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The AllPoints Fibre Network (APFN), which is a wholesale platform that aggregates connectivity from several different UK full fibre networks, has today announced that they’ve signed a new partnership with Sky’s business broadband and wholesale division – Sky Business Wholesale – to make their Ethernet services available through APFN’s aquila platform.

The partnership means APFN’s partners, such as various retail ISPs, can now consume Sky’s Ethernet solutions directly through aquila, with no additional development, integrations, or operational overhead. Services appear alongside APFN’s existing business and consumer FTTP broadband products, all managed through a single platform.

The pace of the integration is also notable, since APFN says they signed the agreement with Sky in December 2025 and had then deployed new Ethernet services onto aquila by the end of January 2026 – just over six weeks, Christmas included.

Nisreen El-Kaloush, Chief Commercial Officer at APFN, said:

“Our partners want reliable Ethernet services, national coverage, and a platform that doesn’t slow them down. Bringing Sky Business Wholesale onto aquila delivers all three in a simple way with no extra development needed. It gives partners more confidence when designing solutions and bidding for business, without adding complexity behind the scenes.”

Sam Weller, Head of Wholesale Services at Sky Business Wholesale, said:

“This partnership is about enabling better outcomes for APFN’s partners. Sky’s network strength, combined with APFN’s orchestration through aquila, removes friction and helps customers scale confidently across the UK.”

Sky Business Wholesale Ethernet services are typically delivered across the combined national Openreach and ITS Technology network footprints, providing coverage across major UK cities and key business locations. Sky’s 100Gbps-ready network currently spans more than 2,800 Ethernet-enabled exchanges, with widespread 10G-capable services.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Consultancy firm FarrPoint has published their fourth annual (2026) survey of digital leaders at councils across England, Scotland and Wales. The results reveal that expanding the coverage of gigabit broadband remains the top priority for most local authorities, just as it was last year. But ensuring better digital inclusion, a key aim of the current government, has now also become a priority.

The report – UK Local Government Connectivity Survey 2026 (PDF) – found that most respondents chose gigabit broadband (1000Mbps+) as their number one priority, while getting 100% of their area covered by at least “superfast” (30Mbps+) connectivity continues to feature as the second-highest priority for councils, followed by the expansion of 4G mobile coverage. On the flip side, ensuring digital connectivity is aligned with net-zero targets has disappeared off this year’s list of priorities.

Top Digital Priorities for 2026 (Councils)
1. More areas covered by gigabit broadband
2. Ensuring 100% of premises in the area have at least superfast connectivity
3. More areas covered by 4G
4. Ensuring better digital inclusion and adoption in the region
5. More areas covered by 5G
6. Ensuring better regional connectivity network resiliency
7. Developing new smart (IoT) projects
8. Attracting data centres to the area

The overwhelming majority of local authority respondents (80%) reported that digital connectivity remains a top priority within their region, with only 5% reporting that they felt connectivity was established enough that there was little left to do. But it should be noted that none of the respondents thought the rollout of digital infrastructure was fully complete and 15% reported a lack of understanding of the scale of the remaining issues. In addition, over 85% of surveyed local authorities now have a digital champion, which is up from 76% last year. But not all such roles are dedicated ones.

However, alongside the usual challenges with digital infrastructure coverage, the report also revealed that 9 in 10 councils have not yet been able to measure the economic or social impact of improved connectivity. While 70% of councils would like to undertake formal impact assessments, many are said to “lack the internal capacity and usable frameworks needed to do so“. Admittedly, assessing the economic impact of faster broadband and better mobile is notoriously difficult, not least since most premises won’t be starting from a point of zero connectivity.

Unfortunately, it continues to be the case that most local authorities identified lack of funding from central government as being one of the main barriers to improving digital connectivity, which was followed by challenges with local infrastructure deployments. In recent years the UK government has tended to centralise control of funding for major mobile and broadband infrastructure projects.

