All BT Group articles – Page 48
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Premium
BT people moves: BT Digital firms up Consumer and Operations leadership
Thomas Duecke pivots from Global and Kevin Lee moves from eBay to join BT Digital’s top-table. BT Sourced lures Fulden Sener to new Dublin offices, while Carmel McInally’s exit leaves a vacant IT Procurement post. Enterprise finance leadership changes.
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Premium
Elsewhere in BT Group: emission targets brought forward
Net-zero targets brought forward by fifteen years ahead of COP26; warnings against competitor tower deal.
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People
Openreach names new fibre delivery guy
Change at top of Fibre & Network Delivery unit as Matthew Hemmings comes in for Kevin Murphy. Internal hire sees Hemmings take lead of team focused on expanding Openreach’s UK-wide fibre network.
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Innovation (R&D)
BT wants 6G to solve real-world problems
Senior BT execs say new technology should respond to consumer, industry needs. No appetite for a “step change” in radio; 5G backwards compatibility a must. Coverage, reliability more promising areas for 6G improvement than peak data rates.
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Strategy & Change
Digital duo plan to be catalysts of change for BT
Incomers Harmeen Mehta and Rob Shuter are tag-teaming to bring their external perspectives to BT’s digital transformation plans. Enterprise unit set to become a route to market for emerging services, with a “fail fast” mindset. BT described as receptive to need for change, but Mehta calling for people to ...
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Network & Infrastructure
BT says awareness of 2025 PSTN shutdown not high enough
Senior BT Enterprise exec highlights lack of forward all-IP planning among some critical national infrastructure organisations. Encourages all CPs to put CNI at the heart of their transformation programmes. Advocates a government-led campaign to raise PSTN shutdown awareness. Industry still grappling with how best to provide power backup and ...
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Operations
Openreach’s Selley slams “shambles” of UK EV charging market
UK’s second-biggest van owner buying electric vehicles from Spain because of lack of domestic commercial electric van manufacturing. Openreach CEO bemoans thin and unreliable charging network; says UK “behind game”. Just 600 of Openreach’s 28,000 commercial vans currently electric. CEO regards hydrogen as likely candidate for heavy vehicles.
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Strategy & Change
BT establishes new digital health unit
Group recruiting for newly formed Digital Healthcare division. Unit to develop e-health startup ecosystem, with provision of path-to-market options. ‘BT Incubation’ revealed as working title for broader tech accelerator branch.
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Strategy & Change
Jansen wants YOU: BT pitches for tech talent in reinvention drive
BT CEO uses TM Forum event to pitch BT as a destination employer for digital talent as he seeks to move faster on digitalisation. Fundamental importance of network core underlined, but BT’s staff expected to be open to reskilling to meet the needs of a software-driven business. Partnerships and ...
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Digital Reports
BTwatch Report #328 – September 2021
Key stories include: Technology reorg key to BT refresh | Indian ops under review | EE drives rural Scottish infill | Openreach NI ramps up | Challenger CityFibre fills its pockets
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Innovation (R&D)
BT likes NANF hollow core fibre, but work still to do
Senior BT researchers optimistic about multiple use-cases for Lumenisity’s hollow fibre, but commercial timeframes unclear. “Reams and reams of data” still need to be pored over as part of due diligence process. BT confident, however, that Lumenisity has reached the point of producing “duct-deployable” HCF cable.
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M&A
DAZN targets Premier League with BT Sport bid — reports
Reports indicate BT is in “advanced” stage talks with DAZN to offload BT Sport, with a deal mooted “within weeks”. Broadcasting rights the big-ticket item for US streaming specialist, while BT looks to focus efforts on network expansion.
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Network & Infrastructure
BT’s Watson highlights fibre’s central place in network ‘jigsaw’
CTO plays down fixed wireless’s role in meeting UK’s connectivity challenge. CityFibre and Hyperoptic welcome Ofcom’s WFTMR, but want Openreach to remain under strict scrutiny. Virgin Media O2 something of an elephant in the room as altnets pitch themselves as more agile rivals.
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Innovation (R&D)
BT ties with Sweden’s Skydome on emergency response
VR leveraged by embryonic Skydome for incident monitoring purposes. Startup’s R&D partners include Intel. Potential for deployment at BT’s network of smart ports.
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Premium
CityFibre bags fresh cash injection
Openreach challenger announces fresh funds through stake sale and bond issue. Capital “enables” Project Gigabit ambitions. CityFibre’s FTTP rollout reaches 650,000 premises. Altnet momentum builds with an estimated £8bn in investment publicly promised.
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People
BT Sourced adds transformation lead
Former Allianz buying head appointed Director, Procurement Transformation.
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Innovation (R&D)
BT quantum-secures hollow core fibre in trial
QKD hook-up with Lumenisity HCF pitched as world first. Lord says trial “accelerates the UK’s lead in quantum technologies”. Widespread HCF deployment still some way off, however.
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Premium
Openreach bulking up in Northern Ireland
Openreach Northern Ireland ramps up recruitment, with 16 new openings in nascent civil engineering division. Pressure is on to meet near-term FTTP rollout target. NI tops UK for ultrafast coverage.
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Premium
BT Pension Scheme completes Hermes exit
Federated Hermes actions call option to acquire BTPS’s residual shareholding in fund manager. BT on track with pension deficit recovery plan.
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Premium
BT includes rugby in Vena line-up
Tressler enthusiastic about Vena commercial model for sports. Media and Broadcast launches Vena ‘quick start’ programme to learn more about sports’ requirements.