Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Rural broadband provider Gigaclear, which has already deployed their full fibre (FTTP) network to cover 612,000 UK premises, has this morning finally announced the start of their roll-out under Project Gigabit’s East Gloucestershire (Lot 18) contract. The £10.81m deployment is currently expected to help upgrade 3,547 premises in hard to reach areas.

The original contract was first awarded all the way back in February 2024 (here) and was initially valued at £16.6m (state aid), with a goal of extending gigabit-capable broadband to an additional 4,400 premises in remote rural areas. But this shrank in size during August 2025 “due to [the] removal of 899 premises” from its scope (here) and ended up being valued at £10.81m – possibly due to nearby commercial builds reaching more premises than expected or some of the premises were too expensive to tackle.

Quite why it’s taken this long for Gigaclear to announce the start of their construction phase for Lot 18 remains unclear, but today’s update does confirm that the first homes and businesses are already live. The roll-out is expected to reach a total of 18 rural communities across rural East Gloucestershire.

The locations include Alderton, Andoversford, Aston Somerville, Brockhampton, Cold Aston, Coln St Aldwyns, Great Rissington, Hawling, Kemble, Lower Slaughter, Miserden, North Cerney, Quenington, Stanton, Tarlton, Teddington, Upper Slaughter and Woodmancote.

Breaking news.. more to follow..

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Broadband internet connectivity across part of the County Durham (England) village of Shotton Colliery was left disconnected for five days earlier this week after Openreach’s local network was targeted by copper cable thieves. The activity also caused damage to some local fibre optic cables.

The incident appears to have begun on Friday last week and some locals initially attributed the outage to Storm Amy, although Openreach later confirmed that it had been the result of metal theft on their network. The operator’s engineers then began busily working to get local homes and businesses back online as quickly as possible, which was only fully restored yesterday.

We should point out that Openreach doesn’t yet appear to have covered the village with their latest full fibre (FTTP) network, although both Netomnia (Youfibre, Brsk) and Virgin Media (nexfibre) have deployed gigabit-capable broadband services across the community.

Netomnia shares some of Openreach’s local infrastructure, and we believe they were also impacted by the disruption (they only recently suffered another network attack in the same county – here). Sadly, the perpetrators of such crimes never have any regard for the harm they cause to locals, some of which are dependent upon related services.

An Openreach spokesperson said (Northern Echo):

“We’re deeply disappointed that this community is suffering the consequences of a criminal act targeting our network. Our security team is working closely with the Police to catch those responsible.

Engineers have been working around the clock and have restored broadband services. These attacks cause extensive disruption to local lives, threaten the safety of vulnerable individuals, and result in significant inconvenience for residents and businesses.

We urge people to call 101 to report any suspicious activity around our network to the police; if members of the public do believe a crime is in progress, then they should dial 999.”

Crimes like this have become increasingly common in recent years, driven in part by the high price of copper and the rising cost of living. But the criminals are also coming under pressure from a rise in the number of UK-wide arrests (examples here, here and here), which are often followed by some convictions. Openreach also reported a 30% reduction in cable theft last year after introducing a new forensic liquid marker (SelectaDNA) to help track and protect their network (here), although it doesn’t cover older cables that are already in the ground.

The ongoing deployment of Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) based broadband lines should, eventually, help to reduce such thefts as fibre has no value to thieves. But as with the above example, this won’t completely stop the problem from occurring because fibre and copper cables often share some of the same ducts (i.e. damaging one also damages the other), and thieves sometimes confuse the two. Completely removing core copper cables will take quite a few years.

Finally, Openreach has a partnership with Crimestoppers, which sometimes offers rewards for information given anonymously to the charity about cable thefts, if it leads to the arrest and conviction of those responsible – you can contact them 100% anonymously on 0800 555 111 or use their anonymous online form. You can also contact Openreach’s security team direct or report via the local police (101). But if you see a crime in progress, please call the police on 999.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

ISPreview has spotted that the Welsh Government (WG) have today issued a formal tender notice for their £70m (state aid) “Extending High Speed Broadband” (EHSB) project for Wales. In its current form, this aims to help extend faster broadband to around 29,000 premises in poorly served areas (i.e. locations that can’t yet access 30Mbps+ speeds).

