- Ofcom plans to maintain pro-competition regulation to bring faster, more reliable connections to businesses and communities across the UK to boost economic growth
- Full-fibre broadband projected to reach almost all homes and businesses by 2027 with right support
Full-fibre broadband is on course to become available to almost the entire country by 2027, Ofcom has announced, as the regulator sets out how it plans to continue to drive industry momentum for the final phase of the rollout.
Building on our cornerstone regulations introduced in 2021, we are today publishing proposals to further boost competition and investment in full-fibre connections, which – according to telecoms industry data - could reach 96% of homes and businesses within the next two years [1].
The roll out of full fibre across the UK is a British infrastructure success story. Four years ago, less than a quarter of UK homes and offices had access, and it now stands at nearly seven in 10. But we do not take this momentum for granted and today, we are setting out how we can work with the sector to finish the job.
It means that people and businesses in nearly all corners of the country will get faster, better broadband, fuelling economic growth and enabling technologies like artificial intelligence to benefit everyone.
- Natalie Black, Ofcom’s Group Director for Networks and Communications
A British infrastructure success story
Four years ago, less than a quarter of British homes and offices could access full-fibre broadband [2]. So in 2021 Ofcom introduced a new regulatory framework to supercharge the rollout.
We incentivised existing networks to invest, while making it cheaper and easier for new entrants to the market to build using Openreach’s ducts and telegraph poles. As a result the UK has seen one of the fastest rates of roll out of full-fibre broadband in Europe, with industry investment ranging between £3bn and £6bn each year.
Around seven in 10 premises (69% or 20.7m) now have access to full fibre, while coverage of gigabit-capable networks has increased from 11.6m premises (40%) in 2021 to 25m (83%) last year. For customers, more than seven in 10 premises can now choose between two or more different broadband networks.
Ofcom has collated the latest data from telecoms companies, which shows that full-fibre coverage could reach 96% by 2027 with the right regulation and support.
Regulating to further boost investment and competition
Achieving near-universal high-quality broadband will help power economic growth, unlock the potential of remote communities, enable productivity gains and support public services as they become more digital. But we recognise that further investment is still needed for the final push to ensure the UK’s full fibre future becomes a reality.
Competition from new broadband networks is developing but it will take time to become sustainable, as new entrants strive to build their customer base and achieve scale. Attracting customers to move from legacy networks to full fibre is key to the success of all providers, and take-up is steadily increasing.[3]
To help maintain industry momentum and support further rollout, Ofcom is today setting out how we propose to regulate the wholesale broadband markets from 2026-2031 as part of our Telecoms Access Review [4].
Building on the strong foundation of our 2021 regulations, our proposed framework will provide stability and clarity for the market, promote fair and sustainable competition, and ultimately help ensure the availability of full-fibre broadband across countless more UK villages, towns and cities.
Our proposals include:
- Promoting competition. Reflecting the greater-than-expected level of new infrastructure build, we now propose to identify more of the UK as having competition between broadband networks, or the potential for it. Under our plans, competitors will continue to have access to Openreach’s ducts and poles, so they can roll out their new full-fibre networks and connect customers quickly and at a lower cost than digging themselves. We also propose to strengthen our rules around Openreach’s wholesale deals and discounts, so that it cannot unfairly stifle competition.
- Fibre roll-out for rural Britain. In the most rural or remote parts of the country where investment in new networks is less commercially attractive, we will focus on promoting full fibre build by Openreach. Separately, where Openreach is unlikely to face competition, we are also proposing new backstop standards around the speed and quality of repairs and installations for full-fibre services.
- Protecting customers. While network competition develops, we will protect consumers by capping the nominal price that Openreach can charge retail providers – such as Sky or TalkTalk – for download speeds up to 80Mbit/s, rather than 40Mbit/s at present. The prices of higher-speed products will still be free from regulation, so Openreach and other providers retain the incentive to invest in better networks.
- Closing the copper network. Ofcom supports a smooth transition from old copper lines to fibre. Openreach should not have to incur unnecessary costs for running two networks at the same time, and it will also begin to close redundant telephone exchanges over the coming years.
- Going beyond 2031. We expect to continue our approach of supporting investment and competition if it is still emerging in five years’ time. If there is a need to set price controls on Openreach in the future, over time the company would have the opportunity to earn a return above the cost of its investment. After 2031, if effective competition has developed, there will be no need for Ofcom to regulate.
Next steps
Our proposals are open for consultation until 12 June 2025, and we intend to publish our decisions in March 2026 before the current rules expire at the end of that month.
END
Notes to editors:
1. Data we have collected from providers about their forecast coverage based on network deployment plans indicates that 96% of premises could have access to full-fibre broadband by 2027 if all network deployments are realised.
2. Full fibre uses fibre-optic cables all the way from the exchange to people’s homes, without using any copper lines. Full fibre is capable of delivering download speeds of over one gigabit (1,000 Mbit) per second and so is referred to as gigabit capable. As well as full fibre there are other forms of gigabit-capable broadband, such as Virgin Media’s cable network which uses a mix of technologies.
3. Across all providers, take up, where full fibre is available, stands at 35% on average.
4. As part of our review, Ofcom is also setting out how we propose to regulate the wholesale market for high-capacity connections. Businesses rely on these connections to provide their connectivity to the internet and to cloud-based services. They are also used by fixed and mobile network operators to provide connectivity as part of their own networks.