All Openreach articles – Page 2
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Financial & PerformanceBT: CEO Kirkby sets the stage, but payoff still pending
Q1 FY26–27 overview: BT opened its current FY with a solid but unspectacular quarter, as operational progress across Openreach, Consumer, and Business points to improving momentum, but stronger financial benefits are still yet to emerge.
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PeoplewatchDigital Infra Peoplewatch: Cellnex names new regional execs; LightSpeed refreshes wholesale line-up
July 2026–August 2026 edition: 25+ senior and strategic leadership changes in EMEA digital infra, including new appointments at Cellnex Group and its Polish division, Green Datacenters names new execs ahead of European expansion, and LightSpeed fills out senior wholesale and enterprise team.
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Financial & PerformanceUK’s CityFibre reaches for £900m war chest for renewed M&A
UK fibre altnet said to secure further investor backing in bid to retain largest challenger status ahead of nexfibre–Netomnia and put it back in the consolidation game, taking further funding firmed up since 2025 to £3.2bn, and eight million-premises footprint still the target.
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Network & InfraOfcom wields TAR in move to block Openreach fibre discounts
For the first time, the regulator intends to direct Openreach to withdraw proposed new fibre customer pricing, citing an ‘unfair’ and ‘aggressive’ approach from the incumbent. Ofcom puts the Telecoms Access Review into action, altnets welcome the move, and Openreach accuses the regulator of protecting rivals’ “poor business models”. Final decision pending…
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Deep DiveStarter for No 10: the key digital infra demands awaiting the UK’s new Prime Minister
Deep dive: Andy Burnham built his political reputation around regional growth in Manchester. Digital infra leaders now want to know whether those principles will translate into a coherent national strategy for fibre, mobile networks, data centres, and digital infrastructure investment, as the industry enters a pivotal moment…
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Analyst BriefingUK Infrawatch: clues emerge of improving altnet sector health
Analyst Briefing: Latest from the digital infra scene in the UK, including the latest in fibreco results season, Aberdeen investment going south, Grain embraces network growth, Project Gigabit gets a funding boost, and plenty more…
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Network & InfraOpenreach’s fibre roll slows to 2021 levels
Q1 FY26–27: rollout pace declines sharply as 25 million threshold nears, while customer adds ramp up to become primary Openreach preoccupation, as BT keeps post-2026 build playbook hidden…
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Analyst BriefingBTwatch: Verizon venture and AI RoI chase
Analyst Briefing: The latest from around BT, including the answer to the Group’s long-pending international B2B question; a £130m NetOps deal in Scotland; and execs lay out the path to AI for revenue and returns, not just cost-cutting. Plus more from EE, Openreach, elsewhere…
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PeoplewatchOpenreach commercial exec joins nexfibre as CCO
Ex-Openreach commercial and wholesale leader Ses Indy recruited as Chief Commercial Officer at nexfibre. The altnet views the exec’s experience as valuable as it seeks to become a ‘scaled’ challenger to Openreach, and as it moves forward with proposed Substantial Group acquisition…
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Public AffairsVirgin Media O2 hit with £28m fine over contract cancellation failings
UK watchdog issues “largest ever fine” under consumer protection rules after finding that VM O2’s ‘two-tier’ agents system and tactics served to delay or prevent customer switching. Fine comes after operator has invested in significant user experience improvements, following separate pushback over consumer practices…
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PeoplewatchBT Peoplewatch: UK rivals trade Networks R&D and SMB leaders
July 2026 edition, featuring: the introduction of VM O2’s Catherine Amran to lead BT’s small business segment; networks R&D fellow Maria Cuevas moving the other way; a new BT Mobile product lead being appointed, following the B2C relaunch; and Gavin Patterson picking up another boardroom seat.
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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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Partnerships & AlliancesVodafoneThree extends CityFibre deal into the realm of backhaul
CityFibre takes on the role as preferred backhaul supplier at VodafoneThree mobile sites as part of renewed, “long-term” wholesale fibre deal. The arrangement builds on more than a decade of collaboration between the pair on fixed broadband.
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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 BriefingBTwatch: BT gets its AI wings, swoops on enterprise opportunity
Analyst Briefing: CEO Allison Kirkby happy with progress at the Group in the FY, but with the usual room for improvement across all divisions. B2B gets busy with AI, cybersecurity, and MVNOs at the fore; B2C gets mobile; and the ‘transformation’ machine rolls towards another 40,000+ job cuts…
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PeoplewatchBT Peoplewatch: Plusnet chief expands brief as multi-brand strategy makes mark
June 2026 edition: BT taps the banking industry for digital and transformation expertise; the renewed multi-brand strategy prompts pivots at Consumer; Openreach beds in nascent CX division; and a Data & AI vacancy opens up at BT Digital…
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Financial & PerformanceBT boss ‘having fun’ amid transformation challenge, industry noise, global turbulence
FY25–26: CEO Allison Kirkby relishing challenge two years in, claiming progress in place and runway for more through further cost-cutting, a B2B reset, and Consumer momentum leveraging Openreach strengths. Conversion still lacking, but management not short of optimism…
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Financial & PerformanceBT ‘on the right path’ but braced for near-term decline
FY25–26: Expectations set for marginal revenue decline in coming FY, but management confident in medium-term prospects as capex tapers and free cash flow balloons.
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Financial & PerformanceBT hunts for further cuts
FY25–26: after delivering its first £3bn savings goal ahead of time, and kicking on with another immediately after, BT has now expanded the programme by £700m and given itself an extra year to hit the new target.