Eurofiber, Colt to offer QKD links between London, Amsterdam, Brussels for financial sector
UNITED KINGDOM 3 MRT

Eurofiber, Colt to offer QKD links between London, Amsterdam, Brussels for financial sector

Eurofiber and Colt Technology Services announced plans to work together on quantum-secure communication links between the financial districts of Amsterdam, London and Brussels. Announced at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the project builds on their existing shared network agreement and adoption of quantum key distribution. They will leverage their combined network links to create a quantum-secured fibre corridor for the financial sector to protect its data from emerging quantum threats.

Virgin Media O2 refunds cost of calls, texts from UK to Middle East
UNITED KINGDOM 3 MRT

Virgin Media O2 refunds cost of calls, texts from UK to Middle East

Virgin Media O2 is supporting customers affected by events in the Middle East by crediting back the cost of calls, data and text messages to and from the UK to the following countries - Israel, Jordan, Iraq, Bahrain, Lebanon, Kuwait, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Palestine and Oman. This offer will be available from 28 February to 07 March, and will apply to O2 pay monthly, O2 PAYG and Virgin Media home phone customers. 

TalkTalk Group agrees new GBP 115 million funding facilities
UNITED KINGDOM 3 MRT

TalkTalk Group agrees new GBP 115 million funding facilities

TalkTalk Group has agreed new funding facilities of GBP 115 million from its existing shareholder and lender group. The funds will be used to strengthen its working capital position, support development of its product and customer service capabilities, and invest in fibre network infrastructure.

VodafoneThree to start satellite service trials in summer 2026
UNITED KINGDOM 3 MRT

VodafoneThree to start satellite service trials in summer 2026

VodafoneThree will start customer trials of a new direct-to-device satellite connectivity service in summer 2026. This follows the milestone of completing its first video call over satellite in January 2025, connecting directly to a LEO Bluebird satellite operated by AST SpaceMobile from a rural Wales locations with no mobile phone signal.

Openreach to use Sainsbury's Smart Charge EV charging network
UNITED KINGDOM 2 MRT

Openreach to use Sainsbury's Smart Charge EV charging network

Openreach has announced an agreement with Sainsbury's Smart Charge EV charging network to give its engineers access to ultra-rapid charging hubs at 80 locations across the UK. Openreach has over 6,000 electric vans and has installed more than 3,500 home chargers for engineers. The deal with Smart Charge will provide access to reliable kW chargers - with easy tap-to-pay pricing, 24/7 support and Nectar points on all charges.

TalkTalk Business formally separates from TalkTalk
UNITED KINGDOM 2 MRT

TalkTalk Business formally separates from TalkTalk

TalkTalk Business has formally completed a separation from TalkTalk and is now operating as an independent organisation. The development was confirmed in a LinkedIn post by TalkTalk Business CEO Ruth Kennedy. She said independence would "fundamentally change" how TalkTalk Business operates, as it continues its transition into a managed network services provider.

Virgin Media O2 plans new GBP 700 mln mobile network investment in 2026
UNITED KINGDOM 2 MRT

Virgin Media O2 plans new GBP 700 mln mobile network investment in 2026

Virgin Media O2 has announced a fresh O2 network investment of GBP 700 million in 2026 as part of its Mobile Transformation Plan. This will further boost network capacity, reliability and coverage across the UK with automation, new masts, small cells, 4G/5G upgrades and deployment of new spectrum. The investment will support the roll-out of 1,000 Giga sites across the UK, which combine different spectrum bands and technologies in a single site. 

BT expands 5G network partnership with Ericsson
UNITED KINGDOM 2 MRT

BT expands 5G network partnership with Ericsson

BT Group has announced a renewal and expansion of its partnership with Ericsson. This will build on the roll-out of Ericsson's dual-mode 5G Core on BT's Network Cloud with two new 5G Standalone (SA) functions - the Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF) and the Network Exposure Function (NSF). These will allow BT to build a more programmable, flexible and performance-aware mobile network. 

