IT for telecoms and internet organisations

Telecoms is one of the largest business sectors, and communications providers often have large IT budgets and are early adopters of new technologies. Our news and analysis of this important industry looks at how telecommunications firms, ISPs and other internet companies are using IT, and the regulatory issues that affect the services they provide.

News 12 Jun 2024
Nordic innovators look to revive the zombie subscriber population

Zombie subscriptions where customers buy a service and forget about it are harming the subscription economy, but software is being developed to support the subscription economy Continue Reading
News 03 Jan 2024
Artificial intelligence to the front in Sweden’s National Technology Strategy

Sweden focuses in on artificial intelligence in its latest far-reaching national IT strategy Continue Reading

News 22 Mar 2018

Colt pioneers blockchain in telco voice wholesaling

Colt Technology Services and Hong Kong Telecom’s international unit PCCW Global teamed up to trial the use of blockchain in wholesale voice settlements Continue Reading
News 22 Mar 2018

Canadian broadband expertise speeds Gigaclear fibre dig

Rural broadband provider Gigaclear has enlisted Canadian firm Lite Access Technology to assist in the roll-out of full-fibre services to 10,000 properties in Oxfordshire Continue Reading
News 22 Mar 2018

CityFibre consumer broadband collaboration hits Peterborough

CityFibre is returning to one of its earliest Gigabit City projects with Vodafone in tow to upgrade thousands of homes in Peterborough to gigabit-capable full-fibre broadband Continue Reading
News 22 Mar 2018

Application layer DDoS attacks increasing, Imperva data shows

Distributed denial of service attacks targeting applications almost doubled in the last three months of 2017, according to Imperva Incapsula data Continue Reading
News 22 Mar 2018

Uber autonomous vehicle death raises questions for UK law review

Uber suspended testing of autonomous vehicles in North America after one of its cars struck and killed a pedestrian this week, and the tragic accident raises big questions in the light of the UK’s ongoing legal review of self-driving cars Continue Reading
News 21 Mar 2018

Train leasing firm demos mobile edge computing for smart trains

Rolling stock leasing company Angel Trains is demonstrating edge computing over a wireless mesh network to make life easier for its customers’ on-board staff Continue Reading
News 21 Mar 2018

WhatsApp co-founder calls time on Facebook

Brian Acton has called time on Facebook following reports of the firm’s dealings with data mining firm Cambridge Analytica linked to the EU referendum and Donald Trump’s US election campaign Continue Reading
News 20 Mar 2018

Case study: Stationery firm gets things moving with FTTP broadband voucher

Nuco, a Midlands-based supplier of paper and stationery products, has improved its business agility and is moving its IT into the cloud thanks to the government’s full-fibre broadband connection voucher scheme Continue Reading
News 20 Mar 2018

Ofcom opens 5G spectrum auction

Ofcom has opened the bidding in the auction of spectrum to support 4G and 5G mobile networks Continue Reading
News 19 Mar 2018

Gatwick Airport turns to driverless tech to keep staff moving

Gatwick Airport plans to trial driverless technology to move staff around the airfield, in the hope of creating an Uber-like service to cut costs and emissions Continue Reading
News 19 Mar 2018

Hybrid cloud mainstream, but seamless operations hard to achieve

Survey by 451 Research finds most organisations use a mix of on-premise and cloud locations, but truly seamless hybrid cloud operations are very difficult to achieve Continue Reading
News 19 Mar 2018

Southwark brings full-fibre broadband to council estates

London’s Southwark Council has enlisted Hyperoptic to deliver FTTP broadband services across its housing portfolio Continue Reading
News 16 Mar 2018

Employers face hiring crisis as AI replaces mid-skilled jobs

Artificial intelligence could replace two-thirds of existing jobs within 20 years, and employers will face growing difficulties recruiting skilled staff Continue Reading
Feature 16 Mar 2018

Network security in the age of the internet of things

Wireless devices and smart technologies are increasingly being brought into the workplace, and pose a growing risk to company data Continue Reading
News 16 Mar 2018

Ofcom sets out 5G spectrum auction process

Regulator has given details of the two-stage 5G mobile network spectrum auction process that will begin next week Continue Reading
News 16 Mar 2018

Defence industry urges government to relax controls on crypto exports

Trade body representing defence, aerospace and security companies calls on government to make it easier to export “non-contentious” cryptography to secure organisations against cyber crime Continue Reading
News 16 Mar 2018

Three reaches 10 million customer milestone

UK’s smallest “big four” mobile operator reflects on a solid year as it gears up for the imminent spectrum auction Continue Reading
News 15 Mar 2018

