In Depth

In Depth

Telecoms networks and broadband communications

• What does 2022 have in store for hybrid working?

  The Omicron coronavirus variant has brought a return of working restrictions. Can we be optimistic about the resilience of organisations as they try to get the best out of their workforce?  Continue Reading

• A legal minefield called the metaverse

  Will the metaverse create a $1tn revenue market? Who knows? How long will it take to reach this lofty potential? Who can tell? Will people invest across this emerging landscape of speculative riches? You bet  Continue Reading

• Avoiding the two-tier workforce in the third workplace

  The new world of hybrid working is sometimes referred to as the third workplace. Yet just as firms are having to deal with the ‘great resignation’, they are in danger of unwittingly creating a two-tier workforce  Continue Reading

• The developing metaverse: Commercial realities of extended realities

  The metaverse is almost certain to become a highly competitive commercial playground, if not battlefield. It will likely not only establish highly profitable markets but also lead to high-profile failures  Continue Reading

• How enterprise 5G is playing out in Australia

  5G adoption is taking place in the industrial arena and other sectors, but telcos will need to transform themselves and overcome cost challenges to drive wider adoption  Continue Reading

• Ensuring hybrid work works in the new normal

  The hybrid business is becoming a reality, but how can firms ensure a positive employee experience and learn how to identify and manage risks?  Continue Reading

• How SASE is set to determine the future

  We take a look at the SASE environment and what challenges and benefits lie ahead in the adoption of secure access service edge  Continue Reading

• Calling on communications to address humanitarian crises

  Télécoms Sans Frontières responds to the growing number of natural disasters with advanced communications and provides protection and assistance, as well as bridging the digital divide  Continue Reading

• First priorities for the third workplace

  Almost 18 months since Covid-19 caused an almost overnight pivot to home working for many firms, hybrid working seems here to stay for knowledge workers. But the role of the 'third workspace' is not yet entirely clear  Continue Reading

• How mobile operators can cope with staycation boom and sport lockdowns lifting

  The periods of lockdown implemented in response to the Covid-19 pandemic led to new mobile network traffic patterns. How can operators adapt to shifting consumer behaviours and continue delivering high-quality experiences?  Continue Reading

• What the Telecommunications (Security) Bill means for UK industry

  The Telecommunications (Security) Bill is intended to reinforce the security of the UK telecommunications infrastructure, but what are the implications for industry?  Continue Reading

• Revolutionising communication and collaboration for the hybrid world

  As hybrid working looks set to become the norm in the post-Covid world, the lessons learned during lockdown will need to be applied. However, firms will have to overcome the limitations of current communication and collaboration tools  Continue Reading

• Getting ready for the new normal of hybrid working

  Many companies are preparing to return to offices for the first time since the UK’s first lockdown began, but the office environment will look very different to a year ago. With some workers looking forward to returning to the office and others ...  Continue Reading

• Being the brand: Virgin takes SD-WAN to the next level

  Companies are increasingly turning to software-defined wide-area networks to address the needs of remote workforces  Continue Reading

• Five not the only magic number for Three in 2021

  With a new CEO beginning to put into practice its plan, mainly a pivot towards business, mobile operator Three UK has been eyeing up new opportunities in 2021. We see what is on the agenda  Continue Reading

• Cloud RANs offer promise in APAC, but not in near future

  While there is growing interest in cloud-based radio access networks, experts argue that telcos will still cautiously approach the technology in a phased manner  Continue Reading

• The UK switches on to mobile contact tracing

  Long overdue and attracting descriptions ranging from ‘essential’ to ‘cherry on the cake’, the UK’s contact-tracing app is now widely available – but where will further developments lead?  Continue Reading

• Getting infrastructures in shape for the big return to work

  As firms get used to a partial return to the workplace, what will this mean for those that have been charged with keeping business networks up and running during lockdown?  Continue Reading

• Constructing the future for engineering – finding the right model where one size does not fit all

  Design and engineering has rapidly evolved to be all about interconnected devices. We see how one of the leading manufacturing software suppliers is meeting the challenge  Continue Reading

