Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Matthew Hare, the Executive Chairman of alternative UK broadband operator FullFibre Limited, has announced that he is “stepping back” from the role after only being appointed to the post in January 2025 following the merger with fellow altnet Zzoomm (here), where he was previously the CEO.

The combined Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network currently reaches 600,000 premises (RFS) and 80,000 customers (up from 70k in March 2025) across England – serving parts of 100 market towns, which makes it one of the UK’s largest altnets. This reflects both their open access wholesale network (FullFibre) and their in-house retail ISPs (BeFibre and Zzoomm), although the BeFibre brand might soon be retired (here).

The newly merged company has since suffered from some post-deal redundancies (here), although the big development this week is that the former CEO of Zzoomm and current Executive Chairman of the merged network, Matthew Hare (pictured – left), has informed shareholders that he is stepping back from the role, despite only doing the job for a few months.

James Warner, CEO of FullFibre (Group), said:

“Matthew Hare has made the decision to step down from his role of Executive Chairman from the FullFibre/Zzoomm group. His development of the highly respected Zzoomm business, and most recently in his role supporting the newly enlarged FullFibre group, have played a critical role in building competitive UK telecoms infrastructure providing high quality services to customers across the country. The board thank him for his efforts and wish him all the best in his future endeavours.”

According to ISPreview’s sources, Matthew is also understood to have indicated that the network operator is in sight of positive EBITDA this year and positive cash flow next year. The group is said to be considering a range of additional merger opportunities that could potentially help to grow their current level of profitability and cash generation even faster.

Matthew doesn’t say precisely why he’s chosen to step back from the new role and all day-to-day operations, but he does plan to remain a minority shareholder in the business and indicated strong confidence in the company’s CEO, James Warner (pictured – right). Matthew added that he himself doesn’t have any immediate plans and is currently contemplating his future.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Network operator and ISP Grain (Grain Connect) has this afternoon announced that they’ve secured a £225m funding boost (mostly debt and some equity), which will enable them to expand the reach of their gigabit speed Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband network to cover c.600,000 UK premises. This is said to be the “next step” on the road to 1 million premises.

The operator’s broadband network currently covers over 250,000 premises (RFS) across the United Kingdom and is home to 43,000 customers (data from the end of March 2025), which is up from 220,000 premises and 30,000 customers in May 2024. But despite the wider market pressures that have caused other alternative networks to stall, Grain has so far managed to continue their build and today’s agreement will accelerate that.

The new funding reflects a £212.5m debt facility with funds and/or accounts managed, advised or controlled by HPS Investment Partners, LLC or its subsidiaries. On top of that, Equitix is also investing an additional £13m of equity into the business – the fifth time that they have invested in the operator.

Grain currently has significant coverage in areas including the North East, North West and the Midlands (England), which will now be expanded upon. The altnet also continues to commit to never installing telegraph poles in their network, preferring instead to either go underground or to run new fibre via Openreach’s existing infrastructure.

Richard Cameron, CEO of Grain, said:

“We are very pleased to partner with HPS, a partnership which demonstrates the strength of the advantages we have over the whole market and the strong financial performance we have delivered to date.

External benchmarking shows that the next most efficient provider to build and connect homes spends 47% more than Grain and our operating cost per customer is 60% lower than the market.”

The announcement, which follows hot on the heels of CityFibre securing a significant funding boost worth £2.3bn (here), appears to mark a positive turn in the industry for at least some of the sector’s embattled altnets. But the catch is that any funding deal signed today will almost certainly be subject to less favourable conditions than they had before (e.g. interest payments will be higher). In addition, today’s announcement doesn’t say when they expect to reach either 600k premises or 1 million.

The other question mark is over how Grain will approach and define the “next stage in their growth journey“. In this market, that could just as easily see them going on the consolidation hunt as it could drive their own build engine to reach more premises via more digging, or possibly a combination of the two. But the announcement makes no mention of consolidation, so the focus for now seems to be on new builds.

Grain was advised by CMS and Lazard.

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Broadband ISP and mobile operator EE (BT) has this morning announced that their latest 5G Standalone (5GSA) mobile network will, from the end of August 2025, be able to reach over half of the entire UK population (more than 34 million people) as more than 45 new UK locations go live. The figure is up from 40% coverage in March 2025.