Openreach to open 12 fibre broadband engineering schools

Openreach has opened the first of 12 planned training centres around the UK as it sets out to recruit more than 3,000 fibre broadband engineers Continue Reading
News 14 Mar 2018

Full-fibre broadband voucher scheme gets green light

Chancellor Philip Hammond has signed off on £67m to fund full-fibre broadband connections for small businesses around the UK Continue Reading
News 14 Mar 2018

Government setting up local planning group to support 5G roll-out

Digital minister Margot James is building a new initiative to support collaboration on 5G mobile network roll-out at a local level, bringing together councils, landowners and industry to work on planning challenges and policy Continue Reading
News 14 Mar 2018

WhatsApp to suspend data sharing with Facebook

WhatsApp has agreed to stop sharing personal data with Facebook until data protection concerns are addressed Continue Reading
News 14 Mar 2018

Kenyan solar supplier leans on IoT and fintech for new growth

Mastercard packed its stand at Mobile World Congress with new use cases for fintech in the developing world and launched a new partnership with Kenyan solar energy supplier M-KOPA Continue Reading
News 13 Mar 2018

Stoke Council picks VX Fiber to light up fibre broadband network

VX Fiber’s Open Access Platform will allow Stoke-on-Trent council to realise a return on its fibre investment while bringing gigabit broadband services to homes and businesses Continue Reading
News 13 Mar 2018

Government hands out £95m for local full-fibre broadband

The government has named the first recipients of a £190m tranche of funding to realise local full-fibre broadband projects Continue Reading
News 13 Mar 2018

Russian augmented reality startups break into enterprise space

Augmented, virtual and mixed reality technologies edge closer to enterprise adoption in Russia as a strong local developer network grows Continue Reading
News 12 Mar 2018

Scottish government to spend £25m to fill 4G coverage gaps

The Scottish government has announced a £25m programme to infill gaps in 4G mobile network coverage across Scotland Continue Reading
News 12 Mar 2018

UK leads global upward trend in SOC maturity

The UK is leading the way towards more efficient security operations centres, but many still continue to operate with serious gaps in security, a report reveals Continue Reading
News 09 Mar 2018

Government reveals winners of 5G mobile competition

The government has unveiled the winners of a multimillion-pound competition to create 5G mobile network testbeds around the UK Continue Reading
News 09 Mar 2018

UK government criticised over lack of GDPR explanation

Most IT decision makers in the UK are critical of the government for failing to educate organisations about the GDPR and its implications, and few have a clear understanding of it, a survey shows Continue Reading
News 08 Mar 2018

Will Brexit really bring the return of mobile roaming charges?

As Theresa May commits to quitting the EU’s digital single market alongside Brexit, heralding the potential reintroduction of mobile roaming charges, are business travellers and holidaymakers doomed to a return to the bad old days? Continue Reading
News 07 Mar 2018

Wi-Fi provider uses big data analytics to drive customer experience

The self-styled “Uber of Wi-Fi”, iPass is using Databricks’ Unified Analytics Platform and machine learning to monitor its worldwide network and help its customers get the best experience Continue Reading
News 07 Mar 2018

Ofcom probes Three and Vodafone over suspected net neutrality breaches

Telecoms regulator launches investigation into whether or not mobile operators Three and Vodafone are flouting European rules on net neutrality Continue Reading
News 06 Mar 2018

Essex, Herts Councils expand smart city pilot scheme

Essex and Hertfordshire County Councils have joined forces to run a number of pilots assessing the socioeconomic benefits of smart city technologies Continue Reading
News 06 Mar 2018

Most Britons concerned about personal data sharing

Most UK consumers are concerned about personal data they have shared online, but few know the extent of that data or their rights, a survey shows, indicating a need for education and transparency Continue Reading
News 05 Mar 2018

MWC 2018: iPhone X device of choice for visitors to Barcelona

Statistics compiled by mobile data crowdsourcing outfit Tutela has revealed in-depth insight into what devices visitors to Mobile World Congress 2018 were using, and how they used them Continue Reading
News 05 Mar 2018

Fibre broadband network builder challenges ASA on fake fibre

CityFibre has filed for a judicial review of the Advertising Standards Authority’s November 2017 decision to allow fibre-to-the-cabinet broadband to be advertised as fibre Continue Reading
News 02 Mar 2018

Memcached servers irresistible to DDoS attackers, expert warns

In the light of the biggest distributed denial of service attack to date against GitHub, organisations should ditch memcached servers or risk a blizzard of blistering attacks, says security researcher Continue Reading
News 01 Mar 2018