Elsewhere, some barriers to better digital inclusion remain. Councils identified low digital skills and confidence (31%), affordability (26%) and lack of access to devices (19%) as the biggest challenges to unlocking connectivity benefits. These findings underline that simply building infrastructure does not guarantee progress without parallel investment in capability and uptake.

Three quarters of respondents also flagged growing concerns around network resilience, particularly in the wake of weather-related outages. However, many were uncertain over where responsibility lies for telecoms infrastructure recovery and contingency planning.

Data centre development remains another relatively low priority for most councils, despite the sector’s recent designation as Critical National Infrastructure (CNI). That said, 35% of authorities said they are actively trying to attract data centre investment, while a further 25% are working directly with developers. Only 15% of councils reported having conducted formal economic appraisals on the potential benefits of data centre siting.

Finally, AI is another area of evolving interest. While 75% of councils believe artificial intelligence could help improve connectivity delivery and uptake, none reported using AI tools to shape or optimise interventions.

Dr Andrew Muir, Chief Executive of FarrPoint, said:

“What’s striking this year is that councils are increasingly moving towards inclusion and day‑to‑day reliability. The conversation is shifting from infrastructure to determining whether people can participate in modern life.

Connectivity is still a strategic enabler of economic growth, public service reform and regional resilience, but councils say they need clearer signals and stronger partnership from industry and central government if they’re to turn ambition into delivery.”

The full survey is worth a read as it offers a unique insight into how local authorities perceive the current state of digital connectivity, its impact and implementation.

Original article Total Telecom:Read More

News

The sale to NJJ and Millicom marks the latest step in Telefonica’s Latin American retreat

This week, Telefonica has announced it has sold its Chilean mobile unit to Millicom and NJJ, a pair of companies both owned by French billionaire Xavier Niel.

The deal, valued at $1.2 billion, will see NJJ take a 51% of the business and Millicom a 49% stake. Despite holding the smaller stake, Millicom will operate the business on a day-to-day basis.

“This gives NJJ and Millicom operational control from day one and the ability to capture long-term growth potential at an attractive valuation, without compromising our financial strength,” Millicom Chief Executive Officer Marcelo Benítez said in the statement.

Telefonica will receive an initial payment of $50 million, with $340 million deferred. Telefonica canTelefonica makes $1.2bn exit from Chile also earn up to a further $150 million based on the unit’s future performance.

Both Millicom and NJJ will also have the right to purchase the other’s stake after five and six years have passed, with Millicom’s option taking priority.

Telefonica has been divesting of its Latin American businesses since 2019, when the company changed its strategy to focus on its core markets of Spain, Germany, Brazil, and the UK.

The sale of these units has accelerated under CEO Marc Murtra, who took over the role at the start of January and quickly oversaw exits from  Argentina, Peru, and Colombia.

Discussions over Telefonica’s Chilean unit had been underway since at least in May last year, with America Movil, WOM, and Entel also displaying interest in the business.

Millicom, on the other hand, is expanding its regional footprint and has already proven a keen buyer of Telefonica’s struggling businesses.

In the past two years, Millicom has snapped up Telefonica’s operations in Colombia, Ecuador, and Uruguay for a combined total of over $1 billion.

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

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The post Telefonica makes $1.2bn exit from Chile appeared first on Total Telecom.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

The ITS Technology Group, which have deployed various open access and business-focused full fibre broadband and Ethernet networks across parts of the UK, has today announced that they’ve completed the rollout of their XGS-PON powered Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network across Crawley (West Sussex), giving more than 1,500 organisations access to gigabit-capable broadband.

The Crawley Borough Council (CBC) awarded ITS with the contract for their new £1.5m project last September (here), which included some private investment from ITS itself and aimed to provide every business in the Manor Royal (business park) area with the ability to connect to gigabit connectivity. The work was supported by funding from the previous Government’s £3.6bn Towns Fund programme (details) and has been built using a combination of new infrastructure, as well as reusing existing assets (e.g. ducts).

