The Scottish Government has launched a new evaluation survey that calls for feedback from those who have benefitted from their £600m Reaching 100% (R100) project with Openreach (BT). This is rolling out full fibre (FTTP) broadband to remote rural areas and has now built to a total of 70,000 premises or 75,000 if you include vouchers.

The R100 scheme aims to reach another 113,000 premises – split across three contracts – in areas that lack access to “superfast broadband” (30Mbps+) by March 2028. LOT 1 (North Scotland and the Highlands) is expected to cover around 61,000 premises (100% via FTTP) by 2027/28, while LOT 2 (Central Scotland) was due to reach 32,000 (95.6% via FTTP) by 2023/24 and LOT 3 (Southern Scotland) targeted 22,000 (100% via FTTP) by 2024/25.

The good news today, judging from the latest data, is that the project appears to have effectively completed its LOT 3 (Southern Scotland) deployment target, although LOT 2 (Central Scotland) seems to be running a bit behind schedule.

You can see the latest data from the end of January 2025 below, although the figures do include some “overspill” (i.e. the extra premises that Openreach picks up while working within the same areas on the R100 build – explainer) and the impact from broadband vouchers under the R100 scheme.

R100 Rollout Progress (Jan 2025)

However, the Scottish Government is now calling on homes and businesses who have benefitted from this rollout to help provide some feedback, which they said will help them to understand how the new service is being used and what parts of daily life are being impacted by it.

“This feedback will play a vital role in informing future policy development and help us better understand the impact of the Scottish Government’s £600m investment in R100 and further public funds to come as Project Gigabit begins to roll-out in Scotland later this year,” said the Scottish Government.

This is a tricky ask because it assumes people will know that their service was delivered under R100, which isn’t always the case (i.e. it’s not always clear to the end-user whether the underlying network was built commercially or via state aid). The evaluation itself is being conducted by Stantec and responses need to be in by 3rd March 2025.

R100 evaluation survey:
https://bit.ly/R100_evaluation

Just for some wider context. At present around 80% of premises in Scotland can access a gigabit-capable (1Gbps download) broadband ISP network and this falls to 65.5% when only looking at FTTP technology (here). Ofcom predicts (here) that Scotland’s full fibre coverage will reach around 92-94% by May 2027, while gigabit-capable broadband (FTTP and Hybrid Fibre Coax / cable) should deliver 94% by that same date.

Sadly, the eventual completion of R100 will still leave a gap to fill, but resolving that will fall to the UK Government’s £5bn Project Gigabit broadband roll-out scheme. Some £450m (here) has already been allocated for this, and several procurements are currently underway (e.g. here, here, here), with Openreach being certain to win some of them (they’re expected to scoop the hardest Type C / Cross-Regional contracts).

The associated Building Digital UK agency has previously estimated that, post-R100, some 410,000 premises across Scotland may still need support from public funding to help them gain access to gigabit speeds (here).

The UK telecoms giant, BT Group, has today continued to reduce their international operations by announcing the acquisition of their Irish wholesale and enterprise business unit – ‘BT Communications Ireland Ltd.‘ (BTCIL) – by the Speed Fibre Group, which describes itself as being an open access fibre infrastructure provider (managing or owning 5,400km of fibre).

The transaction, which is currently still subject to customary conditions including competition approval and is expected to complete in 2025, includes BT’s domestic network infrastructure, over 400 customers, and associated teams supporting wholesale and business enterprises. But it does not include BTCIL’s customer base of multinationals, large Irish organisations, the Emergency Call Answering Service, associated employees, and the recently divested data centre business (subject to regulatory approval).

The deal also comprises a long-term agreement for BT and Speed Fibre Group to source connectivity for their respective customers from each other, which supports BT’s desire to “retain a strong presence in the Irish market to deliver connectivity, cloud and security services to multinationals and large organisations“.

Post-transaction, BT still expects to maintain over 400 employees in Ireland, with offices in Dublin and regionally, and connections to BT’s global network infrastructure and propositions.

