I welcome Ofcom's announcement today that they are proceeding with a formal notification to require the legal separation of Openreach from BT, after BT failed to offer voluntary proposals that address our competition concerns.
Openreach is the division of BT Group that develops and maintains the UK’s main telecoms network used by providers such as Sky, TalkTalk, Vodafone and BT’s retail business.
Ofcom is pressing ahead with its plans to improve broadband and telephone services for people across the country, pursuing better service quality and encouraging greater investment in networks. Creating a more independent Openreach – which works in the interest of all providers, not just BT – is an important part of achieving this.
Ofcom are disappointed that BT has not yet come forward with proposals that meet Ofcom's competition concerns. Some progress has been made, but this has not been enough, and action is required now to deliver better outcomes for phone and broadband users.
A more detailed update on Ofcom's plans to reform Openreach is available here.