UK ISP Zen Internet has put out a short and very simplified summary of broadband traffic across their network during 2022, which among other things reveals that sporting (streaming) and gaming (software) releases contributed to a general 21% increase in “peak” internet traffic in 2022 vs 2021. The figure of 21% was actually hit on […]

Cityfibre has today issued an update on their project to upgrade their entire UK G-PON based Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband network to harness 10Gbps capable XGS-PON technology (here), which reveals that they’ve successfully completed a trial of 2Gbps home broadband speeds in York with ISP partner Vodafone. At present the network operator aims to cover up […]

The latest independent biannual summary of UK broadband coverage for H2 2022 has estimated that “full fibre” (FTTP) ISP network rollouts have surged to reach 45.13% of premises (up from 37.61% in H1 2022) and 72.66% are within reach of “gigabit” speeds (up from 69.24%). Read on for details of England, Wales, Scotland and N.Ireland. […]

Press Release

China Mobile and Ericsson jointly launched energy-efficient 5G sites to accelerate its energy conservation and carbon emission reduction efforts. Ericsson and China Mobile Jiangsu have launched a 5G smart site on 700MHz band that does not produce carbon dioxide. Ericsson has also partnered with China Mobile Guangdong to launch an energy-efficient site on the 2.6GHz band.

For this collaboration, China Mobile has implemented Ericsson’s power system, which enables hybrid energy management. It optimizes use of energy from solar, grid and battery to achieve the most energy-efficient operation. The products come integrated and verified with remote management option via the Ericsson Network Manager.

Liming Tang, Head of RAN HW Solution, Market Area North East Asia, Ericsson, says: “Ericsson is committed to helping customers build and manage high-quality networks with advanced connectivity technologies, products, and solutions. We pursue improved energy usage and management through technological development, and we are pleased to further contribute to a more energy-efficient 5G network with China Mobile.”

As industrialization has posed further challenges of carbon emissions, energy conservation and renewable energy have become the main technology trend for all industries in China. Ericsson has responded to the country’s needs for energy-efficient networks by delivering end-to-end, smart site solutions that not only reduce energy consumption but also carbon and site footprint.

Compared with the current power system management, the new Ericsson Smart Site offers new levels of quality assurance, intelligent administration of various energy sources, full-stack real-time monitoring, plus intelligent energy, and service synergy.

First, the solution connects the mixed energy generated to the Ericsson Site Controller, enabling unified and intelligent management of various energy sources.
Second, by connecting Ericsson Site Controller to the same network management system as that of the base station. On the same ENM (Ericsson Network Management) energy system and the radio access network (RAN) can be managed and supervised. It is also possible to realize synergies between energy system and the base station.
The Ericsson Smart Site can also effectively ensure network security.

The smart site is compatible with Ericsson’s microwave solutions to enable the deployment of wireless base stations for universal telecommunication services across rural areas and other situations where traditional utility power is not accessible. Equally, this solution can be deployed across urban sites with tight power supply, to mitigate power supply challenges and reduce expenses with new energy.

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The new company will target 1.5 million locations beyond the scope of AT&T’s existing fibre network

It was certainly a happy New Year for AT&T this year, having announced the creation of a new fibre joint venture (JV) with US-based investment firm BlackRock.

The JV, to be named Gigapower LLC, will offer wholesale access to ISPs and other business customers.

In total, the company aims to deploy multi-gigabit fibre to 1.5 million customer locations currently outside of AT&T’s existing network, which currently serves 21 states across the country.

“With this joint venture, more customers and communities outside of our traditional service areas will receive the social and economic benefits of the world’s most durable and capable technology to access all the internet has to offer,” said AT&T CEO John Stankey.

Specific locations targeted for fibre coverage have yet to be revealed.

The company’s ownership and financing structure of Gigapower has also not been disclosed, with analysts estimating the venture to be worth between $10 billion and $15 billion.

BlackRock is one of the ‘Big Three’ index fund managers in the US, managing a portfolio worth $313 billion, including a growing number of infrastructure assets.

Indeed, in October last year, BlackRock raised $4.5 billion for its new diversified infrastructure fund, which it said would target infrastructure assets that would benefit from the global shift towards low-carbon energy.