Trust underpins innovation, says UK information commissioner

Underlining the relevance of data protection legislation to business, the UK information commissioner says consumer trust is key to innovation Continue Reading
News 01 Mar 2018

MWC 2018: Cisco and Vodafone demonstrate network slicing

At Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, network supplier Cisco and mobile operator Vodafone demonstrated network slicing techniques using segment routing Continue Reading
News 01 Mar 2018

Six bidders set to take part in 5G mobile spectrum auction

Ofcom has confirmed the names of the six companies that have successfully qualified to take part in this year’s mobile spectrum auction Continue Reading
News 01 Mar 2018

Ofcom to enforce new rules on broadband speed disclosure

Telecoms regulator Ofcom is to impose new measures on broadband providers, forcing them to provide better information about speeds to consumers Continue Reading
News 01 Mar 2018

ICO head tops DataIQ data leader list

The UK’s information commissioner has been named at the top data leader for 2018 in the DataIQ 100 list of most influential data leaders Continue Reading
Blog Post 28 Feb 2018

Who should the BBC "reflect, represent and serve"?

The Ofcom review of the BBC role in reflecting, representing and serving the British public is central to the survival of both democracy and the establishment. Continue Reading
News 28 Feb 2018

Affiliate marketing industry failing on privacy compliance

The affiliate marketing industry needs to clean up its act in terms of privacy law compliance, a review of more than 900 websites has revealed Continue Reading
News 28 Feb 2018

MWC 2018: 5G collaboration dominates agenda at annual mobile fair

At Mobile World Congress 2018 in Barcelona, 5G mobile networks were the talk of the show, and a number of operators announced new collaborations around the emerging network standard with their technology partners Continue Reading
News 28 Feb 2018

MWC 2018: Project Flame launches 5G testbed in Barcelona

The European H2020 Project Flame has launched the first urban-scaled 5G testbed for open media internet trials, using an InterDigital platform Continue Reading
News 28 Feb 2018

Government must rewrite illegal sections of Snoopers’ Charter, court told

A court has been asked to give ministers until July 2018 to rewrite powers to require phone and internet companies to retain data on the population. The government acknowledges parts of surveillance regime are unlawful Continue Reading
News 27 Feb 2018

GDPR will have positive ripple effect, says US consumer group

New EU data protection laws will have a positive ripple effect around the world, according to a US consumer group Continue Reading
News 26 Feb 2018

OpenStack gains early foothold in Australia

Although the open source technology has its cheerleaders, OpenStack has yet to crack Australia’s mainstream and challenge the market share of proprietary cloud suppliers Continue Reading
News 23 Feb 2018

GDPR is having positive impact on privacy profession, says IAPP

The EU’s new data protection rules are driving greater interest in the privacy profession, and provide an opportunity to develop new business plans, says privacy association Continue Reading
News 23 Feb 2018

IT services giants face stiff challenge from niche players in IoT market

Traditional broad and large IT services firms are facing competition from niche industry-focused companies in the IoT services market Continue Reading
News 23 Feb 2018

Public education important in new data protection era, says ICO

UK information commissioner Elizabeth Denham tells Data Protection 2018 event of the tough requirements ahead in a new age of data regulation Continue Reading
News 23 Feb 2018

Ofcom pledges to halve the cost of full-fibre broadband network builds

Telecoms regulator Ofcom has finalised plans to make full-fibre broadband network builds cheaper, and encourage more private sector investment Continue Reading
News 22 Feb 2018

Emergency Services Network progress ‘deeply unsatisfactory’, says PAC

A Home Office review of the Emergency Services Mobile Communications Programme will not be finished before the end of July, the Public Accounts Committee has been told Continue Reading
News 22 Feb 2018

5G mobile network rocks up in Brighton

Digital Catapult and the Coast to Capital LEP will switch on a 5G mobile network test bed in Brighton in April 2018 Continue Reading
News 22 Feb 2018

O2 uses The O2 to run 5G mobile network trials

Mobile network operator O2 is to trial a 5G ‘experience’ at the eponymous London music venue later in 2018 Continue Reading
News 22 Feb 2018

Email attacks and incident detection top security challenges

Email inboxes are the weakest link in security perimeters, and companies struggle with detecting security incidents quickly and accurately, a report finds Continue Reading
News 21 Feb 2018

CityFibre launches consumer broadband partnership in Aberdeen

CityFibre and Vodafone are preparing to launch a consumer FTTP broadband service in Aberdeen Continue Reading
News 21 Feb 2018

