All BDUK (Project Gigabit) articles
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Weekly Briefings
BTwatch Weekly: Watson calls for discipline, Openreach eyes fibre mega-contracts
Latest from BT and its ecosystem as CSNO Howard Watson calls for patient investors and looks ahead to rewards at the end of the networks upgrade tunnel; Openreach licks lips at prospect of Project Gigabit mega-contracts; and more SRN updates as EE charges on…
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Weekly Briefings
Infrawatch Weekly: CTOs to the fore as industry reshuffles, DT disses 1&1, BDUK springs forward
Latest from the digital infra scene in the UK and beyond, including big Project Gigabit wins for Quickline, Wessex Internet, and Wildanet; a first appearance in the wild of a DSIT-funded 4G mast; DT taking a swipe at its newest mobile rival; people moves, and plenty more…
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Network & Infrastructure
Major players in the frame as Project Gigabit mega-deals come into play
Altnets including Quickline, Wessex and Wildanet pick up BDUK contracts to reach rural homes, but the prospect of cross-regional deals for Openreach and VM O2 appears increasingly likely as another agreed deal is abandoned…
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Network & Infrastructure
BT calls for more public funding to connect UK’s most remote homes
BT shares broadband policy wish list as UK government ponders intervention for 100,000 ultra-rural premises not covered by commercial or public-funded programmes.
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Weekly Briefings
Infrawatch Weekly: net-sharing, consolidation and deal-making in UK and Europe
Latest from the UK and Europe’s digital infra scene, including interviews and OpEds from Fibrus and nexfibre; big talk from Liberty’s CEO; and DigitalBridge’s Marc Ganzi teasing M&A to come. Plus much more from altnets, European infra players, and investors…
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Interview
Fibrus preps off-net retail expansion, asserts leadership in own footprint
CEO interview: having achieved FTTP leadership and segment-topping KPIs within own fibre footprint, altnet now challenging traditional incumbents on own turf. Northern Ireland a case study in high-penetration and how hyperlocal majorly disrupts network, ISP status quo…
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Weekly Briefings
Infrawatch Weekly: CityFibre asserts Project Gigabit dominance; 1&1 makes more infra deployment promises…
CityFibre grabs five more Project Gigabit contracts; WightFibre extends Gigabit Island coverage in battle against Openreach; 1&1 sets more targets for antenna site deployments; much more…
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Network & Infrastructure
CityFibre takes lion’s share of UK’s latest £460m Project Gigabit tranche
Altnets continue to own Project Gigabit, with CityFibre even more dominant, extending first mover advantage over Openreach/BT and nexfibre/VM O2. Read more…
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Interview
Freedom Fibre CEO sees VX merger adding investment muscle for UK M&A
With InfraBridge as its new controlling shareholder, Freedom Fibre will come into investor giant DigitalBridge’s orbit.
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M&A
Freedom Fibre: UK challenger joins with VX in hunt for regional muscle
Latest UK fibre market consolidation sees Manchester’s Freedom Fibre tie with Midlands altnet VX UK, with asset management backers Equitix and InfraBridge enabling the move. Implications for ambitious Freedom Fibre build targets not yet confirmed as small-scale regional operators expand beyond county borders…
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Network & Infrastructure
Connect Fibre wins again in Project Gigabit awards
Connect Fibre won its second Project Gigabit contract, but the BDUK initiative experienced a setback as an anticipated £80m contract in the North East fell through.
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Strategy & Change
Selley ‘cracks the code’ on fibre as Openreach brews overbuild, upgrade plans
Openreach Business Briefing: Halfway to Openreach’s 2026 fibre rollout target, CEO Selley claims spending and recruitment peaks for Openreach have passed; fibre’s benefits are being felt…
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Network & Infrastructure
Labour veers away from UK broadband nationalisation as Project Gigabit plods on
With a UK election expected within a year, the shadow digital minister backs infrastructure competition, and suggests Project Gigabit plans would be maintained by Labour, despite reservations.
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Events
Project Gigabit draws criticism over voucher headaches and cross-regional contracts
INCA Conference 2023: see what “nightmare” is haunting altnet leaders within Project Gigabit; confusion over cross-regional contracts; and what new BDUK CEO has to say on it all…
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Partnerships & Alliances
BT exploring HAPS-based 5G business case as R&D taxis for take-off
Partnership with Stratospheric Platforms sees HAPS-based 5G tested at Adastral Park ahead of airborne trials next year.
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Strategy & Change
UK Infrastructure Bank keeps watch on ‘stretched’ fibre space
Digital remains a sector of focus for new, state-owned investment house, attracting four more deals and more than £500m of commitments during its last fiscal year.
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Network & Infrastructure
UK MNO trio call for deadline extension as Shared Rural Network stagnates
Laggards Three, VM O2, and Vodafone ask for two-year delay to interim timeline to account for claimed planning permissions and pandemic obstacles. EE smugly maintains committment.
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Public Affairs
UK infra body: name local authorities that respond slowest on mobile site rollout
National Infrastructure Commission publishes latest scorecard on how UK government is doing on project delivery, and highlights fibre uptake, local planning processes, and cross-sector infra coordination as areas where work is required.
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Interview
CEO Interview: CityFibre on M&A watch, competition bottlenecks, BT economic rationale questioned
‘BT’ called out for obstinate, irrational, anti-competitive behaviour that penalises own shareholders — needs to prioritise copper shutdown to deliver fibre payback, and start serving consumers outside Openreach footprint. Also CityFibre’s M&A tracking/ranking and NetCo purism, big-3 ISP lockout, regulator told to keep sharp, and more…
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Premium
Elsewhere in Openreach: Openreach altnet rival hits connections milestone
Openreach altnet rival hits connections milestone.