Bharti Enterprises to acquire majority stake in BT

Bharti Enterprises has announced plans to acquire a majority stake in BT, the UK’s largest broadband and mobile provider.

Bharti will purchase approximately 24.5% of BT Group from its current top shareholder, Altice. The acquisition will be executed through Bharti Global, the international investment arm of Bharti Enterprises.

Sunil Bharti Mittal, Founder and Chairman of Bharti Enterprises, commented on the historical significance of this move: "Bharti and BT have an...

12 August 2024 | 5G

Ofcom tightens rules to combat foreign scam calls

Ofcom, the UK's communications regulator, has introduced new measures to protect consumers from scam calls originating overseas. The strengthened industry guidance, announced today, requires phone companies to block calls from abroad that falsely display UK landline numbers.

This move aims to tackle a common tactic used by fraudsters who 'spoof' trusted phone numbers to deceive victims. By imitating numbers from reputable organisations or government departments, scammers increase...

30 July 2024 | 5G

Ofcom cracks down on unpredictable telecom price hikes

Ofcom, the UK’s communications regulator, will require telecoms providers to clearly state any price increases in pounds and pence upfront, giving customers more certainty about their monthly outgoings.

The new regulations are set to take effect from 17 January 2025 and come in response to the growing trend of major UK phone, broadband, and pay TV companies including inflation-linked price rises in their contracts. Ofcom found that this practice left customers without sufficient...

19 July 2024 | 5G

Vodafone and Virgin Media O2 extend network sharing

Vodafone UK and Virgin Media O2 have announced a landmark agreement to extend and enhance their mobile network sharing arrangement for over a decade.

The agreement, which builds upon the existing partnership between the two telecom giants, is largely independent of the proposed merger between Vodafone UK and Three UK. However, should the merger receive regulatory approval, the deal includes provisions for Virgin Media O2 to acquire spectrum from the newly formed entity, dubbed...

3 July 2024 | 5G

KPN and ABP form tower company amid rising data demand

KPN and Dutch pension fund ABP have entered into an agreement to form a new tower company, known as TowerCo. This partnership aligns with KPN's ‘Connect, Activate & Grow’ strategy, aiming to optimise the value of its passive infrastructure assets while maintaining strategic flexibility.

The agreement comes in response to the surging consumption of data and the deployment of new technologies. With the growing demand for network expansion and densification, KPN recognises...

5 June 2024 | 5G

Committee warns UK set to miss 4G coverage target

The House of Commons Public Accounts Committee's report on the Shared Rural Network (SRN) programme reveals critical issues in meeting the UK government's 95% 4G coverage goal by December 2025.

Launched in 2020, the SRN aims to improve 4G coverage from 91.4% to 95% of the UK landmass. Despite a steady increase to 93.1%, sustaining this progress becomes increasingly challenging as the remaining areas are harder to reach.

The report highlights that three out of four mobile...

3 June 2024 | Legislation & Government

T-Mobile closes acquisition of Mint owner

T-Mobile has completed its acquisition of Ka'ena Corporation, the parent company of the direct-to-consumer prepaid wireless brands Mint Mobile and Ultra Mobile, as well as the wholesale wireless provider Plum.

The Un-carrier announced the completion of the transaction on Thursday, stating that the combination creates a "win-win" situation by pairing the complementary brands with T-Mobile's industry-leading 5G network. T-Mobile plans to maintain the distinct brands' entrepreneurial...

2 May 2024 | 5G

FCC fines major telcos for selling users’ location data

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has fined major US telcos for illegally selling their subscribers' location data to third-party data brokers.

According to an FCC statement, AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile US – the latter two having merged in 2020 – were ordered to pay $57 million, $47 million, $12 million, and $80 million, respectively, for their involvement in the unauthorised sharing of customers' sensitive location information.

"Our...

30 April 2024 | 5G

EU antitrust chief warns against telecoms mergers  

EU competition chief Margrethe Vestager has issued a stern warning against further consolidation in the bloc's telecommunications industry, countering a recent EU report that advocated for mergers among operators to bolster networks.

Speaking at a conference in Brussels, Vestager forcefully rejected the notion that more concentrated national telecoms markets would lead to better outcomes.

"No evidence suggests that more concentrated national markets lead to better...

18 April 2024 | 5G

Chinese telcos given 2027 deadline to ditch foreign chips

To reduce dependence on foreign technologies, Chinese officials have reportedly mandated the country's leading telecom operators – including China Telecom, China Mobile, and China Unicom – to eliminate foreign semiconductors from their networks by 2027.

Beijing’s directive particularly targets chips made by American giants Intel and AMD, which have been a staple in Chinese telecom infrastructure.

Issued by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the...

15 April 2024 | 5G