Coincidentally or otherwise, it was also around this time that AT&T first announced that they had hired Morgan Stanley to help manage the creation of a fibre joint venture and select an infrastructure partner.

“We are excited to form the Gigapower joint venture in partnership with AT&T, which will be serving as not only a joint owner but also the first wholesale tenant,” said Mark Florian, Global Head of Diversified Infrastructure, BlackRock. “We believe Gigapower’s fibre infrastructure designed as a commercial open access platform will more efficiently connect communities across the United States with critical broadband services.”

As always, the customary regulatory approvals will be required before the deal is finalised.

AT&T is currently aiming to expand its own fibre networks to over 30 million locations by the end of 2025.

Want to learn all of the latest news from the American telecoms market? Join the experts in discussion at this year’s live Connected America conference in Dallas, Texas

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The Competition Tribunal dismissed concerns from the Competition Commissioner that the deal would see customers face higher prices

Back in March 2021, Rogers Communications agreed to buy rival Shaw Communications for around C$21 billion, saying the tie-up would allow for increased investment in 5G rollout and create around 3,000 jobs.

However, as was to be expected from a merger of this nature, which would reduce the Canadian mobile market to just three national players, the deal quickly came under intense regulatory scrutiny. For over a year now, the companies have been negotiating with regulators to close the deal/

With Rogers already the mobile market leader in Canada, much of the regulatory discussion centred around the future of Shaw’s mobile unit, Freedom Mobile, the acquisition of which would make Rogers’ market dominance unassailable.

As such, regulators eventually ruled that Shaw must divest of the unit to facilitate the merger, with the operators ultimately agreeing to sell the business to Montreal-based wireless operator Vidéotron in August last year. Conditions were attached to the sale to ensure that Vidéotron would use Freedom Mobile’s spectrum and infrastructure to become Canada’s fourth national mobile operator, with Canada’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, François-Philippe Champagne, seeking to ensure that the company was “in it for the long run”.

But despite assuaging some regulatory concerns, Canada’s Commissioner of Competition Matthew Boswell still moved to block the deal in May last year, saying the deal would be bad for competition and drive-up prices for customers. He would also later argue that Freedom Mobile was a more effective market competitor under Shaw’s ownership than it would be under that of Vidéotron.

Now, however, the government’s Competition Tribunal has rejected this plea, saying it does not believe the deal will have the negative impacts Boswell describes.

“It bears underscoring that there will continue to be four strong competitors in the wireless markets in Alberta and British Columbia, namely, Bell, Telus, Rogers and Videotron, just as there is today. Videotron’s entry into those markets will likely ensure that competition and innovation remain robust,” said the Tribunal in its ruling.

Boswell said he was disappointed by the decision and would appeal the decision. As such, a Federal Court has issued an emergency stay temporarily suspending the Competition Tribunal’s dismissal of the case until the application for an injunction can be heard.

Nonetheless, this decision leaves very few roadblocks left for the merger. Champagne is expected to formally approve the transfer of Freedom Mobile’s spectrum to Vidéotron later this month, with the Rogers–Shaw merger itself likely to follow in short order if the Competition Commission’s appeal is rejected.

Want to learn all of the latest news from the American telecoms market? Join the experts in discussion at this year’s live Connected America conference in Dallas, Texas

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Sources have informed ISPreview that UK broadband ISP BT will trigger the next phase of their plan to turn EE into their “flagship brand for consumer customers” around the February to April 2023 period, which among other things may see their new Smart Hub 3 (SH3) router launch first as an EE (not BT) product. […]

The UK Government is in the process of publishing the King’s New Year Honours List for 2023, which sees Brendan Dick, the former Director of BT in Scotland (2006-18) and former Chair of Openreach’s Scotland Board (2018-21), picking up an OBE for services to telecommunications in Scotland. But he’s not alone. The King’s New Year […]

Network operator Northern Fibre, which is a sub-brand of UK wireless broadband ISP Stix Internet, have continued to expand the rollout of their new gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network across rural parts of Yorkshire and has now gone live in several more villages. Back in May 2022 we reported that the operator had been quietly building […]

New customers signing up to broadband ISPs TalkTalk or EE may like to know that both have separately launched some early January Sale style promotions on their Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) packages, which add another discount to some monthly rentals and throws in the odd bonus. In terms of TalkTalk, the big change seems to be on […]