DEBATE: After the attack on Sergei Skripal, should England’s football team boycott the World Cup in Russia? March 14, 2018 After the attack on Sergei Skripal, should England’s football team boycott the World Cup in Russia? Robert Colvile, director of the Centre for Policy Studies, says YES. Russia is a gangster state. It has murdered on British soil, invaded its neighbours and annexed their territory, sponsored the partisans who shot down Flight MH17, interfered with [...]
EE, Vodafone and Telefonica among approved bidders for 5G auction February 27, 2018 Six service providers have been approved to take part in an auction which will pave the way for the rollout of 5G. Ofcom is releasing more airwaves in a “spectrum auction”, improving broadband and opening the UK up for 5G. Airspan, EE, Connexin, Hutchison 3G, Telefónica UK, and Vodafone have now been approved as qualified [...]
BT share price rises as regulators raise wholesale price caps February 23, 2018 BT investors were buoyed this morning by a regulatory announcement on the price it can charge its rivals to use its network. With shares rising almost four per cent, BT was one of the FTSE 100’s biggest gainers. Ofcom said it would not regulate the prices charged by infrastructure arm Openreach on its fastest broadband [...]
Ofcom’s 5G auction to go ahead after Three’s challenge slapped down February 13, 2018 Telecoms companies are one step closer to bringing 5G to the UK after a legal challenge was slapped down today. Three had attempted to challenge the rules of a spectrum auction which will divvy up airwaves to the big players, but its appeal was rejected. Ofcom is now expected to hold the auction in April, [...]
The Treasury has held secret meetings with the US Department of Justice to speed up a hefty RBS fine February 10, 2018 The UK Treasury has held a secret meeting with US officials to chivvy along a several-billion pound fine for Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), Sky News has reported. The fine, which has been estimated by some analysts to be worth more than £5m, would draw a line under the bank’s pre-bailout misconduct relating to the [...]
Jeremy Hunt thinks social media’s as bad for kids as smoking and obesity February 8, 2018 The health secretary Jeremy Hunt has claimed that social media can be as damaging to children as smoking or obesity in one of the starkest warning yet from the government that it is eyeing curbs on tech companies He likened the effects on young people’s mental health as “every bit as big a threat” as [...]
Digital Innovators: Q&A with Klaus Henke, managing director of Billmonitor February 6, 2018 Billmonitor is the first ever Ofcom-accredited tariff price comparison tool for consumers. Last year Billmonitor was identified as one of 50 of the freshest and most inspiring digital companies using technology and innovation to shake up their sectors in our Digital Innovators Power List. Following a public vote and after careful consideration by supporting partners [...]
The beauty parade for the next Bank of England Governor has begun January 11, 2018 Not that long ago this column mentioned the fact that speculation over who would succeed Mark Carney as Governor of the Bank of England would begin in earnest this year. Just a few short weeks later and it has already begun. On Tuesday Reuters speculated as to who the possible successors to Mr Carney might [...]
Infrastructure chief Lord Adonis quits post over Theresa May’s handling of Brexit December 30, 2017 Influential peer Lord Adonis has quit his post as an infrastructure adviser, saying that the government has become too aligned with Ukip over Brexit. Adonis was head of the government’s National Infrastructure Commission (NIC), but has told Theresa May that Brexit is preoccupying Whitehall, and that she is not focused on other political issues. Read [...]
Lord Adonis writes to Ofcom boss urging action plan to tackle mobile service disparity across the country December 18, 2017 The chair of the National Infrastructure Commission has written to the head of Ofcom for “urgent and radical action” to tackle the disparity in mobile services across the country. Lord Adonis said legal and regulatory changes should be considered, after figures revealed large parts of the country may not be getting the most basic services [...]