VX Fiber brings Swedish open access full-fibre broadband model to UK

Flush with success in its home market, Swedish open access full-fibre broadband specialist VX Fiber is launching in the UK, with plans to shake up service delivery to users by helping local councils monetise their network assets Continue Reading
Feature 20 Feb 2018

The future of 5G mobile networks: support and development

In the second part of our exploration of the 5G market, we find out how UK plc is innovating around 5G mobile networks, and ask what lies in store at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona Continue Reading
News 19 Feb 2018

Church spires to become mobile coverage hotspots

Following successful trials in East Anglia, DCMS and Defra plan to encourage rural vicars to host broadband connectivity hotspots in their churches Continue Reading
News 19 Feb 2018

Google reveals Edge flaw after Microsoft fails to meet deadline

Google’s Project Zero has gone public with another Microsoft security vulnerability after the software giant failed to issue a fix within allotted time Continue Reading
Feature 16 Feb 2018

The great 5G bake-off: where are we and where are we going?

With Mobile World Congress 2018 a week away, early 5G network standards formalised and tests up and running at the Winter Olympics, we assess the state of 5G, and what's needed to kick-start commercial roll-outs Continue Reading
News 15 Feb 2018

Cisco profits slump after Trump tax bill

Networking giant posted $8.8bn loss in the second quarter of its fiscal 2018 after booking charges related to the US government’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, but saw a strong quarter elsewhere Continue Reading
Feature 14 Feb 2018

How AI will underpin cyber security in the next few years

Cyber security risks are growing in complexity and volume, but artificial intelligence techniques can help businesses track and fight them in real time Continue Reading
News 14 Feb 2018

100 days to GDPR compliance deadline

As the clock ticks down to the deadline to comply with the EU’s new data protection regulations, some surveys indicate there is still some confusion, but the focus has shifted from the sanctions to the benefits Continue Reading
Opinion 13 Feb 2018

Why police forces need to be honest about mass mobile phone surveillance

Police forces across the UK are covering up their use of sophisticated mass surveillance devices, known as IMSI-catchers - the Bristol Cable and Liberty are campaigning for proper transparency Continue Reading
News 12 Feb 2018

Criminals hijack government sites to mine cryptocurrency used to hide wealth

Europol says criminals are hiding billions in cryptocurrencies, as thousands of government and other websites have reportedly been used to hijack computers to mine more Continue Reading
News 09 Feb 2018

EE launches home broadband over 4G LTE

EE has been conducting tests of a powerful 4G antenna that it claims can provide isolated rural homes with broadband speeds equivalent to full-fibre Continue Reading
News 08 Feb 2018

Norway’s government backs cyber defence mobilisation

Norway has accelerated plans to scale up its national security infrastructure against threats emanating from the cyber domain Continue Reading
News 08 Feb 2018

TalkTalk’s York FTTP broadband roll-out to go nationwide

Following successful delivery of an ultrafast FTTP broadband network in York, TalkTalk is planning to start work on a £1.5bn national roll-out Continue Reading
News 08 Feb 2018

Swisscom downplays data breach

Telecommunication provider Swisscom has downplayed a data breach affecting around 800,000 customers, but security experts warn of potential long-term risks Continue Reading
News 08 Feb 2018

Data breaches set to affect future sales

The failure to protect customer data is set to create long-term business problems for organisations in Europe and the US, a survey reveals Continue Reading
Opinion 08 Feb 2018

Mobile biometrics set to be game-changer in APAC

Telcos, financial institutions and other industry players risk losing market share if they do not keep up with the demand for security, convenience and mobility Continue Reading
News 07 Feb 2018

Orange announces European 5G testing

Mobile operator Orange will run 5G mobile network pilots in France and Romania later this year Continue Reading
News 07 Feb 2018

Dubai transport authority maps city to support autonomous cars

Dubai’s RTA has enlisted Here Technologies to build a high-definition map of the city to support its goals around self-driving cars Continue Reading
News 06 Feb 2018

Zerto boosts cloud-to-cloud and hybrid cloud replication

Zerto Virtual Replication version 6 allows hybrid cloud data protection operations across on-premises datacentres and Amazon, Microsoft and IBM clouds, and 350-plus service providers Continue Reading
Opinion 05 Feb 2018

3, 2, 1, GDPR: How to be prepared on 25 May

There are seven key areas organisations should review to ensure compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation, and even though the deadline is less than four months away, it is still not too late to start Continue Reading
News 05 Feb 2018

NCSC shows how first year affected cyber attacks on the UK

Initiatives by the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) have detected and prevented millions of online commodity attacks, the agency’s first annual report shows Continue Reading
News 04 Feb 2018

