UK Infra – Page 2
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Public Affairs
Openreach 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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Partnerships & Alliances
Virgin Media O2 smartens up fibre rollout with IQGeo and Deepomatic combo
As IQGeo completed an acquisition of Deepomatic earlier this month, Virgin Media O2 emerged as one of the first operators to use their combined geospatial software and computer vision software tools to speed its fibre rollout.
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Network & Infra
GoFibre 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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Products & Services
UK’s One Touch Switch accelerates to 1.5 million, preps B2B extension
Eleven months in, TOTSCo now switching around 5k broadband consumers daily with more to come, as BT and VM O2 trial new B2B capability, and Netomnia’s Chelot steps down from board…
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B2B
Netomnia 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 & Infra
CityFibre 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 & Infra
KCOM 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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People
Under pressure KCOM loses CEO
Tim Shaw set to depart after three-year stint, exiting amid reports that Hull incumbent is gearing up for talks over mounting debt as it continues fibre expansion and migration programmes…
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Financial & Performance
TalkTalk bags £100m in latest financial restructuring
Troubled UK provider raises £100m as part of wider financing deal, reportedly providing short-term relief on debt struggles…
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Financial & Performance
Q1 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 & Performance
Grain 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 & Infra
TAR 2026: altnets, Openreach rail against ‘puzzling’ regulatory misstep
In a rare show of alignment, Ofcom’s Telecoms Access Review re-zoning proposals get a sledging from altnets and the incumbent as the UK’s fibre industry unites to vent frustration at potential regulatory framework update…
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Network & Infra
UK’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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People
UK’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 & Performance
CityFibre 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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Interview
Fibrus 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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Strategy & Change
Boldyn restructures European biz in strategic rethink
International neutral host player shapes European subsidiary to manage operations in the continent, with the goal of “accelerating market momentum and unlocking new opportunities”. Read more…
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Deep Dive
UK 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 & Infra
UK gov pares back Shared Rural Network targets in strategic rethink
Building Digital UK scales back plans for further rural 4G coverage expansion after hitting initial Shared Rural Network targets early. Strategy shift comes after discussions with local communities and interest groups, with BDUK aiming to maximise coverage while delivering “best value for public money”.