All articles by Joe Purnell – Page 4
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Strategy & Change
Vodafone’s latest B2T spin-up: €20bn+ Procure & Connect
In-depth: Unusual combination of procurement and roaming services marks another step in Vodafone’s ambitious Business to Telecoms strategy to commercialise its internal shared central functions to the wider industry, with efficiency also in the mix.
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Enterprise (B2B)
‘The year it comes to life’: BT readies for network edge maturity
BT Wholesale’s Mark Toman lays out expectations for network edge in 2025 as early hype gives way to real-world deployments.
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M&A
FullFibre eyeing next M&A target as UK altnets enter ‘consolidation phase’
FTTH Conference 2025: FullFibre CEO James Warner teases more M&A to come as altnets prepare for ‘consolidation phase’, underpinned by regulatory certainty and investor confidence…
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M&A
VodafoneZiggo open to M&A as it edges into Dutch fibre space
Mike Fries, CEO of parent Liberty, indicates M&A may have a role to play as VodafoneZiggo strengthens its broadband infra platform.
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Weekly Briefings
Vodafonewatch Weekly: positive moves for dealmaking Group
Latest from Vodafone as the Group faces the ups and downs of dealmaking; hype turns to more grounded optimism on small cells and 5G MPN solutions; several key changes to OpCo ExCos, and some new digs for former CEOs; more across the footprint…
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Financial & Performance
Vodafone’s Vi stake diluted further as gov strengthens grip on Vi
Struggling operator Vi takes debt-to-equity conversion deal that will see the government’s stake near 50%, and Vodafone’s drop to a reported 16%.
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M&A
UK investor Actis picks up South African tower player
Actis joins forces with local investors to acquire Telkom’s Swiftnet tower business, with plans to expand to become a market leader.
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People
Struggling Vodafone Germany changes Strategy & Transformation chief
Consultant Sven Müller brought in to drive turnaround effort from new position on the OpCo’s Executive Committee.
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Weekly Briefings
BTwatch Weekly: overseas dealmaking, domestic lobbying
Latest from around BT as Orange and AT&T are reported to be in talks regarding an international asset optimisation deal; UK regulation in focus for Ofcom, Openreach, and its long tail of altnet competitors; 5G SA rolls on; and BT pairs with peers to fulfil PSTN obligations…
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People
BT Peoplewatch: ESN team fills out; Openreach names fibre newcomers
Latest strategic and senior changes at BT and Openreach, including a new ESN operations lead; Fibre First swaps; a TOTSCo departure; and overseas changes as BT Business doubles down on the UK…
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Network & Infrastructure
Vantage Towers hopeful on ‘massive’ European small cells potential, with UK bringing the blueprint
MWC 2025: Head of Business & Product Development Jaime Abril paints optimistic picture of European market, but calls for regulatory shift and cultural change among MNO customers.
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Weekly Briefings
BTwatch Weekly: BT’s branding u-turn; EE leads renewed ESN charge
Latest from BT and its ecosystem, including a reversal of BT’s consumer branding strategy; new timelines for the Emergency Services Network migration; and next phase of MAUD testing lined up…
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People
Vodafone Peoplewatch: new digs for former OpCo bosses Ametsreiter and Coimbra
Latest senior and strategic changes, including an ice cream post for Group Chair; new German sustainability lead; more Vodafone alumni appointments in Spanish fibre; and fresh titles for former Germany, Spain, and Portugal CEOs…
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Content & TV
BT’s MAUD to target content super peaks as it scales up
Next-gen IP transmission tech delivers positive results in first live tests, teeing up trials of personalised ads for live and on-demand content.
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Weekly Briefings
Vodafonewatch Weekly: Della Valle calls for a ‘European renaissance’
Latest from Vodafone and its ecosystem as the Mobile World Congress dust settles. A series of innovative proof of concepts and more substantial products and partnerships were announced, and the usual on-stage lobbying made plenty of headlines…
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Suppliers & SCM
EE, IBM assemble ecosystem to rescue UK’s emergency services network
BAPCO Annual Event: Emergency Services Network contract holders EE and IBM build out programme supply chain, with calibre of partners adding confidence in the Home Office that ESN will deliver.
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Network & Infrastructure
Freedom Fibre becomes latest UK altnet to terminate Project Gigabit contract
Operator cancels £43m subsidy deal, the fourth contract to be terminated.
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Network & Infrastructure
ESN: UK mission-critical comms network has a new (potential) launch date
BAPCO Annual Event: Home Office programme lead lays out new, heavily-caveated Emergency Services Network milestones, with early integration testing this year building towards a late-2029 Airwave closure. Ifs and buts remain, and ‘race still needs to be run’…
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M&A
Blackstone’s £10bn UK data centre gets green light
Blyth site set begin construction later this year, with Blackstone acquisition QTS to run and operate the ‘hyperscale’ facility. Energy a consideration in selection of former power station site. Blackstone builds up European digital infra interest with Dutch footprint, Digital Realty JV.
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Weekly Briefings
BTwatch Weekly: AI, APIs, and the coming 5G wave
Latest from BT as the operator talks up advancements in AI adoption, secures an API collab, and readies for an incoming wave of 5G use-cases; MWC used to talk up the same; Global Fabric goes live; more…