Broadband ISP and mobile operator Vodafone has today moved out of the pilot phase for its new 4G and 5G capable Open Radio Access Network (O-RAN) technology and begun their “volume deployment“, which aims to reach 2,500 sites across mostly rural parts of Wales and the South-West of England by 2027. Currently, if a Mobile […]

Customers of Virgin Media and O2 (VMO2), specifically those who are currently facing airport delays of 60 minutes or more at over 500 airports around the world – something that has been in the news quite a lot this week, are being offered free access via up to four passes to 1,200 airport lounges. The […]

Internet benchmarking firm Ookla, which operates the popular broadband and mobile network performance testing service Speedtest.net, has revealed that 5G based mobile broadband download speeds have fallen across most regions of the UK over the past year. But despite this, overall data speeds (4G + 5G) have increased. The latest study looked at speed testing […]

Broadband ISP and network builder Brsk, which has so far deployed their own gigabit speed Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network to 250,000 UK premises (RFS) – mostly in the Midlands (rollout plan), is facing a petition from 40 residents in Burnley who want to see their newly installed telecoms poles removed. Like most full fibre builders, Brsk […]

Mobile operator Talkmobile, which piggybacks off Vodafone’s national UK 4G and 5G network as a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) partner, has finally launched their first plan offering “unlimited data” and at launch it’ll set you back just £16 per month (similar to SMARTY’s plan on Three UK’s network). In its standard form, the operator’s […]

Customers of primary mobile network operator Three UK may like to know that the provider has quietly renamed their Pay Monthly plans in order to ensure they are simple for customers to understand and reflect the benefits within the tariff, but otherwise there are no changes to what each plan includes or their pricing. So […]

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As the war in Ukraine continues, Vodafone is heavily investing in the preservation of its infrastructure 

Vodafone Ukraine increased its capital investments by 75% in the first half of this year, spending over UAH 2 billion ($54.2 million) on repairs and winter preparations. 

As the Russia–Ukraine war continues, Vodafone Ukraine engineers continue to restore destroyed infrastructure, repair equipment, develop and expand the network, and prepare for potential blackouts in the winter. 

According to the company, over 9,000 base stations have been refitted with new batteries, which are adapted to operate in harsh conditions. They are also less sensitive to power surges and frequent power outages, with 2.5–3 times faster charging speeds than the old batteries. 

Additionally, Vodafone Ukraine has supplied a further 1,124 network technical facilities with stationary generators and prepared 522 mobile generators.  The company says it has a sufficient back-up supply of fuel for the winter, backed up by solar power plants and microturbine generators at a number of facilities.  

The firm also reported half-year revenues of UAH 10.4 billion ($283.3 million), a 5% year-on-year increase. 

Last winter was a very difficult period for Ukrainian network operators, which saw their infrastructure targeted alongside the national power grid by a coordinated Russian artillery assault. The attacks saw huge disruption to telecoms services, leaving the operators scrambling to restore and buttress their networks against further attack.  

In a Total Telecom interview with Kyivstar CEO Oleksandr Komarov last December, Komarov noted two noted major problems facing the Ukrainian telcos. The first concerned recovering and restoring sites located in occupied areas of the country, while the second was ensuring the existing sites remains operational during power outages. 

According to Komarov, the main targets of the Russian attacks are generating and transmission facilities of the Ukrainian Energy market, which when they occur, cause huge energy disbalances, resulting in blackouts, which get wider longer with every attack that occurs.  

At the time, Komarov said that up to  25% of the network would be out of operation because of energy supply issues, resulting in 30% of the country being entered into a temporary blackout. 

As such, with winter approaching once again, it should come as no surprise that the operators are turning their attention to reinforcing their power infrastructure by adding new energy solutions and a horde of new generators. 

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Also in the the news:
T-Mobile to cut 5,000 US jobs 
US government announces $3.5 million in grants to Tribal Communities 
Dish seeks extension for purchase of T-Mobile’s low-band spectrum 

Scottish ISP Lothian Broadband (LBN), which is building a 10Gbps capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP / XGS-PON) network across rural parts of East Lothian, the Highlands and Fife, has announced that they’re extending into the rural areas surrounding the city of Stirling – starting with 3,400 premises across three villages. The latest rollout expansion will utilise funding […]

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The equity raise was solely supported by existing investors, funds managed by Macquarie Asset Management, Ares Management, and supporting co-investors 

altafiber, formerly known as Cincinnati Bell, has raised $600 million in funding to support the ongoing construction of fibre networks in its incumbent and expansion markets of Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, and Hawaii.  