Regular readers may recall that the WG first began to explore the viability of such a project in May 2023 via a Prior Information Notice (here). We then got another update in April 2025 (here) and saw market engagement in June 2025 (here). The project is intended to complement the UK Government’s wider £5bn Project Gigabit programme, which aims to reach “nationwide” (c.99%) coverage of gigabit-capable broadband by 2032.

However, it’s already acknowledged that not even Project Gigabit will be enough to completely cater for every remote rural location (i.e. some premises are just too expensive / remote), which is why the WG decided to establish the EHSB framework. This is funded by £70m that was “clawed back” from BT (Openreach) as part of the original Superfast Cymru project (i.e. public funding returned for reinvestment as take-up increased).

The last update in June 2025 represented the market engagement phase (i.e. trying to identify suppliers with an interest) and today’s update sees the final Framework for the EHSB being put out to tender. All submissions for this must be in by 26th November 2025, and it’s currently estimated that contracts could be awarded to suppliers by 20th January 2026.

What does the EHSB Framework look like?

The current design for this framework includes two LOTS. The first LOT, valued at £60m, will be for projects that require the installation of broadband network infrastructure to 1,000 premises and over (this sounds like cluster sizing). The second LOT, valued at £10m, will be for projects that require the installation of broadband network infrastructure to under 1,000 premises (i.e. smaller communities). Suppliers are permitted to apply for either or both lots.

The WG currently “expects the first Framework will commence early 2026 with the first call-off contract under the Framework being awarded shortly thereafter“. However, final details about how many premises will benefit, how much of the funding will be applied and what network technology is to be used (FTTP is highly likely) won’t be known until after the contracts have been awarded.

As we’ve said before, the WG already has form in working with Openreach (BT) on past contracts, so they’re expected to be a front-runner for bids. But Ogi, Netomnia and Virgin Media (inc. nexfibre) are other potential options. The catch is that Virgin Media’s future expansion via nexfibre remains uncertain past 2025 (here), while Ogi would probably need more investment first and Netomnia has generally shown little interest in projects that involve state-aid.

Splitting £70m between 29,000 premises returns a per premises public subsidy of just over £2,400 and that’s modestly higher than the subsidised contracts under Project Gigabit, which tend to sit around sub-£2k territory (likely to have changed a bit due to recent contract modifications). We must remember that the framework will be focusing on some of the toughest and thus most expensive parts of the country, which is not an easy or quick area to resolve.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Network operator ICUK, which provides wholesale connectivity and broadband solutions to ISPs and businesses, appears to be in the process of trying to fully recover all of its services after suffering an ongoing cyber-attack that has disrupted some of their systems.

According to The Register, ICUK’s VoIP and web services (e.g. Control Panels, API, websites) began being hit by a large Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack on Monday afternoon. Such assaults are sadly quite common in this industry and work by overloading a target server or user with masses of data requests from multiple internet-connected devices (often malware hijacked computers / botnets), causing connectivity and performance problems.

The initial attack against their core network was promptly mitigated by their Cloudflare DDoS protection. As a result, ICUK’s broadband/leased line network is currently functioning as normal. The attackers have since turned their attention to ICUK’s VoIP and Control Panel/Website Infrastructure, which has continued to experience some periodic problems this afternoon, although it came back online just as we were going to press.

Leslie Costar, Owner of ICUK, said: “Communication with our customers has been open, frequent, and transparent throughout this process. The directors and staff at ICUK would like to sincerely thank all customers for their patience, support, and understanding during this challenging time.”

Control Panel and API Access Update – 08/10/2025 16:29

We are aware of continued DDOS attacks against our Control Panel and API which we are working on each one as they come through to mitigate them. Our apologies this has continued to happen.

ICUK are currently in the process of moving some of their hosted services towards Cloudflare protection. The situation comes not long after major UK telecoms provider COLT was hit by a much more serious attack (here).

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Mobile provider eSIM.net, which normally specialises in offering travel eSIMs for roaming usage, has today launched a Vodafone-based plan called AirFree that gives UK customers 30 days of free data, calls, and texts. After that you can either continue on a flexible 30-day rolling plan for a monthly fee, upgrade to a higher data package, or cancel at any time without obligation.

The plan itself includes 1GB (GigaByte) of mobile broadband data, unlimited UK calls and SMS, 5G support, Hotspot support, Wi-Fi Calling and full UK number porting (MNP). But customers who choose to remain on the plan after the first 30 days will be expected to pay £10 per month, and there are cheaper packages to be found in the UK market.