The majority of 5G mobile networks today are still Non-Standalone (NSA), which means they are partly reliant upon older and slower 4G infrastructure. But SA networks are pure end-to-end 5G that can deliver ultra-low latency times, greater energy efficiency, better speeds (particularly uploads), network slicing, improved support for Internet of Things (IoT) devices, support for Voice over 5G SA (Vo5G) calling, and increased reliability and security etc.

In case anybody has forgotten, EE officially began launching a range of new 5G SA supporting mobile plans across 15 major UK cities in September 2024 (here) and they’ve since been expanding their coverage. Some of the latest locations to go live “in recent weeks” include Carlisle, Chesterfield, Hemel Hempstead, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Gosport, Slough, Stoke-on-Trent, Sutton Coldfield and York among others.

By the end of August 2025, customers in a further 38 locations will also benefit from 5GSA, including those in Aberdeen, Beverley, Blyth, Boston, Canterbury, Chippenham, Cleethorpes, Crawley, Derby, Exmouth, Great Malvern, Grimsby, Halifax, Harlow, Havant, Inverness, Ipswich, Leyland, Lichfield, Loughborough, Norwich, Paignton, Peterborough, Royal Leamington Spa, Salisbury, Shrewsbury, St Albans, St Neots, Sutton in Ashfield, Trowbridge, Wellingborough, Whitley Bay, Windsor, Winsford, Wishaw, Wokingham, Wrexham, Yeovil.

EE has previously informed ISPreview that they only announce 5GSA availability once a location has “at least 95% outdoor coverage“, so customers upgrading to the new technology know they will receive a “reliable and consistent experience“.

Greg McCall, Chief Networks Officer at BT Group, said:

“Whether you are video calling from a crowded train station, livestreaming on social media from a sold-out concert, or simply staying in touch with your family and friends over the summer holidays, 5G standalone on EE makes your experience smoother, faster and more secure.

Delivering a high-quality mobile experience every day for millions of people is what matters to us, it’s what has driven us to build the UK’s most reliable network and why we’re now delivering 5G standalone to more people in more places across the UK.”

EE also recently began to make their Voice over 5G Standalone (Vo5G) feature available to iOS and Android users in the UK with 5GSA-compatible devices and plans. Device compatibility is still a key issue for 5GSA adoption in general, although such things usually resolve themselves with time as consumers gradually upgrade.

The mobile operator added that their current “ambition is to make 5G standalone available to more than 41 million people by spring 2026“, which we’d equate to reflecting a population coverage of around 60%. But we do miss the time when EE would reference mobile coverage using geographic figures too.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Broadband access provider Openreach (BT) appears to have recently made their “Fibre Checker” a bit more informative via the addition of several new status messages to reflect different stages of network availability. This is primarily useful for those still awaiting the arrival of their Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network.

According to some of our forum members (main credit to squarecrumpets via Thinkbroadband’s forum), the Openreach checker has been updated to show more details when performing a postcode search on a property. This seems to be reflected by six possible responses to an address check, which are summarised below.

Revised Availability Status Messages
1. We have no plans to build Full Fibre to this property yet
2. We’re planning to build in this area
3. We’ll be building in this area in the next year
4. We’re building in this area now
5. Available to order soon
6. Available to order now

The new approach provides a little bit of extra detail to help show the operator’s roll-out progress through its different deployment phases, which represents a small but useful change. Consumers may of course wish for something more specific than this (i.e. clear dates and timescales), but network operators need to be careful about managing expectations because delays and complications sometimes do crop-up with complex FTTP builds.

Just take note that website browsers sometimes cache old responses. So if you’re regularly using this checker to test the status of a local build, then it would be wise to clear your browser cache once in a while or to try checking via a different web browser (avoids stale cache polluting the output).

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

A new survey of 108 Members of Parliament, which was conducted by consultancy firm Cluttons and polling company YouGov, has revealed that only 34% of MPs currently believe the UK will achieve the government’s target of delivering Standalone 5G (5GSA) mobile coverage to all populated areas by 2030. The figure drops even lower for the gigabit broadband target.