UK govt opens consultation on social media ban for children
UNITED KINGDOM 2 MRT

UK govt opens consultation on social media ban for children

The UK government has formally opened a consultation on social media use for children. It will see examine measures to keep children safe online, from gaming sites to social media sites. It will also consider whether to introduce a social media ban for children, overnight curfew or restrictions on AI chatbot features, and examine the effects of gaming on children. The 3-month consultation goes live at 10.30am on 02 March and closes on 26 May 2026. It is open to young people, parents, carers, those working w

PXC upgrades 1Portal wholesale connectivity platform
UNITED KINGDOM 27 FEB

PXC upgrades 1Portal wholesale connectivity platform

Platform X Communications (PXC), previously TalkTalk Wholesale Services, has upgraded the 1Portal wholesale connectivity platform. The upgrades make it easier for partners to order and manage broadband and single line voice solutions - adding to the range of voice, cloud, security Ethernet services already available on the platform. 

Channel 4 confirms departure of interim CEO Johnathan Allan
UNITED KINGDOM 27 FEB

Channel 4 confirms departure of interim CEO Johnathan Allan

UK broadcaster Channel 4 has announced the departure of interim CEO Johnathan Allan. He has been interim CEO since the resignation of Alex Mahon in 2025, and will leave ahead of new CEO Priya Dogra joining Channel 4 in March. Allan joined Channel 4 in 2011 and was Chief Operating Officer from 2020 to 2025. Before that, he was Chief Commercial Officer. 

Openreach wins GBP 37.5 mln Project Gigabit contract in Cheshire
UNITED KINGDOM 27 FEB

Openreach wins GBP 37.5 mln Project Gigabit contract in Cheshire

BDUK has awarded Openreach a GBP 37.5 million Project Gigabit contract to deliver gigabit-capable broadband to around 18,500 hard-to-reach premises in Cheshire. This comes after Freedom Fibre withdraw from a contract to connect these premises. The deal with Openreach has extended a framework agreement signed in 2024, worth up to GBP 800 million, to connect over 300,000 hard-to-reach premises.

UNITED KINGDOM 27 FEB

BT Business launches new Sovereign Voice cloud calling service

BT has launched a new sovereign cloud calling product for UK businesses called Sovereign Voice. This is the first product to be launched as part of a new suite of sovereign specific solutions for UK businesses. Sovereign Voice is powered by Cisco Calling technology and maintains all call routing with UK borders. It is hosted entirely in UK data centres, and managed by UK-based, security-vetted employees.

UNITED KINGDOM 27 FEB

Voxi Mobile offers new Samsung Galaxy S26 smartphones

Voxi Mobile, Vodafone UK's SIM-only youth brand, is now accepting pre-orders for the new Samsung Galaxy S26 smartphone range. Customers can get the Galaxy S26+ from GBP 28.40 per month and the Galaxy S26 Ultra from GBP 39.20 per month with a 36-month contract. 

UNITED KINGDOM 26 FEB

UK media groups establish new AI publishing rights coalition

A group of UK media companies have established a new coalition called 'Standards for Publisher Usage Rights' (Spur). The group aims to protect original journalism from AI systems, which have been scraping, copying and reusing their reporting, archives and content without common standards to support payment or licensing/approval. The founding members of Spur are the BBC, Financial Times, The Guardian, Sky News and Telegraph Media Group.

UNITED KINGDOM 26 FEB

Onecom exclusively offers 128GB Samsung Galaxy S26 Enterprise Edition

Onecom, UK business communications group, has announced an exclusive agreement with Samsung to offer the new 128GB Samsung Galaxy S26 Enterprise Edition to customers for a limited 2-week pre-order period. Onecom becomes the only UK provider to offer this model to customers immediately following launch on 25 February. Onecom customers can get the smartphone as a one-off purchase or on a 36-month tariff contract with unlimited data, calls and texts for GBP 37.50 per month. Pre-orders are now available online

UNITED KINGDOM 26 FEB

SCF works with UK local authorities to boost small cell deployment

The Small Cell Forum (SCF) has launched a new initiative to work with local authorities (LAs) to accelerate the deployment of small cell connectivity in towns and cities. The new 'Local Authority Connectivity Group' will work to develop templates, toolkits and blueprints for LAs and industry to support the development and installation of small cell networks in outdoor public places.

