Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Network access provider Openreach (BT) has provided an important update on the planned (pilot) closure of their next two legacy exchanges in Ballyclare (9,500 premises in N.Ireland) and Kenton Road (9,500 premises in London), which were originally due to be switched off on 30th November 2025 but will now remain open a bit longer to help the remaining users migrate.

Just to recap. The operator is currently in the early pilot stage of closing around 4,600 of their 5,600 UK exchanges. This is occurring because only c.1,000 of these are needed to provide nationwide coverage of modern “fibre broadband” services (FTTC / SOGEA, FTTP etc.) – the Openreach Handover Points (OHPs or “Super Digital Exchanges“). The rollout of full fibre (FTTP) technology, combined with the retirement of copper lines and legacy services (ADSL, WLR, PSTN etc.), will soon make it economically unviable to support both the old and new exchanges.

The operator has thus long since developed a gradual plan for closing the thousands of older exchanges – known as the Exchange Exit Programme, which starts with an initial pilot of 3 exchanges and then extends to a closure of 105 “priority exchanges” by 2030 (i.e. taking place in four phases), with the rest then following through the early 2030s. The tentative dates for these have already been announced (here).

Closing an exchange and migrating affected customers remains a highly complex process, which typically takes around 4-7 years (depending upon the complexity of each exchange) – starting with a Stop Sell of old products and eventually ending with everything being switched off. Only after that do Openreach and ISPs remove their physical kit, which can take a few short months.

What’s happened so far?

Earlier this week we reported that the first of three pilot exchange closures for this programme, Deddington (serving c.1,800 copper lines), had finally shut its doors a little ahead of schedule (here) – new digital lines are now being served and managed by the nearby Banbury Exchange (OHP). None of this is surprising, as Deddington was also one of the first UK areas to go fully FTTP.

By comparison, the next two pilot exchanges – Ballyclare and Kenton Road – are much larger and more challenging to address, and that’s intentional. Openreach needs to confront the hardest areas now and establish the best approaches for dealing with them, which will then inform their solutions when it comes to retiring thousands more in the future. Both exchanges were originally due to shut their doors on 30th November.

However, much as we reported last weekend (here), both of these exchanges currently still have some active consumer broadband and phone lines (i.e. they’ve not been migrated yet) – not many, but we were told is was “enough to hinder the closure”. Some other lines are also in the process of being migrated, but won’t all be shifted by the closure date. The operator has thus been busy working closely with ISPs, Ofcom, the Government (DSIT) and the Office of the Telecoms Adjudicator (OTA) to find solutions.

Openreach has also been working with retail providers in an effort to try and identify what kind of users theses are (they’re currently investigating that alongside retails providers), since nobody wants to disconnect customers, particularly if some of them may turn out to be classified as “vulnerable“, or part of any other high risk or critical infrastructure (CNI) group.

What’s the latest update?

According to the latest private briefing on all this, which was posted on Wednesday, Openreach are still busy trying to identify whether any of those who haven’t yet been shifted off the exchange are “vulnerable” users. The operator is currently still reviewing their position over whether or when to cease consumer customers and are, in the meantime, continuing to work with everyone involved to exit the pilot exchanges safely.

“Whilst we continue to work this through, we’ve now confirmed with industry that where CPs [Communication Providers] have failed to migrate consumer customers’ assets prior to the deadline, Openreach will NOT cease on 1st December 2025, but services will remain subject to original termination notices – we will keep CPs informed of any future plans to cease these lines,” said a spokesperson to ISPreview.

In short, the exchanges will not now be closing this weekend as originally planned and Openreach are allowing more time to find solutions for the remaining lines, although they’ve yet to agree a new timetable for closure with providers. In the meantime, they’ve advised affected broadband and phone providers to continue trying to migrate their consumer customers to digital alternatives, including full fibre (FTTP) and SOGEA (FTTC).

As we pointed out in the prior update, business lines aren’t so lucky, with Openreach making clear that disconnection will be the outcome: “If a CP fails to cease and/or migrate the services by the end of 30 November 2025, any live business assets which do not have an inflight order or have not been agreed as critical life impacting services, will be ceased by Openreach from the 1 December 2025“.

