April 2029 sounds a long way off until you realise Ofcom just moved the goalposts for when Openreach can start leaning on copper pricing. Not tomorrow. Not next month. But the path is clearer now, and if you are still clinging to a part-copper line for Fire Stick nights and 4K football, this is the bit worth understanding.
On 9 September 2026, Ofcom confirmed it will let Openreach alter wholesale copper and part-copper prices from 1 April 2029 in exchanges where full fibre is available at the premises and ultrafast broadband (over 300Mbps) covers 90% of premises. That second-threshold coverage bar used to sit at effectively 100%. Reuters, ISPreview and Advanced Television all reported the same core decision within a day of each other.
What actually changed
Copper retirement on Openreach’s network still runs on two thresholds. The first one barely moved. The second one did.
- First threshold (stop-sell): Openreach can stop selling new copper lines once an exchange hits about 75% FTTP coverage and gives 12 months’ notice. That framework stays.
- Second threshold (copper charge control lifts): From 1 April 2029, Openreach can exclude a fixed 10% of premises from the ultrafast coverage calc. Hit 90% ultrafast coverage in the exchange, meet the other timing/notice rules, and the copper price controls can fall away where fibre is available.
- Before April 2029: the old rule still bites. You still need 100% ultrafast coverage for that second threshold.
Ofcom’s logic is blunt. Some exchanges will never hit true 100% because of awkward flats, wayleave fights, remote farms, or streets already covered by a rival full-fibre builder. Keeping dual copper-plus-fibre networks running forever is expensive. Ofcom says retiring the overlap frees money for network improvements and, over time, better pricing. It also says full fibre already reaches more than eight in ten UK households, and that people can usually switch to full fibre for the same money or less.
Openreach’s FTTP build sat around 23.5 million premises in mid-2026 on ISPreview’s reporting, with a December 2026 target of 25 million. Useful context. Not a reason to panic-buy anything.
The protection that actually matters
This is the line most headlines bury.
If full fibre is not available at your premises, the existing copper charge control stays. You are not meant to get stung because Openreach could not reach your street.
If the copper cap is lifted where FTTP is available, a charge control still applies to full-fibre connections. Customers stay under some form of price protection either way. Ofcom’s pitch is that ISPs should help people find a better deal, not quietly milk holdouts on old tech.
So the nudge is aimed at homes that can take fibre and simply have not moved yet. Not at the genuinely unserved.
Openreach wants it faster
Openreach is not popping champagne. In an ISPreview update on 11 September, James Tickel, Director of Regulatory Policy and Strategy, called it “a small step in the right direction” but said Ofcom had been “more cautious than necessary”. His gripe: exchange-level thresholds feel increasingly irrelevant and risk slowing migration where full fibre is already on the pole.
Openreach wants a faster path that still protects customers. Tickel said the company was encouraged that Ofcom will look at further copper deregulation ahead of the next market review. Ofcom’s own current thinking points toward fuller copper deregulation from around 2031.
Translation: April 2029 is a milestone, not the final whistle.
What UK streamers and Fire Stick households should actually do
Forget the regulatory jargon for a second. Here is the practical bit.
- Check if FTTP is available on your street now. Use your ISP’s checker or Openreach’s availability tools. If full fibre is already there, you are in the group that will eventually feel the copper pricing nudge. If it is not, the copper cap protection is designed for you.
- Do not panic before 2029. The new 90% exclusion only applies from 1 April 2029. Until then, the second threshold still wants 100% ultrafast coverage. Nobody is flipping a national copper kill switch next Tuesday.
- When fibre is available, compare ISP full-fibre deals. Same speed tiers often land at similar or lower monthly prices than ageing FTTC packages once promos and router fees are honest. If you care about 4K streams, multiple Fire Sticks, and evening congestion, FTTP is usually the quieter life.
- Watch for stop-sell letters. The first threshold (roughly 75% FTTP plus 12 months’ notice) can already freeze new copper sales in your exchange. That is an earlier signal than the 2029 pricing change.
- If you stream a lot, fibre consistency beats copper peak-time drama. I have written before about how UK ISPs handle traffic shaping and fair use. Worth a calm read if you are comparing packages: UK ISPs without throttling / fair-use guide.
Short version: availability first, calendar second, deal shopping third.
Sources worth opening
Primary reporting for this piece:
- Reuters – UK eases rules for Openreach copper switch-off from 2029
- ISPreview – Ofcom changes Openreach full fibre threshold (with Openreach comment update)
- Advanced Television – Ofcom sets out Openreach copper network retirement
I am not telling you to rip out your router tonight. I am telling you the regulatory runway just got painted. Check your street for FTTP. Keep an eye on exchange notices. When copper starts getting less comfortable after April 2029, make sure you already know which full-fibre deal you would actually take.
Copper is not dead in September 2026. Its retirement path just got a clearer date stamp.