Peter McCarthy, CEO of Speed Fibre Group, said:

“We are thrilled to announce that BT Communications Ireland, which includes wholesale and enterprise connectivity customers, will become part of Speed Fibre Group, marking an exciting milestone in our shared journey. This acquisition enables us to deliver even greater value to our customers by expanding our range of connectivity solutions. It’s a positive development for the Irish market, providing us with the scale and capabilities to better serve our growing customer base.”

Bas Burger, CEO of BT Business, said:

“Today’s announcement is another key milestone in focusing our international business on what it does best: providing secure multi-cloud connectivity to large organisations globally and in Ireland. Our Irish wholesale and enterprise business unit, which has been a leading alternative provider for more than 30 years, will enter a new era with Speed Fibre Group. We are confident that Speed Fibre Group will continue to deliver exceptional service to customers, and we look forward to working together with them as our future partner in Ireland.

BT was advised on the transaction by Citi, PWC, and Simmons & Simmons. Cordiant Digital Infrastructure Limited, which owns the Speed Fibre Group, were advised by McCann Fizgerald, PwC, and Matheson.

Mobile operator O2 (Virgin Media) has today revealed that their UK network blocked 168 million suspected fraudulent text messages from reaching customers over the past two years (up from 89 million texts in 2023), with scams including fake TikTok job offers, and deals and discounts for popular brands.

Most of the United Kingdom’s major broadband, phone and mobile network providers have already implemented various technical measures to tackle Nuisance and Scam calls and text messages (SMS). Similarly, O2 has also been gradually implementing Hiya‘s AI-powered scam detection and protection services, and customers have been helping by reporting scam messages and calls to the 7726 number.

The operator has today also released the results of a new survey they conducted via Censuswide during January 2025, which involved just 1,002 respondents aged 13-16. The research claims to have found that 2.2 million phone-owning teens have received a scam message, but despite 77% of teens saying they could confidently identify a scam, when presented with a deal for a takeaway pizza, almost half (48%) thought it was real, when it was fake.

Similarly, 43% of respondents said they’ve clicked on a link that downloaded harmful software onto their device, while 41% have provided personal details. Elsewhere, more than a fifth (23%) didn’t know scammers could pretend to be from their favourite brand in order to defraud them, and 48% are worried about falling victim to a scam. It’s easy to see why.

O2’s Examples – Most Commonly Reported Text Scams (Jan 2025)

1. “Hello, I am  from Tiktok Human Resources Department. We sincerely invite you to  use your free time to watch TikTok videos and help to click like the videos. You can get paid by 300-800 pounds per day. We are waiting for you and look forward to working with you.  Please contact us as soon as possible to get job details.”

2. “Good news! Your account has been credited with your December winnings. View them here:  -  To unsub -  .”

3. “EVRIÔºöYours mail package was damaged during transportation, causing the address information to be lost and unable to be delivered. Please be sure to update the address in the link within 12 hours.”

Murray Mackenzie, Director of Fraud Prevention at O2, said:

“We know how convincing scammers’ messages can be with promises of too good to be true deals, discounts and job offers from well-known brands that tempt young people into clicking on dodgy links or parting with their money for items that never existed.

That’s why Virgin Media O2 is doing all it can to stop scammers in their tracks by blocking millions of suspected fraudulent text messages, and by arming parents and guardians with advice so they can confidently talk to teens about how to spot fraud attempts and to stay safe online.”

As part of its Find the Right Words campaign with online safety experts, Internet Matters, the organisations are providing parents and guardians with four tips to share with teens to help them swerve the scammers. These include: 

1. Checking the source: Whether it’s on social media, in a video game, or through email or messaging, it’s important to check the source is reliable.  

• If a friend or follower sends a link from their account, verify it was, in fact, them by using a different platform, for example, in case their account was hacked. 
• See a link from a random internet user? Go to the website a different way instead of clicking on the link, use a search engine to check its trustworthiness. 
• Official logos don’t mean something came from that company. 

2. Keeping your personal information safe: If anyone online asks for personal information, payment details or any sort of action, be sure to confirm that it’s real before doing so. 

• Platforms will not send emails to ask this kind of information, and no one on social media or in-game should either. 
• Use different passwords for your accounts, use anti-virus software and, if something feels off, ask around and do some research. 