Most 5G networks today are still largely Non-Standalone (NSA), which means they’re partly reliant on older and slower 4G services that hobble performance. But SA networks are pure end-to-end 5G that can deliver ultra-low latency times, greater energy efficiency, better speeds (particularly uploads), network slicing, improved support for Internet of Things (IoT) devices, support for Voice over 5G SA (Vo5G) calling, and increased reliability and security etc.

Both the past and present governments have held a target for the industry to expand the availability of 5GSA to “all populated areas” by 2030, which was first established in 2023 via the Wireless Infrastructure Strategy (here). But the new data from Cluttons reveals that only around one in three MPs are confident that the government will hit its 2030 digital connectivity targets.

Meanwhile, 28% of MPs also said they were “not confident” that the government would achieve its separate goal of reaching 99% of premises having access to gigabit-capable broadband “by 2030” (Project Gigabit), which was the target deadline when the survey was distributed (down from 33% last year). The government recently delayed this target to 2032 in the Spending Review (here), so clearly that spot of pessimism was not wrong.

Additional Survey Highlights

➤ 89% of MPs believe good digital connectivity (fast reliable mobile and broadband connections) is important for boosting economic growth.

➤ 71% said having a more supportive planning system was important to deliver the infrastructure needed to provide good connectivity.

➤ 44% of MPs said that constituents often raised connectivity issues with them.

➤ 60% of MPs believe that businesses understand the relationship between connectivity and infrastructure, such as masts and cables. But only 46% said policymakers understood this link and just 33% believed that residents were clear on this connection. Some education may be needed.

Off the back of the results, Cluttons is now calling for a “national information campaign” to raise public understanding of the relationship between connectivity and infrastructure. In addition, the consultancy firm wants to see accelerated “planning reform to streamline approvals” and enable faster rollouts of digital infrastructure, as well as the appointment of “Digital Placemakers” in local authorities to help coordinate the effort (backed by central government funding).

Gráinne Gilmore, Head of Research at Cluttons, said:

“The UK’s appetite for, and use of, data is soaring, with mobile traffic in the UK up 260% since 2019, and yet our ability to provide the infrastructure to support this growth remains challenging in too many areas. If we want to achieve our national connectivity goals, we need a joined-up approach that tackles the practical barriers to delivery. That starts with a national information campaign to help people understand how infrastructure like masts and cables underpins the connectivity they rely on every day.”

In fairness, the pessimism among MPs does seem to have softened a bit since last year, and good progress is still being made. For example, while we might not hit 99% coverage of gigabit broadband in 2030, the UK should still get pretty close to that figure (Ofcom currently predicts we’ll get to around 97% by May 2027).

As for 5G SA, EE expects to have extended 5G SA coverage to around 60% of the UK’s population by Spring 2026, while Vodafone and Three UK are aiming to reach around 71% by mid-2026 and then 99.95% by 2034.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Business cloud, IT and telecoms provider Onecom, which is backed by private equity firm LDC, has today announced that they’ve acquired rival UK internet provider Gradwell Communications for an undisclosed sum – the company’s thirteenth acquisition since 2020.

This acquisition affords Onecom additional capability through its direct and channel teams, as well as further geographic reach via Gradwell’s Bath and Leeds offices, and the addition of an established customer base. This acquisition “presents numerous strategic benefits and opportunities for customers“, said Onecom’s announcement.

Onecom may also benefit from Gradwell’s solution portfolio, which includes its own business-hosted voice system (Wave) and SIP network, as well as unified communications solutions leveraging 3CX and Microsoft Teams, along with connectivity.

Darren Ridge, CEO of Onecom Group, said:

“The acquisition of Gradwell Communications is highly complementary to our ongoing expansion and diversification strategy. Both organisations share strongly aligned values and cultures, with an obsession for delivering simply brilliant customer experiences and providing solutions that deliver real benefits and demonstrable, outcome-based value to our customers. Gradwell’s reputation for delivering exceptional communication and hosted voice solutions, and customer service aligns perfectly with our ethos and strong customer-centric approach.

