The demand for Private Mobile Networks (PMNs) based on LTE (and increasingly 5G) is being driven by the data, security, digitisation and enterprise mobility requirements of modern business and government entities. Organisations of all types are combining connected systems with big data and analytics to transform operations, increase automation and efficiency or to deliver new services to their users.
Private mobile networks – what are they?
A private LTE/5G network is a mobile network intended for the sole use of private entities such as enterprises, factories, or government organisations, that is not offered or accessible to the general public but instead uses spectrum defined in 3GPP standards.
 …
Solar-powered broadband balloons to deliver connectivity to Africa
From deploying fibre underground to putting up mobile masts, deploying broadband infrastructure is expensive.
In recent years, we have seen a flurry of innovation attempting to make these deployments more cost effective and less time consuming, from Facebook’s Bombyx robot, that crawls along existing power cables and wraps them in lightweight fibre, to the HAPS Alliance, seeking to deliver broadband through a solar…
Viettel joins rivals in launching mobile money services
Last week, MobiFone became the first Vietnamese mobile operator to launch mobile money services, with Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group (VNPT) hot on their heels. At the time, Vietnam’s largest operator, Viettel, was notably silent on the mobile money front, but today they too have announced they will begin offering these services to customers.
According to sources, the slight delay to Viettel receiving the licence was merely due to delays in processing the application…
Ofcom Fines O2 UK GBP150,000 Over Inaccurate Information
Mobile operator O2 (VMO2) has been fined £150k by the UK telecoms regulator, Ofcom, after they were found to have provided “inaccurate and incomplete information” during an earlier investigation into the company’s billing issues (here), which separately resulted in the operator being fined £10.5m for overcharging customers. Section 135 of the Communication Act 2003 requires […]
Scotland Extends Interim Rural Broadband Voucher Scheme
The Scottish Government has announced that their Interim Broadband Voucher Scheme, which forms part of the £600m Reaching 100% (R100) project and is designed to help rural premises in the hardest to reach areas get a faster connection installed, has been extended to 31st March 2022 (it was previously due to finish this month). The […]
First Homes Live in ISP Wessex Internet’s Somerset FTTP Build
Rural UK ISP Wessex Internet has this week connected the first home in South Somerset to their new gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband network, which has been deployed as part of their state aid supported contract via the Connecting Devon and Somerset (CDS) programme. The Phase 2 CDS contract, which was originally awarded at the end […]
Top 10 UK Fastest and Slowest Streets for Broadband in 2021
A new report has used data from 276,083 consumer speedtests to reveal the top 10 fastest and slowest streets for broadband ISP download speed in the UK. The slowest street was found to be Wistaston Road (Crewe) in Cheshire on just 0.24Mbps, while the fastest was Haul Fryn (Birchgrove) in Swansea on 882Mbps. The Uswitch.com […]
Openreach Erects Two Southampton Telegraph Poles in Wrong Place
Openreach has apologised after its engineers, which were busy deploying a new Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband ISP network in Southampton (Hampshire, England), accidentally erected two telegraph poles in the wrong location at Seacombe Green, much to the annoyance of local residents. But they’ll soon be moved. Telegraph poles have a tendency to divide public opinion when […]
Next steps for Neos Networks as it completes major step of network expansion plan
Neos Networks, one of the UK’s leading business connectivity providers, today confirmed it has completed a major stage of its ambitious Project Edge network expansion programme.
Today’s announcement will see the company reach a full fibre footprint of more than 34,000km before the end of the year, an achievement that will help underpin the UK Government’s target for full fibre, gigabit connectivity to 85% of UK premises by 2025…
Telefonica bringing industrial 5G services to market in 2022
Beginning in January 2022, Telefonica will begin offering a range of industrial 5G services to industrial partners for the first time.
This is quite a milestone in the journey of 5G. Until now, numerous operators throughout Europe have been conducting various tests for 5G use cases, but barely any have announced the launch of commercial services…