BT Group Report Loss of 208,000 Total Openreach UK Broadband Lines
Telecoms giant BT Group has today published a brief trading update to the end of 2024, which reveals that Openreach added another 1 million premises in the last quarter (unchanged) to the coverage of their full fibre (FTTP) broadband ISP network (total 17m) and saw related take-up rise by 472k (net adds) to total 6m (stable at 35%). But total broadband lines fell by 208k as rivals continue to bite. Take note that, since 2023, the BT Group now only publishes a short trading update in calendar...
Apple secretly testing direct-to-device satellite connectivity with Starlink and T-Mobile
News T-Mobile had previously only mentioned testing with Samsung devices, with no mention of Apple’s iPhones Apple has been “secretly” working with T-Mobile and SpaceX test Starlink’s network using Apple’s latest iPhone software, according to a Bloomberg report. The iPhone’s latest software update, which was released this week, will allow selected T-Mobile customers to connect directly to the satellites. The test will “begin with select optimised smartphones” and the full launch will...
BT to cut 5% of Northern Irish workers
News The cuts are in line with BT’s wider strategy to reduce its workforce by 40% by 2030. BT has proposed cutting 4.5% of the company’s 2,000 person workforce in Belfast, amounting to 90 jobs. The operator said it had already contacted those potential affected, aiming to “transfer some of the work they do to other BT office locations”. “We are [in] discussions with anyone affected by our proposals and, if we go ahead, we have shared other opportunities in the wider Belfast office. There...
Trump targets TSMC with Taiwan chip tariffs
Feature Week: Trump on telecoms The tariffs on semiconductors could reportedly reach as high as 100% In a speech to fellow Republicans this week, newly reinstated US President Donald Trump said that the government would be targeting the Taiwanese semiconductor industry with major tariffs in a bid to boost the US chip ecosystem. “In the very near future, we’re going to be placing tariffs on foreign production of computer chips, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals to return production of these...
Launch of China’s DeepSeek shakes up global AI industry
News The launch of DeepSeek has rattled the global AI industry, potentially offering a far cheaper alternative to market leaders like OpenAI and Anthropic Founded in 2023 by former hedge fund manager Liang Wenfeng, DeepSeek has quickly positioned itself as a strong competitor to the likes of OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Microsoft’s CoPilot, having seemingly trained a comparative AI model at a fraction of the usual cost (around $6 million compared to the industry standard of billions). The launch...
Home Broadband ISP iTalk Launch New UK Full Fibre Packages
Internet service provider iTalk, which is powered by Openreach’s national network, has today announced the arrival of their brand-new “Full Fibre” (FTTP) home broadband packages to complement their existing range of ADSL and FTTC (VDSL2) based packages on older lines. The new tiers are being launched alongside some big price discounts. The ISP did previously offer some FTTP packages, but they didn’t reach up into gigabit speeds and weren’t always as competitively priced as they needed to be....
Tim Höttges to remain at the helm of Deutsche Telekom until 2028
News The announcement coincides with a leadership shuffle that will see Srini Gopalan, current head of Deutsche Telekom’s Germany business, become COO of T-Mobile Tim Höttges, Deutsche Telekom’s CEO since 2014, will remain in his role until the end of 2028 after the Supervisory Board extended his contract two years ahead of schedule. Höttges has been credited with transforming Deutsche Telekom into a global leader, steering initiatives like the 2020 T-Mobile–Sprint merger in the US and the...
A ‘vulnerable soft underbelly’: UK joint committee explores subsea cable security
News The news comes as yet another submarine cable is damaged in the Baltic Sea, with authorities suspecting deliberate sabotage The Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy (JCNSS) is set to explore the security credentials of the UK’s submarine cable ecosystem as part of a new industry enquiry. In its announcement, the government noted the UK’s reliance on its 60 existing submarine cables, warning of the potential disruption that damage to multiple cables at once would cause the UK....
VMO2 bring connectivity to rural notspot with Starlink
News UK mobile operator Virgin Media O2 (VMO2) says the satellite communications constellation has brought mobile coverage to the village of Craster in Northumberland for the first time VMO2 is making good use of SpaceX’s Starlink this week, leveraging the satellite technology to enable connectivity to the previously unconnected village of Craster. Starlink is providing satellite backhaul for a new mobile tower that has been deployed to serve the village. The new mast will provide reliable...
Telecom policy objectives come into focus in Trump’s first days
News A spate of recent changes has brought several telecom policy objectives of Donald Trump’s administration into focus, but questions remain. By: Brad Randall, Broadband Communities Changes have been coming fast and furious during the first days of Donald Trump’s presidential administration, and the FCC has been far from immune. New leadership at the Federal Communications Commission has wasted little time changing directions, signifying that business as usual is over. Shortly after being...