Hopefully we’ll learn what the revised switch-off dates will be in the near future.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

The Court of Appeal in London has dismissed an attempt by investment firm LetterOne (L1), which had been seeking compensation after the previous Government used the new National Security and Investment Act 2021 (NSIA) to force them into selling Upp’s full fibre broadband network to rival operator nexfibre at a loss (retail customers went to Virgin Media).

Upp was originally established as a £1bn project that aimed to deploy a new Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) based broadband network and retail ISP across 1 million premises in the East of England (here). But their efforts were dealt a significant blow in December 2022, after the UK Government ordered LetterOne – an investment firm that previously received significant backing from several prominent and now sanctioned Russians (Mikhail Fridman and Petr Aven) – to sell its entire stake in Upp in order to “prevent, remedy, or mitigate the risk to national security” (here).

At the time, LetterOne said they “believe that L1 ownership of Upp is not a threat to national security in any way” and pointed out that “L1 is not sanctioned and has taken fast, decisive action to put in place strong measures to distance L1 from its sanctioned shareholders. They have no role in L1, no access to premises, infrastructure, people and funds or benefits of any description.” The investment company froze the shareholdings of those individuals (who jointly owned less than 50% of the company) and its oligarch founders resigned from the group’s board.

However, despite LetterOne launching a legal challenge against the government’s decision (here), the investor claimed they ended up selling Upp at a loss (i.e. “less than the £143.7m that (LetterOne) had by then invested“) to rival operator nexfibre in September 2023 (here). At that point, Upp’s network had only covered 175,000 premises, although it’s worth considering that assessing market value for altnets is a tricky thing these days, with some banks and investors predicting they may take a loss (here).

The High Court in London last year dismissed LetterOne’s appeal against the forced sale (here). But the investment company then lodged a new appeal based around the question of whether Article 1 of Protocol 1 (A1P1) to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) would require compensation to be paid following a forced sale made pursuant to a final order under the NSIA. Yesterday the Court of Appeal dismissed that challenge.

Summary of Judgement

It is also important to keep in mind that what is in issue is the risk posed to national security by the Ultimate Beneficial Owners of a company, which may be at several steps removed from the entity concerned. In the present case those UBOs were individuals who had been the subject of Russian sanctions, including in the UK. There is no question, as Mr Hickman urged upon the Court, of impugning the character of the Appellants as such but it is important to keep in mind that the ultimate risk to the security of this country comes from the UBOs.

In this context Sir James Eadie emphasised before this Court what had been said by the Judge at para 206, in a part of her judgment which is not under appeal to this Court:

“Nor am I persuaded that a remedy founded on changes to corporate structure and other restrictions to which the Claimants showed willingness to submit would have the benign effects for which the Claimants contend. On the contrary, I accept Mr Phillips’ and Ms Wolfe’s submissions that the Claimants consistently accepted or implied that the Group and its UBOs had – and should retain – influence and control over Upp. In the first set of representations, the First Claimant accepted that the Group had some control over Upp, albeit denying that the Group exerted a high level of control.

The first set of representations demonstrated that Mr Kosogov had not been placed under the same measures of structural and legal separation from the Group as the sanctioned UBOs (Mr Fridman and Mr Aven). In the meeting with the ISU on 22 November 2022, the Group indicated that it did not accept the ISU’s proposal that investor consent (in practical terms, their own consent) should no longer be required for all high value contracts, describing the elimination of investor consent as ‘extremely difficult.’ Dr Easton made clear that the Group wanted to retain the ability to influence the Upp Board through the Investor Directors.”

Mr Hickman emphasised before us that there is no suggestion that the Appellant companies have done anything wrong or that they themselves pose a risk to national security. He is entitled to emphasise that the law recognises a distinction between the corporate entities and the ultimate beneficial owners. Nevertheless, in this context it is clearly the risk posed to national security from those ultimate beneficial owners which has prompted the Respondent to make the order. In this context, particularly having regard to the importance of national security, courts must be alive to the realities of the situation irrespective of the legal position that a corporate entity is distinct from its shareholders or others.