• 2B or not 2C? That is the question for 5G

  A flurry of 5G network launches in all major markets in Asia, North America and Europe, focused on consumer applications and services. This looks set to change in 2020 as the operators get down to business  Continue Reading

• Unified communications: The key to prospering in the new working reality of Covid-19

  Covid-19 lockdowns are causing a collective rethink in the way companies operate, with unified communications transformed from a nice-to-have to a business essential as remote working becomes the new normal  Continue Reading

• Australian firms soldier on amid Covid-19 outbreak

  From the largest financial institutions to small companies, Aussie firms have been dialling up their use of technology tools to keep their businesses humming during the coronavirus pandemic  Continue Reading

• Benefits of branching out into SD-WAN

  There is much more to SD-WAN than just cheaper branch office connectivity, so IT buyers have a lot to consider  Continue Reading

• Coronavirus: How to implement safe and secure remote working

  Find out what CIOs and CISOs need to know to enable their end-users to work remotely and stay secure during the Covid-19 coronavirus crisis, and learn how users can help themselves  Continue Reading

• Coronavirus: Can the networks take the strain?

  It was predicted that the mass roll-out of computer networks would mean at some point that there was no difference between work and home as a working location. These assumptions are about to be tested to the full  Continue Reading

• Malaysia’s digital transformation efforts progress

  Malaysian enterprises are taking steps to modernise their infrastructure, but many are still grappling with the lack of niche IT skills in key emerging technologies such as the internet of things  Continue Reading

• The new reality of 5G

  5G’s development has been driven by a variety of use cases leading to a multi-service capability – a network of networks. But what is the reality of this, and how is it expected to change as we move forward?  Continue Reading

• Taking business transformation and disruption to the Extreme

  Supporting business transformation and disruption seem to be on every supplier’s lips these days, but not many can say they are where they are today precisely because of their own business transformation and disruption. Extreme Networks can  Continue Reading

• Building a 5G city: Bristol’s valuable lessons for the UK’s digital future

  West of England Combined Authority is taking part in DCMS’s 5G Testbeds and Trials programme, exploring applications for tourism and entertainment. We find out how it is applying its learnings to life in Bristol and Bath  Continue Reading

• Private 5G networks: Are they the right choice for you?

  The concept of dedicated private mobile networks for large enterprises is not a new one, but with the advent of ultrafast 5G networks, they are starting to attract more interest  Continue Reading

• What 5G applications will transform your business?

  The UK’s mobile network operators have started work on their 5G roll-outs, but what applications are most likely to gain enterprise traction for the new standard?  Continue Reading

• Securing your mobile estate – best practice for CIOs

  The prevalence of mobile devices in every part of daily life is shaping how enterprises make choices about software and network infrastructure, but how do businesses go about securing these vast new endpoint estates?  Continue Reading

• Mobile phones and health: is 5G being rolled out too fast?

  European countries are rolling out 5G mobile communications at breakneck speed as they seek to gain a competitive edge over the US and Asia. But some scientists have raised questions about the effects of 5G mobile phone radiation on public health ...  Continue Reading

• 5G in ASEAN still a way off despite optimism

  Spectrum is yet to be assigned in many ASEAN nations, while applications and services are still being tested in pilot projects across the region  Continue Reading

• How Europe’s largest datacentre is helping to expand broadband access

  NGD, the operator of the largest datacentre in Europe, is playing an unlikely role in helping expand access to full-fibre broadband in south Wales. We find out how, and why  Continue Reading

• How APAC enterprises and telcos are preparing for 5G

  From Singapore to Tokyo, enterprises and mobile operators across Asia have been readying themselves for the next big leap in mobile connectivity that promises to speed up business operations and improve lives  Continue Reading

• How Australian enterprises are unifying business communications

  Business leaders and experts in rolling out unified communications tools in Australia stress the importance of change management and employee consultation to avoid digital white elephants  Continue Reading

• How to find the right mobility strategy for your SME

  Small businesses still need a strategy to make the most of mobility, so what should business owners look out for?  Continue Reading

• ASEAN’s growing appetite for unified communications

  Led by enterprises in Singapore and Malaysia, adoption of unified communications tools is expected to grow with the surge in demand for cloud-based and hosted offerings  Continue Reading

• The walking dead: Is there life left in 4G mobile networks?

