All articles by Neal Doran – Page 3
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Public AffairsUK Court of Appeal sides with operators in latest Phones 4u ruling
The UK Court of Appeal has decisively ruled against Phones 4u’s long-running allegations of collusion among major operators, leaving the retailer to consider its final legal options and face substantial costs…
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Analyst BriefingUK Infrawatch Analyst Briefing: speed race hots up, gov gives and takes, PIA protested
Latest from the digital infra scene in the UK, including: Sky boost for CityFibre and consumer broadband speeds, government promises advanced connectivity investment, SRN goals scaled back; altnets lobby on PIA changes; people moves, and plenty more…
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Network & InfraCase study: Telenet adopts network digital twins to break automation glass ceiling
How can operators achieve genuine network autonomy? Telenet’s Stijn Eeckhaut and Celfocus’s Carla Penedo reveal their phased approach, leveraging network digital twins and a cognitive operations layer, as well as empowering engineers to build trust in new data-driven processes.
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InterviewFibrus founder decries PIA “margin squeeze”, calls out Ofcom to fix rural fibre build
Interview: Northern Ireland FibreCo hero says Openreach’s duct and pole sharing terms “just wrong”, undermining rural fibre investment. Outspoken chair Conal Henry proposes “fair bet” pricing overhaul, calls on Ofcom to fix its error in latest sector Review…
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TechnologyA Pragmatist’s Guide to Telco AI: BT and Zayo on getting data right, winning fast, riding the wave
From data foundations, sidestepping common pitfalls, and rapid experimentation, to real-world use cases, scalable growth, and building profit centres. Actionable insights and proven strategies for how AI is being harnessed to transform telecoms, drive operational excellence, unlock new revenue
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Analyst BriefingUK Infrawatch Analyst Briefing: NVIDIA swoops; BDUK target stretches; altnet ownership wobbles
Latest from the digital infra scene in the UK, including: AI’s role in future connectivity, UK and local government investment plans; altnet acquisition rumours; people moves, and plenty more…
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TechnologyCarla Penedo interview: Celfocus’s network AI evangelist charts path forward
Exclusive insights from network AI leader on navigating complexities of converging networks, integrating legacy systems, and leveraging network digital twins, Agentic AI, and AIOps for measurable impact. In-depth interview reveals strategies and partnerships redefining telco transformation in cloud-native, AI-enabled era. Humans included…
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Financial & PerformanceCityFibre ups the ante with 5Gbps fibre launch
New 5.5Gbps offering to be available across national footprint once XGS‑PON upgrade completed. While notably differentiating in the UK, 5G-10G services increasingly available elsewhere in Europe, and at low cost…
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Analyst BriefingUK Infrawatch Analyst Briefing: APFN’s new platform, Avanti’s court win, Netomnia grows backbone
Latest from the digital infra scene in the UK, including: wholesale aggregation gathers pace; rural coverage ups and downs; Netomnia’s core capacity expansion; and plenty more…
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Financial & PerformanceOpenreach seeks another gear as altnets gain and CPs flop
FY24–25: BT CEO Allison Kirkby has tossed earlier promises of lower capex, instead fuelling an accelerated fibre build “now that we’ve got the engine humming” to bolster a defence against altnet incursions, and make up for CP shortcomings…
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Financial & PerformanceVodafone sees the bright side of global chaos
FY24–25: As Vodafone Business surpasses €8bn in revenue, driven by Digital Services, anticipated hikes in cybersecurity, defence, and sovereignty spending in politically uncertain times is expected to provide another boost.
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Analyst BriefingUK Infrawatch Briefing: altnets prove worth, AI plans develop, nexfibre stalls
Latest from the digital infra scene in the UK, including: UK MVNO market reinvigorated by challengers; Kao Data schmoozes with DSIT; a £70m network upgrade contract floated in Wales; people moves; and plenty more…
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Analyst BriefingUK Infrawatch Briefing: altnets and Openreach square up, data centres spread out
Latest from the digital infra scene in the UK, including: data centres embrace regional opportunities; overbuild threats loom; a closer‑than‑expected scale fibre platform; people moves; plenty more…
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Financial & PerformanceCost leadership key as UK FibreCo Grain sows seeds of profitability
Connected North: Grain CEO Richard Cameron positions “cost leadership” as the key to long‑term success for a consolidating and converging altnet sector, following positive earnings in most recent quarter.
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EventwatchOpenreach and altnet ‘Gladiators’ trade blows on future costs of PIA
Connected North 2025: In robust exchanges at Connected North, Fibrus Chair warns regulator is on the verge of repeating mistakes of the past on PIA pricing, and too easily steered off course on policy.
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M&ACityFibre’s Holden: altnets and backers must pull together for investment‑grade nirvana
In-depth from Eight Advisory’s London event: as UK fibre altnets face financing challenges, optimistic CityFibre COO reveals vision for consolidation, suggesting sector is “a very small number of M&A transactions away” from creating a sufficiently scaled platform to rival BT/Openreach and VM O2. Additional Greg Mesch and Rob Hamlin coverage from FTTH Conference in Amsterdam…
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Network & InfraINCA hails altnet heroes as spectre of overbuild looms
In a punchy, positive report altnet industry group INCA hails “dynamic” altnets on a mission to bring “fairer, faster, and more resilient” connectivity to the UK, but competitive benefits may not be sustainable, and the spectre of ‘supervillain’ Openreach still looms large.
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InnovationGov report predicts £15bn telco productivity boost by 2035
PwC research on emerging technologies sees AI as leading economic transformation, but future telecoms one of the five biggest contributors to GDP growth of 8% by 2035.
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Analyst BriefingUK Infrawatch Briefing: supply vulnerabilities, vendors value altnets, aggregation opportunities
Latest from the digital infra scene in the UK, including: APFN breaking down national fibre barriers, Xantaro driving Wildanet’s ‘aggressive’ expansion; DSIT tackling UK’s vendor duopoly; people moves, and plenty more…
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Suppliers & SCMNokia and Xantaro flag value of altnet supply deals
Kit vendor and solution provider sign contracts with Fibrus and Wildanet respectively as altnets emerge as increasingly significant to vendors…


