Furthermore, the presence in the statutory scheme of section 30 of the NSIA is important to the overall assessment of proportionality. That is a provision which would allow mitigation measures to be taken, for example by way of financial assistance (if hardship was shown or something of that sort).

One also needs to keep in mind that the process for assessing the “fair market value” of a company, as distinct from what it can actually be sold for albeit in circumstances of a forced sale, is likely to be a complicated and lengthy process. This is evident from the disposal plan which we were shown in the present case. This would have the potential to impede the process by which the Respondent is able to achieve the important public interest purposes which lie behind the scheme of the NSIA.

Finally, it is important to note that there is no Strasbourg authority directly on point. Sir James Eadie submits that none “comes close” to requiring that a State must compensate against any diminution in value flowing from a forced sale, or for past investment and/or possible future profits. This is important, because it is well-established that the courts of this country should follow the clear and constant jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights, neither more nor less. As Lord Reed PSC explained in R (Elan-Cane) v Secretary of State for the Home Department [2021] UKSC 56; [2023] AC 559, at para 63, although it is open to domestic courts to develop the law in relation to Convention rights beyond the limits of Strasbourg case law, on the basis of the principles established in that law, they should not go further than they can be confident that the European Court would do.

For the reasons I have given, I would dismiss this appeal.

This was somewhat of a test case, the first case in relation to the NSIA to come before the Court of Appeal, and thus the decision against LetterOne is likely to set a precedent for other potentially similar challenges in the future. Several challenges based on procedural unfairness and irrelevant considerations were also dismissed.

Original article Total Telecom:Read More

News

Vodafone says the Bundeskartellamt (Federal Cartel Office) has not followed key procedural rules in its investigation and has acted with bias

Vodafone has formally challenged the Bundeskartellamt over its investigation into the operator’s alleged anti-competitive behaviour towards rival 1&1. The conflict centres on Vodafone’s supposed obstruction of 1&1’s efforts to build its own 5G network, a move crucial for establishing the company as the country’s fourth major mobile network operator.

1&1 Drillisch won 5G mobile spectrum at auction back in 2019 with the intention of building out its own network and becoming Germany’s fourth national operator. By 2021, 1&1 had signed a deal with Vantage Towers (in which Vodafone holds a 50% stake) to access up to 5,000 of the towerco’s existing mobile sites, allowing them to more rapidly deploy their burgeoning 5G network.

The contract specified that 3,800 sites were to be made available by 2025.

By the end of 2022, however, it was becoming clear that access to this may sites by 2025 would be unlikely, with 1&1 saying it had been granted access to just five sites. In 2023, 1&1 formally complained to the Bundeskartellamt , who subsequently launched an investigation into the source of Vantage’s delays in providing the agreed upon infrastructure.

Now, Vodafone is claiming that the Bundeskartellamt is conducting proceedings in a biased and procedurally improper manner, exceeding its authority. Vodafone has sought interim legal relief at the Oberlandesgericht Düsseldorf, arguing that the accusations lack substantive merit and that 1&1 has unduly influenced the investigation.

“I’ve never encountered anything like this in my more than 25 years of professional experience,” said Vodafone’s lawyer, Walther Graf, who provided a 65-page letter to the Bundeskartellamt with the allegations.

The Bundeskar­tellamt, however, insists that it is conducting its investigations impartially. It noted that its president, Andreas Mundt, maintains regular contacts with all relevant industry leaders, including both 1&1’s CEO Ralph Dommermuth and Vodafone’s executives. The authority dismisses Vodafone’s claims of partiality and unusual procedural conduct as unfounded.

1&1 has also denied any improper coordination with the Bundeskartellamt.

Keep up to date with all the latest telecoms news with the Total Telecom newsletter

Also in the news
Connected Britain Award winners 2025 announced!
Netomnia announces ‘powerful and ambitious’ rebrand ahead of Connected Britain
VodafoneThree drops Samsung, relies on Nokia and Ericsson for £2bn network upgrade

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Good news. SpaceX’s Starlink internet service, which reflects a mega constellation of ultrafast broadband satellites in Low Earth Orbit (LEO), has quietly launched a new “Residential Lite” package for consumers in the UK that drops the price of their unlimited usage plan to just £55 per month and offers speeds capped at up to 250Mbps.

