This Industry Viewpoint was authored by Donny Chong, Product & Marketing Director, Nexusguard 

Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks pose a significant threat to the digital landscape, causing major disruptions across various sectors. Internet Service Providers (ISPs) play a crucial role in maintaining a stable and secure internet ecosystem but often bear the brunt of DDoS attacks, resulting in significant downtime for their customers. This article explores the reasons why DDoS attacks on ISPs cause major downtime and discusses the important role ISPs should play in combating these attacks. Furthermore, it presents arguments for and against ISP responsibility in mitigating DDoS attacks. … [visit site to read more]

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News 

The UK government has revealed that Scotland will receive a £450 million share of the £5 billion Project Gigabit rollout scheme 

Project Gigabit is the UK government’s commitment to deliver fast and reliable broadband to the entire UK.  It targets homes and businesses that are not included in broadband suppliers’ plans, reaching parts of the UK that might otherwise miss out on getting the digital connectivity they need. The scheme’s primary goal is to level up the most rural areas in the country, helping to bridge the digital divide. 

More specifically, the project aims deliver download speeds of at least 1Gbps and upload speeds of at least 200Mbps to 85% or more of UK premises by the end of 2025 and aiming for nationwide (99%) coverage by 2030. 

Currently, 74% of premises in Scotland can already access a gigabit-capable broadband network, but this still leaves roughly half a million homes waiting for a broadband upgrade.  

The Scottish government is also investing £600 million in its Reaching 100% Programme (R100), which itself has been supported by £49.5 million of Project Gigabit funding.  The scheme aims to connect the most rural parts of the country. To date, the project has provided 42,000 premises with fibre-to-the-premise coverage, and aims for another 114,000 premises by 2028 

“While R100 is administered by the Scottish Government, Project Gigabit, although funded from the UK Government, is delivered through the Scottish Government,” said Sir John Whittingdale, the UK Minister for Digital Infrastructure in a parliamentary debate yesterday. 

“It has taken longer than we would have liked. However, I am in touch with my opposite number in the Scottish Government and can tell the House that, of the £5 billion that the Government are putting into Project Gigabit, an estimated £450 million is to go to the Scottish Government, and we currently have a market engagement exercise under way.” 

Scotland has been fighting to make sure it received its fair share of Project Gigabit funding for some time, with Scottish Innovation Minister Richard Lochhead calling on the UK government to deliver “sufficient levels of funding” to Scotland earlier this year.  

In related news, The Building Digital UK (BDUK) agency has released their end of year 2023 update on the progress of Project Gigabit. This year, BDUK has surpassed its target by passing 162,600 rural homes and businesses with gigabit-capable broadband. The running total of premises passed in the UK now stands at 900,000. Of this total, 146,000 (90%) of the premises passed in 2022 to 2023 were in areas classified as “rural”. There have been 16 contracts signed so far, representing around £666 million in public investment and covering over 400,000 premises this year. 

In total, 39 Project Gigabit contracts have been signed since the project’s launch. 

Want to keep up with all the action in the UK telecoms market? Join the operators in discussion at next year’s Connected North conference

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News

The fibre network operator says the funds will be used to help it reach its goal of passing one million homes with fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) by 2027

Today, UK altnet Gigaclear has announced it has agreed £1.5 billion in new debt financing, with the funds coming from multiple sources, including ABN Amro Bank NV, Credit Industriel et Commercial SA, HSBC Holdings Plc, Lloyds Banking Group Plc, and NatWest Group Plc.

The credit line will see Gigaclear receive an initial £1 billion, with the option to increase this loan by a further £500 million.

Gigaclear claims to be the UK’s largest rural fibre provider, having already deployed its fibre network to around half a million premises in 24 counties.

The operator is aiming to increase this total to 1 million homes by 2027, a feat that would position it as one of the largest networks in the country.

Achieving this ambitious goal, however, will be easier said than done in today’s economic climate. With interest rates soaring, altnets around the country are being forced to put the brakes on their rollout plans, while others are exploring their strategic options. The industry’s largest operator, BT, has long claimed that the UK’s bustling altnet landscape is overcrowded and will not be sustainable. Consolidation is to be expected in 2024, with the broadband industry already seeing some movement in this regard.

For Gigaclear, however, sourcing funding appears to be no issue. Earlier this summer, Gigaclear announced an equity investment of £420 million from Equitix. Combined with this week’s new funding, this brings Gigaclear’s total funds raised this year to almost £2 billion.

“By securing this debt funding, we’ve shown that despite high levels of volatility in the sector there remains an appetite among lenders to support fibre operators that can demonstrate a robust business model. Not only is it an endorsement of Gigaclear’s mission to take its full fibre broadband to underserved, rural communities across England but it is also reflection of the great things being achieved by the team at Gigaclear,” said Gigaclear CEO, Gareth Williams.

“Gigaclear’s resolve to reach more than one million premises by 2027 is supported by this announcement, which is nothing less than a vote of confidence in us successfully achieving our goal.”

