Having deactivated all of the network equipment that it operated outside of Kiev, Ukrtelecom’s mobile unit TriMob is now auctioning its disused infrastructure.

Russia’s Rostelecom is acquiring the 55% stake in Tele2 Russia that it did not already hold, meaning that it now holds 100% of shares in the unit.

Ukrtelecom will deploy a rural GPON fibre optic network via a new agreement with Iskratel and SID Bank of Slovenia.

Russia’s spectrum authority has granted MegaFon and Rostelecom access to 5G-capable spectrum in order to conduct joint trials of the technology.

Ukraine’s regulator has issued the country’s three major players with 900MHz licences.

Sigfox Russia is partnering with venture capital firm Energo Capital to launch its Sigfox 0G IoT network.

Vodafone Ukraine has extended its branding and access partnership with Vodafone Group.

Tele2 has completed the sale of its Croatian unit to the United Group for EUR220 million (USD241 million).

Mexican cable operator Megacable is deploying fibre GPON infrastructure across its footprint via a US$400 million investment.

Recent 5G coverage has reported launch activity in Thailand, Tajikistan and Croatia, though what constitutes a launch may be up for debate; a couple of 5G debuts are concentrated in a relatively small area.

North Macedonian regulator the Agency for Electronic Communications (AEK) has extended the deadline for comments on the award of 5G frequencies in the country.

Intracom Telecom has announced the delivery of its NGINius-Charging solution to a major Greek operator, member of a global Tier-1 Group.

Telia has fully divested all of its Eurasian units after finalising the sale of its Moldovan unit Moldcell to CG Cell Technologies for $31.5 million.

Polish operator Polkomtel – branded as Plus - has chosen Ericsson to supply equipment for its 5G Radio Access Network.

Telekom Slovenije and Iskratel are partnering to develop 5G networking solutions.

Ukraine is allowing the repurposing of 800MHz and 900MHz spectrum to facilitate deployments of 4G/LTE mobile networks.

Orange’s local unit in Slovakia, Orange Slovensko, has selected Nokia to prepare its Radio Access Network for 5G.

5G continues to make news as five Thai operators submit bids for spectrum and a Polish operator claims it is ready to commercialise 5G.

Mavenir has deployed its cloud-native, converged IMS solution for both T-Mobile Czech Republic (TMCZ) and Slovak Telekom (ST).

Tele2 has been informed by Croatia’s competition authority that its proposed sale of its local unit will receive formal clearance within the next month.

As might be expected, the continuing drive to get 5G auctions and rollouts under way is throwing up a number of controversies. The latest policy debates have taken place in Poland and the Czech Republic.

The government of Croatia is pushing for a 5G launch in the country’s fourth-largest city, Osijek, by the end of the year.

Russia’s MegaFon is entering into Fixed Virtual Network Operator (FVNO) partnerships with domestic ISPs in order to extend the reach of its converged fixed and mobile services.

Estonia’s scheduled spectrum auction has stalled following a legal challenge from a smaller local player.

Representatives of Telekom Romania have reportedly met with the country’s Prime Minister Ludovic Orban to discuss the sale of OTE Group’s holding in the operator.

Two of Poland’s major players are lining up 5G launches for early 2020.

Czechia may delay the 5G spectrum auction that it has scheduled in January in order to attract more bidders.

It seems that Ukraine’s mobile operators may have more spectrum to play with after an announcement from Ukraine’s National Television & Radio Broadcasting Council (NRADA).

NEQSOL Holding, representing Azerbaijan's Bakcell, has completed its acquisition of Vodafone Ukraine from Russia's MTS.

Russia has introduced new legislation stipulating that all smartphones, computers and smart TVs sold in the market must be sold with pre-installed locally developed software.

Orange Poland has selected Juniper Networks to enhance the resilience and automation capabilities of its IP network core.

Poland’s P4, which operates as Play, has announced its intent to use frequencies that it holds in the 2100MHz band to offer 5G services without having to obtain spectrum at auction.

Azerbaijan’s Bakcell is acquiring Vodafone Ukraine from Russia’s MTS for US$734 million.

A regulatory proposal to reduce frequency fees could see Bulgaria’s government begin issuing 5G-ready spectrum in the second quarter of 2020.

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This week, Orange announced that the group’s first commercial 5G launch would be in Romania. Initial deployment will take place in Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca and Iasi, with further cities to follow in 2020.

Poland’s government is cooperating with three of the country’s mobile operators on 5G development in order to speed up the rollout of the technology.

The Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine (AMCU) will allow the Azerbaijani mobile operator Bakcell to pursue its bid to acquire Vodafone Ukraine from Russia’s MTS.

Orange Polska and Ericsson have launched a 5G test network in Warsaw offering download speeds close to 900Mbps.

Russian operator MegaFon has chosen Ericsson to develop a new nationwide transport network.

US component maker Qualcomm is cooperating with various players across Russia’s mobile sector with a view to trialling a 5G mmWave network in Moscow that will go live later in the year.

Russian physical security professionals who deal with city surveillance, manufacturing, public transport, public administration, retail, critical infrastructure, utilities, parking management, access control, situational awareness, perimeter and intrusion, video analytics, and other

State-owned Russian vendor Rostec has begun developing 5G equipment and is seeking to commence production domestically via international partnerships.

Shareholders in the Bulgarian operator Vivacom have confirmed that the unit is to be put up for sale.

Huawei is reportedly prepared to invest as much as PLN3 billion ($789 million) into Poland across the next five years if it is able to provide 5G equipment without restrictions.

Liudvikas Andriulis, Chief Marketing Officer at Effortel, explains how his company has helped to launch MVNOs around the world.

OTE Group is looking to conclude deals to sell off three separate units of Telekom Romania within the next four months.

An agreement signed by MTS CEO Alexey Kornya and Moscow’s Mayor Sergey Sobyanin will focus on developing communication services and information-telecommunication technologies in the city.

Grundig Security has become the main sponsor of All-over-IP 2019 in Moscow, a digital media and an annual show that connects the IP industry and accelerates revenue streams from physical security, the Internet of Things, embedded vision, biometrics, artificial intelligence,

Tele2 is selling its Croatian business to United Group for €220 million, with the deal expected to complete before the end of the year.