Public affairs – Page 50
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Public Affairseir’s fury over BT’s NI PSSN contract award reignited
BT hit with substantial fine for misinformation that may have affected the outcome of a £40m government contract. Irish operator “considering our options” on prized PSSN contract, although Ofcom found no deliberate breaches.
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M&ABT retreats in Italy as court date looms
TIM snaffles SME and public sector accounts business, but BT maintaining a presence for large enterprises as well as multinationals. Taint of accounting scandal lingers, with former Global executives set for trial in 2021.
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InterviewDroniq COO: BVLOS flight within sight
Ralph Schepp talks regulatory hurdles, market potential, and use-cases. DT-DFS JV sets high ambitions for traffic management platform. Partners brought in, with DT staying close.
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Public AffairsVodafone takes political heat over customer complaints
Ministers scold eir and Vodafone Ireland for poor customer service during pandemic. Following meetings, outage disrupts VfIr data services.
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Network & InfrastructureOfcom hints at ten-year “fair bet” timeframe for BT
Openreach to be unconstrained on full-fibre pricing until 2031 under proposed plans from the regulator. Jansen claims he would rather have a cap on returns, and more time. Fellow infrastructure builders happy with clarity, but Openreach customer TalkTalk unhappy with impact on wholesale. Regulatory clarity may kickstart discussions on ...
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Network & InfrastructureVodafone Portugal grudgingly files 5G auction application
Portuguese OpCo indicates legal battle over auction rules is ongoing.
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OperationsBT picks Belfast for legal relaunch
Multi-million-pound investment goes towards revamp of Group’s legal presence. Another BT function chooses to switch activities across Irish Sea.
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Public AffairsBT could face winter strike action
CWU ups the ante in the Count Me In campaign as employees back what could be the first national strike at BT in decades. New Birmingham office to be first regional hub in Better Workspace programme, but the pandemic is complicating other office searches.
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Strategy & ChangeElsewhere in Vodafone Europe: 5G tested across the bloc
German rivals jump on campus bandwagon; physical and digital security launches; 5G use-cases explored in Netherlands, Spain, and UK.
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Network & InfrastructureUK gets on with life after Huawei
New 5G Diversification Strategy and Telecommunications (Security) Bill expected to introduce tough new network security expectations on operators, while attempting to reduce the risks associated with over-reliance on Ericsson and Nokia. Government backing open standards, and particularly open RAN, to create a diverse supply chain, but relative lack of ...
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Public AffairsBT Italia accounting scandal to court, as Group retreats
Court of Milan fixes trial date in 2021. 20 defendants in the dock, including two former senior BT execs. Alvarez spared. Patterson concedes BT was an absent parent. TIM snaffling SME and public sector accounts, but BT retaining MNC presence and local assets.
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Public AffairsOpenreach Monitoring Unit report card: pass
Monitoring unit warns against complacency in safeguarding strategic independence. Pricing and PIA implementation remain areas of concern.
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Network & InfrastructureGovernment backpedals on fibre: industry on its own
Improbable goal of universal gigabit coverage abandoned by UK government. £5bn investment plans massively watered down in latest Spending Review. BT critical of retreat. Regulatory environment and sketchy plans for gigabit BDUK could play into Openreach hands.
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Public AffairsBT calls for broadband USO rework amid pricing row
Ofcom investigating excessive costings for new connections. BT fires back with calls to make rural connectivity a viable shared endeavour. State-salvaged OneWeb satellite service namechecked as potential enabler. BT also calls for clarity on £5bn rural full-fibre subsidy.
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Network & InfrastructureUK plots 5G future sans Huawei
BT suggests Adastral Park would be a natural home for parts of the proposed National Telecoms Lab.
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Strategy & ChangeElsewhere in T-Mobile US: 6G gets nod
T-Mobile US joins 6G alliance with industry bigwigs, and foots a Sprint bill for Lifeline abuse.
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Network & InfrastructureMovistar launches Peru InfraCo post political storm
Telefónica in Peru is establishing a new entity to support fixed-line rollout in remote areas, and is seeking partners. Prior to announcement of new intentions, the award of a new licence to the operator by a government in turmoil sparked suspicions of impropriety.
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Innovation (R&D)German operators jump on campus 5G bandwagon
Once-dissenting operators now planning to use licence-based campus networks for service and technology development. Steady growth in 5G local frequency allocations maintained, reaching 88 organisations in the first year. Verizon also enters scene.
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Network & InfrastructureChile auction: unhappy Movistar reins in spend
Five Chilean spectrum bidders announced: Movistar among MNOs looking for additional 5G bandwidth. Operating business’ antitrust complaints shushed until after the auction, with national 5G roadmap taking priority. Hispanoamérica monetisation plans, and a pivot towards less capital intensive service provision may have contributed to Movistar’s muted involvement.
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Suppliers & SCMUK tightens screws on telcos over Huawei
Government plans to tackle lack of diversity in upcoming new 5G strategy.