The 32km long network is now said to be extending digital connectivity to more business locations across the town, with a revenue share model enabling income to be reinvested for the benefit of the wider Crawley community.

The Manor Royal Business District is the biggest business park of the Gatwick Diamond area and one of the South East’s premier mixed activity employment hubs. Situated on the Sussex and Surrey county borders adjacent to London Gatwick Airport, it covers an area of 540 acres and is home to over 600 businesses generating 30,000 jobs.

Dave Ferry, CSO of ITS, said:

“This project responds directly to what businesses in Crawley have been asking for – access to dependable, high-quality, full fibre connectivity that can support their digital growth.

As an open-access network, it enables them to choose from a range of services delivered by our service provider partners, offering flexibility and ensuring that their connectivity can evolve as their business demands change over time.”

Councillor Michael Jones, Leader of Crawley Borough Council, said:

“The completion of this project is a significant milestone for our town. It has strengthened the infrastructure that supports local employers and helps make Crawley an attractive place for new businesses to locate.

As part of the Towns Fund programme, this project shows how targeted public funding, alongside private investment, can deliver long-term benefits that help to futureproof our local economy.”

The operator’s full fibre network was last year said to “pass” more than 465,000 UK businesses (inc. commercial premises), and they often claim to “reach the rest” through their trusted operator partners’ infrastructure, which includes the likes of BTWholesale, Sky, PXC and Virgin Media Business.

Original article Total Telecom:Read More

Press Release

Sparkle, the first international service provider in Italy and among the top global operators, announces the construction of GreenMed, a next-generation subsea cable system designed to enhance route diversity, resilience and low-latency connectivity between Europe and the Middle East. The system will be engineered and manufactured by Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN), a major player in the submarine cable industry, and installed by Elettra Tlc, a company dedicated to the marine survey, installation and repairs of telecommunication cables.

GreenMed East will cross the Adriatic Sea, providing diverse optical fiber connectivity between Levant countries and the rich digital ecosystem of the Milan area; the route will touch the strategic gateways of Crete and Sicily and connect, along its path, the Balkan countries, thus supporting the growing demand driven by cloud adoption, content delivery, enterprise digitalization and emerging AI-era traffic patterns. The new system will be fully integrated into Sparkle’s broader backbone and landing-hub strategy, delivering secure and diversified international connectivity services to carriers, cloud and content players, as well as multinational enterprises.

GreenMed builds on Sparkle’s experience with BlueMed – the company’s flagship project in the Tyrrhenian Sea – and its pioneering open architecture approach. In this context, GreenMed further strengthens the open cable model allowing each fiber-pair tenant to select its preferred optical illumination architecture and vendor, in line with system design and operational requirements.

The contract between Sparkle, ASN and Elettra Tlc, executed today during Capacity Middle East 2026 in Dubai, will be in force by end of February 2026, with the first segments of the system expected to be in service by late 2028. Under the agreement ASN will be responsible for system design and manufacturing of the subsea optical infrastructure including wet plant components and associated equipment, while Elettra Tlc will carry out marine operations, including route surveys and cable installation/laying activities.

“GreenMed represents another concrete step in Sparkle’s strategy to strengthen the Mediterranean basin as a key digital gateway and to reinforce Italy’s role as a primary international connectivity hub,” said Enrico Maria Bagnasco, CEO of Sparkle. “With GreenMed in the Adriatic and BlueMed in the Tyrrhenian, Sparkle offers two highly innovative routes between Europe and the Middle East for maximum diversification and resilience.”

“ASN is proud to bring its end-to-end subsea expertise and advanced system design capabilities to GreenMed,” added Alain Biston, CEO of ASN. “This project will showcase next-generation wet plant technology, scalable capacity design and industrial quality, enabling a future-proof infrastructure that supports the most demanding applications and evolving traffic patterns.”