What will the altnet landscape look like in 2024? Join the industry in discussion at the Connected North conference live in Manchester

Also in the news:
It’s time for action: COP28 and keeping 1.5°C alive
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News 

According to three unnamed sources in a Reuters report, TIM’s largest shareholder Vivendi have filed a legal complaint to a Milan court against TIM’s decision to sell its domestic fixed-line network to US firm KKR  

After entering into negotiations in June, the TIM and KKR confirmed the deal, worth roughly €18.8 billion, last month. 

Vivendi has repeated made its opposition to this deal clear, stating in a press release that “shareholders’ rights have been trampled on” and the company will use any legal means at its disposal to challenge this decision and protect its rights and those of all shareholders. 

According to the report, Vivendi has asked the court to declare the approval of the sale by TIM’s board as invalid, as it argues that TIM’s assets are worth around €30 billion and are therefore being undervalued by KKR.   

This news comes as Vivendi is also exploring the possibility of splitting up its own business into three distinct entities, each of which would be separately listed on the stock market. The company board gave approval of this exploration this week, citing the search for improved valuation. 

“Since the distribution and listing of Universal Music Group in 2021, Vivendi has endured a significantly high conglomerate discount, substantially reducing its valuation and thereby limiting its ability to carry out external growth transactions for its subsidiaries,” explained the company in a statement. 

The split will be built around French TV firm Canal+, advertising group Havas, and a newly formed investment company.  

However, exploration of this possibility is set to take some time, with Vivendi highlighting that “this project will have to prove its added value for all stakeholders and include an analysis of the tax consequences of the various contemplated operations,”. 

The possibility of the company restructuring has excited the stock market, with company shares jumping more than 10% on today’s news. 

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Also in the news:
It’s time for action: COP28 and keeping 1.5°C alive
Mitratel snaps up 803 telecoms towers for $113m
Sateliot partners with t42 to sign 5G IoT Maritime deal

Keep up-to-date with all the latest news, articles, event and product updates posted on Developing Telecoms.
Subscribe to our FREE weekly email newsletters for the latest telecom info in developing and emerging markets globally.

This Industry Viewpoint was authored by Gary Marks, President, Opengear

It’s no secret that a massive portion of the US’s aging population will retire soon. Among these retirees is a significant number of network professionals. According to new research conducted by Censuswide on behalf of a leading provider of secure Out of Band management solutions, 86% of US-based CIOs surveyed predict that a minimum of 25% of their network engineers will retire in the next five years. This study asked separate but … [visit site to read more]

Germany-based LEO satellite operator Rivada Space Networks has announced a partnership with Thai Aerospace Industries (TAI) to provide connectivity services to commercial, military and general aviation sectors inside and outside Thailand.

Under the deal, TAI’s Government and Defense divisions will use Rivada’s “OuterNET” LEOsat constellation to improve connectivity across its airfields with higher bandwidth and improved security for resilient and more reliable communications services.

Rivada has been touting the OuterNET’s security features enabled by its constellation’s mesh architecture that uses optical lasers to interconnect the satellites, each of which has onboard routing and switching capabilities.

TAI, which is also an independent provider of aviation services in Southeast Asia, will use the OuterNET network for better control and management of its aviation servicing centre.

Rivada said the partnership could also potentially bolster TAI’s ambitions to expand into the enterprise sector via its existing relationships with Thai telecoms companies, as it could also use the LEOsat network to offer enterprise-grade connectivity anywhere on Earth.

TAI CEO Chris Atswalongkorn said the OuterNET “effectively serves as a private network in space, capable of routing traffic at gigabit speeds from one satellite to another with no need for a gateway on earth. We see this as the key infrastructure for the development of the telecom sector in Thailand and beyond.”

Rivada currently has no satellites in orbit. Its first satellite launch is set for 2025, with global service starting in 2026. It has signed a US$2.4 billion deal with Terran Orbital to build the LEOsats, and contracted SpaceX for launch services.

Under a waiver issued by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) in July this year, Rivada must have 50% of its constellation in orbit by September 2026 or risk forfeiting its Ka-band sepctrum.

Last week’s news that tower company IHS had boosted its offer to MTN Nigeria for the lease of 2,500 tower sites in an apparent attempt to get it to reconsider its contract with American Tower Corporation has received short shrift from the operator.

MTN Nigeria has stated that there is no going back on its decision. ATC outbid competitors, including IHS, to clinch the contract after the present agreement expires in 2024 and 2025.

Despite media reports that MTN was reconsidering its choice, the operator stated earlier this week that it has not received a revised offer from IHS and that any reports that it is now reconsidering its decision to award the 2,500 tower sites contract to ATC are inaccurate.

Quoted by the IT Web Africa news service Tobechukwu Okigbo, chief corporate services, MTN Nigeria, described the agreement with ATC over the 2,500 sites as final, adding: “Our preference is always for bilateral renewal, subject to competitive pricing and terms. In this instance the ATC proposal was superior.”

MTN says IT plans to continue to engage with IHS Towers on further opportunities that arise, though there will also be participation from other parties.

Okigbo referred to IHS arguments that switching partners might lead to network disruption as “factually incorrect, and misleading”. He also insisted that the partnership with ATC aligns with the company’s focus on expense efficiencies, commitment to sustainability and environmental responsibility.