Lower Emissions, Circularity, and Repurposing Street Furniture for Sustainability in the UK

R. Pritchard

Summary Bullets:

• Virgin Media O2 reports significant direct carbon emissions reductions, climate-related efficiencies through smart meters, and progress in the circular economy with device refurbishment and reuse.

• BT’s trial of repurposed street cabinets for vehicle charging adds to initiatives and innovations that illustrate potential power of action by tech companies and customers.

In the week reported, the world’s oceans have broken temperature records every single day of 2023 and – shortly after – the UK government was defeated in court for not doing enough to meet its targets for cutting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, it is encouraging to see telcos in the UK addressing the global climate crisis.

Why-Fi? Wireless in the Enterprise

S. Schuchart

Summary Bullets:
• Wi-Fi 7 is getting attention and old, false arguments about 5G vs Wi-Fi are resurfacing
• Wireless in the enterprise should be based on business use case

In 2024, there will be a deluge of new Wi-Fi 7 products, starting at the access point (AP) for enterprises and consumers, followed later in the year and into 2025 by Wi-Fi 7 client devices. Still, enterprises today are largely installing Wi-Fi 6/6E, a trend that is likely to continue through 2024 – most of these decisions and installations were planned and budgeted before Wi-Fi 7 Aps were even available. That, combined with the lack of client devices that use Wi-Fi 7 in 2024, means the benefits of being a first mover into Wi-Fi 7 are largely down the road.

UK Full-Fiber and 5G Rollout Going Well

R. Pritchard

Summary Bullets:

• Ofcom’s analysis shows substantial progress in the nationwide availability of superfast fixed broadband and 5G – crucial business enablers in the SME segment.

• Beyond faster connectivity for everyday office, admin, and communications, a growing range of case-specific solutions are being enabled to improve efficiency.

UK regulator Ofcom has updated its ‘Connected Nations’ report with 2023 availability figures for broadband and mobile services in the UK, including the rollout of fixed full-fiber and 5G mobile networks. With an estimated GBP7.9 billion invested in UK telecoms infrastructure in 2022 (GBP5.6 billion fixed, GBP1.8 billion mobile, GBP600 million ‘other’), full-fiber broadband is now available at 57% of UK residential premises (2022: 42%), and gigabit-capable broadband coverage levels now exceed 78% of UK premises (70% in 2022).

Time to Move to Smart Enterprise Customer Segmentation

R. Pritchard

Summary Bullets:

• Identifying the most valuable enterprise customers is a challenge, but in a highly competitive world, service providers must exploit smarter segmentation to survive and thrive.

• One-size-fits-all targeting based on number of employees is easy, but complacent. Growth comes from identifying small and medium-sized businesses that are the 10% driving productivity.

UK government number crunchers for the Office for National Statistics (ONS) have found that ‘the most efficient 10% of businesses were responsible for 63% growth in UK labor productivity between 2011 and 2019 (1998-2007: 49%).’

CommunityFibre’s Challenges – A Warning Sign for UK Fiber Altnets

R. Pritchard

Summary Bullets:

• CommunityFibre is switching its focus from building out its fiber network to loading it through intensified customer acquisition.

• There is simply not enough room for so many alternative fiber providers in the UK. There are two options: consolidate or find a defensible niche.

ISP CommunityFibre’s London (England) network covers 1.3 million properties and has over 200,000 residential and business customers. Alongside its fully owned Box Broadband unit (which targets Surrey and West Sussex, England), the company has been rolling out its own dedicated full-fiber network (FTTH) and has a stated aim to pass 2.2 million premises by the end of 2024. Now, despite apparently having strong funding, CommunityFibre has become the latest UK fiber altnet to make redundancies and suspend ongoing network rollout (out of a total 788 employees at end-2022, 380 were in engineering and operations and 148 in sales and marketing).

Microsoft Hires Former OpenAI CEO to Head New AI Research Unit

B. Valle

Summary Bullets:

• Sam Altman, former CEO of OpenAI, was ousted by the company’s board and now works for Microsoft, where he will head a new AI research unit.