“Elettra is honored to be entrusted with the marine operations for GreenMed,” commented Didier Dillard, President & CEO of Elettra Tlc. “Our teams will deliver the survey and installation phases with a strong focus on safety, precision and environmental responsibility, leveraging deep experience in Mediterranean cable operations to ensure an efficient and reliable deployment.”

How is Europe’s submarine cable ecosystem changing in 2026? Join the experts in discussion at Submarine Networks EMEA, the world’s largest subsea cable event

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The post Sparkle, ASN and Elettra to build GreenMed subsea cable in the Mediterranean appeared first on Total Telecom.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

The UK Government’s Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) has today opened a call for evidence to support their new ‘Mobile Market Review‘, which aims to ensure that their policy and regulatory frameworks are updated to support investment, innovation, competition and consumers. The review could help to boost the rollout of fast 5G and future 6G mobile broadband networks.

Regular readers will know that Mobile Network Operators (MNO), such as EE (BT), O2 (Virgin Media) and VodafoneThree (Vodafone and Three UK), and related infrastructure suppliers frequently push for improvements in the planning system (examples here and here), which would make it quicker and easier for them to upgrade existing networks or deploy new masts, small cells and other infrastructure. But progress on this front has been somewhat slow.

Sadly, the recent Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 largely seemed to ignore mobile networks, preferring instead to focus on other sectors, such as energy, housing and transport. But the 10-Year UK Infrastructure Strategy (10YIS), which followed shortly after that Act, did signal a change by pledging to “remove barriers to digital infrastructure deployment“.

The government then followed up their 10YIS commitment by publishing a related consultation (here), which proposed a variety of possible changes to the planning system. In addition, the Government still plan to implement the remaining provisions of the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Act 2022 (PSTI Act) to make it easier and cheaper for wireless infrastructure to be deployed; this will come into force on 7th April 2026.

The newly proposed Mobile Market Review (MMR) thus looks set to complement all this by taking a broader look at the entire market, not only the planning side of things.

Baroness Lloyd of Effra CBE, Minister for Digital Economy, said:

“As the market continues to evolve, one thing remains constant: progress depends on networks that are robust, widely available and backed by sustained investment. The government therefore has a vital role to play in ensuring that the policy and regulatory framework supports investment in our national networks and does not act as a barrier.

This is why I am launching this call for evidence. I want a clear evidence-based picture of how technology, changing market dynamics and regulation are shaping investment in mobile networks. I am determined that we maintain a competitive, innovative ecosystem that supports thriving UK companies, delivers for consumers, drives growth and keeps our networks secure and resilient.

I want to understand what more the government can do to unlock investment and support the delivery of high-quality connectivity that meets the needs of people and business across the UK over the course of this decade.

My first priority is ensuring investment to deliver the availability of reliable, high‑quality and affordable 5G standalone coverage across the UK this decade to drive growth and guarantee digital inclusion. I am also clear that the security and resilience of our telecoms networks is increasingly of central importance to ensuring that the essential services the public rely on continue to operate.

Looking beyond 2030, it is also critical that we understand how the market will evolve over the following decade and what that means for the government’s long‑term objectives.

I am therefore calling on all parts of the sector and interested parties to share detailed insights and evidence on:

➤ The impact of technological and market developments on investment, innovation, competition and consumers.

➤ Policy levers that could unlock further investment in mobile networks.

➤ The appropriate quality-of-service and level of coverage that will enable UK people and businesses to realise the full benefits of standalone 5G.

➤ How we ensure the current regulatory framework continues to deliver the government’s objectives.

Together, we can shape a future where connectivity drives prosperity, inclusion, and innovation across the UK.”

The new Call for Evidence will be open for feedback from today for 10 weeks, closing on 21st April 2026. The Government are thus keen to hear from stakeholders including mobile operators, infrastructure providers, technology companies, local authorities, public sector bodies, civil society organisations, academia and investors.