Starlink currently has around 9,100 satellites in orbit (c.5,600 are v2 / V2 Mini) – mostly at altitudes of c.500-600km. Residential customers in the UK usually pay from £75 a month, plus £299 for hardware (currently free for many areas) on the ‘Standard Residential’ unlimited data plan (kit price may vary due to different offers) directly from Starlink, which promises UK latency times of 26-33ms, downloads of up to 400Mbps and uploads of c.15-35Mbps. Cheaper, albeit more restrictive (data capped), options also exist for roaming users (e.g. £50 per month for 50 GigaBytes of data).

However, we recently reported that Starlink seemed to be experimenting with a more affordable package in the USA (here), which we indicated could soon be coming to the UK; albeit probably not in an identical form to the USA as Starlink tends to structure their packages differently between countries (due to differences in ground stations, capacity / spectrum allocations, coverage etc.).

The good news today is that Starlink appears to have just refreshed their main unlimited residential packages and launched a more affordable option. This suddenly makes the service much more attractive to the mass market, although they do state that it’s currently only available in “select areas” (we’ve yet to find a UK location where it isn’t available).

New Starlink Plans for Unlimited Data

Residential Lite – 250Mbps
(Average peak hour download speeds of 175 Mbps)

£55 per month
£0 hardware
£19 shipping

Typical Speeds for this Package:
Download: 80-200 Mbps
Upload: 15-35 Mbps

Residential – 400Mbps+
(Average peak hour download speeds of 250 Mbps)

£75 per month
£0 hardware
£19 shipping

Typical Speeds for this Package:
Download: 135-305 Mbps
Upload: 20-40 Mbps

*Typical speeds are calculated globally and represent the 20th to 80th percentile of real user data. Speeds may vary based on your location.

The move doesn’t just reflect the ongoing enhancement of Starlink’s network, but it could also potentially be seen as an early shot toward staving off future competition from Amazon’s Leo service, which is due to launch a consumer package sometime later in 2026. But unlike Amazon, SpaceX can leverage the advantages of a more mature network via competitive pricing. Credits to Stewart on our forum for spotting the change (here).

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Alternative broadband ISP Brsk, which last year merged with Netomnia’s growing multi-gigabit speed Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network (here), has reportedly been hit by a major data breach that is claimed to have resulted in 230,105 customer records being exposed to hackers. The database has since been put up for sale.

The breach appears to have been first spotted by the DailyDarkWeb, which is a community of volunteers dedicated to monitoring the unseen layers of the digital world and one that has often been credited with spotting a number of past leaks related to UK companies and telecoms providers. Sadly, the same today appears to be true for Brsk.

“A threat actor is advertising the alleged customer database of BRSK (brsk.co.uk), a UK-based telecommunications company specializing in full fibre broadband. The actor is offering the dataset, which contains 230,105 records, on a hacking forum, with a sample provided and a price set for negotiation via direct message,” said the website.

The breach is said to contain various personal customer details, including names, email addresses, physical address, phone numbers, installation/booking details, brsk ID numbers, location data and also data that identifies whether the customer is considered to be a vulnerable user (e.g. customers with telecare needs etc.). The latter is particularly worrying, as such users are often a prime target for phishing and scams.

However, so far as we can tell, the database does not appear to contain any financial details, logins or passwords, although that may come as small comfort to the internet provider’s many customers exposed by this leak.

A spokesperson for Brsk told ISPreview:

“Brsk is investigating an incident involving unauthorised access to one of our customer database systems. We have established that the information involved is limited to basic customer contact information. No financial information, passwords, or account login credentials were affected. At this stage, there is no evidence to suggest that any of the information has been misused.

