Telecommunications giant BT expected to avoid being broken up from Openreach, in verdict due this Thursday February 21, 2016 BT is expected to avoid having its infrastructure arm Openreach carved out this week, following months of campaigning for a split by the company’s rivals. City A.M. understands the decision will be announced on Thursday in Ofcom’s Digital Communications Review, though will reportedly include requirements for minimum-service standards between Openreach and BT’s rivals Vodafone, Sky, and [...]
Economic think tank calls for Openreach to be carved out from BT as Ofcom deadline looms February 17, 2016 BT faces fresh calls for its broadband infrastructure arm Openreach to be hived off today, after economists at the Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) found the UK is falling behind international competitors. The CPS also has warned Britain's current broadband infrastructure market appears anti-competitive and Ofcom should refer the issue to the Competition and Markets Authority [...]
EU referendum: BT chairman Sir Mike Rake says British voters will choose to remain in the European Union as he takes up role at the International Chamber of Commerce February 17, 2016 Sir Mike Rake, who chairs both telecoms giant BT Group and the payment processing company Worldpay, has said that he expects Britain to remain in the European Union, even if the forthcoming EU referendum proves to be a closely-contested vote. “If common sense prevails and the facts can be got in the public domain, the [...]
EE earnings grow by double digits as 4G customers soar February 12, 2016 EE’s earnings are up by double digits as the firm, which is now part of BT, reports 4G users hitting a 14m milestone. The figures EE’s total network connections grew by 1.8 per cent in 2015, to hit 31.5m in total. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation are up 12.1 per cent over the [...]
Liverpool ticket price protest: Premier League clubs should not lower the cost of attendance February 10, 2016 The ticket price row at Liverpool is only the latest squabble about the cost of attending football matches. The new £5bn-plus TV deal guaranteeing Premier League teams huge increases in revenue offers an occasion for clubs to lower admission prices. Retired footballers, journalists, media commentators and MPs all seem to be convinced that that they [...]
Best UK mobile network: EE is the fastest mobile operator but Three is the most reliable as rivals Vodafone and O2 lag behind in new study February 10, 2016 EE has retained its crown as the UK's best mobile operator, but Three has beaten it when it comes to reliability, a fresh ranking reveals. When EE, Three, O2 and Vodafone were put to the test in a nationwide assessment of the operators’ speed, reliability, calls, internet, text and overall performance, EE shone brightest in five of [...]
Exasperated business bosses want second runway at Gatwick if Heathrow expansion faces further delays February 7, 2016 Senior business figures are demanding that the government grants Gatwick the right to build another runway, if expansion at Heathrow continues to be thwarted by political and legal obstacles. The Airports Commission backed a third runway at Heathrow last July describing the west London site as the “clear and unanimous” option. The government has repeatedly delayed [...]
BT finance chief Tony Chanmugam to announce retirement February 7, 2016 BT's finance director is expected to announce his retirement within weeks and will step down later this year. Tony Chanmugam, who has been BT's group finance director since December 2008, will also step down from the BT board. Before becoming head of finance at the telecoms major, he held two senior positions at BT Retail, as [...]
Three-O2 deal: Virgin Media urges Europe to allow £10.5bn merger as Vodafone blasts Hutchison’s price freeze pledge February 5, 2016 Virgin Media has come out in support of the proposed £10.5bn deal between Three and O2, even as rival Vodafone blasts it as “re-monopolisation” of the telco market. Virgin is calling on the EU’s competition watchdog to approve the deal, following pledges made yesterday to open up the combined network to other players. A deal [...]
Spotify down: Now the music streaming service is having technical issues across Europe with track skipping February 3, 2016 Spotify is down for some users across Europe. Users of the music streaming service have reported that it is down completely, while others said there were issues with tracks skipping. Spotify is down…………………… pic.twitter.com/CYW4jvxKcw — Rob🏌️♂️ (@rbrtmcmxcii) February 3, 2016 For every minute Spotify is down in our office our collective productivity drops by 10%. Exhibit [...]