English students to access GCSE results on new mobile app
UNITED KINGDOM 12 JAN

English students to access GCSE results on new mobile app

The UK government has announced the launch of the 'Education Record' app in England to upgrade how children access their exam results. The app will allow Year 11 students to view their GCSE results on their mobile phones for the first time from summer 2026. The national roll-out follows a trial of the app in the West Midlands and Greater Manchester. 

Vodafone UK starts selling Honor Magic8
UNITED KINGDOM 12 JAN

Vodafone UK starts selling Honor Magic8

Vodafone UK is now selling the Honor Magic8 Series, including the Magic8 Pro and Lite smartphones. The Honor Magic8 Pro is available from GBP 50 per month (GBP 40 upfront), with the Magic8 Lite available from GBP 24 per month (GBP 20 upfront).

Ofcom opens formal investigation into X over Grok AI sexual deepfakes
UNITED KINGDOM 12 JAN

Ofcom opens formal investigation into X over Grok AI sexual deepfakes

UK online safety regulator Ofcom has launched a formal investigation into X over reports that the Grok AI chatbot is being used to create and share sexualised images of people, including children. Ofcom will investigate whether X is complying with statutory duties under the Online Safety Act to protect users from illegal content. 

Brits hoard 49 million old games consoles, worth GBP 4.14 billion
UNITED KINGDOM 12 JAN

Brits hoard 49 million old games consoles, worth GBP 4.14 billion

New research from Virgin Media O2 shows that Brits are hoarding around 49 million old gaming consoles at home, worth a total of GBP 4.14 billion. This increase follows a Christmas gaming gift book, with Virgin Media O2 reporting a 170 jump in Nintendo Switch console and a 5 percent increase in Xbox sales. With almost three quarters (71%) of Brits struggling for cash in January, games could earn an average of GBP 145 by trading in their old consoles through O2 Recycle.

UK opposition pledges to introduce social media ban for under 16s
UNITED KINGDOM 12 JAN

UK opposition pledges to introduce social media ban for under 16s

The UK's main opposition party, the Conservatives, have pledged to introduce a ban on under 16s using social media if they are elected to government, reports BBC News. Speaking on the 'Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg' programme on BBC One, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the party would also look to ban smartphones in school if they win power.

Openreach broadband traffic up 5% in 2025, FTTP takes majority for first time
UNITED KINGDOM 12 JAN

Openreach broadband traffic up 5% in 2025, FTTP takes majority for first time

New data from Openreach shows that its full-fibre network is now carrying more data than older copper and hybrid fibre technologies for the first time. Broadband usage on the Openreach network jumped by 4.8 percent in 2025 to 108,599 PB of data, including a record 10,317 PB in December alone. Full-fibre usage increased by 40 percent in 2025, overtaking older fixed broadband technologies in late-October. The average full-fibre customer uses an average of 22.1 GB data per day.

Cyberflashing becomes Priority Offence under UK's Online Safety Act
UNITED KINGDOM 12 JAN

Cyberflashing becomes Priority Offence under UK's Online Safety Act

The sending of unsolicited nude images, or 'cyberflashing', has become a Priority Offence under the UK's Online Safety Act, with a new law coming into force from 08 January 2026. This will help better protect users of dating apps and social media platforms from receiving unsolicited nude images, supporting the government's strategy to cut Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) by half over the next 10 years. 

UK's Teleauora picks Airspan mmWave radio for FWA deployments
UNITED KINGDOM 9 JAN

UK's Teleauora picks Airspan mmWave radio for FWA deployments

Teleauora announced a new collaboration with Airspan Networks to use the latter's radio equipment for providing fixed-wireless access in the UK. Airspan will provide Teleauora with its latest Air5G 7200 mmWave radio, enabling the deployment of high-capacity fixed-wireless networks in challenging and hard-to-reach environments. The operator will target several identified sites across the UK where reliable, high-speed connectivity has historically been limited or unavailable.

