Joe Purnell
Joseph Purnell is BTwatch and Vodafonewatch Editor and a Senior Reporter at TelcoTitans, contributing telecoms news analysis since 2019 as part of the TelcoTitans Editorial team.
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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…
Strategy & ChangeUK’s Netomnia targets ISP giants with YouMobile MVNO
Fibre altnet and wannabe convergence player set to launch mobile by the end of the year, piggybacking on the VodafoneThree network. CFO Wil Wadsworth and CEO Jeremy Chelot have sights set on the UK’s FMC establishment…
Network & InfraSubsea cables: Vodafone heads ‘off beaten track’ as hyperscalers muscle in on mainstream
Capacity Europe 2025: Vodafone’s Head of Global Infrastructure Owen Bryant considers the role telcos should play in transcontinental infra links as hyperscalers investment billions into subsea infra. Vodafone, for its part, is focused on ‘red’ markets that lie outside Google and Meta’s core interests…
Analyst BriefingsBTwatch Analyst Briefing: Watson passes the network strategy baton
Latest from BT and its interests, including quantum chat from Capacity Europe, fibre competition from INCA Summit, Howard Watson’s imminent departure and Greg McCall’s promotion, and more from Italy, Ofcom, and EE…
Innovation30 years down, 5+ to go before BT’s quantum vision comes to life
Capacity Europe 2025: Senior Research Manager Andrew Lord remains optimistic about quantum secure communications, but sought-after commercial use cases still five-to-ten years away. QKD a valid ‘stepping stone’, and satellite may boost momentum, but supply chain ‘fragility’ remains a stumbling block…
InterviewINCA CEO: ‘job done’ when altnets join Openreach as industry ‘baddies’
INCA Summit 2025: With consolidation looming and the next Telecoms Access Review on the horizon, the UK’s fibre landscape is at a tipping point. Altnets, however, are still reeling from (pantomime) villain Openreach’s latest pricing initiative, with disappointment at Ofcom inertia, and suspicion the incumbent is testing what it can get away with…
Network & InfraVodafone to fill Black Sea subsea infra blackspot
In partnership with Partner Markets ally Vodafone Ukraine, Group begins €100m infra project connecting Black Sea nations, bypassing Russia.
Analyst BriefingsVodafonewatch Analyst Briefing: RAN overhaul begins with vendor foursome locked in
Latest from Vodafone as the long-awaited Spring 6 procurement closes out, with four vendors named; Vodafone OpCos among the winners in two European spectrum auctions; Google Cloud migration completes in Czechia; TPG shareholder payout may see Vodafone pocket €400m+; and Group trials 6GHz spectrum tech in Germany…
Network & InfraTurkish MNOs splash $3bn on 5G spectrum ahead of 2026 services launch
Vodafone Turkey comes third of three in the country’s first 5G spectrum auction, spending around half that of its rivals on 700MHz and 3.5GHz licences.
Network & InfraUK MNOs bag equal share of mmWave spectrum in £39m auction
BT, VodafoneThree, and Virgin Media O2 share the spoils in Ofcom’s delayed auction, each committing £13m for 26GHz and 40GHz spectrum, but not all MHz are equal…
Analyst BriefingsBTwatch Analyst Briefing: Openreach defends discounts as rivals cry foul
Latest from BT, including Openreach’s controversial copper-to-fibre discounting, regulatory tensions in Ireland, and the fall of BT’s drone venture…
PeopleVodafone Peoplewatch: exec secures place at head of open networks body
October 2025 update: 25+ senior and strategic moves across the operator and its interests, including TM Forum and TIP berths for Voda execs; regional leadership changes in Europe; ex Iberian CEO closes the book; more from around the Group…
Suppliers & SCMVodafone elects winning quartet in diluted RAN mega-tender
Vendor foursome reel off Vodafone RAN wins as the Group’s long-awaited Spring 6 procurement closes out, short of expectations but set to propel operator towards open RAN at scale by 2030.
Public AffairsClearing the Eir: Irish operators criticise ‘excessively lax’ access rules
Industry body ALTO, representing operators such as BT, Vodafone, Enet, and Sky, calls for review into regulation of incumbent.
Financial & PerformanceAs lenders wobble on UK fibre, should altnets brace for potential write-downs?
FTTH Congress CEE: ING warns that lender peers are weighing up debt write-downs as UK and European fibrecos fail to deliver on business case promises. Altnet leaders warn that investors are ‘scarred’ by past shortcomings, but can be reconvinced…
Suppliers & SCMEricsson secures sole RAN vendor status in clutch of Vodafone markets
Swedish vendor adds to recent UK win with Spring 6 contract covering six further markets in Europe and Africa, paving way for modernised programmable networks, including pathway to AI-RAN…
Financial & PerformanceBT drones investment Altitude Angel becomes latest Etc. venture to fall
Industry reacts as Altitude Angel appoints administrators, raises questions about airspace security, two years after BT’s £5m investment…
Analyst BriefingsVodafonewatch Analyst Briefing: local innovation paves way for regional network upgrades
Latest from Vodafone as the Group shouts about various innovative network initiatives with partners Nokia, Huawei, Samsung; and others; M&A completes in Romania ahead of integration programme kick-off; Telenor tapped for procurement savings; satco investment’s share price soars; more from Europe, Africa, India, elsewhere…
Public AffairsIndia considers Vi reprieve to promote UK trade, foster relations — report
Vodafone-backed Indian operator Vi may benefit from UK-India trade negotiations as reports emerge that the New Delhi government may waive some debts.
PeopleBT Peoplewatch: European rollback leads to regional leadership swaps
25+ senior and strategic changes at BT/Openreach, including senior swaps at BT Sourced; another series of brand and marketing appointments at Group-level; and new BT International regional leads following Retelit’s Italia acquisition…