Analysts see ‘path to approval’ for Vodafone and Three deal September 13, 2024 Although Britain’s competition watchdog has raised fresh concerns over the proposed £15bn tie-up between Vodafone and Three’s UK operations, analysts have suggested the findings of the latest probe are more positive than expected. In its provisional findings, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) flagged potential price increases for millions of mobile customers and warned of [...]
Sky hopes Ofcom broadband reforms will attract more customers September 12, 2024 British telecom companies have long been dogged by a reputation for poor customer service and complicated processes.
Vodafone: Buybacks boost UAE’s sovereign wealth fund’s stake September 4, 2024 According to a recent update, the sovereign wealth fund of the United Arab Emirates now owns 15 per cent of Vodafone. While the Emirates Investment Authority (EIA) has not acquired any more shares in the communications giant, Vodafone’s ongoing share buyback has reduced the number of shares outstanding, boosting EIA’s position on the share register. [...]
Supermarket and McDonald’s bosses to meet ministers over workers’ rights reforms September 2, 2024 Bosses from UK supermarkets and McDonald’s are set to meet government ministers to be updated on plans for new laws around workers rights. Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner and business secretary Jonathan Reynolds will join John Lewis CEO Nish Kankiwala; Sainsbury’s CEO Simon Roberts; Claire Costello, chief people and inclusion officer at the Co-Op; and [...]
‘It can be spaghetti out there’: can Cityfibre take on BT? August 22, 2024 The UK’s altnet industry is a tangled mess of “spaghetti” – at least, that’s how the boss of Cityfibre put it earlier this year. Altnets, or alternative networks, such as Cityfibre, Gigaclear and Community Fibre, have emerged as competitors to the UK’s broadband giants Virgin Media O2 and Openreach. Despite their smaller scale, they have [...]
Mark Kleinman: Britain’s fibre infrastructure proves hard to digest August 22, 2024 Mark Kleinman is Sky News’ City Editor and the man who gets the Square Mile talking in his weekly City A.M. column. Today, he looks at the UK’s altnet sector, a jilted housebuilder and Thames Water’s leaky boardroom. Britain’s fibre infrastructure proves hard to digest Time to hang up? That’s the way many investors feeling about [...]
BT drags down FTSE 100 after shares slump August 20, 2024 BT shares slumped five per cent in early deals this morning after it was revealed that Sky had struck a broadband deal with one of its biggest rivals. Shares in the FTSE 100 telecoms giant extended losses to trade as low as seven per cent by mid-day. The stock’s performance dragged down the wider FTSE [...]
Croydon is a brutalist playground and a photographer’s dream August 15, 2024 I stand killing time on the platform of one of Croydon’s many decrepit railway stations. Like me, it’s seen better days, and again like me, its makeover has been on the cards for years. I do a lot of waiting and thinking here, mostly enforced. Norwood Junction: even the name sounds like a line from [...]
What Paris should learn from London’s Olympic media legacy August 13, 2024 The 2024 Olympics are over and Parisians peeved at the general logistical chaos inflicted on them by the influx of tourists will be breathing an ‘ooh la la’ of relief. But, like the short-lived breakdancing event that has been axed for the 2028 Games, the actual sport is just a fleeting moment in the grand [...]
Bharti’s BT buy a ‘confidence boost’ for FTSE 100 telecom giant August 12, 2024 Bharti Global’s decision to buy a large stake in BT from debt-laden Altice UK has been hailed as “confidence boosting” for the British telecom giant, according to analysts. BT shares surged over six per cent in early FTSE 100 trading following reports that the Indian telecom firm will acquire a 24.5 per cent stake from [...]