In a move that reverses plans announced a year ago, two Saudi operators have apparently decided to abandon a mooted tower merger.

The UAE’s du has partnered with Wipro to launch a new multi-cloud platform offering management and migration capabilities.

Netherlands-headquartered VEON Group has exercised its put option to divest its entire 45.57% holding in its Algerian unit Omnium Telecom Algerie.

A bit of highly futuristic thinking was on display at the Mobile World Congress, where UAE-headquartered operator Etisalat told visitors about its ambitious 6G plans.

Israel’s Communications Ministry plans to shutter the country’s 2G and 3G networks by the end of 2025 as 5G becomes increasingly prevalent in the market.

Qatar’s Communications Regulatory Authority (CRA) has issued a QAR3.5 million (USD950,000) fine to Ooredoo Qatar for engaging in anti-competitive behaviour.

Al Yah Satellite Communications (AlYahsat), a satellite communications company in Abu Dhabi, has set an indicative price range for its initial public offering which shows it could raise up to 2.976 billion dirhams ($810 million) in the IPO.

Omani Space Communication Technologies (SCT) has launched a tender for the design, manufacture, and launch of its first satellite called "Omansat-1". 

Qatar Free Zones Authority (QFZA), the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MOTC), and Google Cloud announced yesterday bolstering their strategic partnership to include establishing a new Center of Excellence training facility and new Google office in the State of Qatar.

Vodafone Turkey and Nokia have successfully completed a trial of the first intercontinental 1T (terabit) clear-channel IP interface linking Asia and Europe.

Israel's Minister of Communications, Yoaz Hendel, has confirmed that Israel is to abolish the split it imposed between infrastructure providers and internet service suppliers.

UAE-based multinational telecom services operator Etisalat has partnered with Swedish multinational networking and telecommunications company Ericsson to deploy a 5G millimeter wave (mmWave) across its commercial network.

Bahrain Telecommunications (Batelco) confirmed it conducted a preliminary assessment of the merits of dual listing, but clarified that as of now there is no filing with any stock exchange.

Oman’s telecommunications services provider Omantel, and Huawei, the global provider of information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure and smart devices, have collaborated to establish a regional ICT training center to support talent development in the Sultanate.

Omantel has successfully tested the 5G High Band at its headquarters in Madinat al Irfan under the supervision of the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) of the Sultanate of Oman.

Bahrain’s National Broadband Network BNET has selected Mobileum’s Active Intelligence Platform for risk management.

The Iranian government has adopted major legislation to enable the government to take back control of physical hardware and transmission equipment used for the delivery of fixed data services.

Ooredoo Oman has launched super-fast, reliable 4G and 5G fixed wireless (FWA) access throughout the country, powered by Nokia.

Ooredoo Oman said it recently recorded downlink speeds of more than 5 Gbps on a commercial 5G Massive MIMO single sector, one of the first such tests in the region.

Lebanon’s continued rationing of electrical power in the face of national shortages may prevent state operator Ogero from providing internet services, its chairman has warned.

Orange Jordan has signed a three-year agreement with Nokia to deploy more than 100,000 units of Nokia WiFi Beacons across the country.

Telecom Egypt (TE) and Vodafone Group have inked a modified shareholders’ agreement which includes changes to Vodafone Egypt’s dividend policy.

IoT solutions for machines and fleet management are coming to India and Qatar, according to recent partnership announcements in both countries.

Ooredoo Telecom is now the first telecom operator in Kuwait and region to offer customers the ability to conduct a complete purchasing process of a new eSIM online and without any physical interaction or signature utilizing “Kuwait Mobile ID”, a mobile application provided by the Public Authority for Civil Information (PACI).

Middle East’s first privately owned submarine cable system Gulf Bridge International (GBI) and Versa Networks, a vendor in the SD-WAN and SD-Security market, have extended its long-standing collaboration with GBI joining the Versa ACE Partner Program.

The Moroccan National Telecommunications Regulatory Agency (ANRT) has published a decision detailing a number of amendments concerning spectrum used with low-power short-range devices.

There have been media reports that Syria’s Ministry of Internal Trade and Consumer Protection has approved articles of association for a potential third wireless provider.

'Bezeq' The Israel Telecommunication Corp announced that its deployment of an ultra-fast fibre optics network had reached 480,000 homes. Chief Executive David Mizrahi said he expected to reach 1 million households by the end of 2021.

Amazon Web Services (AWS), a subsidiary of Amazon, plans to open an infrastructure region in the UAE in the first half of 2022.

Qatar-based multinational telecom company Ooredoo is launching the Enterprise EDGE service, which, according to the company, can be added to any standard networking service to speed cloud adoption, boost operational agility, and meet network connectivity’s need for cost-effective bandwidth.

Comviva, the global player in digital solutions, has announced its strategic partnership with Etisalat Misr to offer media-rich Caller Ring Back Tone (CRBT) services.

The continuing importance of the small and medium enterprise (SME) market – and helping to enabling it for a digital future – is a theme reiterated in a number of initiatives, most recently from Malaysia’s Maxis and Bahrain’s Batelco.

UAE operator Etisalat has announced further expansion plans for its SmartHub ecosystem of interconnected communities with the planned launch of a new facility.