The pedigree of the team, coupled with their excellent customer base, makes this acquisition a logical step for Onecom in scaling up its capability and fortifying its diversified market presence. The inclusion of Gradwell into the Onecom family extends our service offerings to our direct customers and through Onecom Partners and underpins our commitment to deliver comprehensive communication solutions across the UK.

We are delighted to welcome the Gradwell team into the Onecom Group.”

Jamie Ward, CEO of Gradwell, said:

“We’re incredibly proud of everything we’ve built at Gradwell, and joining forces with Onecom marks an exciting new chapter. From our very first conversations, it was clear that our cultures are closely aligned – both businesses are driven by innovation, a commitment to excellence, and a shared belief in putting the customer at the heart of everything we do. This acquisition creates new opportunities to deliver even greater value and service to our customers, and we’re looking forward to what we can achieve together.”

Onecom employs over 700 people in offices around the UK and counts Vodafone, Zoom, Gamma, Five9, Microsoft, Google, HPE Aruba and ThreatDown, among others, as its strategic partners. By comparison Gradwell is a smaller business and is currently home to around 100 employees.

Onecom was advised by Shoosmiths and K3 Tax Advisory for transaction support, while Acuity Advisors, RSM and Marriott Harrison advised Gradwell Communications Ltd.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Network kit manufacturer AVM, which is a well-known German developer of home networking products (e.g. FRITZ!Box routers are used by various UK consumers and several ISPs), has begun to deploy their latest FRITZ!OS 8.20 software update (Firmware) that includes various new features. But it’s not without the odd bug.

At the time of writing, AVM has already started the first non-beta rollout with the FRITZ!Box 7590 router, but updates for other models will soon follow. The new firmware introduces the usual array of bug fixes and performance improvements, as well as several new futures.

Highlights of FRITZ!OS 8.20

➤ The new Online Monitor offers a clear graphical overview of the internet usage of top consumers and selected home network devices

➤ Mesh optimization – for greater stability and improved data throughput, FRITZ!Repeaters independently select the ideal connection in the Mesh

➤ More options for triggering routines in the smart home and many other interesting new features

➤ The new, easy-to-use FRITZ!NAS sharing function makes it possible to share a folder, for example to collect and share photos after a family celebration

➤ Simplified user guidance for the parental controls – access profiles and the home network devices assigned to it are now clearly displayed

➤ Protection against internet connection failure: FRITZ! Failsafe automatically switches to a substitute connection, for example via mobile network

➤ Reduce the FRITZ!Box’s energy consumption with EEE (Energy Efficient Ethernet) Can now be individually configured for the WAN or LAN sockets

Regular readers might recall that the deployment of FRITZ!OS 8.0 last year did cause some problems for a fair few owners of certain models, including disconnections at ISP Zen Internet (here), among other things. But the hope is that 8.2 will give end-users a smoother ride, although some early feedback from Germany suggests it might still need a bit of polish (examples), with complaints about error messages and connection issues already popping up (credits to Steve for the tip).

Full Changelog

New features and improvements in FRITZ!OS 8.20

Internet:

• NEW With the new internet fallback protection, the FRITZ!Box always stays online: If the internet connection fails, an alternative internet connection is established via an access device, e.g. via the mobile network with FRITZ!Box 6820 LTE or via USB mobile network dongles  
• NEW Online Monitor shows the network devices with the highest utilization of the internet connection (top consumers)  
• NEW The Online Monitor for “individual devices” also displays the total current utilization of devices that were not selected individually  
• NEW Simplified user guidance on the “Filter” pages (parental controls)  
• Improved In the Online Monitor the display of the utilization of the internet connection allows selection of not only one day or two months but also an interval of 2 weeks  
• Improved Device selection for display and data recording simplified in the Online Monitor  
• Improved Reworked diagrams and colors in the Online Monitor  
• Improved Online Monitor: Reworked display in the diagrams for the utilization of the internet connection    
• Improved Improved stability when there are many simultaneous requests to internet services  
• Improved Port 443 (HTTPS, QUIC) is taken into account when the network application “Surfing” is prioritized  
• Improved In the access profiles for parental controls, it is now possible to select whether network applications should be blocked or allowed  
• Improved Number of tickets to extend online time for devices blocked by parental controls was increased from 10 to 12  
• Improved In the parental controls, limited online time for a network device can now be easily extended by 45 minutes