UNITED KINGDOM 26 FEB

UKRI invests GBP 76 million in new national compute resources

A new GBP 76 million investment has been announced by UK Research & Innovation (UKRI) to establish four new national compute resources (NCRs). This is the first stage in delivering the government's UK Compute Roadmap, launched in summer 2025 to make the UK a world leader for high-tech research. The four new NCRs will be fully operational by 2026/2027, with at least two launching in summer 2026. 

UNITED KINGDOM 26 FEB

Vodafone UK launches new online safety campaign with Munya Chawawa

Vodafone UK has launched a new online safety campaign featuring actor and comedian Munya Chawawa. The 'Brave the Chat' campaign aims to help families stay safe online by tackling various child safety questions, with the first video in the series focusing on how to deal with a child's first phone. Later videos will focus on subjects such as online scams, gaming, AI and content creation. The campaign supports Vodafone's wider digital parenting online resource, which provides tips and advice on staying safe on

UNITED KINGDOM 26 FEB

UK mobile networks accept pre-orders for new Galaxy S26 series

UK mobile network operators Vodafone, 3 UK, Virgin Media O2 and EE are all accepting pre-orders for the new Samsung Galaxy S26 series, which will launch in the UK on 11 March. Vodafone is offering the new Galaxy S26 from GBP 22.08 per month (GBP 40 upfront), the Galaxy S26+ from GBP 28.58 per month (GBP 40 upfront) and the Galaxy S26 Ultra from GBP 3.08 per month (GBP 50 upfront). These prices are based on a 5GB 24-month Airtime plan at GBP 18 per month, and 36-month phone plan at GBP 24.50, GBP 31 or GBP 3

UNITED KINGDOM 26 FEB

UK govt launches new vulnerability monitoring service for public services

The UK government has launched a new vulnerability monitoring service (VMS) for public services to help reduce cyber risks and speed up cyber attack fixes. The new government monitoring service will reduce the average time for fixing public sector website weaknesses from around two months to just over one week. The service will identity and fix DNS weaknesses, which allow fraudsters to take services offline, redirect users to fake websites and steal sensitive information.

UNITED KINGDOM 26 FEB

Average UK broadband prices drop by 6 percent in 2025 - Ofcom

Average UK broadband prices fell by 6 percent in 2025, with prices falling especially for faster services, according to the latest annual pricing and consumer engagement report from regulator Ofcom. The research also shows that SIM-only mobile plans are getting more popular, accounting for 50 percent of pay-monthly mobile subscriptions in 2025, up from 44 percent in 2024. Average prices for SIM-only plans with unlimited data fell by 8 percent in real terms in 2025, with SIM-only deals available from as low

UNITED KINGDOM 26 FEB

Mumsnet supports UK social media ban for under 16s

London-based online forum Mumsnet is calling on members to write to their MP in support of a UK social media ban for under 16s. This follows the launch of the group's 'Rage Against the Screen' campaign in 2025 to support parents worried about the impact of social media and screentime on their children's sleep, mental health and well-being. The UK government has announced a consultation on implementing a social media ban for under 16s. 

UNITED KINGDOM 26 FEB

8x8 announces enterprise communications partnership with Kcom

8x8, global business communications platform provider, has announced a new partnership with UK telecoms company Kcom to deliver secure unified communications and contact centre services to UK enterprise and public sector customers. This agreement combines the 8x8 Platform for CX with Kcom's carrier-grade infrastructure, expanding Kcom's enterprise offering with a fully integrated, end-to-end solution combining communications, network and customer experience in a single platform. 

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Background

1 MRT 13:21

The week in telecoms: Paramount tops bidding for WBD, Samsung S26 kicks off MWC showcase

23 FEB 00:28

The week in telecoms: Liberty Global tackles cable vs fibre question, Orange promises dividends and MEA market goes wholesale

16 FEB 00:17

The week in telecoms: Cisco rides AI investment wave and European telcos invest in South America

9 FEB 01:54

The week in telecoms: hyperscalers vie for capex crown, Telenor and Vodafone profit from smaller footprints