As well as continuing to upgrade its current network, the funding will allow the firm to grow its opportunistic edge-out and community partnership strategy, which altafiber claim will allow them to reach their goal of providing homes and businesses with the fastest and most reliable network whilst maintaining their commitment to the community. 

The firm was acquired by Macquarie Infrastructure in 2021 for $2.9 billion, after which the it began trading under the altafiber brand. Since then, the company has passed 300,000 premises with its fibre rollout, reaching a total of 1.1 million premises.  

By the end of the year, the company expects to finish the construction of fibre to every single-family unit within Greater Cincinnati.  

“Gigabit connectivity is essential to access educational, employment, and healthcare opportunities. Robust fibre networks are also powerful economic development tools for business attraction and retention in growing municipalities,” said Leigh Fox, President and CEO of altafiber. “The combination of our operational expertise and this new funding will allow us to continue to invest in fibre, expand our geographic reach, and help to create digital equity in many rural and suburban communities.” 

The construction of altafibre’s Hawaii network is ongoing and expected to be completed by the end of 2027. 

Join the discussion around US telcos at Connected America 2024, live in Dallas, Texas 

Also in the news:
T-Mobile to cut 5,000 US jobs
US government announces $3.5 million in grants to Tribal Communities
Dish seeks extension for purchase of T-Mobile’s low-band spectrum

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The firm passed 2 million premises last September and is currently rolling out fibre at a rate of one million premises per year 

UK fibre network operator CityFibre has today announced that its full fibre (FTTP) broadband network now covers 3 million UK premises, with 2.6 million of these ‘Ready For Service’. The figure is up from 2.5 million premises in January this year. 

Residents within these areas can now receive internet services from 35–40 Internet Service Providers that currently operate on the CityFibre network. 

The rollout is part of CityFibre’s ambitious goal to cover 8 million premises across 285 towns, cities, and villages by 2025, a goal which was set in 2021 by the firm. 

If completed, the achieved goal will include coverage for over 800,000 businesses, 400,000 public sector sites, and almost 250,00 5G access points. 

The firm first began the construction of its network in 2018 in 12 UK towns and cities and has since achieved “primary build status” in locations such as Stirling, Milton Keynes, Peterborough, and Coventry. 

“We have made phenomenal progress this year, matching our performance from last year, and we on track to deliver another million ready for service homes to customers this year,” said Greg Mesch, CityFibre CEO. “I’m delighted that thanks to our investment, 3 million homes now have access to world class digital infrastructure, and we look forward to connecting many more as our rollout progresses.”  

It is worth noting, however, that at Cityfibre’s current FTTP rollout rate of 1 million premises per year, the goal of 8 million premises passed by 2025 will not be reached, perhaps explaining why the firm’s press release of makes no mention of this goal.  

In July this year, the firm secured four public funding awards under the government’s Project Gigabit worth a combined £387 million, with the target of reaching 262,000 homes. These grants cover Norfolk, Suffolk, Hampshire, and Cambridgeshire, which are also supported by a parallel private investment from CityFibre of £223 million. 

“Millions of homes and businesses from Milton Keynes to Stirling now have access to ultra-fast, reliable broadband and 5G thanks to CityFibre’s delivery of the Government’s £5 billion Project Gigabit,” said Sir John Whittingdale Minister for Data and Digital Infrastructure. “We are confidently moving towards achieving our goal of 85% coverage throughout the UK by 2025 and universal coverage by 2030 and it’s the efforts of providers like CityFibre that will help us get there.” 

Join the conversation on the UK’s fibre rollout at this year’s Connected Britain event – 20-21st September 2023 

Also in the news:
Deutsche Telekom launches new London network connection
Huawei and South Africa begin broadband initiative
Italian government to take 20% stake in TIM’s NetCo