From telecoms provider to tech innovator: Can the old guard make the leap? June 20, 2016 The global telecoms industry faces the most challenging risk environment in living memory. Profitability is being squeezed by disruptive competitors, regulatory change and unrelenting cyber attacks. The threats facing telecoms today are diversifying and multiplying. At BDO our recent industry report, 2016 Telecommunications Risk Factors Survey, highlights strategic and operational risks reported by sixty telecoms [...]
Real Madrid and Barcelona head to BT as Sky pulls out of bidding for La Liga TV rights August 1, 2015 BT Sport has struck the latest blow in its battle with Sky Sports for football broadcasting supremacy, as it closes in on securing the rights to Spanish football. Read more: Sky’s costs soar as battle with BT Sport weighs Sky is believed to have pulled out of the bidding process for rights to La Liga fixtures [...]
BT shrugs off break-up talks to increase profit before tax by 16 per cent July 30, 2015 The likes of Sky may be after its head, but that hasn't prevented BT from posting a 16 per cent rise in pre-tax profit, despite a modest fall in revenue. BT's share price fell three per cent in mid morning trading following the announcement. The figures The telecoms giant reported a two per cent fall [...]
Virgin Media pledges fibre broadband expansion to one million premises by 2019 April 27, 2016 Virgin Media has announced that it will be rolling out fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) broadband for one million homes and businesses over the next few years. The plans are part of Virgin Media’s £3bn expansion to grow its overall network by four million premises by 2019. Rivals BT and Sky are currently trialling FTTP or deploying it in smaller [...]
EU referendum: British voters want a Norway-style arrangement if the UK votes for Brexit, poll reveals June 13, 2016 British voters want a "Norway-style" arrangement if the United Kingdom votes to leave the European Union, according to a new poll. A poll by free market think tank the Adam Smith Institute (ASI) has found that a deal resembling the relationship Norway has with the 28-member bloc would be supported to retain access to the [...]
EE boss Olaf Swantee takes rivals to task over complaints about BT’s takeover July 27, 2015 EE boss Olaf Swantee yesterday hit back at rivals attacking a proposed £12.5bn takeover by telecoms giant BT amid fears the deal will dilute competition in the sector. “We have about 20 of our competitors who want to use lawyers to get a certain result, rather than using engineers to help them differentiate,” he said. [...]
New Women’s Business Council chief Cilla Snowball says more needs to be done for female empowerment in UK firms July 8, 2016 Female representation on FTSE100 boards has risen from 12.5 per cent to 26 per cent in a year according to a report released yesterday. The latest Female FTSE Board Report by Cranfield University, City University London and Queen Mary University London also shows that, overall, the percentage of women on all FTSE boards has increased since [...]
UK cyber security company Darktrace embarks on funding round to secure $400m valuation April 10, 2016 UK cyber security company Darktrace has turned to Silicon Valley in a bid to secure funding which would see the company valued at $400m (£283.2m). The company, which is headquartered in both Cambridge, UK, and San Francisco, USA, was founded in 2013 by mathematics and computer specialists from the University of Cambridge and intelligence experts from MI5 and GCHQ. [...]
Britain needs to take a giant leap forward and embrace radical competition to achieve ultrafast broadband February 29, 2016 London is one of the world’s greatest cities, and arguably the pre-eminent global financial centre. The UK has 17 of Europe’s 40 tech unicorns (startups valued at $1bn or more), and all bar three of these are in London. And yet, compared to other European cities, its broadband infrastructure – the vital sensory network of a [...]
BT Sport and Ericsson team up for new Champions League channels June 23, 2015 BT Sport has selected Ericsson to design, build and run the technology behind a variety of new products, as it ups its game in live sports, having won the Champions Leagues broadcasting rights. Ericsson will work on BT's three new sports channels, BT Sport Europe, BT Sport Showcase, and BT Sport ultra high definition, which [...]