Although launched to coincide with the Apple iPhone Air, the AirFree plan is open to anyone in the UK with an eSIM-compatible handset. But quantities are limited. The plan is available exclusively to UK residents, for use within the UK only, and can be activated entirely online within 5 minutes.

Gerry O’Prey, CEO at eSIM.net, told ISPreview:

“Watch the plastic SIM card go the same way as the CD and DVD. With AirFree, we’re making it easy for anyone to try an eSIM — no shops, no paperwork, no plastic.”

Original article Total Telecom:Read More

Intracom Telecom, a global telecommunication systems and solutions vendor, and GeoLinks, a national leader in next-generation fixed wireless, today announced the first U.S. live demonstration of GeoLinks 29/31GHz licensed spectrum. Installed atop the iconic Rio Hotel in Las Vegas, the Intracom Telecom WiBAS™ G5 Point-to-Multipoint (PtMP) Smart Base Station will serve as a live showcase of fiber-like, secure, and interference-free performance at WISPAPALOOZA 2025— marking a major milestone in the evolution of fixed wireless connectivity at North America’s premier industry event.

The demonstration site gives attendees firsthand experience of licensed spectrum performance, scalability, reliability, and security, powered by Intracom Telecom WiBAS™ G5. The platform’s advanced mmWave design delivers interference-free, high-capacity connectivity across urban, suburban, and rural environments. This collaboration underscores GeoLinks and Intracom Telecom’s commitment to expanding broadband access, closing the digital divide, and redefining fixed wireless performance for today’s broadband networks.  

“Today marks a turning point for GeoLinks and for the U.S. fixed wireless industry,” said Kevin Hetrick, CEO of GeoLinks. “With a nationwide portfolio of licensed LMDS spectrum covering 1,300 counties, we are uniquely positioned to deliver fiber-like connectivity at scale — without the limits of unlicensed spectrum. Our Las Vegas demonstration with Intracom Telecom in Las Vegas showcases the next evolution of fixed wireless: multi-gigabit, interference-free broadband with carrier-grade performance. This milestone reflects our commitment to redefining how high-speed connectivity is deployed and scaled nationwide, and we’ll unveil the full scope of our next-generation spectrum initiative at WISPAPALOOZA 2025.”

“We are proud to work with GeoLinks in demonstrating their licensed LMDS spectrum,” said Kyriakos Vergos, CEO of Intracom Telecom USA. “Intracom Telecom’s advances in FWA mmW hybrid beamforming systems, running on our own baseband architecture, are a true game-changer. This installation at the Rio Hotel not only demonstrates the power of our joint offering but also lays the foundation for WISPs to serve enterprise, wholesale, MDUs and multi-tenant markets with fiber-like performance at a fraction of the infrastructure cost,” he added.

Licensed spectrum delivers built-in network security by operating on exclusive, FCC-protected frequencies that prevent interference, spoofing, and unauthorized access. Unlike unlicensed bands, these channels are legally safeguarded, ensuring only authorized operators transmit within defined boundaries. This exclusivity forms a physical layer of cybersecurity that complements encryption, authenticated access, and network-layer defences to create a closed, interference-free environment. The result is carrier-grade reliability and data integrity, the same secure foundation that underpins enterprise, defence, and public-safety networks worldwide. This convergence of performance and protection represents the secure backbone of next-generation broadband.

Through their strategic collaboration, GeoLinks and Intracom Telecom demonstrate the combined strengths of GeoLinks nationwide licensed spectrum rights and hybrid fiber–wireless infrastructure, together with Intracom Telecom’s carrier-grade WiBAS™ G5 FWA platform, trusted globally by residential, enterprise and wholesale operators. Together, the companies are laying the groundwork for a new era of fixed wireless performance and next-generation broadband innovation.

A new chapter for American broadband is unfolding. The demonstration, powered by Intracom Telecom’s WiBAS™ G5 technology and GeoLinks nationwide licensed spectrum, showcases how fixed wireless can deliver interference-free, multi-gigabit, low-latency performance to businesses, institutions, and communities across the United States, accelerating digital inclusion and redefining what’s possible in high-speed wireless connectivity, bringing the future of broadband beyond the cable.

Original article Total Telecom:Read More

This strategic move shifts Orbith’s offering beyond its established satellite connectivity leadership into a comprehensive portfolio of digital services.