We understand that incidents of this nature can cause concern, and we are treating this matter with the highest level of seriousness. We have informed affected customers and as an additional precaution, we are offering them 12 months of free personal, financial and web-monitoring services provided by Experian. We have also engaged specialist security partners to assist with our investigation. The ICO, the police and relevant regulatory authorities have all been informed.”

Unfortunately, a number of internet providers have, over the past few years, suffered from a variety of similar data breaches. One of the biggest occurred at TalkTalk in October 2015 that resulted in the release of details belonging to 156,959 customers, which after a long investigation resulted in the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) hitting the provider with a £400,000 fine in 2016 (here).

Suffice to say that Brsk could be facing a significant fine in the future, and that’s before we consider the reputational damage that such things tend to cause. However, it could potentially be a long time before the ICO reach that stage, not least because the regulator is currently backlogged with cases. For example, the ICO are still understood to be investigating Lyca Mobile UK’s 2023 Data Breach, which took place over two years ago (here)!

The following is a copy of the email that customers have received in connection with this event.

Brsk’s Data Breach Email to Customers

We sincerely regret to inform you that some of your data stored on one of our systems, which is used to process new installations on the Brsk broadband network, has been accessed without our permission. There’s no evidence that any of the information has been misused, however we ask you to be vigilant for any unexpected emails or phone calls that may appear to come from Brsk.

What information is involved?

The information is limited to the contact details you provided when you placed your Brsk broadband order. This includes: name, surname, email address, contact number and physical address.

We would like to assure you that no financial information (such as bank or debit/credit card information) is stored on this system and therefore none was compromised.

None of your Brsk passwords or login credentials were affected.

What happened?

A third party gained unauthorised access to the system containing certain customer contact information. This system is entirely separate from our core network and operational infrastructure, all of which remain fully secure.

What we have done

Upon discovery, we immediately activated our security protocols, locked down the system affected and launched an investigation. Additional security measures have been implemented, and the customer data has been removed from the affected environment. We have also notified the relevant authorities in line with our legal and regulatory obligations.

What this means for you?

We are sharing this update to keep you informed. If anything appears unusual or you receive unsolicited requests for your personal details from Brsk, please take care and contact us directly if you’re unsure.

We will never reach out to ask for your financial information, passwords, or account login details by phone, email or text. If we ever require you to confirm this, we will only ask you to do so through our secure online customer portal.

Are your broadband services or core network impacted?

No. The affected system is separate from our core network and operational infrastructure, which continue to operate securely.

How are we resolving this?

To support you with monitoring your personal information for certain signs of potential identity theft, we are offering you 12 months of free personal, financial and credit monitoring services, provided by Experian, one of the UK’s leading Credit Reference Agencies.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Broadband ISP and mobile operator Vodafone UK will today take the wrappings off their annual Black Friday sale, which introduces additional discounts on the monthly prices of their various fixed line home broadband packages and SIM-Only mobile plans, among other things.

In terms of their fixed broadband plans, which are available across Openreach, CommunityFibre (mostly London) and CityFibre’s national networks, most of the discounts that have been introduced today represent further reductions of c.£0.5 to £1 off existing monthly prices (e.g. the 910Mbps CityFibre package drops from £25 to £24 per month).

However, the biggest reduction is on their 1.8Gbps CityFibre package, which drops from £60 to £48 per month. But it’s worth remembering that Vodafone’s annual mid-contract price increases will raise these rates by +£3.50 extra each April. Otherwise, the cheaper broadband prices will be available to take until 9am on 2nd December 2025.

On the Vodafone Mobile Black Friday deals (affiliate link), the operator has reduced the price of their SIM-Only 4G and 5G unlimited data plans quite a bit. The Unlimited Plus with Global Roam (100Mbps speed) plan is now £22 per month (down from £31), while Unlimited Max with Euro Roam is £27 (down from £43) and Unlimited Max with Global Roam is £30 (down from £46).

The mobile plans are all subject to an annual mid-contract price increase of +£2.50 each April.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Broadband ISP WightFibre, which have deployed their own gigabit speed Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network across the Isle of Wight – just off the South Coast of Hampshire (England), has become the latest internet provider to make Netgem TV’s new PLEIO set-top-box – including support for the new Freely live TV streaming service – available at a discounted price.

