UK telecoms regulation, Ofcom, General Conditions, numbering, spectrum, switching, enforcement
In short: DSIT set Ofcom’s regulatory direction for the next five years by designating its statement of strategic priorities for telecoms, spectrum and postal services on 27 April 2026. Under section 2B of the Communications Act 2003, Ofcom must have regard to it, and was required to say by 5 June 2026 what it proposed…
In short: FOIA section 44 keeps the disclosures regulated firms make to Ofcom in investigations and enforcement out of Freedom of Information requests. Babbs v The Information Commissioner & Ofcom [2026] UKFTT 389 (GRC) confirms that Communications Act 2003 section 393 covers voluntary as well as compulsory submissions, applies across telecoms, broadcasting and online safety,…
In short: An Ofcom information notice under section 135 or section 137A of the Communications Act 2003 carries a maximum penalty of £2 million, plus £500 per day for continuing contraventions, enforced through the section 138 contravention process. Five enforcement cases since 2021 (Colt, BT/Connected Nations, TikTok, Meta and the new BT investigation opened on…
In short: Altnet PIA, the Openreach product that lets operators build using its ducts and poles, is not new. It has been a regulated wholesale input since 2010, and the Electronic Communications Code requires operators to consider sharing apparatus more broadly. Two recent moves progress those arrangements. INCA’s Infrastructure Sharing Framework formalises operator-to-operator duct, pole…
CityFibre’s intervention in the CMA’s nexfibre/Substantial inquiry turns on local market definition. Why that question shapes Phase 2 risk and the altnet consolidation pipeline.
After a year of testing frontier AI models and legal-specific platforms, the problem was not capability but structure. A law firm cannot be built around a model. It needs a method in which AI operates under controlled, auditable workflows, with the lawyer as the final gate.
In short: Ofcom has written to UK Communications Providers on 21 April 2026 to assess cyber risks from frontier AI, citing the AI Security Institute’s evaluation of Claude Mythos Preview. The duties already sit in section 105A of the Communications Act 2003 and the Telecommunications (Security) Act 2021 framework. CPs must now document assessment of…
Ofcom’s consultation on how high-density areas are defined for Upper 6 GHz (6425-7125 MHz) subnational mobile licences closes on 6 July 2026. What MNOs and enterprise campus operators must know.
In short: Ofcom approved a second licence variation on 15 April 2026 allowing VodafoneThree to deliver direct-to-device satellite services over its 900 MHz mobile spectrum using AST SpaceMobile. It is the second UK non-terrestrial network authorisation after Virgin Media O2 in 1800 MHz. The paired handset exemption Regulations (SI 2026/660) were made on 18 June…
In short: Ofcom’s ban on existing third-party leases of Global Titles took effect on 22 April 2026, and the extension for two narrow migration journeys ended on 22 October 2026. UK mobile network operators and enterprise lessees of Global Titles, including messaging aggregators and CPaaS providers, must be able to show that their signalling path…
In short: On 22 April 2026 Ofcom’s ban on leasing Global Titles came into force for existing leases, closing the signalling route used to spoof UK mobile numbers from overseas. It is one half of an enforcement pincer. The other half is Ofcom’s new rules on mobile messaging scams, made in its statement of 15…
In short: Four UK fibre altnet M&A transactions in Q1 2026 confirm the consolidation wave. The dividing line between a strategic exit at market metrics and a distressed lender-driven exit is debt repayment capacity: whether take-up generates enough recurring revenue to service the debt incurred during the build phase. Acquirers must assess CMA jurisdiction under…