Wi-Fi:

• NEW Operating mode Mesh Repeater: Use FRITZ!Box 7590 AX as a Mesh Repeater, e.g. after replacing the FRITZ!Box on the connection

Mesh:

• NEW Automatic detection of device type (e.g. smartphone, computer, or printer) for devices displayed in the Mesh Overview
• NEW Intelligent networking: FRITZ! products in the Mesh assess and optimize the connections among each other
• NEW Simplified login to Mesh Repeaters via the Mesh Overview of the Mesh Master

Telephony:

• NEW Caller announcements for the integrated answering machine can now also be entered as text (text-to-speech)
• Improved Support for the Vodafone IP Anlagen Anschluss

DECT/FRITZ!Fon: 

• Improved Podcasts can automatically continue from where they left off, even after a long interruption  
• Improved Revised menu order and dialogs in the FRITZ!Fon user interface

Home Network:

• NEW Save energy in the home network: EEE (Energy Efficient Ethernet) can now be set separately for each WAN/LAN port  
• Improved Completely reworked network settings for improved user-friendliness

Smart Home:

• NEW In the FRITZ!Box user interface of the Mesh Master, the registration of smart home devices with another FRITZ!Box or a FRITZ!Smart Gateway can be started  
• NEW Data read by the FRITZ!Smart Energy 250 from the export meter is shown under “Smart Home > Devices and Groups”  
• NEW With FRITZ!Smart Control 440, the following functions can now be controlled: the boost and frost protection functions for radiator controls, color and color temperature for lamps, activation and deactivation of routines, and the display of the QR code for Wi-Fi  
• NEW Routines can also be triggered by a phone call, by reaching a target temperature, or by activating boost or antifreeze functions, as well as by important events on the FRITZ!Box  
• NEW Templates and routines can be triggered with delay  
• Improved The schedule for a radiator control can be disabled without discarding the configured schedule  
• Improved Roller shutters can now be combined into groups

Storage (NAS):

• NEW Upload sharing: Via fritz.nas a folder can be shared for users with a sharing link to upload and download contents, e.g. to collect photos after a family celebration  
• Improved Better interoperability with FTP applications (e.g. Filezilla) through support for MFMT command  
• Improved Simplified generation of sharing links to access files saved in FRITZ!NAS

Security:

• Improved Push mail now also sends notifications about logins from FRITZ!Apps

System: 

• Improved File name for saved settings now includes name of individual FRITZ!Box  
• Improved The “Diagnostics > Function” page now displays information on problems with time synchronization via NTP  
• Improved If the configured/provisioned time server fails, automatic switch to public server  
• Improved “Forgot Password” function of the push service can now be configured with a freely chosen recipient  
• Improved Functional diagnostics now indicates when access for apps (TR-064) is disabled in the home network sharing settings  
• Improved Reworked pages of the update functions under “System > Update”  
• Improved Reworked user guidance for backing up or restoring settings  
• Improved Warning on the overview page when push service is interrupted  
• Improved Push service emails now clearly differentiate between function and security diagnostics through specific subject lines, adapted email texts, and file names  
• Improved Accessibility support for FRITZ!Box, FRITZ!Mesh Set Master, and FRITZ!Fon (in accordance with GAA Ordinance)

Mobile Network: 

• Improved Support for the execution of service and control commands in the mobile network (USSD over IMS)

Additional Improvements in FRITZ!OS 8.20

Internet:

• Changed FRITZ! devices in the home network, e.g. FRITZ!Repeaters, are no longer offered in parental controls and prioritization; they always have unrestricted internet access with normal priority  
• Changed Private IPv4 addresses (RFC 1918) are no longer posted via MyFRITZ!Net (DNS) if a publicly accessibly IPv6 address is available  
• Changed When VPN connections are active for which all network traffic is routed via the VPN connection (“full tunnel”), the guest network is excluded from this and routed over the normal internet connection  
• Changed Number of network devices for which the saving of internet data rates can be enabled was increased to 40  
• Fixed Enabling the UPnP filter had no effects for IPv6  
• Fixed For providers without support for IPv6, the Online Meter did not count consumption values as long as IPv6 was enabled in the account information of the FRITZ!Box  
• Fixed Possible internet disruptions when using a large filter list for blocked websites  
• Fixed For FRITZ! devices operated exclusively via IPv6, under some circumstance there was no search for new FRITZ!OS versions (updates)  
• Fixed Creation of new WireGuard® VPN connections could fail if many WireGuard® VPN connections had already been created  
• Fixed Under certain circumstances, a FRITZ! device operated exclusively via IPv6 could not obtain the system time via the Network Time Protocol  
• Fixed The rate information in the Online Meter showed an incorrect end of the billing period  
• Fixed Parental controls: Redeeming tickets to extend online time failed in certain scenarios [FRITZ!OS > 8.0 only]  
• Fixed Potential incorrect display in the Online Meter of the use of data capacity during the billing period

Home Network:

• Fixed In rare cases the information on a new network device in the home network was not immediately entered in the event log or change notice  
• Fixed In special scenarios it was possible for the IP address 192.168.178.1 to be displayed for a repeater in the home network instead of its own address  
• Fixed “Home Network > Network Connections” page was not displayed (empty page) when a FRITZ!Box was configured as an internet gateway and a Mesh Repeater

System:

• Fixed Push service sent the Forgot Password link of devices configured as IP clients with the incorrect IP address  
• Fixed Despite correct rate settings, the “Info” LED did not flash when online volume exhausted  
• Fixed Preview of personalized subject line from push service shows the suggested parentheses only if they were actually entered

Additional Improvements in FRITZ!OS 8.03

Internet:

• Changed FRITZ!Box assigns an IPv6 prefix via DHCPv6 to all downstream routers by default

System:

• Fixed Incorrect configuration could lead to restart after update in certain rare cases

Additional Improvements in FRITZ!OS 8.02

Telephony:

• Fixed In Austria (country code 43) dialing numbers beginning with 12, 13 or 14 was only possible en bloc

Internet:

• Fixed Changes to the device name of a device in the home network were not transmitted to MyFRITZ!Net
• Fixed No internet connection after update to FRITZ!OS 8.00 when no password included in account information
• Fixed Sometimes IPSec VPN connections with the option to route all data traffic via this connection did not work
• Fixed The preferred user for default login with the FRITZ!Box during MyFRITZ! access from the internet was not transmitted to MyFRITZ!Net
• Improved EDNS0 expansions for local domains (fritz.box) to improve interoperability with Linux system (systemd-resolved) during use of DNS-SEC

System:

• Fixed Although the push service worked, sending the test email to the provider GMX failed when the sender name contained umlauts
• Fixed Push service on Mesh Repeaters that adopted settings could not send email
• Fixed Restart of FRITZ!Box via user interface sometimes failed

Additional Improvements in FRITZ!OS 8.00

Internet:

• Changed:- The AES-192 encryption algorithm is no longer supported in Phase 2 SAs of VPN connections
• Changed The hash algorithm MD5 and the 3DES encryption algorithm are no longer used on VPN connections over IPSec for reasons of security
• Changed The IPv6 option “Assign unique local addresses (ULA) as long as no IPv6 internet connection exists (recommended)” is no longer offered
• Changed In PPPoE passthrough operation of the FRITZ!Box, DNS root queries are no longer filtered via UDP
• Fixed Under some circumstances the network traffic of a connected telephone system was not routed via a specially configured VoIP interface
• Fixed Under certain circumstances, OpenWrt devices operated behind a FRITZ!Box did not receive an IPv6 connection to the internet
• Fixed Independent port sharing (UPnP) for the same port with various home network devices did not work under certain circumstances
• Fixed In some circumstances active WireGuard® connections were interrupted when adding or deleting WireGuard® connections
• Fixed VPN connections via WireGuard® to an endpoint given as multiple (comma separated) domains could not be established

Wi-Fi:

• Changed For improved compatibility with older wireless devices, security settings can be adjusted on the “Wi-Fi > Security” page
• Changed Text reference to selection of “WPA2 + WPA3” Wi-Fi encryption removed
• Fixed Display of Wi-Fi properties of a registered wireless device was in rare cases incorrect
• Fixed When 5-GHz channels were checked for radar (DFS), no wait cursor was displayed under these channels in the user interface
• Fixed Repeaters that were logged into the guest network were not marked as “Wi-Fi guests”

Home Network:

• Changed Recommendation to enable the automatic update search at the bottom of the Mesh Overview page

System:

• Changed The link generated by “Forgot Password” push service in the email is valid for 20 minutes
• Fixed After results of functional diagnostics were sent, an event message about changed FRITZ!Box settings was displayed
• Fixed The “Live TV” button for Magenta TV streaming was missing in the user interface when displayed on smartphones and tablets

USB/Media Server:

• Fixed Files in a folder on the highest level of a file tree could not be moved, copied, or deleted via FTP
• Fixed In certain constellations, access to NAS contents via download link was not possible

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

The UK telecoms regulator, Ofcom, has today unveiled their proposals for allowing broadband satellite operators (e.g. Starlink and Amazon) to harness the Q and V radio spectrum bands (37.5–43.5GHz, 47.2–50.2GHz and 50.4–52.4GHz) to help boost the backhaul data capacity of their ground-based gateway sites. This will also support the deployment of future satellites.

Satellite operators SpaceX (Starlink) and Amazon (Project Kuiper) are currently known to be preparing to harness the Q/V band(s) to support their broadband services. On top of that, the Global Satellite Operators Association (GSOA) has also confirmed that “many of its members” had either started or were intending to use the Q/V band for feeder links for future generations of their gateways.

Suffice to say that there’s plenty of demand for these bands and so Ofcom has proposed to make the spectrum available to both traditional geostationary orbit (GSO) satellites and also those in non-geostationary orbits (NGSO), such as Starlink etc. Faster broadband speeds should be one of the results.

Ofcom’s Proposal

This document sets out our proposal to make spectrum available for GSO and NGSO satellite gateways in Q/V band. We are proposing to extend access for satellite gateway use into these bands under our “Satellite (Permanent Earth Station)” licence (for GSO gateways) and “Satellite (non-geostationary earth station)” licence (for NGSO gateways).

We propose to make available the following frequencies for use by satellite gateways operating with GSO satellites and NGSO constellations:

• GSO: uplink 47.2 – 50.2 GHz, 50.4 – 52.4 GHz; downlink 37.5 – 42.5 GHz
• NGSO: uplink 47.2 – 50.2 GHz, 50.4 – 51.4 GHz2; downlink 37.5 – 42.5 GHz

We are proposing to allow gateway deployments in ‘low density areas,’ which comprise nearly all of the UK landmass outside of the 68 major towns and cities identified as ‘high density areas’ for the upcoming 40 GHz award.

We are proposing technical conditions to protect other authorised spectrum users.

Ofcom now intends to consult on this proposal until 30th September 2025 and will then aim to published their decision “by the end of 2025 or early 2026“. At the same time, the regulator is still considering responses received to their recent consultation (here) on proposals to grant temporary licences to Starlink for the use of E band (71–76GHz and 81–86GHz) spectrum for NGSO gateways at three sites (final decision due by Q2 2025/6).

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Openreach (BT) has today published the next (Tranche 21) batch of 137 exchanges in their “FTTP Priority Exchange Stop Sell” programme, which reflects areas where over 75% of premises are able to get full fibre lines and will thus stop selling copper based legacy phone and broadband products (i.e. FTTP becomes the only product option).

Currently, there are two schemes for moving away from old copper lines and services, which can sometimes cross over. The first starts with the gradual migration of traditional legacy voice (PSTN / WLR) services to digital all-IP technologies (e.g. SOGEA), which is due to complete by 31st January 2027 and is occurring on both copper and full fibre products (i.e. ISPs are introducing digital voice / VoIP services). The national “stop sell” on legacy phone services began on 5th September 2023 (here).

The second “FTTP Priority Exchange” programme involves the ongoing rollout of gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) lines – using light signals via optical fibre instead of electrical signals via slow copper lines. Only after this second programme has largely completed (75%+ FTTP coverage) in an exchange area can you really start to completely switch-off copper-based products, which will come later as you have to allow time for natural customer migrations.