As with the prior announcements from Brsk and Connect Fibre, this news won’t come as a surprise because Netgem TV already revealed that WightFibre would be one of the first to adopt PLEIO as part of last week’s launch (here). But at the time, the ISP hadn’t yet made the new hardware and service available to their customers, which changes today.

The provider also has a fairly attractive deal on the new service and box, which offers it at only £5.95 per month for the first 12 months of service and then £8.95 thereafter. Broadband bundles that include the PLEIO streaming box also start at just £26.90 per month.

Alternatively, anybody can buy PLEIO at retail via Amazon for £99, but this doesn’t include their optional service subscription for premium channels and games (an extra £9.99 monthly if you buy the hardware at retail). The catch is that, due to high demand, the new box is currently out of stock via Amazon and so getting it via an ISP bundle is currently the only option.

Original article Total Telecom:Read More

[RIGA, LATVIA / HELSINKI, FINLAND, November 26, 2025] Skyfora and LMT have demonstrated Europe’s first real-time, rapid-update, kilometer-resolution GNSS weather observation grid, built on LMT’s 5G network and other GNSS receivers in Latvia and showcased during NATO’s Digital Backbone Experimentation (DiBaX).

Instead of installing new weather stations, Skyfora’s technology turns existing GNSS receivers at 5G sites into high-precision weather sensors. This converts the telecom network into a dense atmospheric observation grid that delivers continuous updates at kilometer-scale resolution – in real time, across large areas.

“We are turning existing 5G towers into the world’s densest weather observation network – with a software update,” said Fredrik Borgström, CEO at Skyfora. “With dense, real-time observations of atmospheric humidity, AI weather models can finally reach the accuracy that defence, critical infrastructure, energy and other weather–affected industries have been waiting for.”

At DiBaX in Latvia, LMTs 5G sites powered with Skyfora’s Weather Engine, streamed continuous measurements of humidity derived from small delays in the GNSS signals as they pass through the atmosphere. This provides a detailed, real-time view of how storms, extreme rainfall, flood risks, and heat stress are emerging and evolving.

“For LMT, this project demonstrates how our network act as a sensor by transforming existing infrastructure into a source of real-time, high-resolution weather intelligence. Together with Skyfora, we’re turning cutting-edge innovation into practical, dual-use solutions that create new value for defence, energy, critical infrastructure, and other weather-sensitive sectors.” said Armands Meirāns, Head of R&D at LMT Defence.

New weather intelligence for defence and industry

The Latvian demonstration shows how telecom-powered GNSS meteorology can support:

• Defence and security – improved situational awareness for mission planning and operations.
• Civil protection and infrastructure – earlier, more precise alerts for storms, flash floods and heat stress on cities and critical assets.
• Energy trading and renewables – sharper short-term forecasts for wind, solar and electricity grids improve trading and asset protection.

Designed for rapid national scale-up

Skyfora’s solution for telecom operators is designed to scale quickly:

• No new hardware – uses GNSS receivers already existing in 5G infrastructure.
• Software-enabled – deployed as a software and data-processing layer on top of the existing network.
• AI-ready data feed – continuous, high-resolution weather observations in real-time that directly fuel advanced forecasting models.

By combining Skyfora’s GNSS meteorology with advanced 5G networks, operators can convert their telecom infrastructure into next-generation weather and climate intelligence, strengthening both national resilience and defence preparedness.

About Skyfora

Skyfora, a company dedicated to pushing the boundaries of meteorological innovation, transforms the future of meteorology with unique, high-resolution weather data. Skyfora´s patented solutions extract atmospheric data from GNSS receivers in existing infrastructures like telecom networks, unlocking previously untapped data sources to power state-of-the-art AI weather models. By delivering a continuous flow of high-resolution weather intelligence, Skyfora boost AI forecasts enhancing climate resilience and supporting critical decision-making across weather-sensitive industries – from renewable energy to critical infrastructure, transport & logistics and insurance. Skyfora is redefining what’s possible in weather forecasting on a global scale

Skyfora media contact:

Fredrik Borgström, CEO, fredrik.borgstrom@skyfora.com, https://www.skyfora.com/

About LMT Defence

LMT Defence specialises in the development and integration of cutting-edge technologies to strengthen and advance the defence sector. By harnessing big data analytics, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and the latest communication innovations, LMT Defence consistently delivers mission-critical solutions that drive operational excellence.

