All articles by Joe Purnell – Page 6
-
Financial & PerformanceGuidance: modest FY to give way for BT’s ambitious 2030 vision
Q2/H1 FY25–26: lack of ambition in FY targets ensures BT remains on track, but end-of-decade goals require transformation acceleration, and soon…
-
Financial & PerformanceSpend: BT leaning on AI, job cuts to fuel cost-savings agenda
Q2/H1 FY25–26: cost-cutting agenda running ahead of schedule, and more momentum could be added as AI is deployed more widely and new Chief Digital Officer Peter Leukert gets his hands dirty. Headcount cuts are another major earnings driver as Business and Openreach shrink back…
-
Financial & PerformanceIn-depth: BT falling back amid competition
Q2/H1 FY25–26: Group in decline across most metrics of note, but management confident that groundwork (and network) is being laid for a bounce back soon…
-
Network & InfraVodafone playing the satco market despite $1bn SpaceMobile bet
R&D lead Luke Ibbetson talks up billion-dollar investment in SpaceMobile, but Vodafone is playing matchmaker, not kingmaker, with ‘pragmatic’ approach to telco-satco partnerships determined by customer demand and technical requirements…
-
Financial & PerformanceBT says Consumer ‘holding up’, despite ARPU slide — rejects MVNO B-brand
Q2/H1 FY25–26: UK incumbent ready to “compete and defend” against budget-focused rivals, doubling-down on unchanging multi-brand and convergence retail strategies. But lag in system means premium-first efforts are yet to be reflected in poor financials…
-
Network & InfraOpenreach turns up the heat on legacy network migration as deadline looms
Access provider wields both carrot and stick in bid to hasten analogue-to-digital migrations, with price hikes and rental discounts among the incentives. Altnet rivals riled, CPs ‘welcome’ the move, and BT/Openreach set to benefit after initial 18-month drag…
-
Financial & PerformanceVodafone unsure on Gigafactory economics — focused on ‘low-hanging B2B fruit’
Q2/H1 FY25–26: Fast-growing digital services now approximating €2bn annual revenue for Business growth engine, with intent to invest more in segment. Vodafone considers itself well placed for SMEs and sovereign cloud, but will not be rushed into big ticket AI data centre projects…
-
Financial & PerformanceVodafone begins German bounce back
Q2/H1 FY25–26: Group CEO Margherita Della Valle claims that Vodafone Germany is benefiting from proactive moves to recover from recent lows, with service revenue growth the first fruit of its labour. MDU impact now lapped, 1&1 migration close to completion, and work ongoing to navigate competitive pressures to raise ARPU…
-
M&AVodacom ‘keeping powder dry’ for fibre, data centre M&A opportunities
Q2/H1: CEO Shameel Joosub teases more deals and partnerships to come as South African fibreco deal nears completion, with more wireline infra and potential data centre tie-ups under consideration. While tower deals in Egypt are off the table, ears are open for a change at Safaricom…
-
PeoplewatchBT Peoplewatch: brand strategy remains in the spotlight, former CEOs line up boardroom gigs
20+ senior and strategic changes across BT in November’s edition, including another notable appointment in the Group’s effort to revitalise its stable of brands; rumours that former CEO Philip Jansen is set for another high-flying boardroom role; network and security leadership changes; and more at TNT Sports, EE, and BT Business…
-
Financial & PerformanceAfter nine years of decline, BT now stands at B2B turnaround ‘start line’
Q2 FY25–26: CEO heralds a reshaping, fully-focused BT Business now beginning its turnaround, nearly a decade after the Group last posted enterprise revenue growth. With International carved out, and several assets offloaded, greater scrutiny should be expected of what is left…
-
Financial & PerformanceBT CEO snubs fibre M&A, doubling down on Openreach organic growth — despite accelerating line losses
Q2 FY25–26: Allison Kirkby showed little enthusiasm at thought of mopping up fibre altnets as part of much-anticipated consolidation, instead insisting Openreach is best focused on its own game, and set up to beat any incursion — notwithstanding line losses accelerating alarmingly…
-
Analyst BriefingVodafonewatch: satellite deals, towers sales
Latest Vodafone Analyst Briefing: including moves in satellite and direct-to-device; a progress report from VodafoneZiggo on performance and a planned wireless infra divestment; installation of a new CEO at Vantage Towers; and more share price volatility at Vi…
-
PeoplewatchVantage Towers poaches American Tower Germany boss to fill CEO vacancy
Former American Tower and DFMG exec Martin Bouchard will take over at Vantage Towers in May, becoming the fourth CEO in three years at the towerco…
-
M&ALiberty, Vodafone begin sale of Dutch towers
Liberty Global Q3: operator confirms sale of VodafoneZiggo’s masts is underway, with Mike Fries earlier confirming “alignment” on the issue with co-parent Vodafone Group. Divestiture one part of wider monetisation and deleveraging efforts across the Liberty portfolio…
-
Financial & PerformanceVodafoneZiggo facing ‘uncertain journey’, but turnaround path beginning to emerge
Liberty Global Q3: VodafoneZiggo boss Stephen van Rooyen expresses caveated confidence over his masterplan to put the Dutch operator on the road to a turnaround, but not everything is under his control…
-
M&ANetomnia takeout rumours: first billion-dollar M&A for UK fibre?
Deep dive: Reports suggest Netomnia is in play, with cashed-up nexfibre/VM O2 and CityFibre tagged as frontrunners in the race to build a national fibre challenger to Openreach. TelcoTitans Infrawatch explores the backdrop, leading players (including Liberty Global and Telefónica), netco-servco dichotomy, and likeliest outcomes…
-
Analyst BriefingVodafonewatch Analyst Briefing: pragmatic Vodafone finds subsea ‘niche’
Latest from Vodafone, including the Group’s latest subsea venture “off the beaten track” as the operator concedes transatlantic routes to hyperscalers; UK fibre challenger Netomnia chooses VodafoneThree for imminent MVNO; and more open RAN vendors shout about Vodafone deals following Spring 6 procurement…
-
M&AVodafone adds public cloud integration expertise in Skaylink acquisition
Skaylink to be bought for €175m to build out Vodafone Business portfolio and embed ‘specialist’ knowledge in public cloud integrations for B2B clients.
-
Consumer (B2C)BT weighs budget mobile flip-flop as MVNO competition hots up — report
Rumours resurface of a B-brand mobile revival, just 18 months after BT pulled Plusnet out of the segment. While CEO Allison Kirkby’s return to multi-brand in consumer may well require a targeted discount marque to match rivals, also-mooted MVNO acquisition would be more surprising…