Posted on: 3rd February 2026, by Magrathea
Welcome to the February newsletter, combining news from Magrathea and around the industry.
What’s included
- Migration to an all-IP Network (article link)
- UK Government Cyber Action Plan
- Ofcom Consultation: Plan of Work 2026/27
- Ofcom Invitation: Understanding how people and business can benefit from AI
- European Commission: The Digital Networks Act
- Reminder: Ofcom refresher messaging on silent and abandoned calls
- Reminder: No recycling of ported numbers
- Reminder: APIs & Portals
- Service spotlight: SIP resilience
- Service update: Irish 1800 and 0818 number allocations
- Business Switching & Porting
- Events and outings
- What’s on our minds for February
Migration to an all-IP Network: more than a consumer migration exercise
Tracey has written an article sharing what the migration means at a network level. If you haven’t had chance to read it yet, you can find it here.
UK Government Cyber Action Plan
Following a couple of cyber security incidents regarding government provided services there is now a government published plan with the aim of addressing its own short comings on security.
Its purpose is to strengthen cybersecurity and digital resilience across government services to protect against threats and ensure public trust.
Key Objectives
- Improve visibility of cyber risks
- Address severe, complex risks centrally
- Respond faster to cyber threats
- Increase government-wide cyber resilience
What it potentially means?
By April 2027 an operational framework will be in place and by 2029 it will be scaled and implemented so for any of our clients who supply any public sector verticals at local or national government level, they will be expected to align to the requirements of this plan. So one to watch in the coming months, full details can be found here.
Ofcom Consultation: Plan of Work 2026/27
Ofcom are obliged to consult each year on their intended focus for the next 12 months, this is how they determine how best to deliver on the government’s strategic priorities. This year we responded much the same as the previous two years.
We continue to ask for a review of porting as well as a ‘business champion’ to better inform Ofcom of issues impacting our sector.
We have also called for a numbering plan review to test if the current plan remains relevant and appropriate given how much communication styles have changed over the past decade. We will report back on the final plan when it is released.
Ofcom Invitation: Understanding how people and businesses can benefit from AI in telecoms markets
Ofcom understand that the use of AI is growing and want to explore its potential impact on residential and business customers in our industry. They are doing research but also invite comments, focusing on three key questions:
- How are AI tools being deployed and adopted across the telecoms value chain?
- What opportunities or risks does the adoption of AI tools present for telecoms customers?
- Do Ofcom need to make changes to their rules to support responsible innovation or to protect customers.
You can see the full document here and submissions are needed by 10th March 2026.
European Commission: The Digital Networks Act
For clients operating under European law you should be aware that The Digital Networks Act (DNA) proposal is now adopted by the European Commission and will go through the process to be enacted.
This Act builds on and will replace the EU Electronic Communications Code (EECC) which has set the rules for much of what we are doing in the UK today. It aims to merge a number of acts into one for simplicity and create a more harmonised legal framework for Europe.
Magrathea are engaging with process through our CCUK membership and will report challenges and concerns as things progress. More details can be found here.
Reminder: Ofcom refresher messaging on silent and abandoned calls
Ofcom issued refresher messaging late January to all providers, to ensure they are taking appropriate steps to prevent silent and abandoned calls. The full statement can be viewed here. Organisations should ensure that their practices, systems and processes are designed to prevent silent and abandoned calls. This includes ensuring Automated Calling Systems (ACS), dialler systems and call handling arrangements do not generate these types of calls. As with the Ofcom General Conditions of Entitlement document – mentioned in last month’s newsletter – It’s your responsibility to ensure you’re fully aware of how this relates to your business and how to comply.
For more information, see Ofcom’s statement on persistent misuse regarding silent and abandoned calls – plus other types of calls that may also be considered misuse.
Reminder: No recycling of ported numbers
There is the occasional case of a problem occurring whereby a range is imported for an end user, but then subsequently reused by the CP for another end user once the original end user has terminated their service.
Re-using ported in numbers in this way is prohibited under the industry porting guidelines and so you should take care to ensure this doesn’t happen on numbers that you have ported in for an end user.
Once an end user has terminated service on their numbers, one of two things should happen. If part of a range is no longer in use, the unused numbers should be quarantined as they cannot be re-used. If it’s a complete range that is no longer in use, these should be returned to the range holder – we can arrange for this to happen if you email porting@magrathea-telecom.co.uk.
Reminder: APIs & Portals
This is a reminder that almost all functions you can do via our portals can also be done via an API. If you don’t already have access and are looking to better integrate our tools into your own systems, just let our support team know and they will get you setup quickly.
Service spotlight: SIP resilience
Operating a resilient service to end-users is a key requirement so as a reminder, we offer a SIP resilience service, at no extra cost. SIP resilience allows a client to nominate multiple IP addresses for our servers to send calls to, allowing clients to build greater resilience into their call handling.
If you would like more information you can find this in the ‘Products’ section on Client Info, or details are in The Guide.
Service update: Irish 1800 and 0818 number allocations
1800 and 0818 numbers are managed by ComReg and require us to import them on behalf of clients. To date we have been able to absorb the cost of this activity however, due to wholesale cost changes we will now be introducing a fee.
New allocations of these numbers, which are imported via the Irish porting platform (PXS), will be charged the same as a number port from 1st March 2026. The current charge is £10 per number.
Business Switching & Porting
Whilst it’s clear no common business switching solution is going to be adopted with a big bang, it’s good to remind ourselves that there is a regulatory requirement for service providers to follow a gaining provider led process already.
We know that Ofcom are frustrated with the lack of industry solution in this area and that TOTSCo are working hard to deliver an option that builds on the success of the OTS model, however feedback from industry is that the cost and complexity is prohibitive.
Of course, there is an option to engage with a ‘Managed Access Provider’ (MAP) who can integrate with TOTSCo and provide you with front end tools, or you can deal direct to reduce costs. But either way, for those with minimal switching the per unit charge is a barrier.
FCS are challenging on behalf of their members so, if you are a member, we recommend you reach out to them to share your views. Meanwhile the MAPs have proposed an alternative solution and CCUK are also looking at a suitable process to share with its members.
For our existing clients we continue to provide a fully supported porting function which can be integrated in whatever solution you decide to manage going forward. If you have any queries or need to discuss integration options further, please get in touch.
Events and outings
This time of year can look quiet as there are less events to talk about, however our work behind the scenes is continuous with cross-industry working groups and much activity through our various trade association memberships.
As we look forward to spring we have Channel Live in the diary. Tracey is on a panel for the newly formatted Channel Live event to talk about fraud, the largest type of crime in the UK.
Then in April we have the CCUK fraud summit. As a reminder, this event will take place on 15th April 2026 at One Birdcage Walk. For greater insight into why this event is important, you can read CCUK’s summary of last year’s summit here . Tickets for this year’s summit are now available to book.
What’s on our minds…
2026 is well underway and there is a lot to look forward to this year. This is our 25th year of operating so as the year goes on we will be reflecting on how far things have moved and more importantly how we’re ensuring we are future proofed for the next 25 years.
Meanwhile the operational workload continues and our support team are keeping occupied with a number of routine audits and compliance checks. These tasks are not only important to ensure we are correctly advising and supporting our clients, but they also give us an opportunity to really understand what our customers need from us and help us personalise our services to them.
If you would like to jump up the list, just drop us a note and one of the team will be in touch to see how we can best support you through 2026.
Kind regards
Client Support, Magrathea
The information contained in this guidance is for your information only and is not intended to be relied on. It does not constitute legal professional advice, nor is it a substitute for you obtaining your own legal professional advice. Magrathea accepts no liability whatsoever for any errors, omissions or statements in this guidance or for any loss which may arise from your use of this guidance.