  These days, 5G grabs all the hype and headlines, but 4G still has plenty more to give. It’s a good thing, too, as operators have no choice but to sweat their assets  Continue Reading

• How Turkish mobile operators are helping the vast Syrian refugee population to help themselves

  Turkish mobile network operators are designing services that will help Syrian refugees make their lives in the country  Continue Reading

• ASEAN enterprises readying networks for the cloud era

  Enterprise networks are being strained by greater use of cloud computing, leading more ASEAN organisations to turn to SD-WAN to reduce network costs and complexity  Continue Reading

• The future of 5G mobile networks: support and development

  In the second part of our exploration of the 5G market, we find out how UK plc is innovating around 5G mobile networks, and ask what lies in store at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona  Continue Reading

• The great 5G bake-off: where are we and where are we going?

  With Mobile World Congress 2018 a week away, early 5G network standards formalised and tests up and running at the Winter Olympics, we assess the state of 5G, and what's needed to kick-start commercial roll-outs  Continue Reading

• UK sale of surveillance equipment to Macedonia raises questions over export licence policy

  The UK approved an export licence for the sale of surveillance equipment to Macedonia – while the country was engaged in an illegal surveillance programme against its citizens. A senior minister was consulted on the decision  Continue Reading

• Hard work, big prize: Bristol is shaping what it means to be a smart city

  Two-and-a-half years after the ambitious Bristol is Open smart city project launched, we return to the West Country to explore how things are progressing, and find out what has been learned  Continue Reading

• Where the device hits the network – a mobile device management update

  As business becomes increasingly mobile, we look at the latest trends in mobile device management to give businesses the edge  Continue Reading

• What is intent-based networking, and what can it do for your business?

  Beyond the marketing hype, does intent-based networking mean anything, and can it improve how your infrastructure runs?  Continue Reading

• Can fixed wireless access fix business connectivity problems?

  Fixed wireless access is being touted as a panacea for poor network connectivity, but is it a viable solution, and what are the benefits for businesses?  Continue Reading

• MyRepublic sharpens competitive edge with open source

  Singaporean internet service provider has disrupted broadband markets, thanks to the agility and speed afforded by open source technologies  Continue Reading

• Bring the cup home: mobile holds key to UK’s America’s Cup challenge

  Computer Weekly visited the Land Rover BAR sailing team in Portsmouth to find out how mobile innovation may help bring the America’s Cup back to the UK for the first time since 1851  Continue Reading

• Enterprise wireless: trends and developments in 2017

  What will be the main developments in wireless this year and what challenges will this bring to enterprises?  Continue Reading

• Inside the well-planned metro network: how CityFibre does it

  Computer Weekly met metro network builder CityFibre to find out why, and how, the organisation believes it can mount a credible challenge to Openreach’s dominance of wholesale fibre  Continue Reading

• At IBM’s Watson lab, customers marry the power of AI with the IoT

  IBM formally inaugurated its Watson Internet of Things headquarters in Munich, Germany in February, and Computer Weekly went to meet the customers and partners who are using Watson AI to deliver on the promise of the IoT  Continue Reading

• Cutting the cable: why industry is turning to wireless

  Wireless networking technology is heading out of the office and the living room, and on to the factory floor. We explore the trend  Continue Reading

• Computer Weekly at the movies: Werner Herzog takes on the internet

  Computer Weekly sat down to watch Werner Herzog’s latest documentary on the internet, Lo and Behold: Reveries of the Connected World  Continue Reading

• CIO Interview: Graeme Hackland, Williams Martini Racing

  Williams Martini Racing CIO Graeme Hackland discusses network infrastructure, data analytics and the future for wearable tech and augmented reality in Formula 1 motor racing  Continue Reading

