Connectivity

Virgin Media and O2 Join Together To Compete Against BT

Posted on by Andy Miller

Virgin Media and O2 are merging in a £31 billion deal to create an entertainment and telecoms company that will provide some serious competition to telecoms giant BT.

Mobile & Broadband

O2, which is owned by Spain’s Telefonica, has around 34 million mobile phone customers, in addition to providing the network for Sky Mobile, Tesco Mobile and Giffgaff.  Virgin Media, owned by Liberty Global (the largest broadband internet service provider outside the US), has around 6 million broadband and cable TV customers and 3 million mobile users.  O2 operates in around 180 countries, has more than 9 million broadband customers (a 36% share of the Broadband market) and around 29 million mobile connections across the group.

It is thought that as well as potentially taking market share from BT, the merger will give Telefonica the opportunity to make some money out of its O2 acquisition, and Liberty Global the opportunity to combine fixed-line and mobile networks to create new areas of value.

O2 Says

O2 (Telefonica chief executive Jose Maria Alvarez-Pallete) said about the deal, “Combining O2’s number one mobile business with Virgin Media’s superfast broadband network and entertainment services will be a game-changer in the UK, at a time when demand for connectivity has never been greater or more critical.”

Virgin Media (Liberty Global) Says …

Mike Fries, the Chief Executive Officer of Liberty Global, highlighted how Virgin Media has fast broadband speeds and an innovative video platform and how O2 is viewed as a reliable mobile operator.  Mr Fries said about the merger, “With Virgin Media and O2 together, the future of convergence is here today. We’ve seen the benefit of FMC first-hand in Belgium and the Netherlands. When the power of 5G meets 1 gig broadband, U.K. consumers and businesses will never look back. We’re committed to this market and are right behind the Government’s digital and connectivity goal”.

What About The Regulator?

With a merger of this size, bearing in mind that there has already been a substantial merger between BT and EE in this market in 2016, competition is clearly an issue.  However, many of the main telecoms commentators seem to think that the Competition and Markets Authority will allow the merger, but this will, of course, depend on how the deal affects consumers.

What Does This Mean For Your Business?

Where each of the two merging companies are concerned, it seems that Telefonica gains access to Virgin’s broadband, cable and mobile, thereby giving it the opportunity to make more money out of O2 and Liberty Global gains access to O2’s vast and reliable mobile phone network so that it can combine fixed-line and mobile networks to create new value.  Both partners can leverage the synergies and new opportunities to diversify their products and services, thereby providing some serious competition to BT’s dominance and, hopefully, providing new and broader and broader ranges of products, better services, and faster connections to businesses.  It has been reported that both companies are looking to invest £10bn over the next five years to make sure that the merger delivers value and this kind of investment is likely to be welcomed by business customers.

Tech Tip – How To Speed Up Your Internet Connection

Posted on by Andy Miller

With most of us working from home and with a much bigger demand than normal being placed on our broadband connections, here are a few simple ways to try and speed your connection up:

– Move your home router away from other devices e.g. TVs, Bluetooth speakers, baby monitors, cordless phones, and consider placing the router on a table or raised position rather than on the floor.

– Try to stagger the number of family members using the internet at one time.

– Don’t use your microwave while online as this can interfere with your Wi-Fi signal.

– Consider using a homemade DIY ‘parabolic’ antenna e.g. shielding the back of the router in a beer can that’s had the top and bottom cut off, been flattened, and stood up in curved shape. Please note: be incredibly careful to avoid injury if attempting to make this.

– Get a signal booster.

– Set your router to reboot regularly to keep your Wi-Fi speed high.

Featured Article – 5G and COVID-19

Posted on by Andy Miller

Last week it was David Icke and this week it’s TV presenter Eamonn Holmes who’s given media momentum to the conspiracy theory that suggests a link between the emergence of COVID-19 and the use of 5G.  What’s going on, why, and how?

The Conspiracy Theory

This particular theory, which has led to attacks on 5G masts, Google’s YouTube banning any videos relating to it, self-styled truth-sayer (and former Coventry goalkeeper and TV presenter) David Icke and TV presenter Eamonn Holmes being slammed in the media for their comments focuses on a suggested link between new phone technology and the emergence and spread of a real-life virus.