Greg McCall, BT’s Chief Security and Networks Officer, said:

“We welcome the launch of the Government’s new Mobile Market Review, which rightly recognises the critical importance of stimulating more investment in mobile infrastructure. Such investments could generate up to £230bn in new economic opportunities for the UK – but this can only be unlocked within the right policy framework.

It is therefore imperative that the Review leads to bold decisions and timely reform, empowering the UK to realise the full potential of intelligent and secure connectivity and unlock investment in next-generation networks like 5G+.”

Hamish MacLeod, CEO of Mobile UK, said:

“The Government has rightly identified growth as a priority. We welcome this timely review and its acknowledgement that world leading mobile infrastructure is the backbone of the growth mission. By addressing the barriers to investment—from regulatory complexity to the pace of infrastructure rollout—we can ensure the UK’s mobile connectivity will support the UK being globally competitive in the years to come.”

As usual, the government will find itself walking a difficult line between fostering greater flexibility and potentially causing further frustration for land and property owners, while at the same time needing to be mindful of vocal communities that don’t always appreciate the new infrastructure being built.

However, whether or not they can actually deliver any meaningful changes before there’s another General Election, which may well change the political landscape again, is another matter.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

The UK Internet Service Providers Association (ISPA) has today kicked off their annual hunt for the best broadband ISPs and internet companies ahead of their forthcoming 2026 awards event (the 28th one they’ve held), although this time around they don’t appear to have made too many changes to the categories.

The winners of the previous 2025 awards event were unveiled back in November last year (here), which among other things saw several alternative internet providers – including CommunityFibre, Lightning Fibre, and Wightfibre – taking home multiple awards. The former CEO of CityFibre, Greg Mesch, was also named as 2025’s Internet Hero for fostering one of the country’s largest alternative full fibre networks.

As usual, the ISP categories will undergo several months of “technical testing”, while a good-sized panel of 13 judges will once again help to select some of the winners. The full list of categories now open for entry can be seen below. Internet providers, network operators, technology partners, and industry stakeholders can apply to take part in the event here (registration is open until 17th April 2026 and written entries have until 26th June 2026).

The exception is the Internet Hero award, which will open for nominations later in the year.

2026 ISPAs Award Categories (16 in Total)

Best Consumer ISP (under 100k customers)
Best Consumer ISP (over 100k customers)
Best Rural ISP
Best Business ISP
Best Infrastructure Innovation
Best Community Engagement
Best Customer Loyalty
Best Customer Experience
Connectivity Champion
Sustainability Champion
Best Technology Partnership
Best Voice Provider
Best Security & Consumer Protection
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Champion
Digital Inclusion Champion
Internet Hero

The winners will be announced during a gala ceremony on 26th November 2026 in central London, bringing together more than 300 guests from across the broadband sector. This year’s awards event will be returning to Sheraton Park Lane Hotel on Piccadilly, with ticket sales going on sale soon.

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City-focused full fibre (FTTP/B) broadband ISP Hyperoptic, which claims to have deployed their gigabit speed network to cover 1.9 million UK homes, has recently and quietly added two new options to their existing social tariffs for those on state benefits (Fair Fibre Plans). The new options add symmetric speeds of 500Mbps and 1Gbps, making them among the fastest such tariffs on the whole market.

The provider first launched their Fair Fibre Plans back in 2022, which until recently came in two flavours – £15 per month for an unlimited 50Mbps (5Mbps upload) package and £20 for 150Mbps (symmetric) on a 30-day term with free activation. You could also add a phone service with included evening and weekend UK calls to this for an extra £3

However, while running through a biannual update of our Social Tariffs article (linked above), we identified that Hyperoptic had recently (Dec 2025) made a number of very significant changes to their Fair Fibre Plans. Firstly, the packages have suddenly become several pounds cheaper and, secondly, they’ve also made their top 500Mbps and 1Gbps (900Mbps+) tiers available in Social Tariff form too.