3. Stop! Think Fraud: While many online scams have become more sophisticated, there are some tell-tale signs to look out for that could suggest a scam. If something feels off or like it’s too good to be true, make sure you take time to look into it before clicking links or giving details. 

• Spelling and grammatical errors. 
• Few reviews or low ratings of an item. 
• Comments from others calling something a scam. 
• Poor design and layout. 
• Expensive items for a very low price. 

4. Regular conversations: Be curious, proactive, and sensitive when talking to teens about online harms, like scams.  

• Have these chats regularly in a relaxed and natural way – for example, when picking kids up for school, cooking dinner, or going to the weekly shop. 
• Take an interest in what they’re doing when they’re online and try bringing up news stories or TV plotlines relating to internet safety to talk about what they’d do if a similar issue happened to one of their friends. 
• Use your own experiences to talk about things that might go wrong online, and make sure they know they can talk to you if they’re upset about something.

Alternative network operator Freedom Fibre has today announced that the first homes have gone live on their new full fibre (FTTP) broadband ISP network in North Shropshire (England), which is being delivered as part of their £24m (state aid) LOT 25.02 Project Gigabit contract (here) to cover “around” 12,000 hard-to-reach rural homes.

In case anybody has forgotten, the original announcement in May 2023 stated that the first properties could start to go live from October 2024 and that the 3-year deployment was then expected to complete by around mid-2026. Suffice to say that the work (build commenced in March 2024) has taken a bit longer than expected, but the first 1,600 homes in Hadnall, High Ercall, Walton, Shawbury, and Bowmere Heath are now ready to connect.

Additionally, Freedom Fibre added that hundreds more homes can access more reliable broadband with speeds up to 1Gbps through their complementary commercial build (they actually wrote “1GB”, so we’ll add the usual moan about ‘bits’ vs ‘Bytes’), with service available from a variety of ISPs on their platform (e.g. TalkTalk, iDNET, Home Telecom, Fusion Fibre Group, Squirrel Internet, Yayzi etc.).

Chris Beane from Shrewsbury Road in Hadnall (pictured – top) was the first to connect to the upgraded service, successfully benefiting from 900Mbps symmetrical speeds.

Nathan Vautier, Freedom Fibre CEO, said:

“Digital equity is necessary for all, and we are proud to have reached this milestone in our journey to offer an upgraded internet service to those in North Shropshire’s hard-to-reach areas.

The economic and social benefits to residents and businesses are significant, and we are grateful to BDUK, Shropshire Council, Telford and Wrekin Council and community leaders that have supported the delivery of the project so far.”

Telecoms Minister, Sir Chris Bryant, said:

“Fast, reliable internet is about more than watching your favourite TV shows or playing online games without buffering. It can help to bridge inequalities across the country and boost economic growth as part of our Plan for Change, allowing remote areas to access vital online services like job applications, schooling, and calls with a doctor.

This is why I am thrilled to hear that hard-to-reach homes and businesses in North Shropshire are now being equipped with the fastest speeds on the market and are ready to thrive in the digital world.”

Freedom Fibre added that their community focused Freedom Fund will also relaunch in the Spring of 2025 for the final time and will make £25,000 available to community non-profit groups delivering environmental projects. The fund has previously supported a range of projects such as community orchards and gardens, solar panels, and habitat improvement projects.

Network access provider CityFibre, which has so far built their 2.5Gbps speed Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband ISP network to cover around 4 million UK premises, have today confirmed the completion of their “primary” £20m build in the Berkshire (England) town of Bracknell.

The network deployment, which originally began with the help of civil engineering contractor VolkerSmart Technologies, first entered the construction phase during Spring 2021 (here) and was expected to reach completion in 2024. The good news is that CityFibre has now covered “over” 30,000 homes (RFS) or “approximately 83% of the town’s properties“ and completed their primary build.

As usual, CityFibre aren’t the only gigabit-capable broadband network present in the town. For example, both Virgin Media (nexfibre) and Openreach’s networks are already widely available across the location, with Glide, Hyperoptic and OFNL also having a few smaller patches of FTTP coverage.

