All Ofcom articles
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M&ACMA uprates Netomnia–nexfibre investigation to Phase 2 as altnets call for ‘urgency’
Altnet buyer nexfibre gets pragmatic and skips straight to the in-depth competition review, keeping hopes alive for completion before the end of the year. The UK’s fibre scene is set to change, but the CMA will now decide the extent.
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Analyst BriefingBTwatch: context-aware network mission gets moving
Analyst Briefing: Reza Rahnama has pitched the benefits of BT’s context-aware network ambitions for mission-critical comms; network slicing and L4S in the works as 5G SA the primary focus; EE’s lauded for role in ESN; Openreach lined up to bid on Welsh broadband mega-contracts…
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Analyst BriefingUK Infrawatch: DSIT pictures satellite success as AI snags Ofcom attention
Analyst Briefing: nexfibre looks beyond ‘cornershop’ fibre; Ofcom rethinks AI, mobile quality, and spectrum policy; more altnet sale rumours; plenty more…
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Analyst BriefingUK Infrawatch: Digi lands; CityFibre dials back; BT targets regional altnets
Analyst Briefing: Latest from the digital infra scene in the UK, including: a European budget challenger emerges in UK, BDUK adjusts to a revised fibre market reality, more rumours of regional player consolidation, and plenty more…
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PeoplewatchBT Peoplewatch: stores, service ops, and security reshuffles
April 2026 edition: another veteran networks research Fellow leaves BT; Openreach fills out CX and regional Service Operations teams; bricks-and-mortar stores get a new director; Ian Cheshire lined up for Ofcom chairmanship…
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Analyst BriefingBTwatch: the return of budget mobile?
Analyst Briefing: reports emerge that BT is preparing a consumer reversal, re-entering the no-frills mobile space and re-energising the BT brand. Elsewhere, Business CTO Colin Bannon makes a rare plea for more regulation; and Ofcom opens a compliance investigation…
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Strategy & ChangeBT: UK’s regulatory ‘Wild West’ presents barrier to sovereignty investment
FutureNet World: Business CTO Colin Bannon makes rare call for greater regulation to remove sovereign platform investment barriers and warns that end-to-end technical sovereignty is unrealistic and misguided.
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InterviewChelot: wholesale scale is ‘mission impossible’ without nexfibre-Netomnia deal
Interview: “I have a wholesale platform, but I have no wholesale customers”. Jeremy Chelot’s Netomnia hit a structural ceiling, with bowing out the only way to progress the Openreach challenge. Firing back at nexfibre deal critics, he asks for alternatives to his Plan B, deeming consolidation the best route and reflecting on the challenge of leading a business through a sale.
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Analyst BriefingUK Infrawatch: OpenAI infra platform stalls; £1bn altnet haircuts; Gamma growth plans
Latest from the digital infra scene in the UK, including: signs of trouble for UK data centre build plans, investors bite the bullet on altnet valuations, Gamma plans for future as acquisition rumours build, and plenty more…
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Analyst BriefingUK Infrawatch: CityFibre questions nexfibre maths; data centres earn investment boost
Analyst Briefing: Exclusive first interview with CityFibre CEO as altnet and peers prepare for life under new TAR rules; NScale backed for UK growth; Starlink reliance prompts worries; and plenty more…
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PeoplewatchBT Peoplewatch: data and API commercialisation brought under new leadership
March 2026 edition: a wave of end-FY changes sees BT tap Verizon for a Group-level strategy appointment; bring in a new network procurement lead; and move data and API commercialisation under fresh ownership. Significant changes at Consumer and Openreach, while BT alumni pick up exec roles elsewhere…
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Suppliers & SCMVM O2 retains Ericsson and Nokia as it pushes towards 5G-Advanced
European vendor duo land fresh, multi-year RAN deals at UK operator, as it continues catchup effort through Mobile Transformation Plan.
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Analyst BriefingBTwatch: Openreach gets innovative with fibre tech
Analyst Briefing: As Ofcom lays out its latest regulatory regime and rivals squabble over altnet consolidation, Openreach remains focused on fibre rollout. Deals with Google Cloud and a pilot with Lightsonic put the incumbent’s fibre deployment machine into overdrive, and showcase the potential value-add beyond pure connectivity…
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M&ALiberty’s Fries dismisses CityFibre ‘sour grapes’ over £2bn nexfibre bulk-up
UK altnet tensions continue to heighten over the competitive implications of planned acquisition of Substantial Group, as Liberty Global CEO hits back at CityFibre over calls for in-depth CMA inquiry.
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InterviewIrrational and anti-competitive: CityFibre CEO urges CMA scrutiny of nexfibre-Netomnia-VM O2 consolidation play
Exclusive: In his first interview as CEO, Simon Holden unpacks Ofcom’s TAR framework and why the Competition and Markets Authority must intervene in the contentious £2bn nexfibre–Netomnia merger to protect infrastructure competition and prevent re-emergence of duopoly stagnation.
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Public AffairsTAR: Ofcom eyes ‘problematic’ promotions as access review sets regulatory landscape
Telecoms Access Review released, setting the scene for the next five years of regulation in the UK’s fast-shifting fibre market. While not signalling any major change of course, likely pleasing incumbent Openreach, altnet take-up appears to be receiving more attention as a litmus of market health, offering a possible fillip to challengers.
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Analyst BriefingUK Infrawatch: DSIT lays out digital infra priorities; M&A gets real
Latest from the digital infra scene in the UK, including: government prioritises infra growth, Netomnia-nexfibre deal formalised, altnet lenders take the reins, and plenty more…
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Products & ServicesVirgin Media O2’s Starlink mobile services take off
Operator opens up O2 Satellite offering to customers, pipping rivals to become first UK MNO to get direct-to-device services off the ground.
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Network & InfraVM O2 inches closer to Starlink mobile services launch
Operator secures Ofcom approval to use existing 1800MHz spectrum for imminent direct-to-device product O2 Satellite.
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Analyst BriefingBTwatch: getting savvy with data and AI
Analyst Briefing: AI in focus, as ever, as BT appoints a new exec to ‘enable and scale’ the tech across the Group; Openreach turns 20 and boasts of a full-fibre coming-of-age; BT Wholesale puts roaming eSIMs on the radar for MVNO business…