Eurobites: Ofcom report says traditional TV could disappear within a decade

A new report from Ofcom, the UK's communications regulator, says that the "consensus in the broadcasting industry that DTT [digital terrestrial television] should continue indefinitely has broken," raising the possibility that all TV content will move onto an IPTV platform within a decade – a shift that would mean those households refusing to get online being unable to watch TV. This is one scenario being mooted by Ofcom; another is the reduction of DTT down to a core service or "nightlight," which would see a minimum number of core channels, probably the main public service channels, being kept on life support. BT, for one, wants the transition to all-IPTV to happen as soon as possible. As one of the stakeholders consulted for this report, it told Ofcom: "Given the transition from analogue to digital broadcasting took approximately 10 years, the time to start managing this transition is now."

The proposed merger between Vodafone and Three merger has received partial clearance from the UK's Secretary of State under the terms of the National Security and Investment Act, subject to certain conditions, one being the establishment of a National Security Committee to "oversee sensitive work" that the two merging parties carry out that may impinge on the UK's national security. However, approval from the Competition and Markets Authority still stands in the way of the merger, and the CMA's recent decision to go for a "phase 2" investigation into the tie-up suggests that we are not in shoo-in territory.

Fadi Pharaon is to leave Ericsson in August after 26 years with the company, to "pursue other opportunities." Most recently, Pharaon was senior vice president and head of market area Middle East & Africa.

Vorboss, a London-based provider of business connectivity, is creating 60 new jobs to help meet growing demand for its services, increasing its account management team sevenfold in the process. Vorboss owns and runs its own network, offering speeds of 10 Gbit/s and 100 Gbit/s directly to customers, with a 25Gbit/s plan available via channel partners.

Telcom Group has been chosen by Cardiff City Council for the next phase of the Welsh capital's full-fiber rollout. The project is part of a multi-million-pound investment through the Welsh government's Local Broadband Fund. The first phase of the rollout was completed in March.