The theory quite simply suggests that the roll-out of 5G has, in some way, triggered the emergence of (and helped the spread of) a brand-new type of coronavirus, COVID-19.  Also, some allege that 5G phone signals may be suppressing human immune systems, thereby helping the virus to get a wider grip.

To those who are most taken with (and most willing to act in relation to) this theory, attacking and destroying/disrupting 5G infrastructure appears to be a way to try and stop the spread of the virus. This has led to 5G masts being damaged.

What Did David Icke Say?

David Icke recently took part in a live-streamed interview, watched by a reported 65,000 people. In the interview, Mr Icke alleged a possible link between 5G and the COVID-19 health crisis, appeared to say that a continuation of 5G would lead to the end of human life, and alleged that when a vaccine is developed, it will somehow contain small microchips that will allow those who have been injected with it to be controlled.

This led to YouTube banning all videos promoting this theory from its platform.

What Did Eamonn Holmes Say?

In a recent daytime ITV programme, Eammon Holmes appeared to have said that no one knows whether the conspiracy theory that 5G masts help spread the novel coronavirus was true or not.

This led to Ofcom receiving 419 complaints and Mr Holmes being widely criticised in the media. Mr Holmes later said that there is no connection between the NHS crisis and 5G and that it is wrong and possibly dangerous to make the suggestion.

Equipment Attacked

Some believers in the theory are thought to have been behind arson attacks on 22 EE (BT) mobile network sites and 20 Vodafone sites over the Easter holiday.

“Complete Rubbish,” Says Expert

In a recent press release from Reading University, Dr Simon Clarke, Associate Professor in Cellular Microbiology said that “The idea that COVID-19 is caused by 5G mobile phone signals is complete rubbish” and went on to say, in relation to the electromagnetic waves that make up 5G radio signals,  “Electromagnetic waves are one thing, viruses are another, and you can’t get a virus off a phone mast.  Similarly, sensible studies have failed to corroborate the claim that the signals emitted by 5G masts are able to suppress our immune systems.”

Who Believes In Conspiracy Theories and Why?

According to many scholars and experts, the reasons why people choose to believe in conspiracy theories include:

– Some people in societies where there is a large gap between the governing and the governed classes and where there’s an oppositional culture create their own popular theories and don’t share those of the experts who are perceived to out of touch with ‘the people’.

– The need for easy answers and to see the world as simpler and more predictable than perhaps it is.

– Attempts by non-experts to make sense of information that doesn’t fit with their personal values, experience, and their own trusted beliefs, and evidence and the opinions of people they trust.

– Wanting to quickly make sense (and feel safe and in control) of your environment, and to maintain a positive image of ‘self’ and of the social group.

– Social proof – the fact that others who are perceived as important or influential appear willing to at least consider or even accept a theory.

– A preferred belief in things like intuition and truths of the heart rather than a simple acceptance of scientific facts.

– A gap between science and belief systems like religion which may go back hundreds of years and a rift between those who understand mathematics and science and those who don’t.

– Perceptions of a lack of convincing evidence to the contrary.  For example, back in 2013, more than one-third of Americans believed that global warming was a hoax (Swift), whereas 69% of Americans now believe it is happening.

Why Should Anyone Fear 5G?

Just as when mobile phones first became widely used, there were many popular theories linking serious health issues such cancer and brain tumours to prolonged exposure to low-energy, non-ionising electromagnetic radiation radio waves, like those in mobile phone signals.  It is interesting to note that this may not have been helped by, back in 2011, the World Health Organisation (WHO) classifying mobile phone radiation as a “possible” human carcinogen.

With 5G using 3 different Spectrum bands, including what some believe to be the potentially dangerous mmWave high-frequency spectrum, similar fears have been expressed, and some say that 5G signals could damage human cell DNA.

Not Enough Energy

In reality, this type of radiofrequency (RF) radiation does not have enough energy to ionise an atom or molecule, and therefore, is unlikely to have enough energy to damage cell DNA in a way that would harm it, for example by causing cancer.

In fact, mmWave high-frequency spectrum technology appears to be quite some way from the maximum human RF absorption frequency of about 70MHz. Also, mmWave will mostly be deployed in a spectrum that suffers from high reflection rates – 24 to 29GHz.  This should mean that any absorption by the body will be confined to the surface layers of the skin rather than the deeper tissue that is reached by lower frequency radiation.

