\tNick Jeffery, CEO of Vodafone UK, said it is \u201clamentable\u201d the country\u2019s fibre penetration rates are so low, as he also bemoaned the legal battles which threaten to delay availability of 5G.<\/p>\n
5G woes
\nThe executive reiterated Vodafone UK supports recommendations made by Ofcom for the issue of frequencies which could be used for 5G deployments, in the face of legal challenges from rivals BT\/EE and 3 UK [1].<\/p>\n
Describing the technology as \u201can important national infrastructure that underpins future growth, and is important in a post-Brexit world, and all those other things,\u201d he said \u201cany operator that is delaying either through slightly selfish objectives, or wider concerns that delay the implementation of 5G anyway, is bad for the country.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAll companies should be able to bid for the spectrum they need to run their business. Those that can afford it should buy it, those that can\u2019t, shouldn\u2019t,\u201d Jeffery said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI understand their positions, of course. It doesn\u2019t mean I agree with them. At the end of the day, whether we agree or not, the thing that really matters is that the UK becomes a leader in next-generation networks,\u201d he argued.<\/p>\n
Vodafone has already applied for licences for 5G tests and \u201cthe quicker we can get some of those trials up and running, experiment with 5G in the real world, the better\u201d.<\/p>\n
Fibre challenges
\nIn a briefing in London this week, the executive said \u201cthere must be something structurally wrong with the way the UK\u2019s communications industry is set up\u201d when it comes to fibre availability, because \u201cthere are willing investors all over the world; the technology is there; yet investment isn\u2019t happening here\u201d.<\/p>\n
He pointed to Vodafone\u2019s other international operations as an indicator of its approach.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you look at what Vodafone is actually doing in almost all of the other countries we operate in in Europe, we are a committed investor and we are building fibre. And there are a number of ways we can do it: build it ourselves, working with partners, working with energy companies, and so on,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou kind of have to ask yourself why that is not happening in the UK. And the answer is that we haven\u2019t got the right regulatory, financial, operational, infrastructure and cost base to make that attractive.\u201d<\/p>\n
While stating Vodafone is \u201cnot asking for handouts or subsidies,\u201d he did note there are some steps which could be taken to ease the journey: \u201cWhat we would want is access to BT\u2019s ducts, poles and fibre infrastructure. We\u2019d want access to dark fibre at a competitive rate, as enablers for helping us build; or co-build, or whatever; construct the fibre infrastructure this country needs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brexit
\nAside from wider issues surrounding the economy and customer confidence, Jeffery said there are \u201cthree things that we are focused on in terms of Brexit\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe free movement of capital, because most of Vodafone\u2019s income is euro denominated; the free movement of people, because we are an international business and need our talent to move around the world; and maintaining data equivalency, because a lot of Vodafone is structured with data centres offshore, and we want to make sure we are still able to move data around in the way we do today.\u201d<\/p>\n
Changes in the way data is handled between Vodafone UK and Vodafone Group would \u201clead to unnecessary costs in our business, which inevitably needs to be paid for somehow,\u201d he said: \u201cAt the moment, our expectation is that we will use the same data movement flows we use today.\u201d<\/p>\n
With charges for international roaming [2] having recently been removed following regulatory intervention from EU authorities, Jeffery said Vodafone\u2019s presence both in the UK and continental Europe means charges will not return: \u201cIt\u2019s an internal thing for us more than an external one,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n[1] https:\/\/www.mobileworldlive.com\/featured-content\/home-banner\/ofcom-chief-says-3-uk-ee-legal-action-will-delay-5g\/
\n[2] https:\/\/www.mobileworldlive.com\/featured-content\/top-three\/ec-hails-benefits-of-abolishing-roaming-fees\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Nick Jeffery, CEO of Vodafone UK, said it is “lamentable” the country’s fibre penetration rates …<\/p>\n
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