With BT Group’s current CEO Philip Jansen’s departure on the horizon, the telecommunications industry is abuzz as Telia’s top-notch leader Allison Kirkby is slated to step into his shoes in 2024. Equipped with a celebrated career within the telecom sector and experience as a non-executive director at BT since 2019, Kirkby’s ascension is anxiously anticipated.
BT’s innovative Etc unit is poised to launch trials repurposing outdated street cabinets into electric vehicle (EV) charging points. Aiming at a smooth transition during the UK’s fiber rollout, this pioneering step initially caters to BT Group and Openreach employees in Northern Ireland, with plans for public engagement. However, the venture’s ultimate impact rests heavily on successful pilot performance.
The enigmatic billionaire Patrick Drahi is reportedly considering a bold move to hit an astounding 29.9% stake in UK’s telecom titan, BT, which naturally raises eyebrows and fuels speculation. Tracing Drahi’s relationship with BT, it started just last year with a humble 12.1% stake acquisition. Despite BT’s cautious response, Altice, Drahi’s representative, remained adamant about any takeover intentions. Today, a quarter of BT already belongs to Drahi, drawing closer government scrutiny under the freshly enacted National Security & Investment Act.
Ericsson plans a €155 million investment for a smart manufacturing hub in Tallinn, Estonia. BT will reduce its workforce by 1,100 at Adastral Park while investing in modernization. Cellnex acquires full control of OnTower Poland, expanding its tower portfolio. Unicon launches an enhanced partner program for resellers in end-user computing. NEC introduces a generative AI service to drive business transformation.
BT collaborates with HPE to adapt to the rise in hybrid work and IoT demands, leveraging HPE’s Aruba Networking for a new managed LAN service. This partnership promises heightened flexibility, security and visibility, overcoming the limitations of conventional in-building networks. Despite this, the market faces potential turbulence, particularly from the clearances of backlogged orders affecting enterprise WLAN revenues. While this partnership signifies progress, the changes may create a challenging landscape for those in the industry.
Ofcom delves into an investigation concerning BT’s recent 999 emergency call service outage. BT’s back-up system reportedly failed in providing efficient location data, intensifying the emergency identification process. This significant service disruption stirred discussions in Parliament, with technology minister Lord Camrose emphasizing the company’s delayed communication to the government about the issue. While BT extended an apology planned a full internal investigation, Ofcom’s survey will spotlight possible breaches of regulatory norms mandating constant network access to emergency organizations. The potential consequences are yet unclear.
Virgin Media O2 faces potential job cuts amid ongoing integration, despite previous assurances of alternative roles for at-risk employees, sparking concerns about future opportunities in the telecommunications sector.
Cisco to Acquire Accedian, Enhancing Service Assurance Cisco has announced its plan to acquire Accedian, a Canadian network optimization specialist, in order to improve its service assurance offerings and enhance the Cisco Networking Cloud. Accedian, known for its SaaS-first service assurance platform, has extensive experience in complex networks and will bring valuable capabilities to Cisco. The CEO of Accedian emphasized the importance of performance visibility and its role in automation, telco cloud environments, and 5G services. Cisco’s General Manager praised Accedian’s expertise and collaboration, and the acquisition is expected to be finalized in the first quarter of Cisco’s FY 2024, with potential benefits for Cisco’s service assurance portfolio and networking solutions. Read the full article BT and British Army Partner for Wide-Scale Wi-Fi Deployment BT and the British Army have entered into a multi-million-pound agreement to deploy managed Wi-Fi services, called MOD Wi-Fi, across 162 sites in the UK. The…
BT launches a campaign for their Digital Voice Service, aiming to replace analogue landlines with VoIP technology in a “once-in-a-generation upgrade.” The project targets a simple switch for most customers, with a comprehensive education and reassurance strategy to address concerns.
BT’s Digital Unit achieves a milestone as the first telco to complete the EDM Council cloud assessment, paving the way for efficient data management and strategic cloud implementations while ensuring data protection and control.