“In a context where digital transformation is key to the competitiveness and efficiency of different sectors, Orbith expands its offering beyond satellite connectivity, evolving towards a comprehensive portfolio of digital services that enable companies, governments and organisations to modernise their infrastructure, reduce costs and accelerate innovation processes,” said Pablo Mosiul, CEO of Orbith. “With Orbith Cloud, we are consolidating our foray into the world of digital services, a path that began months ago with the launch of SD-WAN, a solution that allows companies and organisations to intelligently optimise and manage their networks.”

Photo left: Pablo Mosiul, CEO of Orbith. Photo right: Rafael Puig-Durán, Country Manager of Dade2.

Differentiated Cloud Performance

The new ORBITH Cloud is designed to directly address the demands of enterprise clients and public entities, prioritising speed, stability, and cost efficiency in the region:

• High speed: this system can process data up to ten times faster, making it perfect for intensive use and important applications.
• Performance assurance: systems remain responsive and stable, utilising all available resources even when user workloads rise.
• Cost control: a model offering exponential savings for clients with large internet consumption.
• Corporate reliability: constant accessibility, free from interruptions or data loss, guaranteeing company continuity and security.
• Simplified interface: cloud resource management is made for people who don’t know much about technology.

“Orbith Cloud’s launch is a reaffirmation of our dedication to innovation and our clients’ digital growth. In addition to providing connection in the most remote areas of the nation, we now also provide cloud infrastructure and services that help businesses and government agencies undergo digital transformation,” added Pablo Mosiul.

Dade2 emphasised the strength of the partnership in delivering a reliable, high-quality offering.

“We at Dade2 are totally dedicated to our collaboration with Orbith,” said Rafael Puig-Durán, Country Manager of Dade2. “We are confident that by working together, we can create genuine synergies to provide customers with the technology, performance, and flexibility that the modern market requires, along with the highest quality and reliability that characterises our cloud solutions.”

Orbith enhances its standing as a strategic partner for digital transformation in Argentina in this way. “We provide a comprehensive solution that helps governments and businesses become more inventive, competitive, and efficient by fusing our leadership in multi-orbit satellite connection with a wide range of digital services. We are available to help our clients at every stage of their digital development,” Mosiul said in closing.

About Dade2

Based in London, UK, Dade2 is an established provider of cloud solutions. Founded in 2009 by CEO Manuel Trongone, the company emphasises sustainability, operating its own data center in Iceland entirely powered by renewable energy. This environmentally conscious infrastructure is strategically located, providing excellent access to Europe, the North American West Coast, Central America, and portions of South America.

Website – http://www.dade2.net

+44 203 239 1536
info@dade2.net

About Orbith

Supported by the Boldt Group, Orbith is an Argentine-based company that pioneered the use of high-capacity HTS satellites in the Ka-band in Argentina for faster, more affordable connections. It was the first regional operator to provide multi-orbit connectivity (LEO and GEO). The company is actively working to close the digital divide, expanding its network in Argentina, building its own MicroGEO satellite, and growing into other Latin American nations.

Website – https://www.orbith.com/en

Original article Total Telecom:Read More

Warsaw, Poland – October, 2025 – Four of Poland’s main Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) wholesalers – Fiberhost, Nexera, Polski Światłowód Otwarty and Światłowód Inwestycje – today announced a landmark collaborative initiative, partnering with Optare Solutions, an IT Consulting & Engineering Services Company, to lead the design of a common API for FTTH wholesale communications in Poland.

This joint, collaborative initiative aims to standardize FTTH wholesale API interfaces across the participating companies, but the designed solution will be available for the whole Polish market. By designing a common API, the project is expected to significantly reduce integration time and costs for new Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and wholesalers, streamline agreement processes, and accelerate sales. This standardization will also lower barriers to entry in the FTTH market, fostering greater competition.

The communication standard being designed between wholesale operators and retail operators will be publicly available and also will be voluntary. This means that its provision will lower the barrier to access by increasing the possibility of cooperation through the addition of another communication option, without excluding other methods.

The project implements the TM Forum Open APIs – a globally recognized framework within the telecommunications industry. By adopting this standard, the resulting solution will be modern, scalable, and aligned with international best practices. This approach guarantees interoperability and supports the future development of digital services, positioning the Polish market as both mature and innovative.

For internet access subscribers, this initiative translates to a more dynamic and competitive market, leading to improved service offerings. The reduced integration time and cost for ISPs entails that new services can be brought to market faster, providing consumers with more freedom of choice and innovative solutions. A common API facilitates seamless service provisioning, testing, and ticketing, which can lead to faster installations, quicker resolution of issues, and an overall enhanced customer experience.

