Broadband ISP Virgin Media (VMO2) has confirmed that their 10Gbps capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP / XGS-PON) broadband network, via wholesale network partner nexfibre, is being expanded to cover the town of Crewe in Cheshire (England). Just to recap. Last year saw Telefónica, Liberty Global and InfraVia Capital Partners create a new joint venture firm called nexfibre […]

Internet access and UK web hosting provider Freeola has recently launched its own Digital Voice (VoIP) style services for home broadband users, which enables you to keep your existing analogue landline number and to make or receive calls over your internet connection instead. The service is available to anybody in the UK with an internet […]

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The partners say they will jointly explore the greater integration of AI technologies within the telecoms sector, as well as the development of AI-powered business models 

Today, four major global telcos have partnered to form a Global Telco AI Alliance, aiming to collaborate on the use of AI to create new customer experiences and business opportunities. 

The companies signed a Multilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to formalise their agreement today in Seoul, South Korea, in the presence of key executives from each company. These included Claudia Nemat, Board Member Technology and Innovation at Deutsche Telekom; Hatem Dowidar, Group CEO of e&; Yuen Kuan Moon, CEO of Singtel; Chey Tae-won, Chairman of SK Group; and Ryu Young-sang, CEO of SK Telecom. 

The companies will co-develop a Telco AI Platform, which will serve as the core foundation for new AI services, including digital assistants and super apps.  

The group will also form the Global Telco AI Alliance Joint Working Group to discuss the platform’s further development, as well as co-investment opportunities. 

“We recognize AI’s immense potential in reshaping the telecommunications landscape and beyond and are excited to embark on this transformative journey with the formation of the Global Telco AI Alliance. The alliance signifies a strategic commitment to driving innovation and fostering collaborative efforts,” said Khalifa Al Shamsi, CEO of e& life, e&’s app and product division. 

“Our shared goal is to redefine industry paradigms, establish new growth drivers through AI-powered business models, and pave the way for a new era of strategic cooperation, guiding our industry towards an exciting and prosperous future.” 

This Alliance is a clear response by some of the industry’s leading telcos to the surge in global interest in recent years, with all four having made claims to leadership in the AI telco space in recent months. SK Telecom, for example, said last year that it would seek to become an “AI company, while Deutsche Telekom’s CEO Timotheus Höttges told staff earlier this year that they must come up with “top-five or top-ten ideas” for how they can utilise AI to improve their operations. 

How is the AI changing the telecoms world? Join the operators in discussion at this year’s Total Telecom Congress live in Amsterdam 

Also in the news:
SK Telecom overhauls AI service ‘A.’ using ChatGPT
Meta plans AI everywhere
Samsung bans staff from using generative AI after data leak

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Various pilots will be conducted by BT Group’s start-up incubator Etc., exploring whether the transition is feasible from a technical and operational standpoint

This week, BT’s start-up and Digital incubation team Etc. has announced that it will oversee a number of pilot programmes to transform decommissioned broadband cabinets into charging points for electric vehicles (EVs).

These cabinets, dotted all over streets of the UK, currently provide copper-based broadband and phone services to local consumers. However, as the UK’s networks rapidly shift to full fibre architecture, these cabinets are becoming obsolete, prompting BT Group to consider repurposing the.

According to BT, the scope of the pilot projects will include a range of technical, operational, and commercial analysis, from upgrade viability based on location to potential joint venture business models to commercialise the would-be EV network.

The first of these pilot projects will reportedly take place in Northern Ireland later this autumn, with more locations added across the UK before the end of the year. The various tests are expected to continue for two years before commercialisation can be considered.

If successful, these conversions could end up as a significant proportion of the UK’s national EV infrastructure. The entire country currently has around 45,000 charging points operational, but the government has plans to invest £1.6 billion to increase this figure to 300,000 by 2030.

“With the ban on sales of internal combustion engine vehicles coming in 2030, and with only around 45,000 public charge points today, the UK needs a massive upgrade to meet the needs of the EV revolution,” says Tom Guy, Managing Director of Etc. “We have a once in a lifetime opportunity to connect for good in a whole new way by innovating around our cabinet infrastructure. The pilots are critical for the team to work through the assessment and establish effective technical, commercial and operational routes to market over the next two years.”

