Ooredoo Myanmar announced that it is now offering eSIMs to subscribers, making it the first telco in Myanmar to support the technology.

Two new facilities, recently opened by Pixxel and Apple, underline the continuing attraction to technology companies of the Indian market in general and the city of Bengaluru in particular.

In what may seem an unusual regulatory decision, Anatel, the Brazilian regulator, has ruled that telecommunications company Algar Telecom must build 1,670 kilometres of fibre transport networks after receiving some of its tax payments back.

The Namibian telecoms watchdog has revoked UCOM Mobile’s telecoms licence due to unpaid licence fees totalling NAD19.3 million (US$1 million). 

Incumbent telco Lao Telecom has officially relaunched 5G services in the capital of Vientiane with expanded coverage, almost four years after a more limited launch in bits of the city.

As promised in November last year, Kenyan operator Safaricom, mobile payment giant M-Pesa Africa and global trading and business investment company Sumitomo Corporation have now announced calls for tech start-ups looking to join the Spark Accelerator programme.

Pakistan’s Ministry of IT and Telecom revealed it is planning to launch a payment plan scheme called ‘Smartphone for All’, to equip more citizens with smartphones and drive up the number of connected citizens. 

Togolese operator Togocom secured XOF36 billion (US$60.2 million) from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to fund the upgrade of its infrastructure including the expansion of its 4G network. 

FPT Retail has reportedly become Vietnam’s fifth mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) after launching its service nationwide on Thursday, effectively giving FPT Telecom a mobile arm to leverage in its offerings.

Regulator the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has published what it calls a pre-enforcement notice regarding unauthorised use of the 5.4GHz frequency band.

Malaysia’s wholesale 5G network operator Digital Nasional Bhd (DNB) now covers just over 80% of populated areas, clearing the final criteria for the creation of a second 5G operator.

Netcracker announced Thai operator AIS will continue its relationship with the vendor by consolidating its billing systems onto Netcracker's BSS platform.

Algeria Telecom and Ooredoo Algeria signed a memorandum of understanding to exchange ideas on innovative services and share infrastructure, a move to enhance their service in the country. 

Indian newspaper reports are indicating that the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) will not auction 600MHz band spectrum in the upcoming sale.

MTN Guinea was reportedly forced to shut its doors by Guinea’s Post and Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (ARPT) due to unpaid taxes and licence fees, reported Ecofin Agency. 

Nasarawa State in the North Central region of Nigeria has eliminated right of way (RoW) costs for the construction, placement, laying and maintenance of telecoms network equipment in the state.

India’s Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has reportedly said it has finalised rules that will allow telcos to lease spectrum to enterprises for private 5G networks, and will be releasing them "soon".

Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison said on Saturday that it had managed to restore network services in the Central Java and Yogyakarta Special Region within 24 hours after a fire broke out at one of its transmitter buildings on New Year’s Day.

The government of Pakistan has established what it calls the Telecommunication Appellate Tribunal, an entity aimed at swiftly addressing and settling disputes within the telecoms sector.

The Government of Gabon and the World Bank, one of the world’s largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries, have signed a US$68.5 million loan for the Digital Gabon Project.

The government of Paraguay still seems determined to restore state-owned service provider Corporación Paraguaya de Comunicaciones (Copaco) to something like profitability, despite a number of failed attempts in the past.

The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) has issued a new white paper calling on OTT players who generate huge amounts of traffic to share network upgrade costs with Indian telcos to make the telecoms industry more sustainable.

Regulator the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) has a new director general following the early exit of Ezra Chiloba last year. He is David Mugonyi, the former Head of the Presidential Communication Service.

Philippine mobile operator Smart Communications said on Wednesday it has launched a new service package that gives prepaid 5G subscribers unlimited data when they drop down to 4G.

The chairman of Thailand’s National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), Dr Sarana Boonbaichaiyapruck, has outlined some urgent policies that will be accelerated in 2024, including a number aimed at supporting the launch of new MVNOs in the market.

Vodafone Idea denied Elon Musk’s SpaceX was looking to buy a stake in the operator as a move to deploy Starlink in India. 

In an interesting development in the very lucrative and competitive online shopping market in China, JD.com has reportedly won a lawsuit against rival Alibaba Group in the High People’s Court of Beijing.

As might have been predicted a few months ago when the process appeared to be going slowly, the Namibian government last week extended its SIM card registration deadline.

Turkcell has signed an agreement to sell its units in Ukraine to the French investment firm NJJ Capital.