Optare Solutions was selected as the partner for this consulting project due to its expertise in the telecommunications market, its prior knowledge of the FTTH market acquired across extensive previous projects and its commitment to designing a new API that reuses existing interfaces as much as possible while incorporating industry best practices and telecommunications standards. The project will focus on key wholesale operations, including service provisioning, service testing, and service ticketing.

“This joint effort underscores our commitment to fostering a more efficient and competitive FTTH market in Poland. Partnering with Optare Solutions will enable us to standardize our current APIs, which benefits all participants and drives innovation across the industry. The standard will be available without cost for all market participants – all operators on the market.” – said representatives for the four leading Polish FTTH wholesalers (Ignacio Irurita, CEO of Polski Światłowód Otwarty, Marta Wojciechowska, CEO of Fiberhost and President of the Management Board of Open Allies Foundation, Magda Russyan, CEO of Światłowód Inwestycje, Jacek Wiśniewski, CEO of NEXERA).

The consulting project will involve a structured methodology including individual meetings with stakeholders to understand their current strategies and API interfaces, a comprehensive analysis of existing documentation, and the design and documentation of the new common API. The four participating companies are committed to providing Optare Solutions with full access to their current APIs and provisioning processes, ensuring the successful design of a unified standard. 

About Fiberhost

Fiberhost is a leading company in building and operating modern open-access fiber-optic infrastructure (Fiber-to-the-Home) in Poland, currently reaching 1.4 million households.

The company provides wholesale services to both local and nationwide telecom operators. Thanks to the open-access model, residents within Fiberhost’s coverage area can choose from a wide range of internet and TV services, while operators benefit from access to a rich portfolio of wholesale solutions.

About Nexera

Nexera is one of Poland’s leading providers of high-capacity multi-fiber optic cables (min. 300 Mb/s). Nexera’s sole shareholder is Infracapital, one of the leading European infrastructure investors. 

Since its creation in 2017, based on the Digital Poland Operational Program (POPC), Nexera has built fiber optic networks in central and north-eastern Poland and added several other networks to its portfolio through acquisition. As of the mid- 2025, Nexera’s network covered 774,000 households located in over 5,850 localities. Company’s target is to get with its multi-fiber in the reach of 1.5 million households.

About Polski Światłowód Otwarty

Polski Światłowód Otwarty (PŚO) is an exclusively wholesale operator, offering all retail operators open access to its broadband network in Poland on non-discriminatory terms. It currently cooperates with five nationwide retail operators – Play, T-Mobile, Netia, Plus, and Orange – as well as four local ones: RFC, Flashnet, Netronik, and Intertell. The PŚO Group already covers over 4.1 million households in Poland and ultimately plans to expand its FTTH (Fiber to the Home) network to reach more than 6 million households. To achieve this, the company is carrying out a network expansion and modernization process using the XGS-PON standard. This technology enables operators using the PŚO network to offer FTTH internet services with speeds of up to 8 Gbit/s.

About Swiatłowód Inwestycje

Światłowód Inwestycje is the largest wholesale-only telecom operator of fiber optic infrastructure in Poland, which enables internet access exclusively in FTTH (Fiber To The Home) technology. The Company is focused on high quality processes and seamless cooperation with operators to ensure the best in class service for all users.

As of the mid 2025, Światłowód Inwestycje reached 700k active services on the coverage of 2,2 million households. At the end of 2025 S-I will finish the first  5-year investment plan with coverage of 2.4 million households, the new investment plan announced in June will expand coverage by 500 thousand households in 2026-28 and another 200 thousand in 2029-32.

Światłowód Inwestycje, established in 2021, is a 50/50 joint venture of Orange Polska, a leading telecom operator in Poland, and APG Asset Management, a leading pension asset manager with extensive experience and a proven track record in telecom infrastructure investments.