The changes mean you can now get 50Mbps for just £12 per month, 150Mbps for £13, 500Mbps for £17 and 1Gbps for £20. Only two other internet providers with much more limited coverage – B4RN and B4SH – have Social Tariffs available at a similar sort of speed and price point. Most other ISPs usually only view Social Tariffs as a basic plan, but Hyperoptic have bravely gone in a different direction.

The Fair Fibre tariffs are available to any eligible new or existing customers to move to at any time, without penalty. In terms of eligibility, customers can sign up online if they’re taking benefits such as Universal Credit, Income Support, Pension Credit, Income-related Job Seekers Allowance (JSA) and Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA).

People in receipt of Housing Benefit, Personal Independence Payment, Attendance Allowance and Care Leavers support should also be able to sign up if they’re covered by the fibre network, but you’ll need to call Hyperoptic directly to ask first. We did contact Hyperoptic about this change yesterday, but they’ve yet to respond.

Finally, a quick reminder. We know social tariffs can be a divisive topic for some, but that is not an excuse to abuse the comment system in order to post offensive remarks toward those who take state benefits. Such posts are against our rules and will be removed.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Hampshire-based alternative network and UK ISP toob, which has built a gigabit speed Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) based broadband network across parts of South England and also harnesses CityFibre’s network in other areas, has today agreed a new partnership to offer a digital landline service via Phonely’s VoIP platform.

Under the agreement, new and existing customers will be referred to Phonely’s UK-based Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) if they need a home phone service. The service itself claims to offer crystal-clear call quality, advanced calling features (e.g. scam protection, automatic call blocking, call forwarding via the Phonely app etc.) and flexible package options.

Customers of the service will be able to keep their existing phone number, allowing them to upgrade without disrupting how people reach them. Phonely is now available to toob customers at an add-on price via the Phonely website, with VoIP packages starting from £9.97 a month, depending on customers’ needs.

Nick Parbutt, toob CEO and Founder, said:

“Delivering reliable, affordable connectivity is at the forefront of everything we do at toob. By partnering with Phonely, we can ensure customers wanting voice services are supported by a trusted provider while we remain focused on what we do best – delivering award-winning broadband.”

The alternative network operator is currently being financed through equity from funds managed and advised by the Amber Infrastructure Group, as well as a large amount of debt financing provided by Ares Management’s Infrastructure Debt (here). At the end of 2024 this mix of equity and debt reflected a total commitment of £395 million.

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Alternative broadband operator Netomnia (Substantial Group), which has already expanded their full fibre (FTTP) network to cover 3 million UK premises (here) and is close to signing a major consolidation agreement with either Virgin Media’s (nexfibre) parents or CityFibre (here), is understood to have held talks over redundancies with around 50 employees.

According to ISPreview’s sources, staff were first notified about the latest development with jobs on Friday 6th February 2026, although the move was not unexpected. Netomnia spent a big chunk of last year completing their network merger with Brsk (here) and they recently announced that their associated retail ISP brands would also both be merged into YouFibre (here).

Suffice to say that such mergers often result in significant issues like role duplication. The unfortunate, albeit often necessary, outcome of this can be the loss of some jobs – helping to drive efficiency and keeping costs under control. But naturally, for employees, the outcome is often frustrating.

Jeremy Chelot, Group CEO, told ISPreview:

“As we bring our businesses together into two stronger, more focused organisations — Netomnia and YouFibre — we are making a small number of targeted redundancies as part of the integration process. These decisions are never easy, and we are incredibly grateful for the contributions of our colleagues.

Netomnia is known and respected for being capital-efficient and responsible in how we scale, and these changes ensure we remain well-positioned for long-term, sustainable growth.”

The reality is that this may not be the last set of redundancies Netomnia have to make, which is likely to be particularly true if they end up reaching a major network merger agreement in the near future. Suffice to say that employees may be facing a nervous period of waiting to see what happens and how it will impact them. The same nerves may also be true for YouFibre’s customers.