• [email protected]: The story of the internet, and how it changed the world

  Computer Weekly’s journey through 50 years of innovation in technology continues with a look back at the history of the internet and the huge changes it has brought to society  Continue Reading

• Executive interview: Phil Smith, UKI chief executive, Cisco

  Cisco’s Phil Smith discusses digitisation, its impact on national productivity, and how enterprises can apply the lessons lived and learned by tech companies to their own strategy  Continue Reading

• My first IoT project: A guide for businesses

  We’ve all had a good giggle about having our fridges hacked – but now it’s time to get real. What are the first steps enterprises should take when implementing their first internet of things project?  Continue Reading

• Skype for Business: One year on, so what are the results?

  It’s now a year since Microsoft transitioned the Lync unified communications suite into Skype for Business, but has the enterprise embraced or shunned it?  Continue Reading

• UK startups seek to lead the world in smart city technologies

  Government trade mission to south-east Asia helps UK startups to target the region’s growing smart city projects  Continue Reading

• [email protected]: How networking became the core of IT

  Compared with the network, Computer Weekly is but a sprightly youngster. We take a look back not at just 50, but 200 years of British innovation in communications technology  Continue Reading

• Why are telcos so readily adopting open standards for NFV?

  Communications services providers are lining up to make their future virtualised networks as open as possible. What’s the attraction?  Continue Reading

• [email protected]: From Captain Kirk to 5G – 50 years of mobile

  As Computer Weekly prepares to celebrate the 50th anniversary of our first edition in 1966, we look back at 50 years of British innovation and development in mobile networking  Continue Reading

• Three steps towards a hierarchy of needs for smart cities

  Smart cities face challenges around network connectivity, standardisation and data governance, say IoT experts, and these needs must be met for them to flourish  Continue Reading

• IT to the rescue: How technology helps the UK deal with flooding

  Mobile technology, digital mapping and geographical information systems all played a part in ensuring public safety during this winter’s floods in the UK  Continue Reading

• Interview: How John Deere uses connectivity to make farms more efficient

  After pioneering the use of automated vehicle technology 15 years ago, farm equipment supplier John Deere is now going further, with its sights set on efficiency and sustainability, says sales VP Christoph Wigger  Continue Reading

• Inclusive Technology Prize showcases apps and services for the disabled

  The government’s Inclusive Technology Prize is using innovative IT to address some of the day-to-day challenges faced by disabled people in Britain  Continue Reading

• Roaming charges: How will changes in mobile legislation affect business in Europe?

  With mobile roaming charges on the way out across the European Union, what are the implications for businesses and business travellers?  Continue Reading

• Computer Weekly European User Awards 2015: Best Networking Project winner

  Construction company Osborne needs reliable connectivity on its building sites, which are often remote. This year's Networking Project of the Year goes to Osborne for the way it overcame the challenges of achieving this  Continue Reading

• Risky and untested: What went wrong with the ESN procurement?

  In his first major interview since walking away from the Emergency Services Network procurement, Airwave COO John Lewis reveals why his company could take no further part in the process, and discusses the future of emergency services communications  Continue Reading

• How technology is helping deliver aid to Syrian refugees in the Middle East

  The Syrian refugee crisis has engulfed the Middle East, but technology is proving to be an essential tool to help aid organisations support displaced people  Continue Reading

• Fibre networks help Amsterdam to modernise historic canal infrastructure

  Waternet is using dark fibre networks to create an integrated smart canal and road system in the city of Amsterdam  Continue Reading

• Journey to the West: Will Huawei make its services ambitions stick?

