Advanced Television

Ofcom

Channel 4 reports “resilient performance”; Ofcom approval

Channel 4 has published its annual report for 2023 – later in the year than usual due to the General Election – and provided in-year update on 2024 progress. Performance highlights include:  2023 revenues stood at £1.02 billion, topping £1 billion for the third consecutive year, representing a resilient performance in a year of significant […]

October 8, 2024

Project Kuiper wants to offer D2D connectivity

UK telecom regulator Ofcom has published in its consultation documentation that Amazon’s proposed constellation of broadband satellites (‘Project Kuiper’) is developing technical solutions for Direct-to-Device (D2D) cellular connectivity. The Ofcom consultation document is designed to assess future spectrum demand. Ofcom, in its consultation questionnaire, asked whether Kuiper “had an interest in offering D2D services or […]

October 8, 2024By Chris Forrester

CMA postpones cloud market report

The UK’s Competitions and Markets Authority (CMA) has deferred the deadline for its report into the state of the UK’s cloud infrastructure services market, suggesting that completion of its investigation and the publication of its final report will not be possible within the original reference period. On October 5th 2023, Ofcom, in exercise of its […]

September 19, 2024By Colin Mann

Ofcom enforces clearer broadband information

Consumers must be told in clear terms about the technology that underpins their broadband service when signing up to a new deal, under new Ofcom guidance for providers that comes into force today [September 16th]. Full-fibre networks are currently being deployed at pace, meaning customers are increasingly able to choose from a range of different […]

September 16, 2024

New 10-year PSB licences for ITV, Channel 5

UK broadcast regulator Ofcom has published the renewed broadcast licences for Channel 3 (ITV/STV) and Channel 5, securing public service broadcasting on these channels for a further ten years. Ofcom describes ITV, STV and Channel 5 as an important part of the PSB system, alongside the BBC, Channel 4 and S4C. “Each of the public […]

September 12, 2024By Colin Mann

Ofcom monitors Openreach independence

UK comms regulator Ofcom has published its latest monitoring report on digital infrastructure provider Openreach’s independence. Since 2018, Openreach has been legally separated from BT and Ofcom has imposed rules on the company designed to support competition and investment in faster networks. In that time, availability of full-fibre broadband in the UK has increased from […]

September 11, 2024By Colin Mann

Research: TV no longer main source for news

Television is no longer the single main source of news for UK adults, as Ofcom research shows online sites and apps are now as popular as TV news for the first time. TV has been considered the leading source of UK news since the 1960s, when widespread set ownership saw it overtake radio and newspapers. […]

September 10, 2024

Welsh creatives call for greater C4 nations requirements

Welsh TV producers trade body TAC has published its submission to Ofcom’s further consultation on the Channel 4 licence. Ofcom originally consulted on Channel 4’s 10-year licence late in 2023 and has now issued a second consultation on the idea of raising Channel 4’s Made out of England (MoE) quota, from 9 per cent to 12 per […]

September 6, 2024

Ofcom ranks cellco download speeds

File downloads take longer on O2 over 4G and 5G than on the other mobile networks, according to new research from regulator Ofcom. Ofcom’s latest Mobile Matters research report puts people’s experiences of using mobile networks across the UK under the microscope, based on crowdsourced data collected between October 2023 and March 2024. Ofcom analysis […]

September 6, 2024

Ofcom consults on Kuiper licence application

UK comms regulator Ofcom is proposing to grant an earth station network licence to Amazon Kuiper Services Europe SARL (Kuiper) for its non-geostationary orbit (NGSO) satellite system, which is also known as ‘Kuiper’. This would authorise it to deploy user terminals (the dishes and antennas used by customers to connect to an NGSO satellite system) […]

September 5, 2024By Colin Mann