• New Critic of BT's Copper-sweating Ways: Tory government's broadband minister Matt Hancock has chided BT's marketing semantics regarding its copper-based technologies.
• Changing Direction Signaled by Hancock: He has signaled a change in Whitehall's stance on all things fiber, and more details about the government's plans will come during the Autumn Statement in this month.
• BT's Technology and Coverage: BT's taxpayer-funded rollout is mostly fiber-to-the-cabinet (FTTC), with a fiber-optic connection from the backhaul network to the local exchange and then to a streetside cabinet via copper wires. Currently, only 2% of premises have full fiber, while 91% have superfast broadband (24Mbps) and it's on course to reach 95% by the end of next year.
• BT's FTTP Footprint: BT reported that its "FTTP [fibre-to-the-premises] footprint" is expanding, with 320,000 properties having access via Openreach's network, though dwarfed by its FTTC footprint of over 25.5 million.
• BT's Future Plans: BT has vowed to pump fiber (including G.fast technology) to 12 million homes and businesses by 2020 and kicked off trials of Long Reach VDSL technology. But critics say it's not moving fast enough to fill broadband speed gaps.
• Government's Focus on Rural Broadband: At the Tory Party conference, prime minister Theresa May hinted at seeking reform to ensure rural dwellers get decent broadband connections.