Between the scrapping of legacy phone services, the full fibre rollout and the gradual switch away from copper lines themselves, this process will take several years in each area to complete, and the pace will vary (i.e. some areas have better coverage of full fibre than others). Naturally, premises that can’t yet get FTTP will continue to be served by copper-based broadband products.

137 New Exchange Locations (Tranche 21)

In this programme, the migration process away from legacy services starts with a “no move back” policy (i.e. no going back to copper) for premises connected with FTTP, which is followed by a “stop-sell” of copper services to new customers (12-months of notice is given before this starts and that is what today’s list represents). This stage is then followed by a final “withdrawal” phase, but that comes later.

The stop sell is applied at premises level, so it shouldn’t impact you if you don’t yet have access to FTTP, although edge-case conflicts may still occur due to rare quirks of network availability.

The 137 exchanges confirmed today – reflecting some 854,000 UK premises – takes the total number of exchange upgrades that have already been placed under “stop sell” rules to 1041. Put another way, by 19th August some 8.9 million premises will be under active Stop Sell – i.e. premises where Full Fibre is available to a majority of premises and copper products cannot be sold – equal to 46.4% of Openreach’s total FTTP footprint. 

James Lilley, Openreach’s Managed Customer Migrations Manager, said:

“The stop sell programme is a critical part of ensuring that the UK’s communication infrastructure is ready to meet the demands of the future. Taking advantage of the progress of our Full Fibre build and encouraging people to upgrade where a majority can access our new network is the right thing to do as it makes no sense, both operationally and commercially, to keep the old copper network and our new fibre network running side-by-side. As copper’s ability to support modern communications declines, the immediate focus is getting people onto newer, future proofed technologies.

We’re moving to a digital world and Openreach is helping with that transformation by rolling out ultrafast, ultra-reliable, and future-proofed digital Full Fibre across the UK. This game changing technology will become the backbone of our economy for decades to come, supporting every aspect of our public services, businesses, industries, and daily lives. Already, our Full Fibre network is available to 19 million homes and businesses, with more than seven million premises currently taking a service.”

The operator also has a Stop Sells Page on their website, which makes it easy to see all the planned changes. Otherwise, the following list is tentative, so changes and delays will occur (exchanges can and are often shifted around into different tranches).

137 Stop Sell Exchanges in Tranche 21

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

The UK telecoms regulator has today launched a new ‘Call for Input‘ to help it decide on the future of the 2GHz radio spectrum band (1980-2010MHz and 2170-2200MHz), which could potentially open it up to wider use for providing broadband connectivity to aircraft and drones, direct-to-device services (4G/5G mobile), and or IoT etc.

At present this spectrum is already harmonised across the EU and the UK for Mobile Satellite Services (MSS). Since 2009 the band(s) have been licensed to two satellite operators – Viasat and Echostar – on an exclusive basis, but these are due to expire in May 2027 and so the regulator has decided to explore the potential for alternative uses.

Just to be clear. Viasat currently uses this for their European Aviation Network (EAN) to help provide in-flight WiFi, which launched in 2019 and operates across several airlines. As for Echostar, they use the spectrum for an Internet of Things (IoT) network that extends the reach of Long Range Wireless Network (LoRaWAN) sensors to remotely collect and transmit data across Europe. Suffice to say that both platforms are fairly active.

Despite this, Ofcom are seeking optimal use of the spectrum, which could mean extending / tweaking the existing services or allowing its use by a wider array of services (either exclusively or via spectrum sharing). For example, Viasat told Ofcom it could introduce additional direct-to-device (D2D) use cases alongside its existing EAN service, so there may be some flexibility or expansion possible from the incumbent spectrum holders.

However, for some of the services we mentioned at the top, sharing the spectrum with other users could be difficult (i.e. the risk of interference and not enough spare frequency to be viable). “We are therefore seeking input on the types and mix of services that could be authorised in these frequencies in the future in the UK. We welcome responses by 19th September 2025,” said Ofcom.

The regulator plans to publish their first proposals for the future of this band sometime in 2026.