Ofcom finds even ground with FTTX update

• Ofcom has published its latest Telecoms Access Review, which updates the way in which the UK’s fixed broadband sector is regulated
• The UK regulator appears to have ‘struck the right balance’ to ensure ongoing investment and competition

UK regulator Ofcom has published its latest Telecoms Access Review, which includes “decisions for our regulation of the fixed telecoms markets that underpin broadband, mobile and business connections, for the period from April 2026 to March 2031”. 

Ofcom noted that the past five years, covered by the previous review, have witnessed significant investment in fibre broadband network infrastructure, resulting in the vast majority of the UK homes (87%) now having access to a gigabit-capable network (with full fibre coverage standing at 78% of homes, compared with just 6% in 2018). The UK has between 30 million and 31 million homes in total.

The fibre access network of BT’s quasi-autonomous wholesale fixed line division, Openreach, for example, now reaches more than 22 million properties, and it plans to extend this to 25 million homes and businesses by the end of this year. It may extend this further, to 30 million, by the end of the decade if investment conditions remain favourable.

That’s great for the UK’s digital infrastructure and economy but it also means that Openreach “still retains significant power in the market and we’re not at a point where we can remove regulation entirely,” noted Ofcom. 

“We want to see competition continue to develop and are, therefore, maintaining rules around its discounts and deals that could stifle investment and the development of sustainable competition,” added the regulator. 

For example, “Openreach’s competitors will continue to have access to its ducts and poles at fair, cost-based prices, meaning they can deploy their own networks quickly and economically across the UK,” while also capping the price that Openreach can charge for downstream broadband services of up to 80Mbit/s (compared with 40 Mbit/s in the previous set of rules).  

CityFibre, one of Openreach’s main wholesale broadband network rivals (4.5 million premises passed), appeared pleased with the outcome: “Ofcom is doubling down on its long-term strategy to promote sustainable infrastructure competition, continuing to strengthen the much-needed constraints on anti-competitive pricing from BT Openreach and recognising the importance of strong rival fibre networks to challenge the incumbents,” it noted in a statement shared with the media. 

“The Telecoms Access Review provides CityFibre with a stable regulatory framework as we scale our network and bring the benefits of genuine infrastructure competition – lower prices, faster speeds and better services – to consumers and businesses nationwide,” it added.

Rajiv Datta, CEO at another major UK wholesale fibre broadband operator, Nexfibre (5.5 million premises passed, including the assets of soon-to-be-acquired Netmonia), was also positive. “Ofcom is right to stay the course and prioritise regulatory stability. This is not the moment to deregulate the incumbent; what’s needed is steady oversight and firm enforcement of the framework already in place. The reality is that sustainable, nationwide competition to BT Openreach will only be achieved through consolidation and continued investment. The fibre market remains too fragmented to deliver this on its own. Nexfibre’s acquisition of Netomnia is an important step towards building the scale required to change that.” 

And in this analysis of Ofcom’s decisions, Matthew Howett, CEO at Assembly Research, which closely monitors UK telecom regulation, commented: “The largely indiscernible reaction from Openreach and the altnets to Ofcom’s conclusion of its Telecoms Access Review suggests the regulator has probably struck the right balance at the midway point on a 10-year journey. The bigger issue of consolidation and how that leaves the market will fall to the CMA [Competition and Markets Authority], with Ofcom right to only say it will provide input.”

- Ray Le Maistre, Editorial Director, TelecomTV