All Political articles
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Network & Infrastructure
OTE boss reassures over fibre build after slowdown
About 100,000 Greek homes are lopped off incumbent’s 2024 fibre build out plan, after marked slowdown in rollout pace this year.
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Financial & Performance
BT ‘pulling levers’ to account for UK Budget burden
CFO Simon Lowth puts annual additional cost at £100m for the Group, with transformation plans to be ‘brought forward’ to compensate.
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M&A
Vodafone–Three offers new remedies to get UK deal done
Vodafone UK and Three UK have made retail and wholesale price pledges to win merger approval, even though they disagree with the Competition & Markets Authority’s initial findings.
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Partnerships & Alliances
Meta ends peering relationship with Deutsche Telekom in Germany
War of words erupts between DT and Meta in the dispute over who should pay for data traffic.
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Weekly Briefings
BTwatch Weekly: gov’t reforms required as Openreach seeks fibre residencies
Latest from BT and its ecosystem as the Group makes fixed network demands, rolls out next-gen mobile, and works to surrender international outposts. More from Connected Britain, Secure Tomorrow Festival, and elsewhere in a busy week for BT, EE, and Openreach…
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Public Affairs
Deep dive: What UK FibreCos want from Labour gov’t
Fibre builders share what they want from the new Labour government, with policy consistency and demand-side support topping wishlists, divergence on the detail. Read more…
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Strategy & Change
Seven years in, Liberty CEO says it’s time to ‘think about’ Vodafone JV’s future
Mike Fries suggests seven years of co-ownership with Vodafone may be long enough as internal discussions turn more acutely to Dutch JV’s future.
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Public Affairs
UK Minister hints at fixes for FibreCos’ apartment access woes
Operators vent about barriers to accessing MDU access as new Telecoms Minister offers support for reforms, but little in the way of detail or firm commitments…
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People
BT adds ex-antitrust CEO to boardroom
Former Competition and Markets Authority CEO Alex Chrisholm joins BT board to lead Ofcom engagement, support Openreach separation compliance.
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Interview
UK altnet Quickline pitches ‘patchwork’ solution to rural full-fibre challenge
Quickline CEO Sean Royce tells TelcoTitans not everyone needs a gigabit right now and full fibre is not the only way to improve broadband services in the most remote parts of the UK.
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Network & Infrastructure
Trooli CEO: UK’s Project Gigabit scheme will ‘come into its own’
Talking to Zen’s Richard Tang, Trooli CEO Andy Conibere praised the work of the government’s BDUK in stimulating an altnet industry.
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Network & Infrastructure
Openreach enters Project Gigabit fray at near-£1bn scale
Openreach handed its first Project Gigabit contracts, more in discussion. UK government ‘redoubles’ rural infill efforts, including first few in Wales…
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Strategy & Change
India’s Bharti steps in as BT’s new largest shareholder
BT Group reunited with 1990s partner, but this time as junior, with new India connection talked up. Investment anchored as ‘vote of confidence’ in CEO Allison Kirkby’s strategy. Road to regulatory approval appears relatively smooth. More on Altice retreat…
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Network & Infrastructure
Short-term delays in NI, but Project Gigabit readying for leap forward across devolved nations
Northern Ireland Executive confirms slight delay in procurement, but confident Project Stratum success can be replicated as paths cleared for Project Gigabit progress in Scotland, Wales…
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Weekly Briefings
BTwatch Weekly: CEO claims ‘solid start’ but warns of tumultuous year to come
Latest from BT and its interests, including: a Q1 report that tees up plenty of turbulence to come, but with a recovery scheduled within the next 18 months; a massive ESN contract in the works with BT despite equally substantial delays in recent years; and new digs for the former CEO…
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Network & Infrastructure
EE handed £1.85bn ESN top-up, 5G SA upgrade
UK Home Office to award massive Emergency Services Network transition contract. ’Progress’ so far blocks competition and earns EE the deal, despite ten-year, £10bn+ programme delay…
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Network & Infrastructure
Project Gigabit future: UK FibreCos say yes to expansion, but with caveats
Mooted bundling of Project Gigabit mega-contracts gets firm ‘no’ from altnet INCA gathering, but most on board for programme extension. New Labour government urged to protect and evolve rural fibre build to reach final few per cent of rural premises, learn from ‘zany’ Scotland, or risk missing FTTP targets. And then there’s that Type C elephant (not) in the room, Openreach…
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Venturing & Investments
Infracapital: UK FibreCo fundraisers must graft to overcome global ‘bad rep’, new gov showing ‘green shoots’
INCA event provides platform for investors and altnets including Octopus and Netomnia to review early weeks of Labour government, with broad optimism on show despite still rocky funding environment. The capital exists, but what will Downing Street do to bring it to the UK? Read more…
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Weekly Briefings
Infrawatch Weekly: Europe aims for SatCo breakthrough, Hyperoptic joins £1bn club, DT ponders more TowerCos
Latest from the digital infra scene in the UK and beyond, including: EU efforts to support connectivity on Earth and above the skies; UK public sector stoking the fire of fibre investment; musings on the merits of more TowerCos; and plenty more…
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Suppliers & SCM
Vodafone buying chief: ‘creeping protectionism’ destabilising telecom supply chain
Group Procurement Director Ninian Wilson warns that dynamic has changed in Europe, with rising US-China tensions making for difficult decisions in telco buying. Vodafone SCM strategy now prioritising resilience, despite trade-offs…