The science of radiation, and current evidence and limits relating to mobile phone use means that there’s nothing to directly suggest 5G mmWave poses any significant health risk.  That said, 5G is not in popular use yet, so more research will need to be done on the subject in future, and some critics still say that 5G technology appears to be getting introduced without enough pre-market safety testing.

Looking Ahead

The 5G and COVID-19 conspiracy theory has been frustrating and expensive for mobile operators and may be potentially dangerous for those who believe it, for those who come into contact with them, and for those people who need to communicate with loved ones at a time when they must be physically apart but may not be able to reach them due to damaged mobile phone infrastructure.

5G appears to represent a good opportunity for business.  Its increased speed and lower latency allows the downloading of films and games in seconds and watching them without any buffering, something which many people may at least have valued more in lockdown.  Also, many different types of businesses could benefit from improved connectivity with remote workers or with salespeople in remote areas.

O2 has also forecast that 5G could deliver time savings that could bring £6 billion a year in productivity savings in the UK and that 5G-enabled tools and smart items could save UK householders £450 a year in food, council and fuel bills. These things could be very important in supporting and strengthening recovering economies in future.

YouTube Bans 5G and COVID-19 Link Conspiracy Videos

Posted on by Andy Miller

After a recent live-streamed interview with David Icke linked the introduction of 5G technology to the emergence of the COVID-19 the pandemic, Google’s YouTube has now banned all 5G conspiracy videos.

5G Theory Far-Fetched

Mr Icke’s interview, which was watched by a reported 65,000 people and in which he alleged a possible link between 5G and the COVID-19 health crisis, appears to have been the ‘straw that broke the camel’s back’ for YouTube.

Among the many controversial elements of the broadcast, Mr Icke appeared to say that a continuation of 5G would lead to the end of human life, and alleged that when a vaccine is developed, it will somehow contain small microchips that will allow those who have been injected with it to be controlled.

Mr Icke’s interview and the resulting questions to YouTube about why the video was allowed on the platform appear to have had a strong influence on YouTube deciding to tighten its policies to the point where other videos with similar claims will now be banned from the platform.

Unsubstantiated Medical Claim Worries

YouTube is now very keen to point out that it will not tolerate videos on its platform that deny/dispute the existence or transmission of COVID-19 as defined by the respected medical authorities i.e. the World Health Organisation (WHO) and local health authorities. YouTube includes in this definition, any videos relating to the 5G and COVID-19 conspiracy theory.

For conspiracy theorists, of course, the banning of their videos is likely to feed even more into their beliefs.

Masts Set Ablaze

The 5G and COVID-19 conspiracy theory is very likely to have been the reason why a number of 5G masts were set on fire recently in Birmingham, Liverpool and Melling in Merseyside.

This led to the UK’s Culture Secretary, Oliver Dowden, to arrange meetings with the representatives of the big tech companies and to ask social media companies to try and increase their efforts to tackle the spread on their platforms, of 5G and Coronavirus conspiracy theory.

What Does This Mean For Your Business?

There will always be those who are more likely to believe and share conspiracy theories and to try to feel in control of complicated situations and ideas by finding an apparently simple solution and apportioning blame.  It must be frustrating and expensive for phone companies to have their masts attacked and many businesses are looking forward to having the benefits of 5G, even though those seem some way off.

Also, it is good to see that Google is prepared to take action quickly in matters which could pose a risk to public health.

Data Caps Removed During Pandemic

Posted on by Andy Miller

The UK government has announced that the UK’s big ISP’s are removing caps on data for fixed-line broadband during the coronavirus pandemic.

Fixed-Line Broadband

The joint announcement by the companies, government and Ofcom will affect fixed-line broadband packages, many of which (apart from discounted packages for people on benefits) already offer unlimited data.

Which Companies?

The welcome move, which has been agreed between the government and ISPs/telecoms companies and is effective immediately, is in addition to any deals that the ISPs have already announced and applies to Virgin Media, Sky, O2, BT (Openreach and EE), TalkTalk, Three and Vodafone. Also removing data caps are Gigaclear, Hyperopic and Kcom (but not for Kcom’s gaming, streaming and downloading media).

More Help

The agreement between the government and the ISPs also includes other helpful measures such as help for those customers struggling to pay bills as a result of the pandemic, moving vulnerable customers to the front of the queue for repairs, and improving mobile and landline package deals.

