 16 Mar'18

  Ofcom sets out 5G spectrum auction process

  Regulator has given details of the two-stage 5G mobile network spectrum auction process that will begin next week

• March 16, 2018 16 Mar'18

  Three reaches 10 million customer milestone

  UK’s smallest “big four” mobile operator reflects on a solid year as it gears up for the imminent spectrum auction