BT’s creating 500 new jobs to boost customer service December 12, 2016 BT is creating 500 new jobs in the UK and Ireland to help improve its customer service, which has come under pressure in recent weeks from regulators. Most roles, which come in addition to 1,000 previously promised jobs, will be frontline consumer ones based in call centres in Swansea, Warrington, Doncaster and Accrington. Read more: BT boss [...]
Banning junk food ads won’t stem the flow of fat kids December 12, 2016 For anyone who grew up in the nineties, advertising and children’s television were one and the same – for every ten minutes of Power Rangers, there would be five minutes of ads for Sunny D and awful American cereal. Invariably some garish, multicoloured cartoon character would jump out of the television, screaming demands like an Isis [...]
TalkTalk hits out at ultrafast fibre network critics December 11, 2016 Broadband provider TalkTalk has shot back at rival BT over claims it would not be able to build its own fibre broadband network in the UK. A report by Analysys Mason, commissioned by BT, and submitted to regulator Ofcom found the development of a third ultrafast broadband network in the UK was “highly unlikely”. However, [...]
Political opposition to Murdoch takeover of Sky mounts December 10, 2016 Former Labour leader Ed Miliband, former business secretary Vince Cable and influential campaign group Hacked Off have all voiced their opposition to the possibility of a 21st Century Fox takeover of Sky. Although media analysts appear to believe the deal is unlikely to be blocked by regulators, the news has attracted a number of objections in the [...]
Britain’s broadband boost: Regulator wants an infrastructure shake-up to reduce dependency on BT Openreach December 6, 2016 BT will be forced to share vital fixed line infrastructure with rivals in order to "reduce the country’s reliance on Openreach" under proposals by Britain's telecoms regulator. Ofcom today revealed plans it hoped would make it "quick and easier" for the likes of Vodafone,TalkTalk and Sky to build their own fibre networks. Openreach maintains the UK's main telecoms infrastructure [...]
BT boss on Ofcom: “I don’t think they are trying to break the company up” December 4, 2016 BT has played down damning action by the telecoms watchdog to split up the company for failing to address competition concerns. Chairman Sir Mike Rake has insisted that Ofcom is not trying to break-up the telecoms firm, just days after the regulator said it was pushing forward with plans to legally separate its Openreach broadband infrastructure division. Rake denied that Ofcom was calling [...]
Britain’s telecoms giants to be probed by Ofcom over landline pricing December 1, 2016 The UK's phone companies are exploiting vulnerable people by hiking landline prices even though their costs are falling. Regulator Ofcom delivered a damning verdict on the likes of BT and Virgin Media and announced plans of a detailed review of pricing to ensure customers get value for money. Read more: Ofcom will go to European Commission [...]
Who’s afraid of the big, bad pensions deficit? Contrarian stock-pickers can find hidden value in companies with large holes in their defined benefit pension funds November 30, 2016 For some UK companies, having a large pension deficit is like a proverbial albatross around the neck – unsightly and foreboding. This can make the shares appear cheap on some measures. But valuing stocks with large schemes is difficult, due to the enhanced complexity of pension accounting. Actuaries and trustees make numerous assumptions regarding future [...]
Sky dives into mobile market with “flexible” contracts but steers clear of content offers November 29, 2016 Pay-TV operator Sky has unveiled details of its long-awaited mobile service. Available to Sky staff already and rolling out gradually to pre-registered customers and then to the wider market early next year, the service is aiming to offer what the company has called a "flexible" mobile subscription plan. Sky will then begin offering handsets to users [...]
TalkTalk share price jumps on news BT and Openreach will be split November 29, 2016 Shares in telecom group TalkTalk have jumped this morning on the news that rival BT is to be separated from its broadband infrastructure arm, Openreach. TalkTalk's stock was up four per cent by mid-morning. Ofcom said earlier that it would go the European Commission seeking to legally split BT and Openreach. "Creating a more independent [...]