Telekom Malaysia and Chinese telecoms vendor FiberHome have launched an innovation lab to build up TM's digital talent ecosystem under their ongoing joint strategic partnership programme.

Canadian RAN provider NuRAN Wireless says that it has filed an application for a network infrastructure licence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to add more services to its portfolio.

Bahamas Telecommunications Company vice chairman Valentine Grimes said a portion of the cash raised by parent company Liberty Latin America in its recent tower deal, could be used to deploy 5G in the Bahamas. 

Indonesia operators partnered with the Ministry of Communication and Informatics (MCI) to set up a task force to deliver new ideas and incentives to accelerate 5G deployment. 

Veon subsidiary Banglalink has signed an agreement to sell around a third of its tower portfolio in Bangladesh to Summit Towers for BDT11 billion (US$100 million).

The Ethiopian government failed to attract any bidders for its third telecoms licence according to sources speaking to Bloomberg, as investors are put off by the current political instability in the country. 

It looks like Colombia’s 5G spectrum auction is still on course to take place on 20 December, as stated by the Ministry of Information Technologies and Communications (Ministerio de Tecnologias de la Informacion y las Comunicaciones, MinTIC) in June.

Liberty Latin America (LLA) tapped voice security company Hiya to launch call protection software for subscribers in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. 

South Africa-based CMC Networks says it has partnered with German network solution provider aconnic to deliver NFV to service providers in Africa and the Middle East.

Google has been fined US$164,000 by a Moscow court. The fine, which was imposed on Tuesday, was said to be for repeated refusal to store Russian users' data on servers inside Russia.

Vodacom Group reported an earnings hit due to macroeconomic conditions and loss in Ethiopia, however, its acquisition of Vodafone Egypt prevented further dips. 

Globe Telecom revealed battery thefts at its network facilities have more than doubled and are putting backup supply at risk in times of natural disasters. 

Telecom Namibia has signed an N$100 million (US$5.2 million) agreement with Huawei to deliver a fixed-mobile convergence (FMC) core network as part of its ongoing digital transformation and network modernisation project.

Indonesian operator Telkomsel has partnered with ZTE to launch MarineMobile, a 5G-based mobile maritime solution designed to help fishermen boost productivity.

Pakistan’s telecoms regulator enabled operators to begin charging a SIM termination charge in January to ease the abuse of free SIM cards and combat the use of illegal activities on networks. 

Now Corporation signed a memorandum of understanding with US-based LEO satellite company AST SpaceMobile in a move to connect remote locations in the Philippines. 

Liberty Latin America (LLA) will sell 1,300 mobile tower sites across Panama and various Caribbean islands to independent tower company Phoenix Tower International (PTI) in a deal valued at $407 million.

Latvia’s Public Utilities Commission (SPRK / Sabiedrisko Pakalpojumu Regulesanas Komisija) has issued permits for 5G-ready spectrum to LMT (Latvijas Mobilais Telefons) and Tele2 Latvia following last month’s auction.

The GSMA claims that Indonesia stands to lose US$14 billion in GDP gains over the next six years if it doesn’t rethink it 5G spectrum pricing in the next auction.

Operator Zain KSA has announced a strong Q3 2023 financial performance driven, in part by tower-related business.

The Somalian Ministry of Communication and Technology signed a cooperation agreement with the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) to develop connectivity in Somalia.

Kenyan operator Safaricom, mobile financial service M-Pesa Africa, and global trading and business investment company Sumitomo Corporation are to launch the Spark Accelerator, a programme to support early-stage start-ups in Kenya in their efforts to grow and scale their businesses.

Nokia Bell Labs says it has signed a non-binding R&D collaboration agreement with energy company Aramco to develop 5G-powered Industry 4.0 use cases for Saudi Arabia and the Middle East, and North Africa (MENA) region.

Thai telco True Corp says its “Single Grid” initiative to consolidate the networks of True and Dtac is already producing better network coverage and signal quality in pilot projects.

Viettel High Tech, the R&D arm of Vietnamese telco Viettel, says it has developed its own 5G chipset, which it says gives it “complete control” over its domestic 5G equipment ecosystem.

Yet another SIM registration exercise has run into deadline difficulties. With only a few days left, the Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) and operators are trying to get cardholders to act fast to avoid potential disconnection.

As the MTN Group departure from Afghanistan gets closer, it seems Guinea-Bissau, Guinea-Conakry and Liberia are next in line for an MTN exit.

Liberty Latin America (LLA) has struck a deal with Dish Network to acquire Dish’s spectrum assets in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands (USVI) for US$256 million in cash, as well as international roaming credits.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has told businesses using digital marketing that they’ll have to obtain all-new consent records from customers in order to use a new mandatory unified platform that tracks consumer consent.

Russian mobile operator MTS has reportedly reopen negotiations to sell its tower company, reported Kommersant. 

Globe Telecom announced it signed loan facilities with three banks to secure a total of PHP12 billion (US$214 million) to fund capex plans and refinance debt.