Brazilian regional operator Copel Telecom has changed its name and is now called Ligga.

Could mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) finally be coming to Nigeria? It seems likely given the recent publication by the country’s telecommunications regulator, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), of what it calls a License Framework For the Establishment Of Mobile Virtual Network Operators in Nigeria.

Vodafone Oman and Ericsson have announced the deployment of a 5G indoor system at the Vodafone Experience Hub in Muscat’s Mall of Oman as well as the Vodafone Oman headquarter offices.

With the 31 March deadline for the switch-off of analogue TV (ATV) fast approaching in South Africa, public broadcaster the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) has highlighted its concerns about the potential impact of the switch-off on the public.

Vietnam has highlighted several hurdles to spreading the popularity of mobile money among mobile phone users, but operators still back it for major growth.  

Orange is planning to use satellites to plug coverage gaps in one of its African markets, with a successful trial resulting potentially in a full rollout of the technology across its footprint.

Singapore Telecom has monetised its 1.6% stake in Airtel Africa through a market placement, as part of a capital recycling strategy to focus on new growth areas.

Helios Towers has closed its acquisition of Airtel Africa’s towers in Malawi for a total of US$54.7 million.

Chile’s WOM has launched commercial 5G services across several regions of the country.

The Paratus Group, a full-service network spanning the African continent and connecting customers internationally, has announced its expansion into the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), hard on the heels of a government tender win.

Underlining the continuing growth of data centres in sub-Saharan Africa are recent announcements involving Raxio Group in Tanzania and Digital Parks Africa in South Africa.

Debuting Angolan operator Africell has ended network sharing negotiations with market leader Unitel, enabling it to finally launch full commercial services after months of delay.

Liberty Latin America has selected Matrixx Software’s Digital Commerce as part of its ongoing digital evolution in Latin America and the Caribbean.

MTN Group has announced plans to shake up its c-suite team in three African units to support a growth strategy through developing its fintech and fibre businesses.

Hard on the heels of its recent deals involving education and OTT video in the Latin American market, Spanish operator and satellite solutions and services provider Hispasat has said that it has now reached an agreement to acquire teleport operator and satellite services provider Axess Networks.

The Bhutan InfoComm and Media Authority (BICMA) is considering boosting mobile broadband capacity by freeing up the 2300MHz spectrum band for 4G.

The pan-African operator Airtel Africa, a division of India’s Bharti Airtel, is reportedly planning to raise $194 million via debt from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector lending arm of the World Bank.

Veon’s Bangladeshi subsidiary Banglalink has launched the country’s first integrated digital health platform, branded as Health Hub.

West African solar-based internet service provider Tizeti has partnered with Microsoft Corp to roll out high-speed internet infrastructure in Oyo State in southwestern Nigeria.

TIM Brasil has claimed that it is the first operator in Latin American to launch Core 5G standalone (SA), meeting the requirements of regulator Anatel and allowing it to offer networks and services using the 3.5GHz spectrum.

Algeria is in the process of clearing and optimising radio frequencies to be used for 5G as it prepares for a widespread launch of the technology “soon”, according to Telecoms Minister Karim Bibi Triki.

Could established brands be keen customers for a white-label, fully-customizable solution that would turn them into telecom carriers? OXIO, the first telecom-as-a-service platform for brands and enterprises, is hoping so after it raised $40 million in Series B funding. Among the markets it is targeting is Latin America.

Hard on the heels of its announcement that it intends to sell off its data centre business, Chilean operator Entel is back in the news with plans to sell its fibre optic network – for which expressions of interest have already apparently been received from third parties.

Hispasat, the Spanish operator and satellite solutions and services provider, has been involved in two very different deals recently, covering education and OTT video.

Global internet backbone provider Arelion has announced two deals in the Latin American market, where it has expanded its network in Mexico with help from data centre operator KIO Networks and also partnered with Gold Data, a leading Latin American network provider, to expand its reach in both Mexico and other parts of Latin America.

Nokia’s annual Mobile Broadband Index (MBiT) report for 2022 showed that India has one of the world’s highest data usage rates, with a Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 53% over the last five years.

Facebook and WhatsApp owner Meta Platforms has been referred to a tribunal by South Africa’s competition watchdog over allegations that it has exploited its market dominance.

A war of words seems to have begun between Angola’s mobile market leader Unitel and new entrant Africell Angola over infrastructure sharing.

To date, Djibouti remains one of the last bastions where the national telco has a monopoly on all telecom services, including fixed lines, mobile, internet, and broadband. The lack of competition to Djibouti Telecom for such services has meant that the market has not lived up to its potential.

Egypt’s large telecom market is supported by a population of about 103 million and benefits from effective competition in most sectors. A liberal regulatory regime allows for unified licenses which permit operators to offer fixed-line as well as mobile services.