South Yorkshire reaches 95% access to gigabit broadband by early November
UNITED KINGDOM 9 JAN

South Yorkshire reaches 95% access to gigabit broadband by early November

Ninety-five percent of homes and business in South Yorkshire were able to access gigabit-capable broadband by early November 2025, according to the South Yorkshire Mayor Combined Authority (SYMCA). The achievement surpassed the end-2025 target set in the South Yorkshire Digital Infrastructure Strategy, it added. The 95 percent access rate for 1 Gbps internet service in South Yorkshire compares with 90 percent of premises in the UK as a whole.

Virgin Media makes Premier Sports Rugby channel free
UNITED KINGDOM 9 JAN

Virgin Media makes Premier Sports Rugby channel free

Virgin Media has made the channel Premier Sports Rugby free for its TV subscribers in the UK. The 24/7 rugby channel provides coverage of the Investec Champions Cup, United Rugby Championship, EPCR Challenge Cup, Top14 (France), Major League Rugby and Japan Rugby League One, as well as other programmes.

Tekmoni plans UK MVNOs launch with eSim Go enablement
UNITED KINGDOM 9 JAN

Tekmoni plans UK MVNOs launch with eSim Go enablement

MVNE eSIM Go announced a new contract to support Tekmoni in the launch of community-based MVNO brands in the UK with its MVNO enablement platform. They started working together in the MVNE's early access programme last year, to test eSim Go's product suite. The resulting contract integrates two core components for the MVNO launch: the eSIM Go API-based platform to support subscriber lifecycles, billing integrations, and service provisioning, and wholesale network access in the UK. Tekmoni plans to launch th

O2 UK expands standalone 5G network to Sheffield
UNITED KINGDOM 9 JAN

O2 UK expands standalone 5G network to Sheffield

O2 UK announced it has switched on standalone 5G services in the Sheffield area, delivering faster speeds and lower latency across the city. Roughly 580,000 residents across the city of Sheffield and in surrounding areas including Chapeltown, Mexborough, Wombwell, Swinton, Dinnington, and Wickersley can benefit from the upgraded network. 

UNITED KINGDOM 9 JAN

Exchange Communications completes 755-antenna in-building system for Chelsea Barracks

Exchange Communications announced completion of a connectivity project at Chelsea Barracks, delivering what the provider says is one of the UK's largest and most technically advanced 4G in-building installations at the luxury housing development in London. The installation brings the total number of antennas across the project to 755, all engineered and integrated by Exchange Communications to provide optimum mobile coverage.

UNITED KINGDOM 9 JAN

Kcom reports record internet traffic over Christmas due to streaming

UK regional operator Kcom said it set a new data traffic record on Christmas Day, with over 2.5 million GB used by customers, around half a million more GB than usual. Traffic from streaming platforms Netflix and YouTube was particularly high. 

UNITED KINGDOM 9 JAN

UK pushes ahead with mobile, Wi-Fi sharing in upper 6 GHz band

The UK is moving ahead with plans to allow mobile and Wi-Fi services to share the upper 6 GHz band. Regulator Ofcom has issued a detailed proposal on how sharing the spectrum between Wi-Fi and mobile services would work, and said it expects to allow low-power Wi-Fi applications in the frequency range before the end of this year. The proposal is open for public comment until 20 March.

UNITED KINGDOM 9 JAN

LINX outlines 2026 service portfolio and fee changes

The London Internet Exchange (LINX) has announced its service portfolio and fees for 2026, detailing changes that affect peering capacity and the bandwidth included with membership. Under the new portfolio, members using 100 GE port access networks will be able to consume 10 Gbps of peering on a 100 GE port. LINX has also increased the amount of service bandwidth included in the monthly membership fee from 2 Gbps to 4 Gbps on a 10 GE port. 

UNITED KINGDOM 8 JAN

Truespeed, Freedom Fibre in talks on merger - report

UK regional operators Truespeed and Freedom Fibre are in talks on a possible merger, Sky News reported. Negotiations between the two companies and their respective shareholders are underway, according to unnamed sources but it was unclear whether they were close to reaching an agreement. If successfully concluded, the merger would create a network with access to more than 400,000 premises.

