UK – Page 5
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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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Strategy & Changegiffgaff preps fintech side hustle as new CEO eyes deeper customer ties
MVNOs World: Innovative MVNO’s boss Kate Dohaney sees telco connectivity as mere ‘table stakes’ in the AI era and is exploring new routes towards value creation, including events, financial services, and education.
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M&ABT and Verizon pair up on $4bn multinational B2B venture
In depth: BT has finally found a partner for its troubled International enterprise business, striking a joint venture agreement with Verizon that could bring an end to years of strategic uncertainty while creating a new global connectivity player focused on multinational customers.
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Products & ServicesTesco Mobile denies rumours of return to UK broadband fray
UK’s largest MVNO pushes back against suggestions it is planning to re-enter the country’s broadband market, after reports that the business has held early-stage talks with parent Virgin Media O2 and infra sibling nexfibre to explore opportunities. Denial comes as competition continues to heat up in the nation’s crowded broadband market…
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Network & InfraVM O2 plans ‘extensive’ autonomous networks ramp-up
UK operator targets Level 4 network autonomy within a ‘couple of years’, with network planning and optimisation the key use-cases.
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Strategy & ChangeUtility Warehouse eyes broadband and mobile opportunities as it chases convergence
In depth: Multi-play broadband and utilities provider unveils a five-year plan to drive up mobile, broadband, and insurance, while tapping an AI commercial opportunity. UW may be a litmus test as UK altnets develop retail strategies to go beyond connectivity…
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Network & InfraOptimising Virgin Media O2 joins BT and VodafoneThree in laying down 2G switch-off schedule
Operator seeks to free up frequencies as 2G switch-off to begin in 2029. Spectrum to help VM O2 catch up with rivals on network capacity and strengthen 4G and 5G services. However, Ofcom notes “clear expectations” in place around support for 2G-reliant customers…
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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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Network & InfraVirgin Media O2 pivots telco cloud to Red Hat and Wind River
Virgin Media O2 is overhauling its telco cloud strategy, pivoting away from VMware to adopt a Kubernetes-based horizontal infrastructure with Red Hat and Wind River. With managing a multi-vendor telco cloud like “herding wildcats”, discover how the operator plans to manage its complex vendor ecosystem and drive true cloud-native transformation.
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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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Network & InfraBT maps strategic shift from GEO to LEO for rural backhaul
CCW 2026: Demand for low latency connectivity has prompted a shift to low-Earth orbit mega-constellations for ultra-rural mobile sites as BT’s priority LEO use-case. Consumer D2D services considered a future prospect, but mobile backhaul has a role now — and HAPS has re-entered the conversation too…
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Network & InfraUK ‘fortunate’ to have BT on board as mission critical comms project nears maturity
CCW 2026: Emergency Services Network (ESN) programme leadership talk up BT’s role in mission critical comms as the operator taps ‘shared benefits’, leans into commercial incentives and avoids ‘excessive’ legislation…
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M&ALiberty Blume bulks up with rights management acquisition as it expands UK infra horizons
Liberty’s Blume is stepping into energy, water, and construction to add to its telecoms heartlands with CLM takeover, positioning itself to capture a larger share of the UK’s infrastructure investment boom.
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M&AVodafoneThree networks chief: merger remedies more ‘asset’ than ‘burden’
Chief Network Officer Andrea Donà has framed strict regulatory remedies as an “engineer’s paradise” as the UK operator sets about its £7bn network integration programme.
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Products & ServicesThe $5bn travel eSIM revolution: disruptors, unicorns, and the MNO fightback
MVNOs World: Kaleido Intelligence identifies exponential growth in the travel eSIM segment, with momentum fuelled by perception of MNO gouging and lack of pricing clarity. Operators are mitigating this challenge to roaming revenues by hedging bets with investments in disruptors, wholesale MVNO deals, and more transparent international travel plans.
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Partnerships & AlliancesBT gets in on sovereign frontier AI as gov pitches UK as ‘AI maker, not taker’
BT enters the sovereign AI breach as one of a cohort supporting Cosine’s Lumen Sovereign project to build and train a frontier AI model exclusively on UK soil. Government gets in on the action by providing crucial sovereign compute resource, along with a wave of parallel sovereign AI announcements…
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Partnerships & AlliancesVirgin Media O2 trials telco cloud voice-enhancement with Mavenir
Mobile core network software seeks to improve call clarity for users with hearing loss as well as enhancing customer experience. Move sits within £1.4bn Mobile Transformation Plan and backdrop of other operators also turning to 5G standalone and AI to restore voice as a value add…
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Network & InfraBoldyn says London Tube mobile rollout ‘on track’ in latest progress update
Neutral host says London Underground coverage programme to complete by end of 2026, within current timeframes but two years later than initially planned.
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Financial & PerformanceTelefónica sees early gains in Transform & Grow revival plan
Q1 FY26: Execs at trimmed-down and re-focused Telefónica claim already to be seeing positive results from its new, five-year strategic plan, announced late last year. Operational changes and exits from volatile markets have made the Group smaller, but also given management a more solid and predictable platform for growth, execs argue.