Original article Total Telecom:Read More

News

The Australian technology giant is considering “a range of potential funding alternatives” to support the project

Earlier this week, Macquarie Technology Group revealed to investors that it was exploring funding options for a new 150MW data centre campus project, aiming to meet the expected boom in demand for AI and cloud computing.

The new campus would require between $2.5 billion and $3 billion in capital, excluding land value.

Speaking to investors on Tuesday, CEO David Tudehope said that the company was currently exploring its options for financing the data centre build out at the optioned location. One possibility would be to recycle capital by selling off a stake in the company’s more mature data centre assets. Alternatively, Macquarie could also partner with a third-party to create a joint venture.

“Funding for the new campus […] will come from recycled capital from the existing data centres and/or a development partnership,” said Tudehope, as reported in the Financial Review. “Both of those ideas are quite common overseas but are less common in Australia.”

The tech company has already struck a deal for the required land in Sydney for $240 million earlier this year, to be funded through cash reserves and debt.

Macquarie has been investing in data centres since 2018, with its flagship project taking place at the Macquarie Park Data Centre Campus in Sydney. Phase 1 of the site’s development, known as Sydney IC3 East, was completed in 2020, providing over 12MW of capacity. Phase 2, will see the site scaled further with the construction of the IC3 Super West data centre, bringing total capacity to 65MW.

Construction on C3 Super West began last year and is expected to be complete by Q3 2026. Macquarie extended its loan facilities to $450 million last year to facilitate this expansion.

Combining these existing assets with the planned 150MW would make Macquarie one of the largest data centre providers in Australia.

Keep up to date with all the latest telecoms news with the Total Telecom newsletter

Also in the news
Connected Britain Award winners 2025 announced!
Netomnia announces ‘powerful and ambitious’ rebrand ahead of Connected Britain
VodafoneThree drops Samsung, relies on Nokia and Ericsson for £2bn network upgrade

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

The latest estimated Q3 2025 market statistics from telecoms analyst firm Point Topic have revealed that, for the first time, Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) based UK subscriber broadband ISP connections (11.56 million) have overtaken the previous generation of hybrid Fibre-to-the-Cabinet (FTTC/VDSL2) lines (10.6m).

In terms of the other broadband technologies. Some 5.1 million connections use Virgin Media’s cable / hybrid fibre coax (DOCSIS 3.1) network, which is followed by 1.43 million on pure copper line ADSL (ADSLMax, ADSL2+) technology and 406,000 on Fibre-to-the-Building (FTTB) – predominantly reflecting Hyperoptic’s base. After that, some 255k are connected via a G.fast cabinet (we think it may be even less) and 232k via satellite and fixed wireless networks.

Independent (or alternative network) providers continued to focus on subscriber take-up and saw 193k net additions in Q3 (up from 190k in the previous quarter), with a total consumer broadband FTTB/P subscriber base reaching 3.02 million (up 29% year-on-year). CityFibre alone accounted for 108k additions in Q3 (total base of 730,000), thanks in part to Sky Broadband joining their network.

Year-on-Year Take-up Rates for Selected Altnets (Q3 2024 and Q3 2025)

By comparison, Openreach saw 551k full fibre net additions in Q3, which took their FTTP subscriber base – sold via hundreds of ISPs – to 7.65m (37.7% take-up). But as previously reported, they also lost 242k broadband lines (all technologies) in the quarter to rivals (up from 169k losses in Q2).

The report goes on to summarise a lot of the details we’ve covered before in prior news reports and results announcements, which makes it useful as a general overview of the market.

Q3 2025 UK ISP and network supplier metrics
https://www.point-topic.com/../q3-2025-uk-isp-and-network-supplier-metrics-a-market-overview