UNITED KINGDOM 8 JAN

Arcus vehicle takes ownership in UK WISP and infrastructure company Wifinity

Wifinity, a UK-based wireless internet service and infrastructure provider, announced a deal to sell a majority stake in the business to Arcus European Infrastructure Fund 3, an investment vehicle managed by Arcus Infrastructure Partners. While the transaction price was not disclosed, it was confirmed Wifinity's existing management team will retain a small minority stake in the company. 

UNITED KINGDOM 8 JAN

Acronis appoints general manager for UK and Ireland

Cybersecurity and data protection company Acronis has announced the appointment of Jo Holliday as general manager for its UK and Ireland (UKI) business. She has over 28 years of leadership experience in software sales, channel development, and go-to-market transformation. Ronan McCurtin, RVP for Europe, Israel & Africa at Acronis, said UKI is an important region for Acronis, and Holliday's experience in channel strategy, revenue leadership and team development makes her the right leader to drive our next ph

UNITED KINGDOM 8 JAN

UK music, video and gaming sales top GBP 13 bln on 7% growth in 2025

UK streaming and retail sales of music, video and computer games rose 7.1 percent annually to a record GBP 13.26 billion in 2025, according to the latest estimates from ERA, the national association for entertainment retailers. The growth rate was over double the 3.3 percent reported in ERA's 2024 figures, amid a strong recovery in gaming and continued growth in video and music. The increase was also more than four times faster than the UK's overall GDP economic growth forecast from the Office for Budget Re

UNITED KINGDOM 8 JAN

VodafoneThree extends distribution deal with Get Connected stores

VodafoneThree has signed a three-year extension to its contract with mobile phone retailer Get Connected in Wales. The extension makes VodafoneThree the exclusive mobile network operator in 46 Get Connected stores across Wales, the Midlands and the South West of England. Handset and SIM-only contracts from the Vodafone and Three brands, as well as in-store support will remain available across all the stores. 

UNITED KINGDOM 8 JAN

NTT Data and n2s to support data centre decommissioning for Virgin Media O2

n2s has entered a three-year partnership with NTT Data to support Virgin Media O2 with the decommissioning of IT assets across its UK data centre estate, with a focus on resource recovery and circular economy practices. Under the agreement, more than 40,000 IT assets will be processed through reuse, refurbishment or recycling, with the aim of reducing waste and supporting Virgin Media O2's energy efficiency and carbon reduction objectives. The work will cover all Virgin Media O2 data centre sites in the UK.

UNITED KINGDOM 7 JAN

Nagravision to help English Football League combat live sports piracy

Nagravision, part of the Kudelski Group, has entered a partnership with the English Football League (EFL) to help the latter combat live sports piracy during the current 2025-26 season. The agreement will deploy Nagra-branded streaming security technology to monitor and address illegal streaming of EFL matches in real time across multiple platforms.

UNITED KINGDOM 7 JAN

5 claims strongest streaming growth among UK public broadcasters

The 5 streaming service in the UK claims it was the fastest-growing streaming service among UK public service broadcasters for the second year in a row in 2025. The platform owned by Paramount grew its total viewing minutes, as measured by Barb, by 34 percent last year. That is better than ITVX (+24%), 4 Streaming (+11%) and BBC iPlayer (+7%), it said. 

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Commentary

2 JAN 13:21

Open Dutch Fiber's new management team takes up turnaround challenge

15 DEC 2025 13:56

Video market set for slower growth ahead

8 DEC 2025 11:38

Netflix buys Warner Bros to deepen content catalogue

31 OCT 2025 11:11

KPN's mixed performance in Q3 raises questions for strategy day

Background

12 JAN 00:04

The week in telecoms: CES brings Wi-Fi 8 and more smart glasses, while Warner sticks with Netflix

5 JAN 00:52

The week in telecom: Finnish security check, M&A completions and telco job cuts

23 DEC 2025 10:32

Netherlands TV-video market grows 2.6% in Q3 to EUR 759 mln

22 DEC 2025 00:25

The week in telecoms: YouTube, Instagram take on TV market and WBD rejects Paramount