• Emmett Shear, former CEO of game-streaming platform Twitch, has been appointed as CEO of OpenAI after the defection of swaths of employees.

It would be an understatement to say that the events surrounding Sam Altman’s dismissal as CEO of OpenAI during the weekend came as a surprise. The shocking news left Silicon Valley and the tech world at large reeling, and the timing (on a Friday evening) meant only mainstream outlets were covering the news on Saturday, with much of the specialist trade press caught unawares. By Monday morning, and in classical GenAI fashion, several light years had gone by: Sam Altman was employed again, only to head a new specialized AI research team at Microsoft, and CEO Satya Nadella had announced on X that Altman, together with other defecting colleagues at OpenAI, was joining Microsoft to lead a new advanced AI unit. Microsoft’s Nadella added: “We look forward to moving quickly to provide them with the resources needed for their success”. No kidding.

Colt’s Completed Lumen EMEA Asset Grab Gives it Scale to be a New Force in the Enterprise and Wholesale Markets

Gary Barton – Analyst, Business Network and IT Services

Summary Bullets:

• The acquisition doubles Colt’s EMEA network capacity, gives it 10+ subsea cable systems and landing stations, and cements its position as a leading partner for hyperscalers in the region.

• Colt has achieved growth and stability through a laser-tight market focus – the scale of this acquisition will challenge that stability.

GlobalData previously covered Colt’s acquisition of Lumen’s EMEA assets when the deal was first announced (for more, please see: Colt to Acquire Lumen’s EMEA Assets, Significantly Driving Its Growth Trajectory and Edge Strategy, November 9, 2022). This blog provides an update now that the deal has been completed.

BT Says it Means Business

R. Pritchard

Summary Bullets:

• BT Business continues the integration process of former UK and global enterprise divisions, focused on a smooth transition for customers while delivering benefits of consolidation.

• Key areas of interest included digitalization, the Cloud Fabric multi-cloud service, BT’s focus on the SMB market, customer portals, fleet ESIM solutions, AI, and environmental issues.

The BT Focus analyst event highlighted how BT Business is progressing during challenging times as telcos face the challenges of rolling out fiber and 5G while in a constant state of flux in a rapidly evolving technology market. BT is looking to digitalization for operational efficiency and customer empowerment, which reduces costs (e.g., using the same platforms across all segments, tailored to their specific needs, and approximately halving the overall portfolio).

ESG Watch: Virgin Media O2 Business Launches New ESG Tools for Large SD-WAN and Mobile Customers

R. Pritchard

Summary Bullets:

• Virgin Media O2 Business’ carbon calculator aims to provide trustworthy information to business customers on emissions related to their services, forming a basis for an annual carbon footprint report.

• The Virgin Media O2 Business Tech Donation Programme focuses on digital inclusion, enabling enterprises to offer free refurbished smartphones, mobile data, texts and calls to 11 to 16-year-olds and people over 65.

In common with almost all telecoms services providers, Virgin Media O2 Business is looking to enable and improve reporting on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for its SD-WAN and mobile business customers in the UK. Its carbon calculator aims to help customers realize their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) strategies as they strive to meet the needs of customers, regulators, investors, and talent.

Sell Connectivity Not Communications for UK PSTN Switch-off

R. Pritchard

Summary Bullets:
• UK PSTN switch-off in December 2025 presents a significant revenue and market share gain opportunity for telecoms service providers.
• BT has started rolling out Digital Voice on a region by region basis and many smaller businesses may not realize how it might affect them.

As mandated by Ofcom and the Government, the UK’s analog network (PSTN) is set to be ‘switched off’ in December 2025, meaning that all fixed connectivity will be carried over IP networks. BT has conducted successful pilots in Salisbury (Wiltshire) and Mildenhall (Suffolk), and now plans to roll the new platform out on a region by region basis, starting with the East Midlands in July 2023, Yorkshire and Humber in August, and other regions going forward until the summer of 2024:

1) Autumn 2023: North West and London
2) Spring 2024: West Midlands, South East; Wales; and East Anglia
3) Summer 2024: North East; Scotland; and South West