Dyson slams Ofcom as Three UK joins "Fix Britain's Internet" campaign
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Dyson slams Ofcom as Three UK joins "Fix Britain's Internet" campaign

Three UK has joined a campaign taking a stand on the future of Britain’s connectivity as CEO Dave Dyson launched a scathing attack on regulator Ofcom.

Dyson accused Ofcom of “failing to introduce a fair system for customers to switch their number in the UK” and called on the regulator to structurally separate BT from its infrastructure arm Openreach.

His words came as he announced Three has joined rivals including Vodafone, TalkTalk and Sky in the“Fix Britain’s Internet” campaign, which was launched alongside the Federation of Communication Services in July.

The nationwide campaign’s stated aim is to “fight for the best possible internet for Britain’s communities” and put an end to the dependency of most British broadband providers on the national network Openreach.

It was announced following Ofcom’s public consultation into the future of Openreach, where the regulator opted to split it from BT legally, but not structurally. If the proposals are approved when the consultation closes on 4 October, Openreach will be forced to create a new board and will take more control over spending plans.

Dyson claims a structural separation is the only measure that can deliver a genuinely competitive market by preventing BT from favouring its own interests.

He said: “Ofcom should play a crucial role in ensuring UK consumers fully benefit from the digital revolution yet Ofcom has allowed BT to accumulate close to 50% of the airwaves that are key to the mobile internet as well as dominating the fixed broadband market.

“Consumers want genuine choice and it is vital they make this clear to Ofcom, so it can make bold decisions on issues like Openreach, spectrum and switching in the face of huge pressure from big incumbents to keep the status quo.”



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