The government hopes that the deal agreed with the communications companies will help to support and protecting vulnerable customers and older people as well as helping the UK communications network cope with the extra demand, and help people stay connected while staying at home. This, in turn, will help businesses whose employees are working at home, and families who are also likely to need extra capacity.

Welcome, But More Detail Required

Although the deal has been generally welcomed, some have criticised the announcement has lacking detail.

Vodafone Helping The Vulnerable

Last week, Vodafone announced that it is offering 30-days free access to unlimited mobile data for half a million of its Pay Monthly customers as well as upgraded the contracts for those who are categorised as vulnerable. Vodafone is informing eligible customers by text.

Tips From Ofcom

Ofcom’s website offers some general tips on how to ‘stay Connected during the coronavirus’ on its website here: https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-telecoms-and-internet/advice-for-consumers/stay-connected.

What Does This Mean For Your Business?

Even though many fixed-line broadband packages already offer unlimited data, this is still likely to be a welcome and helpful development both for those working from home and the businesses they work for. Also, the deal is likely to be helpful for families and individuals simply using more data for entertainment while sitting-out coronavirus restrictions. It is also good that vulnerable people have also been considered in the government/Ofcom/ISP deal, and the fact that it is effective immediately.

The criticism, so far, is that despite the announcement, which was widely reported, there hasn’t been much more detail. This may be understandable, however, given that there is a global crisis and that everyone in the UK is currently living under restrictions which are undoubtedly affecting the normal flow of communications in many businesses and organisations.

Featured Article – Microsoft Teams User Numbers Up By 12 Million In A Week

Posted on by Andy Miller

Microsoft’s collaborative working platform ‘Teams’ is reported to have seen a massive 12 million user boost in one week as a result of remote-working through the coronavirus outbreak, and through Microsoft making the platform generally available through Office 365 from March 14.

What Is Teams?

Teams, announced in November 2016 and launched by Microsoft in 2017, is a platform designed to help collaborative working and combines features such as workplace chat, meetings, notes, and attachments. Described by Microsoft as a “complete chat and online meetings solution”, it normally integrates with the company’s Office 365 subscription office productivity suite. In July 2018, Microsoft introduced a free, basic features version of Teams which did not require an Office 365 account, in order to increase user numbers and tempt users away from competitor ‘Slack’.

Microsoft Teams is also the replacement for Skype for Business Online, the support for which will end on 31 July 2021, and all-new Microsoft 365 customers have been getting Microsoft Teams by default from 1 September 2019.

March 14

Microsoft Corp. announced on March 14 that Microsoft Teams would be generally available in Office 365 for business customers in 181 markets and 19 languages.

Increased To 44 Million Users

The move to make Teams generally available to businesses with Office 365, coupled with a mass move to remote working as a result of COVID-19 has resulted in 12 million new users joining the platform in a week, bringing users up from 32 million on 11 March to 44 million users a week later.  The number is likely to have increased significantly again since 18 March.

What Does Teams Offer?

Microsoft Teams offers threaded chat capabilities which Microsoft describes as “a modern conversations experience”, and built-in Office 365 apps like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, SharePoint and Power BI.  Also, Teams offers users ad-hoc (and scheduled) voice and video meetings and has security and compliance capabilities built-in as it supports global standards, including SOC 1, SOC 2, EU Model Clauses, ISO27001 and HIPAA. Users are also able to benefit from the fact that workspaces can be customised for each team using tabs, connectors and bots from third-party partners and Microsoft tools e.g. Microsoft Planner and Visual Studio Team Services. Microsoft says that more than 150 integrations are available or coming soon to Teams.

New Features

Microsoft reports that it has added more than 100 new features to Teams since November 2019.  These include an enhanced meeting experience (with scheduling), mobile audio calling, video calling on Android (coming soon to iOS), and email integration.  Teams has also benefited from improvements to accessibility with support for screen readers, high contrast and keyboard-only navigation.

Walkie-Talkie Phone

In January, Microsoft announced that it was adding a “push-to-talk experience” to Teams that turns employee or company-owned smartphones and tablets into walkie-talkies.  The Walkie Talkie feature, which can be accessed in private preview in the first half of this year and will be available in the Teams mobile app, offers clear, instant and secure voice communication over the cloud.