Ultimately, not every cabinet BT owns is likely to be converted, since not all of them will prove cost-effective or be in practical locations. Nonetheless, initial estimates suggest around two-thirds of BT Group’s 90,000 cabinets could be suitable for the upgrade.

BT Group is not alone in considering repurposing this soon-to-be legacy infrastructure for EV purposes. Virgin Media O2, for example, has been working alongside Liberty Global’s joint venture Liberty Charge since 2021 to deploy a small number of charging points leveraging their own cabinet and duct infrastructure.

How far is the future of electric vehicles entwined with the world of telecoms?  Join the ecosystem in discussion at this year’s live Connected Britain conference 

Also in the news: 
Vodafone UK launches second social tariff offering higher speeds
Enhancing and expanding connectivity with EXA Infrastructure
Why the industry must accelerate the adoption of 5.5G 

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The two firms have been in partnership for nearly ten years developing network equipment, most recently for Ericsson’s Cloud RAN product line 

Intel and Ericsson have deepened their existing partnership this week, with Intel agreeing to make new custom chips for Ericsson’s 5G infrastructure. 

As part of the agreement, Intel will produce custom 5G system-on-chips (SoCs), which will reportedly enable Ericsson to increase the energy efficiency and capacity of its cloud RAN technology. 

Intel will use its ‘18A’ process for the chip’s production, which is the most advanced node of Intel’s ‘five-in-four-years’ roadmap it announced in 2021. 

It has not been disclosed when the chip will hit the market, although Intel have previously said its 18A technology will be ready late next year, sooner than predicted. 

“Ericsson has a long history of close collaboration with Intel, and we are pleased to expand this further as we utilize Intel to manufacture our future custom 5G SoCs on their 18A process node, which is in line with Ericsson’s long-term strategy for a more resilient and sustainable supply chain,” said Fredrik Jejdling, Executive Vice President and Head of Networks at Ericsson. 

“In addition, we will be expanding our collaboration that we announced at MWC 2023 to work together with the ecosystem to accelerate industry-scale open RAN utilising standard Intel Xeon-based platforms.”  

Intel hopes that the development of these new processes will allow them to return to a position of market leadership by 2025, having lost ground in recent years to key rivals such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC).  

TSMC is the largest chip maker in the world, controlling 58% revenue market share as of Q4 last year, and recently have been manufacturing the world’s smallest and most powerful semi-conductors. 

In trying to increase its global market share, Intel is building new chip plants around the world, including a $4.6 billion plant in Poland, and a $20 billion Ohio factory. 

Want to keep up with all of the latest telecoms news from around the world? Sign up to receive Total Telecom’s daily newsletter 

Also in the news:
Ericsson shows off 5G Cloud RAN in Germany with O2 Telefónica
Ericsson partners with Dell for Cloud RAN infrastructure
Ericsson to consolidate Estonian operations with new €155m tech hub

 

Mobile operator Vodafone has revealed that they’re working with the Church of England, and using Open Radio Access Network (OpenRAN) technology, to help extend 4G mobile (mobile broadband) into remote rural communities by deploying small base stations on top of 11 church bell towers across the country. Two of the first locations include the Blessed […]

Ofcom’s latest quarterly (Q1 2023) study of UK consumer complaints has named and shamed TalkTalk for attracting the most consumer gripes about both fixed line broadband and landline phone services (making a change from Shell Energy), while BT did the same for both Pay Monthly Mobile and Pay TV services. The regulator’s report only covers […]

Network builder and UK broadband ISP toob has today announced that they’ve committed £7.5 million to build their new Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network across the Hampshire (South England) town of Fleet, which is expected to result in 19,000 local homes gaining access to their network. The operator, which was originally backed by £75m from the Amber […]

Alternative UK network provider Connect Fibre (Fibre Assets Ltd.) has just struck back in the tit-for-tat battle over which broadband ISP can claim to offer the “fastest” or “best” Wi-Fi performance guarantee. The provider has increased the speed promise on their home Wi-Fi guarantee from 30Mbps to 50Mbps minimum in every room. Firstly, let’s recap […]

The BT Group has published a rather limited Q1 FY24 (quarterly) trading update to June 2023, which includes very few of the usual details but does reveal that Openreach’s roll-out of a full fibre (FTTP) broadband ISP network (coverage) grew by 718,000 UK premises in Q1 to total 11 million (up from 702k last quarter). […]