The operator said they would now continue to “explore opportunities to connect more homes and businesses” in the town, including upgrading local flats, new-build homes, business parks and homes on private roads.

Neil Madle, Partnership Manager at CityFibre, said:

“Our rollout in Bracknell marks an exciting step forward for digital connectivity across the town. With the UK’s best available digital infrastructure under its streets, residents, businesses and public institutions will be able to reap the benefits for generations to come.

Bracknell is a town filled with opportunity and ambition, which is why it has always been such an important build for us. Full fibre is vital for the UK market’s long-term growth, and we look forward to building on our previous success powering the town’s future economic development.”

The alternative network operator currently still aspires to cover up to 8 million UK premises with their new full fibre network (funded by c.£2.4bn in equity, c.£4.9bn debt and c.£800m of BDUK / public subsidy) – representing c.30% of the UK. But quite when they’ll reach that point is unclear, and they’re known to still be in need of fresh funding (here).

Internet provider Cuckoo, which is the full fibre (FTTP) retail broadband ISP for the consolidated AllPoints Fibre (Fern Trading) network and also offers packages via Openreach and CityFibre’s networks, has today launched a new offer that rewards existing Octopus Energy customers – who switch to their service – with a £200 Amazon gift card.

The deal is only available through ‘Octoplus’, Octopus Energy’s rewards scheme. In short, for a standard 24-month contract, customers signing up for full fibre speeds of 150Mbps under this offer will receive a £100 gift card, for 500Mbps it’s a £150 gift card, and for a blazing 900Mbps a sizeable £200 gift card.

To join ‘Octoplus’, customers must receive electricity from Octopus Energy, have a functioning electricity smart meter that provides half-hourly readings and pay via Direct Debit. Business customers and smart prepayment customers can also join ‘Octoplus’.

Paul Hellings, CEO of Cuckoo, said:

“We’re proud to partner with the amazing Octopus, a company as obsessed with customer service as we are.

As Octopus did, my team is tearing up the outdated broadband rulebook, and delivering blazing speeds with no-nonsense customer service. Great deals are just the beginning.

This deal with Octopus Energy, uniquely available through the ‘Octoplus’ app, helps establish Cuckoo as a major broadband player as we look to realise our ultimate vision in becoming the UK’s most recommended way to connect.”

The UK telecoms regulator, Ofcom, has today proposed to auction off a 25MHz (spectrum frequency) slice of the 1.4GHz band (i.e. the “upper block” of 1492 to 1517MHz) to mobile operators (EE, O2, Vodafone / Three UK), which will be able to use it for their 4G and 5G based mobile broadband services.

At present both Three UK and Vodafone are already harnessing the lower part (40MHz) of the L-Band spectrum (i.e 1452-1492MHz) to boost their mobile data connectivity (example) – mostly as a Supplemental Downlink (SDL) solution.

However, Ofcom has spent the past few years working to clear and re-purpose the additional frequency between 1492-1517MHz (here) for use by mobile operators, which has taken a while due to the fact that it is already being used by Inmarsat‘s emergency communication satellite terminals (i.e. on ships at and near ports, and on aircraft at and above airports).

The advantage of 1.4GHz is the fact that it’s able to deliver a fairly strong level of coverage and with reasonably decent data speeds, albeit still dependent upon whether the device being used is able to harness the extended frequency.

Ofcom Statement

To avoid potential disruption to Inmarsat satellite receivers on board maritime vessels and aircraft, we are also proposing to limit the power that mobile networks can transmit around certain ports and airports for an initial period, relaxing this limit later on.

To award the 1492-1517 MHz spectrum, we plan to use a sealed-bid, single round auction format, with a ‘second price’ rule – where winning bidders pay fees based on the second highest price bid.

Crucially, Ofcom seems to have adopted an approach that would “not … protect Inmarsat land-based satellite receivers or future uses of the 1.5 GHz band from potential disruption“, which means that shipping companies, airlines and Inmarsat would need to ensure that the “satellite receivers most at risk from blocking” at ports and airports are upgraded, to avoid disruption to their operations in the UK before Ofcom relaxes the rules (this reflects a gradual introduction phase over a 5 year period – only applicable around such sites).