Competition

There are, of course, other services in competition with Microsoft Teams. Slack, for example, is a cloud-based set of proprietary team collaboration tools and services.  Slack enables users (communities, groups, or teams) to join through a URL or invitation sent by a team admin or owner.  Although Slack was intended to be an organisational communication tool, it has morphed into a community platform i.e. it is a business technology that has crossed over into personal use.

That said, Slack reported in October last year that it had 12 million daily active users, which was a 2 million increase since January 2019.

Slack has stickiness and strong user engagement which help to attract businesses that want to get into using workstream collaboration software but, it faces challenges such as convincing big businesses that it is not just a chat app and that it is a worthy, paid-for alternative to its more well-known competitors like Microsoft’s Teams.

Like Teams, Slack has just introduced new features and has experienced a surge of growth in just over a month.

Another competitor to Microsoft’s Teams is Zoom, which is a platform for video and audio conferencing, chat, and webinars that is often used alongside Google’s G Suite and Slack.  It has been reported that Zoom is now top of the free downloaded apps in Apple’s app store, and Learnbonds.com reports that downloads for Zoom increased by 1,270 per cent between February 22 and March 22.

Real-Life Example – Teams

A real-life example from Microsoft of how Teams is being put to good use is by bicycle and cycling gear company Trek Bicycle.  Microsoft reports how Teams has become the project hub for the company where all staff know where to find the latest documents, notes, tasks relating to team conversations thereby making Teams a central part of the company’s “get-things-done-fast culture.”

Looking Forward

Many businesses are already using and gaining advantages from the speed and scope of communication, project context, and convenience of a cloud-based, accessible hub offered by collaborative working platforms like Teams.  The decision to make Teams generally available with Office 365 for business can only make the platform more popular and the need for companies to quickly set-up effective remote working has stimulated the market for these services and given users a crash-course in and a strong reminder of their strengths and benefits.

The hope by Microsoft and other collaborative working platform providers is that companies will go on using the platforms long after they technically need to in order to deal with COVID19 lockdown and that they will decide to use them going forward to keep improving the flexibility and productivity of their businesses, compete with other companies that are getting the best from them, and guard against excessive damage to the business from any future lockdown situations.

Surge In Demand For Teleconference Apps and Platforms That Enable Home Working

Posted on by Andy Miller

The need for people to work from home during the Covid-19 outbreak is reported to have led to a huge increase in the downloads of business teleconferencing apps and in the use of popular cloud-based services like G Suite.

Surge In Downloads

Downloads of remote and collaborative working and communication apps such as Tencent Conference (https://intl.cloud.tencent.com/), WeChat Work (from China), Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Slack are reported to have risen by a massive fivefold since the beginning of the year, driven by the effects of the Covid-19 outbreak.

For example, services such as Rumii (a VR platform, normally $14.99 per month) and Spatial, which enable users to digital meetings in virtual rooms with 3D versions of their co-workers have seen a boost in the number of users, as has video communications app zoom.

Freemium Versions

Even though many of these apps have seen a surge in user numbers which could see users continuing to use them and recommending them in future if their experiences of the apps are good, the ‘freemium’ versions (the basic program for free and advanced features must be paid for) appear to account for most downloads.

Some companies, such as Rumii, have now started to offer services for free after noticing a rise in the number of downloads as Covid-19 spread in the United States.

G Suite

Google’s cloud-based G Suite service (Gmail, Docs, Drive, Hangouts, Sheets, Slides, Keep, Forms, Sites) is reported to have gone past the two billion monthly active users mark at the end of last year. It appears to have gained many active users due to people preparing to work from home following the Covid-19 outbreak.

Google has also offered parts of its enterprise service e.g. Hangouts Meet (video conferencing) for free to help businesses during the period when many employees will need to work from home.

Microsoft

Microsoft is also reported to be offering a free six-month trial for its collaborative working platform ‘Teams’, which surpassed the 20 million active user mark back in November.

Unfortunately, Microsoft Teams suffered a reported two-hour outage across Europe on Monday, just as many employees tried to log in as part of their first experience of working at home in what some commentators are now calling the new “post-office” era.

What Does This Mean For Your Business?

Cloud-based, collaborative and remote working and communications platforms are now providing a vital mitigating lifeline to many businesses and workers at the start of what is likely to be a difficult, disruptive, dangerous and stressful time.  Companies that can get the best out of these cloud-based tools, especially if they can be used effectively on a smartphone, may have a better chance of helping their businesses survive a global threat. Also, the fact that many companies and employees are forced to seek out and use cloud-based apps and platforms like these could see them continuing to make good use of them when the initial crisis is over and we could be witnessing the trigger of a longer-term change in working towards a post-office era where businesses make sure they can last out the effects of future similar threats.

Coronavirus Outbreak: Remote Working For Staff

Posted on by Andy Miller

With the whole of Italy’s 60 million population in lockdown and other countries taking drastic measures to control the coronavirus outbreak, the tech-giant companies are now asking their employees to work remotely.

Google

Due to fears of COVID-19 spreading through large numbers of staff, Google had already announced last week that it was temporarily closing its office in Dublin and asking the 8,000 employees to work from home.  Google has more than 70 offices in 50 countries and back at the end of January, Google also temporarily closed its offices in mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan when the outbreak was still mainly based in China.

Amazon

Amazon, which restricted all nonessential travel in the U.S for employees as of last month has, after an employee tested positive for coronavirus, asked workers from its Seattle and Bellevue, Washington, offices to work from home until the end of the month.

Facebook

In addition to cancelling its annual developer conference which was due to be held on May 5 and 6 in San Jose, California (which attracted 5,000 people last year), Facebook has closed its Seattle office and asked all 5,000 of the office’s employees to work from home until the end of the month. Facebook has also closed its three London offices after an employee was diagnosed with COVID-19 and all 3,000 employees from those offices have been asked to work from home.

Slack

After an employee of Slack returned from travel and was suspected to have contracted COVID-19 (which turned out not to be the case), Slack closed its offices in San Francisco at the end of last week and a deep clean of the premises took place at the weekend.  Meanwhile, employees were encouraged to work from home.

Others

Microsoft has advised its Seattle and San Francisco employees that they can work from home until March 25th, Twitter has encouraged its employees to work from home, and Apple CEO Tim Cook has encouraged employees at several global offices to “work remotely from March 9th to 13th”.

One piece of positive news for Apple, however, is that all but four of Apple’s stores in mainland China, which is a vital market for Apple, have now reopened after being closed there during the main coronavirus outbreak.

Musk Sceptical

Some scepticism about closures and reactions to the coronavirus outbreak has been expressed by Elon Musk who tweeted that the “coronavirus panic is dumb”, a tweet that was liked by around 2 million people.

Pay

In the UK last week, prime minister Boris Johnson announced in parliament that new rules will mean that statutory sick pay (SSP) will come into force on the first day of absence in order to make those who feel they may have the virus and want to self-isolate, by staying at home rather than coming into the office and potentially infecting others.

Tech Industry, Work From Home

On the plus side, the nature of many tech industry jobs means that working from home is perhaps more possible than for many other industries, and for the UK as a whole, a 2019 CIPD Job Quality Index survey reported that 54% of the UK’s workforce works flexibly.

What Does This Mean For Your Business?

For those businesses that can’t easily allow employees to work home e.g. manufacturing, bricks and mortar retail, construction, events and entertainment, transport and logistics etc, the threat of a shutdown of work for what could be an unspecified period creates a real threat to the life of the business. The situation also presents a threat to many small businesses, sole traders, and self-employed people who may not have resources to last-out ‘lockdowns’, self-isolating, disruptions and complications caused by the spread of the coronavirus.

For companies that are forced to close offices, they now need to make sure that relevant staff can access company systems and intranets remotely, and that they have VPNs installed.

This situation is also a reminder of how business continuity planning and disaster recovery plans should have disease epidemic and pandemic scenarios built-in to them for the future, and this situation is likely to expose what work needs to be done by many companies in this areas of planning.

Gigabit, Ultrafast Broadband For One Million Households In The West Midlands

Posted on by Andy Miller

Virgin Media has announced that in the UK’s largest gigabit switch-on to date, it is launching its next-generation Gig1 Fibre Broadband services for 1 million+ homes in Birmingham, Coventry and surrounding areas across the West Midlands.

Speed

Virgin Media says that its Gig1 Fibre Broadband offers broadband speeds up to 20 times faster than the regional average with an average peak-time download speed of 1,104Mbps.