About Optare Solutions

Optare Solutions is a leading service consultancy in the telecommunications sector, specializing in delivering innovative and tailored solutions for CSPs and ISPs. Focusing on Network and Services automation, as well as OSS processes and platforms optimization, Optare Solutions is committed to helping clients achieve operational excellence and remain competitive in an ever-evolving market. With more than 160 professionals and a presence in 5 countries, the company has completed over 2,000 projects in more than 25 countries, collaborating with over 30 telecom operators. Since October 2024, Optare Solutions has been listed on the BME Growth market (BME:OPTS), opening new opportunities for international expansion and development.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Alternative rural broadband ISP Airband, which has deployed their gigabit-speed capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) and Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) networks to cover parts of Wales and South West England, has today announced that the company’s existing Managing Director, Kashif Rahman, has been promoted to Chief Executive Officer (CEO) – effective immediately.

The internet provider has just gone through a period of restructuring, which resulted in a fair few jobs losses and a switch to focus more on commercialising their existing network (as opposed to new infrastructure build). The company has also been without a full CEO since former boss and founder, Redmond Peel, stood down from the role in May 2024 (here).

Kashif has thus been one of the main driving forces behind Airband’s progress over the last 18-months in his role as MD, overseeing the introduction of innovative new technologies (e.g. Tarana’s next-gen gigabit wireless upgrade) that have strengthened their service offerings and helping to keep the business moving forward (annual results).

Airband’s investors Aberdeen have similarly expressed full confidence in Rahman’s leadership. Suffice to say, it’s not a surprise to see him being promoting to the position of CEO.

Kashif Rahman said:

“I am honoured to take on the role of CEO at such an important time in Airband’s journey. We have a clear mission: to connect communities that have been left behind by traditional broadband rollouts. I am excited to build on our strong foundations, accelerate our growth, and continue delivering real value for our customers, partners and the communities we serve.”

In terms of the provider’s current network reach, Airband previously said that their broadband network now spanned “more than 440,000 premises in over 200 communities across 7 counties“ (here), which we were told breaks down as being 175,000 premises via “fibre” (FTTP) and 265,000 premises via wireless (FWA) – all Ready for Service. The also informed ISPreview that they expected to end 2025 with 30,000 customers.

Original article ISPreview UK:Read More

Network testing firm Ookla, which collects broadband performance data from consumers via their popular Speedtest.net service, has examined the onboard WiFi performance of train services across Europe (inc. some Asian rail networks) and found that the United Kingdom delivers some of the slowest internet speeds on trains.

Regular readers will already be aware that the quality of onboard WiFi across the UK’s various rail networks and operators can be a bit of a patchwork. The previous government once pledged, in 2017, to make “uninterrupted” WiFi and Mobile (5G) speeds of up to 1Gbps (Gigabits per second) available on all mainline train routes by 2025. But this never materialised, and only a very few rail operators have achieved such an outcome.

The current government recently circled back to this area as part of their Infrastructure Strategy for the next 10 years, which among other things committed £41m to “introduce low-earth-orbit satellite connectivity on all mainline trains, significantly improving both the availability and internet data connection speeds for Wi-Fi connected passengers“. But it’s unclear when this will be delivered.

In the meantime, Ookla’s latest study found a wide gap in the best and worst European train operators for onboard WiFi performance during Q2 2025. Sweden was named the fastest in Europe for Wi-Fi with a 64.58Mbps median average download speed, followed by Switzerland (29.79 Mbps) and Ireland (26.33 Mbps). But at the bottom end of the table came laggards like Spain (1.45Mbps), the UK (1.09Mbps) and the Netherlands (0.41 Mbps).

Part of the problem in the UK could be that many rail operators are still using older Wi-Fi 4 based connectivity, while 38% of those are on the most congested and slowest 2.4GHz band. On the other hand, some countries that feature a more modern Wi-Fi mix and thus drive greater use of the 5GHz band, like Spain and Italy, clearly still underperform on speed. This is often because their backhaul capacity can’t keep pace due to poor satellite or trackside infrastructure, which is the key factor for onboard performance.

The picture is a bit more varied when we look at latency performance, where the UK places about upper mid-table with an average response time of 49ms (milliseconds). However, given the super slow onboard broadband speeds, having a modestly faster latency isn’t quite so important. Taiwan delivered the fastest latency times of just 13ms, while the slowest came from Poland at 92ms.

Ookla’s full report goes into a lot more detail, including about the materials used in the construction of train carriages and onboard network design, although it’s clear from the report that political leadership and policy makes a big difference in this area. As does the adoption of satellite broadband connectivity from Low Earth Orbit (LEO), which is of course something that the UK government is now pushing (but this won’t help in tunnels).

Ookla’s Onboard Train WiFi Study
https://www.ookla.com/articles/train-wifi-2025