The consultation on all this is now open to feedback until 25th April 2025. Ofcom added that they would also need to consult separately on their “competition assessment” for this award once any spectrum trades, which are currently being considered as part of the merger between Three UK and Vodafone, have been completed. Suffice to say that it’s currently not possible to estimate when the auction itself might take place, but it seems unlikely to be in 2025.

Customers of Sky UK’s (Sky Broadband, Comcast etc.) internet, phone and Pay TV products have today been told to brace for an average annual price increase of 6.2% (down from 6.7% last year), which will be introduced from April 2025. But customers who are unhappy about this will be able to exit their contracts penalty free.

Sky has traditionally shunned the old inflationary (CPI + X%) linked price hike policies of their rivals, which in recent years has resulted in their annual rises being a fair bit milder, although things have since changed a bit.  The provider’s announcement claims that this year’s price increase is “either in line with or lower than other providers” (we assume they mean ‘major’ providers) and that, over the last four years, their prices have “broadly increased in line with inflation, reflecting our ongoing commitment to fair and transparent pricing“.

However, it’s worth noting that the current CPI rate of consumer price inflation is only 2.5%, which is obviously a fair bit lower than the 6.2% increase that Sky are pledging to introduce. But the move has raised a question mark over whether Sky’s current approach to mid-contract rises is fully compatible with Ofcom’s new pricing policy, which effectively banned mid-contract price hikes that are linked to confusing inflation and percentage-based changes (here).

Just to be clear. Ofcom’s change is NOT designed to stop mid-contract hikes completely, and is more about making future pricing clearer and simpler. But it does require providers to tell customers precisely what any future price increases will be when they sign up (“in pounds and pence“). This rules out changes to ‘core subscription’ prices that are linked to unknown future inflation values or percentages.

Despite this, Sky state that Ofcom’s new policy doesn’t apply to them and, when the price notification hits, they’ll allow you to exit your contract penalty free. This is very much in keeping with how they’ve done things in past years (i.e. the more traditional approach to mid-contract hikes).

Devesh Raj, Sky’s Chief Operating Officer, said:

“I also want to provide our customers with clarity on Sky’s approach to price rises, against wider changes in our industry.

Last month, new Ofcom regulations came into force that apply to providers who include future, inflation-linked price rises in their broadband, talk or mobile contracts. Going forwards, they’ll have to publish any increases in pounds and pence.

This ruling does not apply to Sky because we don’t apply increases in this way.

Unlike many other major providers, our prices across broadband and talk are variable, which means customers who are in a minimum term on these products can cancel their package after being notified of a price increase, without paying early termination fees.

This is why we send out detailed notifications about any changes to our prices and outline your rights to cancel. We’ll confirm if and how these terms apply to you when we contact you.

I hope this explains some of the decision making and context behind this year’s price changes.

We understand price changes can be unwelcome, but they are necessary to sustain the quality and reliability of the services you value. Our promise remains steadfast: to deliver the best in entertainment, sports, and broadband while ensuring we offer exceptional value.”

We’re currently asking for Ofcom’s viewpoint on this (expect an update tomorrow), although it’s worth noting that all of the broadband packages on Sky’s website are now being promoted as having their “Price locked for 24 months“. So presumably new customers who take out one of those packages today won’t have to worry about mid-contract hikes next year, which would indeed negate the regulator’s policy.

However, it’s worth remembering that broadband providers are NOT immune to cost increases. Providers, much like consumers, are also suffering under the burden of rising supplier (e.g. wholesale) and lease costs, surging inflation, high energy prices, the cost of adding all sorts of new services (e.g. FTTP) and catering for new regulations etc.

Devesh Raj added: “I’m proud to say we’ve invested heavily over the last twelve months, so our customers now have access to more than ever before. This continued investment to deliver the best and most reliable products, along with increased supplier costs, means most of our TV and broadband customers will see a change in their price this year. But we’ve made every effort to minimise the financial impact to you.”

