All UK Fibre Challengers articles
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Partnerships & AlliancesNetomnia forays off-net with Openreach tie-up, lures new debt investors
UK altnet to add 1.5 million premises to footprint as it seeks to attract fresh customers and reduce churn through wholesale tie-up with the nation’s incumbent provider. Coincides with new investors and long-term backers completing debt raise with a £140m boost.
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Public AffairsOpenreach lobbies for regulatory flexibility as fibrecos take market share, struggle with debt
Openreach’s regulatory lead is twisting Ofcom’s arm to give it pricing freedom in regions where it faces two rivals. VM O2 and CityFibre contend that a firm hand is required to protect still fragile competition. While altnets are winning market share, their lenders are nervous…
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Network & InfraGoFibre closes £125m funding round to boost Scottish fibre build
Altnet secures additional financing from the Scottish National Investment Bank and Hamburg Commercial Bank, with aspiration to reach additional Scottish premises while supporting ongoing Project Gigabit build. Read more…
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B2BNetomnia enters UK fibre wholesale fray with new platform — starting with B2B
Altnet’s platform joins increasingly crowded and competitive wholesale marketplace, emphasising streamlining, top-four fibreco scale credentials, and 50G future-proofing. Dark fibre, too…
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Network & InfraCityFibre CTO charts course for next-gen PON, phased M&A integration
David Tomalin envisages 50G or 100G upgrade in early- to mid-2030s, with rapid customer rollout — within long-term “rolling plan” for network architecture that factors in role as market consolidator. Read more…
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Network & InfraKCOM bows to pressure, launches PIA to end Hull’s ‘Pole Wars’
Better later than never: Hull incumbent debuts Physical Infrastructure Access wholesale infra product fourteen years behind Openreach, giving rivals Connexin and MS3 long-coveted access to assets for fibre rollout…
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Consumer (B2C)WightFibre focuses on demographics and experience as local market matures
CEO John Irvine identifies key demographics where converged legacy players may still hold sway, although bonds are loosening…
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Financial & PerformanceQ1 FY25–26: Openreach fibre machine keeps rolling
Access services business keeping up its relentless build pace, while connections are soaring. UK fibre’s pre-eminent multi-tasker shows build can be accelerated alongside strong take-up, but broadband losses continue to mount in the meantime…
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Financial & PerformanceGrain snags £225m funding as Equitix recommits
Nearly half a billion pounds in total funding now unlocked to fuel one of the UK’s largest and most intriguing low-cost fibre builds, with Equitix re-upping investment alongside bigger funders…
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Network & InfraUK’s GoFibre bags £105m in Scottish fibre deal
Altnet scores another round of subsidies to install fibre to additional premises in rural Scotland. Award is the third for Scotland from Project Gigabit, as Building Digital UK seeks to hand out more contracts in the country after a slow start (when compared to England and Wales)…
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PeopleUK’s National Wealth Fund names new CEO
Oliver Holbourn to lead UK government investment vehicle with new ‘strategic priorities’ as the organisation looks to invest beyond infrastructure for the first time. However, digital infra has remained one of NWF’s key interests with its recent investment activity…
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Financial & PerformanceCityFibre secures £2.3bn war chest to lead UK altnet scaleup round
UK’s largest altnet finalises funding aimed at accelerating operations and driving fibreco consolidation. The question now is ‘what next for Virgin Media O2, its mothballed NetCo spinout, and nexfibre sidecar?’. Read more…
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Partnerships & AlliancesSky marks CityFibre go-live with 5Gbps launch
UK ISP launches new Full Fibre Gigafast+ offerings, supporting speeds of up to 5Gbps for premises connected to CityFibre’s infrastructure. CityFibre CEO Greg Mesch says the deal will help to “deliver a healthy, competitive market for the long-term”…
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Deep DiveUK Fibre: altnet optimism vindicated over time as take-up erodes incumbent dominance
In depth: Eight Advisory’s latest Tracker shines light on altnet challenge to Openreach, with mature cohorts reaching parity and fibre insurgency continuing amidst land-grab tactics. TelcoTitan’s analysis explores linear trajectory of upstarts, impact of overbuild, continued testing of investor patience, and whether the UK can truly sustain more than two major platforms…
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Network & InfraUK’s Freedom Fibre bails out of second Project Gigabit deal
UK altnet becomes latest to cancel rural fibre contract with Building Digital UK, leaving the organisation needing to find another supplier to cover more than 8,500 un-connected premises …
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Financial & PerformanceCityFibre closing in on existential £2bn funding — report
Leading UK fibre altnet reportedly close to securing long-anticipated new equity and debt refinancing, to support operations, organic expansion, and M&A consolidator credibility in overcrowded fibre sector. CityFibre says further details to come “shortly”…
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Venturing & InvestmentsWessex Internet secures another helping of UK gov fibre funding
The UK government’s National Wealth Fund injects £50m into rural-focused altnet. Combining the cash with prior Project Gigabit wins, Wessex Internet aims to more than triple its current fibre footprint…
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Products & ServicesCityFibre seeks B2B market share with Ethernet expansion
UK’s largest altnet has made Business Ethernet services available to more than 260,000 enterprises, claiming the expansion will enable its ISP partners to sell services in an “easier and more efficient” manner…
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Partnerships & AlliancesHyperoptic switches up strategy with Openreach infra deal
UK altnet signs deal to access “at least” one million additional homes, using Openreach’s fibre infra to provide broadband services, in a shift from its previous own-build strategy…
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Financial & PerformanceTalkTalk late to pay broadband suppliers amidst financial woes — report
TalkTalk has reportedly missed several deadlines for payments to key broadband suppliers such as Openreach and CityFibre, in latest sign of struggle from the debt-burdened UK telco…