Government backs national cyber policy and strategy competition

London is to host a national cyber policy and strategy competition, which has the backing of government, industry and academia Continue Reading
News 02 Feb 2018

Global Services still problem child for BT

Challenging market conditions and lost customers at its IT services unit weigh heavily on BT’s results in the third quarter Continue Reading
News 01 Feb 2018

Full fibre becomes broadband network of choice for Openreach

Openreach CEO Clive Selley has pledged to extend the organisation’s full-fibre broadband network by 50% through a programme called Fibre First Continue Reading
News 01 Feb 2018

Dutch companies not ready for GDPR despite approaching deadline

Organisations in the Netherlands are racing towards General Data Protection Regulation compliance, but there is still much to be done Continue Reading
News 01 Feb 2018

Facebook reports $15.9bn profit after ‘hard’ year

Facebook has reported a strong fourth quarter and a strong year with quarterly profit up 20% and annual profit up 56%, but chief Mark Zuckerberg admits it has been a challenging 12 months Continue Reading
News 31 Jan 2018

Many businesses still using outdated security, says Troy Hunt

Too many businesses are using out-of-date approaches to security, a world-renowned cyber security author and trainer warns Continue Reading
News 30 Jan 2018

Most online retail sites put customers at risk of phishing

Most top online retail sites fail to protect consumers from phishing attacks, a study has revealed Continue Reading
News 30 Jan 2018

Davos: Cyber risks grow as countries turn towards protectionism

The cost of natural disasters is now at record levels, but the cost of cyber crime is far higher. The World Economic Forum hopes to persuade governments to work together on the problem, but with isolationist politics back in fashion, can it succeed? Continue Reading
News 29 Jan 2018

Millennials set to disrupt authentication, shows IBM study

Young adults are lax on passwords, but are more comfortable than older generations with biometric and multifactor authentication, an IBM study shows Continue Reading
News 29 Jan 2018

Hefty fines confirmed for CNI providers with poor cyber security

The government has confirmed that critical infrastructure providers with poor cyber security face fines of millions of pounds as the National Cyber Security Centre publishes new guidance for the industry Continue Reading
News 29 Jan 2018

Business cyber crime up 63%, UK stats show

Despite an overall decrease in fraud and computer misuse in 2017, the latest Office for National Statistics (ONS) reports show that incidents involving computer misuse and malware against business are way up Continue Reading
News 26 Jan 2018

ICO launches data protection excellence award

UK’s privacy watchdog launches data protection excellence award to mark international Data Protection Day, as security suppliers issue data protection tips and guidelines Continue Reading
News 26 Jan 2018

UK likely to remain strategic EU data protection partner

Head of European Union’s independent data protection authority says UK is likely to remain a strategic partner in data protection after Brexit Continue Reading
News 26 Jan 2018

Hull and Highlands worst for superfast broadband availability

Government statistics on average broadband speeds by constituency have found that a great number of people living in Kingston upon Hull, and the Scottish Highlands and Islands, are still unable to receive an acceptable level of service Continue Reading
News 25 Jan 2018

Sky to move pay TV services to broadband

The days of the satellite TV dish are numbered as Sky signals its intent to switch to an IP streaming delivery model over broadband connections Continue Reading
News 24 Jan 2018

Most UK organisations unaware of new data protection laws

The UK’s digital and culture secretary is urging businesses and charities to prepare for stronger data protection laws in the light of new information Continue Reading
News 24 Jan 2018

GDPR worries hit cloud storage investments, says survey

NetApp-sponsored survey finds lack of customer confidence in cloud service providers’ retention of GDPR-affected data has led organisations to rethink and scale back cloud investments Continue Reading
News 23 Jan 2018

Mastercard sets biometric ID deadline for banks

Mastercard has committed to guaranteeing that every one of its customers will have access to biometric authentication services by April 2019 Continue Reading
News 23 Jan 2018

Facebook offers funding to secure the internet

Facebook has announced that it is offering funding for research into ways of improving internet security Continue Reading
Feature 22 Jan 2018

GDPR: Not too late to ensure real risks will be addressed

With just four months to go before the General Data Protection Regulation compliance deadline, there is a growing anxiety in many parts of the regulated community that their GDPR plans may not be fit for purpose Continue Reading
News 22 Jan 2018

Norwegian healthcare breach alert failed GDPR requirements

Norwegian healthcare authorities failed General Data Protection Regulation requirements for notifying those affected by a personal data breach by waiting a week before disclosing a breach discovered on 8 January 2018 Continue Reading