  As network hardware supplier Huawei enters the services game, we consider if the West is ready to buy IT services from China  Continue Reading

• General election 2015: The state of broadband and the future of policy

  With the 2015 election less than a month away, broadband stakeholders set out their manifesto and hopes for broadband policy  Continue Reading

• Broadband is a question of economics and risk, says BT’s Bill Murphy

  Bill Murphy, managing director of next-generation access at BT, speaks about BDUK and BT’s involvement in rural broadband  Continue Reading

• Wi-Fi in the sky: The good, the bad and the ugly

  With in-flight internet options spreading around the world, which services should discerning business travellers try, and which should they avoid?  Continue Reading

• Five tech trends that will change the mobile world in the next 10 years

  Computer scientist Kevin Curran discusses some of the trends that will shape the future of mobile at Mobile World Congress 2015  Continue Reading

• The technology opportunity for UK shopping centres

  While retailers are setting the innovation barrier high, how are shopping centres using technology to improve their customer offerings?  Continue Reading

• Interview: Fujitsu CTO Joseph Reger on human-centric innovation

  Joseph Reger, Fujitsu's EMEIA CTO, discusses human-centric innovation and the need for responsible attitudes to technology  Continue Reading

• Put your business users first when building your global network

  A guide for commissioning best-fit network services  Continue Reading

• How the development of standards will affect the internet of things

  As the internet of things (IoT) grows, so will the number of applications developed to control internet-connected devices and objects  Continue Reading

• Interview: Ed Vaizey MP on broadband, mobile networks and the internet of things

  Digital economy minister Ed Vaizey MP reflects on the next steps for the BDUK project and talks mobile roll-out, 5G and the internet of things (IoT)  Continue Reading

• Interview: Ed Vaizey MP talks digital economy and digital skills

  Minister for the digital economy Ed Vaizey discusses his new role and the future of digital policy  Continue Reading

• Meet the men and women who keep AT&T;'s network running

  Somewhere in the UK, a crack team sits waiting to spring into action to support, protect and repair AT&T;’s global network  Continue Reading

• How the internet of things could transform Britain’s railways

  Network Rail Telecom and supplier partner Cisco reveal how they are working together to digitise the national railway infrastructure  Continue Reading

• CIO Interview: Gary Steen, CTO, TalkTalk

  Gary Steen, CTO at ISP TalkTalk, says transforming internal IT will help him meet growing demands for superfast data connectivity  Continue Reading

• Rural communities take the initiative on superfast broadband

  Amidst the furore over the deployment of superfast broadband in remote rural areas, communities and businesses in Oxfordshire took action  Continue Reading

• Aruba Airheads: Generation mobile forces Wi-Fi rethink

  Aruba Networks tells customers to rethink their Wi-Fi deployments to meet the expectations of a cohort of workers called GenMobile  Continue Reading

• No more email? Why companies are turning to collaboration technology

  Collaboration technologies are helping companies improve their employees' work-life balance  Continue Reading

• No IPv6 explosion, but a ticking bomb

  IPv6 could be a ticking security time bomb in Belgium if businesses fail to respond to the fact that adoption is gaining momentum fast  Continue Reading

• Next generation hotspots: The future of Wi-Fi?

  A new solution for connecting to wireless hotspots could change the user experience forever. But as Steve Evans points out, there will need to be more collaboration in the telecoms and networking industries before we start to reap the benefits.  Continue Reading

• The technology behind Birmingham NEC

  The NEC exhibition centre's IT director reveals how a £40m investment from Birmingham City Council has been spent  Continue Reading

• Pearson integrates Google Enterprise and Office 365

  Publisher Pearson – which owns the Financial Times – uses cloud-based collaboration using Google and Microsoft products  Continue Reading

• Interview: Ed Vaizey MP – part two: on BT and 4G

  In part 2 of our interview with the communications minister, we discuss alleged favouritism for BT and George Osborne’s mixed up spectrum figures  Continue Reading

• Interview: Ed Vaizey MP – part one: on broadband policy

  In part 1 of our interview with Ed Vaizey, we talk about slow take-up of superfast broadband and controversial funding numbers  Continue Reading

• Can mobile networks learn to share?

  Mobile operators are not renowned for playing nicely with one another, but sharing networks and backhaul may be the only option for survival  Continue Reading

• The IT challenges of building Heathrow's Terminal 2

  Neil Clark, CIO of Heathrow, reveals the IT challenges behind the airport's futuristic Terminal 2 building  Continue Reading

• Reviving Cornwall’s fortunes

  The Superfast Cornwall project has brought high-speed broadband to homes and businesses across the county  Continue Reading