Eurobites: Anite in OSS Tie-Up With NokiaEurobites: Anite in OSS Tie-Up With Nokia

Superfast broadband (30 Mbit/s and beyond) is on the march in France, according to the latest figures from regulator Arcep . In the second quarter of 2015, the number of superfast subscriptions increased by 280,000 to reach 3.8 million, which equates to 1.5 million additional subscriptions since the same time last year. Of these, 150,000 were signing up for speeds of 100 Mbit/s and above. In terms of fiber rollout, 4.7 million homes are now within reach of a FTTH service, which is a 39% year-on-year increase.

BT Group plc (NYSE: BT; London: BTA) is already getting set to update the industry on its progress in its trials of G.fast, the technology that allows fixed network operators to squeeze more speed out of their copper lines. The trials cover 4,000 premises in the towns of Huntingdon (in Cambridgeshire) and Gosforth (in Newcastle-upon-Tyne) and the results will inform BT's initial deployment strategy. In late September, Peter Bell, director of network portfolio at the UK operator, will deliver a keynote presentation focused on BT's G.fast developments at the Gigabit Europe conference in Munich (September 29 & 30). A few weeks later, BT executives will discuss its broadband plans and update on the G.fast trials at the Broadband World Forum in London. (See Eurobites: BT Boasts 330 Mbit/s With G.fast Field Trial.)

What does the future hold for UK value broadband provider TalkTalk ? That's the question being posed in today's Daily Telegraph, which claims that TalkTalk has been left on the sidelines of the ongoing M&A action among UK telcos, despite its owner's apparent willingness to sell. The report points out that TalkTalk's pay-TV offer is coming under pressure from the likes of BT and Sky as competition intensifies in that sector and new, no-commitment streaming options -- such as Sky's Now TV -- emerge.

— Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading