Australia, Canada and the US are the first countries to endorse the UK’s guidelines for the development of Open RAN.

Open RAN is a new form of telecoms technology which lets providers mix and match solutions from several vendors, a process which is not currently possible under existing network formats.

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) said that the move will bolster efforts to address “the world’s dependency on a small number of telecoms companies to build and maintain 5G and future networks”.

“We are investing £250 million to put the UK at the forefront of 5G innovation so more people and businesses can benefit from improved and secure connectivity,” said Julia Lopez, digital infrastructure minister. “The UK has set out a blueprint for telecoms firms across the world to design more open and secure networks."

The move comes days after the government announced new plans to beam broadband via satellites to improve internet connection across remote locations in the UK.

A trial launched last week will investigate if satellites can be used to facilitate high-speed connections to around a dozen ‘very hard to reach’ locations.

These regions make up the less than one per cent of sites which are “too difficult to upgrade via expensive physical cables”, including more extreme locations like mountainous areas or small islands.

The government also recently signed its largest contract under its £5 billion programme to roll out gigabit-capable connects to hard-to-reach areas.

The £108 million contract will see 60,000 rural homes and businesses connected in Cumbria.

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