The Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) has raised objections to a suggested 9% tax on communications services proposed by the country’s government.

In a widely expected move – and one that could benefit struggling operator Oi SA – Brazil's President Bolsonaro has signed a new law aiming to modernise the country’s telecommunications sector.

Thai regulator NBTC (National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission) has scrapped its three contracts with state-owned TOT and blocked the operator from its projects going forward.

Vodafone is using technology from Parallel Wireless to deploy macro OpenRAN pilots in Turkey and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) as part of an initiative to reduce deployment and maintenance costs for RAN platforms.

ND SatCom, a German supplier of – and integrator for – satellite communication systems and solutions, has announced the acquisition of Tecna Suarl, a satellite transmission and radio telecommunications solutions provider based in Dakar, Senegal.

Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GTT) is now offering commercial 4G services across several cities in the country.

Mobile data usage in India has increased threefold since last year, with the average monthly usage hitting 9.77GB at the end of June this year.

Over 25 million mobile phone users in South Africa now have access to mobile internet basics at no cost – and signs are that the new offering – from Vodacom – is already very popular.

Nepal Telecom is extending its 4G network services offering to around 25 cities beyond the Kathmandu Valley.

Satellite operator SES has announced the launch of Ethiosat – the first-ever dedicated Ethiopian TV platform to host Ethiopia’s most popular local channels.

Thailand’s state-owned TOT has been given 60 days to pay dtac THB317 million ($10.3 million) in overdue interconnect fees.

MainOne, which recently announced plans for a new data centre facility in Ghana, has made news again, this time in Cote d’Ivoire.

Unitel, Movicel and Angola Telecom may soon be joined by a fourth Angolan Unified Global operator.

Cable operator Seacom has told South African press that it has lit up a one terabyte fibre line connecting Johannesburg and Cape Town.

According to the Russian news agency Tass, a draft forecast plan for privatisation of blocks of shares in the biggest companies in the country includes the government cutting its stake in operator Rostelecom.

Afghanistan’s state-run operator Afghan Telecom (Aftel) is aiming to launch commercial 4G services before the end of the year.

5G trials will get underway this month in Malaysia, with the country’s government confirming that eight companies have pledged a combined initial investment of MYR116 million ($27.7 million).

The Oi saga rumbles on, with good news – potentially – for the cash-starved Brazilian telecommunications company coming from Spain.

Hard on the heels of last week’s news that MainOne is to expand its data centre brand into Accra in Ghana, US-based First Brick Holdings has announced that it is entering the Ethiopian market.

Facebook is inviting applications for the third edition of its London accelerator programme, which, for the first time, is open to start-ups from Africa.

Hughes Network Systems recently announced a high-speed satellite internet service for Mexico. Now it’s the turn of Viasat.