Weekly Brief - 12th December

Here is a round-up of some news pieces which didn’t make it into a full news article on our site this week.

CityFibre appoints Neil McRae as its new CTIO

Neil McRae, ISP veteran and current Chief Network Strategist at HPE Networking, will take on a new role as Chief Technology Information Officer. McRae has worked for a number of ISPs over the years, including Colt and C&W, but more recently was the BT Chief Architect from 2011-2023. CityFibre appears to have significant growth potential, both through continued expansion of its own network and through the possible acquisition of other altnets.

The government has no plans to ban in-contract price rises

The government has made clear its stance on in-contract price rises for broadband mobile services after a question in the House of Lords was addressed by the Under-Secretary of State for Business and Technology, Baroness Lloyd of Effra. Baroness Lloyd confirmed that there were “no plans to ban in-contract price rises“, but that the government had asked Ofcom to review whether the 30-day notice period was suitable.

Openreach enacts CPI rise for broadband products to ISPs

Openreach has announced its annual price rise for broadband products (GEA-FTTP) that ISPs pay at the wholesale level to Openreach. This new pricing takes effect from the first of April 2026 and appears to be based on the CPI rate of 3.6% for October 2025.

ITS appoints Paolo Benedetto as Chief Financial Officer

Business fibre network builder ITS has appointed Paolo Benedetto as the new CFO, who will be key in helping the business grow.

“Paolo brings a strong track record of helping businesses scale responsibly and confidently. His experience in driving high-growth, investment and financial discipline will be invaluable as ITS delivers on its own ambitious growth plans, expands its reach and works with major partners to reshape business connectivity. We’re delighted to welcome him to the team.”

Daren Baythorpe, CEO, ITS

Virgin Media black friday offers have ended

Whilst summer offers/winter sales/autumn discounts and other deals seem to come and go regularly, it’s worth remembering that black friday can bring about some good offers. Virgin Media deals have now ended, and the £200 switching credit, which they were also offering, has come to an end.

TOTSCo sets new record on Cyber Monday

TOTSCo, the messaging platform which enables One Touch Switching for broadband services, has announced that new records were set on Cyber Monday (1st December 2025) across its platform.