Also, the Hub 4 gigabit-capable router is Virgin’s fastest to date and can manage multiple devices at the same time around the home, thereby sharing the hyper-fast speed.  This could mean that ultra-high-definition 4K films and TV programmes, large files and 360-degree videos could be downloaded almost instantaneously, even with multiple devices using the connection at the same time.

Virgin Media says that it now has the largest gigabit-capable network in the UK which currently passes nearly 15 million UK premises.

Government

The government’s Digital Secretary, Oliver Dowden, has said that Virgin Media’s gigabit switch-on for households in the Midlands puts them “a million homes closer in delivering our plans to deliver gigabit broadband to everyone in the UK” and stresses that his government are investing £5 billion to make sure that “even the hardest to reach areas aren’t left behind”.

Electronic Communications Code Changes

In October 2019, the UK’s Electronic Communications Code was amended to help speed up fast broadband rollout across the UK. The change to the law gave broadband operators compulsory rights to install their apparatus on another person’s property, thereby getting around the problem of landlords not responding to requests for access to blocks of flats and apartments.

Full Fibre By 2025?

Back in June last year, while on the campaign to become the next Conservative party leader, Boris Johnson proposed a target of full-fibre broadband for the UK by 2025.  This target has since been seen by many not realistic because ‘full-fibre’ would mean digging up land and laying down cables, even in the most remote of homes.

What Does This Mean For Your Business?

For those in the Midlands who actually need these kinds of speeds, this service could be advantageous, and it could benefit small (home) businesses with large data requirements.

Although it is the beginning of ultra-fast broadband rollout in an area where there is a large population and is, therefore, a step in the right direction, critics say that many users may not need a connection that fast and may simply not know the speed of the connection that they already have.

Broadband and Wi-Fi are now essential services for business, and businesses would obviously welcome any improvement in broadband speeds in the UK as soon as possible as it would undoubtedly help UK companies to become more competitive and would boost the economy.

Featured Article – 5G Explained

Posted on by Andy Miller

5G (fifth generation) is essentially the next step up and the replacement for your current 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) connection.  The main benefits that this new generation of mobile broadband should bring are faster upload and download speeds and faster communication with wireless networks (latency).

Spectrum Difference

Most carriers currently use low-band spectrum or LTE, which offers great coverage area and penetration yet it is getting very crowded and peak data speeds only top out at around 100Mbps.

5G, on the other hand, offers 3 different Spectrum bands, which are:

  • Low-band spectrum or LTE/sub 1GHz spectrum.
  • Mid-band spectrum.  This gives faster coverage and better latency than low-band but isn’t as good at penetrating buildings. Mid-band spectrum will offer peak speeds up to 1Gbps.
  • High-band spectrum /  mmWave .  This spectrum can offer peak speeds up to 10 Gbps and has very low latency, although it has a low coverage area and building penetration is poor.
  • In the UK, it is likely that there will be 2 different, location-based frequencies. Sub-6GHz (gigahertz) is likely to be the first offered to users, and the (expensive) high-band spectrum / mmWave for use in densely populated areas. This could mean limitations on where an owner can use their 5G phone (when they eventually get one).

What Can We Expect From 5G?

More frequencies, faster speeds and less latency should mean big improvements in broadband (particularly commercial) and an end to slowdowns during busy times of day that have been experienced due to the overcrowding of the current limited LTE.

How Fast is Faster?

Theoretically, the maximum speed for 5G should be a hundred times faster than the current 4G technology can provide i.e. 10 gigabits per second (Gbps) rather than 100 megabits per second (Mbps).

Peak data rates with 5G could reach 20Gbps downlink and 10Gbps uplink per mobile base station (for all users in the cell), but 5G users will not actually experience this speed unless they have a dedicated connection.

Speed Record

Swedish phone company Ericsson’s research and development team have just reported setting a new maximum speed record on 5G connections, by achieving download rates of 4.3Gbps on the millimeter wave spectrum during interoperability testing using commercial products.

Finite Frequency

Also, the frequency spectrum needed for 5G is finite, and even with additional spectrum that has been auctioned to the UK’s mobile networks, more will be needed. This may mean some crowded traffic in the first wave, with things not improving until more auctions have taken place.

It is also likely that other technologies will need to be developed and trialled in order to help 5G live up to its promise. Lessons learned about 5G in other countries (e.g. China) will take time to be noted and incorporated in the UK network to help it deliver maximum benefits.

Real-Life Business Applications

Anticipated ways that 5G could improve things in our lives and for businesses include:

  • Improvements to health care.  Communications and sensor networks in health care are likely to be improved, therefore benefiting patients, doctors and other staff.
  • Improvements in the IoT as devices require fewer resources, and huge numbers of devices can connect to a single base station, making them much more efficient. IoT improvements could help with all kinds of services e.g. public services such as smart bins and smart lighting, remote healthcare services, and CCTV / surveillance services.
  • A boost to virtual and augmented reality.
  • Benefits for the growing autonomous vehicle market as 5G provides the constant, guaranteed connection that they need, enables better communication with other vehicles on the road and better provision of information to other cars about road conditions, as well as improvements in the performance of information given to  drivers and automakers.
  • Advantages for companies operating delivery drone/robot services e.g. Amazon may also get a boost from reliable and powerful 5G connections.
  • Advantages for local authorities and local infrastructure (monitoring and control for streetlights, drain/flood information) and for utility and other companies that use remote sensors.
  • The low latency of 5G offering allowing more remote device control e.g. reducing risk in hazardous environments and allowing technicians with specialised skills to control machinery from anywhere in the world.

Challenges For 5G Phone Manufacturers

For phone manufacturers, manufacturing 5G phones is a slightly different and more complex proposition. For example:

  • 5G phones are more complex e.g. they need a more complex antenna. These mean extra production costs which are likely to be passed on (with first-wave prices) to customers. It is thought that 5G compatible phones will be priced between £450-£540, with higher prices for leading brand models e.g. Samsung, Apple and Huawei.
  • The miniaturisation of more complex 5G phone presents challenges. The first generation of 5G phones may, therefore, be a little larger than a normal smartphone.
  • Launching new handsets before the new network has been rolled out could simply annoy buyers and damage brand reputation, and many customers may simply delay buying a 5G anyway until they are confident that 5G is performing well and will offer them all the benefits.
  • The first 5G smartphones need two modems, one standalone 5G modem, and one that still works on 4G and older networks (for when 4G isn’t available).

Despite the challenges, 5G phones have been available for some time now many people have been holding off from buying them until the 5G connection services become more widely available.  It is estimated that 260 million new 5G phones will be produced worldwide in 2020.

Whereas Sony has recently announced that it is launching its first 5G smartphone this month (Xperia 1 II flagship handset), which many see as a bid to prop up its struggling smartphone business, Huawei and Samsung are currently ahead in the 5G phone market.

Some commentators have noted, however, that although 5G services have now been rolled out in the UK by many of the networks and 5G phones are available, there is still some scepticism in the UK marketplace about the benefits vs costs of getting 5G phones at this early stage, and there appears to be a general feeling among consumers that 5G is not ready for mainstream adoption yet.

When?

5G has taken nearly 10 years to develop and so far in the UK, EE launched its 5G service in May 2019, Vodafone followed in July 2019, O2 launched its 5G service in October, and BT Mobile also launched its 5G service in October 2019.

Sky Mobile entered the market with its 5G service in January 2020 and although the Three network launched for home broadband in parts of London in August last year, it has not yet expanded this to its phones.

Where?

Viavi Solutions (The State of 5G Deployments report) reveals that commercial 5G networks have now been deployed in 378 cities across 34 countries, with the most cities with 5G availability in South Korea (85) and with 5G now available in 31 UK cities.

Looking Ahead

The same increased speed and lower latency of 5G that allows downloading films and games in seconds and watching them without any buffering is also likely to provide many new and innovative opportunities and could help provide a boost to new industries.

Many different types of businesses could benefit from improved connectivity with remote workers or with salespeople in remote areas.

Also, the news from an O2 forecast is that 5G could deliver time savings that could bring £6 billion a year in productivity savings in the UK, and that 5G-enabled tools and smart items could save UK householders £450 a year in food, council and fuel bills.

We will, however, have to wait for 5G networks and services to be operating fully and offering all the predicted benefits, and as well as being somewhat expensive, purchasing a 5G phone may be something that many people will still hold-off doing until they’re confident they’ll get the promised value from it.