Consumer who are hit by mid-contract hikes like this could alternatively try haggling for a lower price when the notification drops (Retentions – Tips for Cutting Your Broadband Bill), although your mileage may vary. Meanwhile, those on benefits (Universal Credit etc.) also have the option of taking a cheaper Social Tariff – see our Quick Guide to UK Social Tariffs (Sky have these too).

Speaking of which, Sky said that the cost of their broadband and mobile social tariff will be frozen once again, “protecting our most vulnerable customers and ensuring they continue to have access to essential services“. We should add the Sky’s price hikes may well also end up filtering down to their NOW TV (NOW Broadband) sibling too.

Finally, Sky added that they’ve invested to grow their broadband network capacity by 27% since 2021 and, over the past few years, have also worked hard to reduce broadband faults by 26%.

News 

AT&T has announced an extension of its partnership with Nokia in a multi-year deal to improve its voice network 

As part of this upgrade, AT&T will add Voice over New Radio (VoNR) and move its Nokia IMS Voice Core to a cloud-based system. This will help the company roll out new services faster, cut costs, and improve automation. 

AT&T will also use Nokia’s Cloud Platform to simplify network operations and reduce the need for manual work. Additionally, Nokia’s Digital Operations software will help AT&T automate the design and delivery of services across its network. 

“With focused execution and investment, AT&T continues to make excellent progress in realising automation at all levels of its network and service operations. We are pleased to continue our relationship with Nokia to further optimise our network operations and enable new services that better support our customers’ evolving needs,” said Yigal Elbaz, SVP of Technology & Network Services at AT&T in a press release. 

“As a long-time collaborator with AT&T, Nokia fully understands the important journey AT&T is on to enhance automation, reduce complexity, decrease deployment times, and perform operational workflows faster to better serve its customers, and glean more value from its network. Through our network solutions, Nokia will boost AT&T’s network agility, efficiency, and service offerings,” echoed Raghav Sahgal, President of Cloud and Network Services at Nokia. 

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Also in the news:
UK PM urges for more European cooperation as suspicious subsea activity increases
Labour to slash rural broadband funding
EE renews partnership with Home Nations Football Associations and Wembley Stadium

News 

The heavy reliance on undersea cables remains a major risk as over 95% of global internet traffic depends on them 

UK Prime Minister Sir Kier Starmer has urged European leaders for increased cooperation on subsea infrastructure defences at a European Council meeting in Brussels.

The call comes after an increase in suspicious activity from Chinese and Russian vessels around key European submarine cables. Last month, A Russian spy ship was caught in the English Channel attempting to gather information on critical underwater infrastructure. 

Furthermore, there has been multiple submarine cable incidents in the Baltic Sea since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with many of these cable cuts – intentional or otherwise – being linked to Russian and Chinese vessels. As the frequency of these incidents has ramped up, NATO has deployed patrol ships to the region as part of a mission called ‘Baltic Sentry’. 

“We need to deepen co-operation to protect ourselves from state threats and sabotage, including on sub-sea infrastructure,” said Sir Kier in an address to European leaders. 

In disclosed correspondence between House of Lords Peers Lord Coaker and Lord West of Spithead, it has been revealed that the UK’s first multi-role ocean surveillance ship, RFA Proteus, has been deployed as part of a broader plan to protect national infrastructure, with a second vessel still in the early planning stages. 

The government is “committed to ensuring the security and resilience of the UK’s telecommunications infrastructure” and pointed to ongoing coordination with government agencies and the subsea cable industry, said Lord Coaker. 

Just last week, The Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy (JCNSS) announced that it would explore the security credentials of the UK’s submarine cable ecosystem as part of a new industry enquiry, in a direct response to the increase in suspected malicious underwater activity. 

The government emphasised the UK’s reliance on its 60 existing submarine cables, warning of the potential disruption that damage to multiple cables at once would cause the UK. 

Join the conversation at the EMEA’s Most Important Subsea Event, Submarine Networks EMEA! Get tickets here. 

Also in the news:
From the bully pulpit: FCC’s Carr could pursuade allies over new subsea cable regulation
Labour to slash rural broadband funding
EE renews partnership with Home Nations Football Associations and Wembley Stadium