Operators

Sri Lankan telco Dialog Axiata says it has launched a smart tracking solution for vehicle and fleet monitoring, which also uses its 4G network to power various data-based monitoring features.

Philippines-based operator Globe Telecom chose Nokia equipment to modernise its network infrastructure with Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) capabilities in several key locations nationwide.

Ethiopia halted the sale of shares of its state-owned operator Ethio Telecom to foreign companies, to prioritise domestic retail investors instead, reported Bloomberg.

Safaricom Telecommunications Ethiopia announced on Monday that it has launched commercial operations in the war-torn Tigray region, and is in the process of building a 4G network that will be upgradeable to 5G.

Cambodian telco CamGSM – which operates under the brand Cellcard – announced on Tuesday that it has earmarked US$180 million for network expansion for 2024, with a particular focus on extending coverage to underserved communities.

Axiata’s banking unit Boost Bank launched its mobile app after gaining approval only five months ago from regulators to launch digital services.  

Global digital operator Veon announced on Monday it is will invest an additional US$1 billion between 2023 and 2027 to help its Ukrainian subsidiary Kyivstar rebuild the country’s digital infrastructure as the Russian invasion continues.

Indonesian operator Telkomsel says it has completed the first validation of Wi-Fi 7 in Indonesia together with the Ministry of Communication and Information (Kominfo) as it makes plans to adopt the technology for its fixed broadband services.

Maxis CEO Goh Seow Eng said on Friday that the telco is ready to sign off on its share subscription agreement (SSA) to take a stake in 5G wholesaler Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB) and aims to play a major role in deploying Malaysia’s second 5G network.

­­Orange completed the merger of Orange Romania S.A (ORO) and fixed provider Orange Romania Communications S.A (OROC), a move to create a fixed-mobile convergent player and remain competitive.

Nokia has moved closer to exiting Russia, with the country’s President Vladimir Putin authorising state-backed Rostelecom to acquire the Finnish vendor’s stake in a Russian joint venture.

Philippines-based operator Globe Telecom established an AI unit and appointed a Chief AI Officer in a move to enhance its operations by tapping into the technology.

Greek operator OTE Group inked an agreement to sell its Romanian mobile unit to Digi Communications.

Global digital operator Veon announced on Tuesday that it has struck a deal to sell off its minority stake in Kazakh wholesale telecoms infrastructure services provider TNS+ to focus on its mobile operation, Beeline Kazakhstan.

Boston Consulting Group (BCG), an American global management consulting firm, has been asked to prepare a three-year roadmap to improve the competitiveness of state-owned Indian operator BSNL.

Telkom South Africa’s planned US$355 million selloff of its Swiftnet tower business to infrastructure-focused private equity firm Actis cleared another hurdle on Friday after its shareholders unanimously voted in favor of the deal.

Orange and Vodafone announced extension of their open RAN network pilot project in rural Romania to boost coverage and integrate 2G virtualised RAN (vRAN) technology, a vital step towards cloud migration. 

Orange signed a partnership agreement with Digital Africa in a move to accelerate support and investment for startups in its incubator centres across Africa and the Middle East.

Malaysian wholesale 5G operator Digital Nasional Bhd (DNB) has reportedly given the five telcos taking stakes in the company 20 days to finalise the process as the government looks to get on with launching a second 5G operator and encourage private 5G adoption.

Ukrainian operator Kyivstar allocated US$90 million to defend against suspected Russian cyberattacks against its network, a move that affected growth said Kyivstar CEO Oleksandr Komarov.

Malaysian telco Time dotCom and Huawei announced on Monday that they have successfully deployed Segment Routing IPv6 (SRv6) technology in Time’s network, which the operator hopes will give it an edge in the enterprise services market.

Bangladesh telcos Robi Axiata and Banglalink have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to evaluate ways that they can share and rationalize their network resources to expand and improve 4G access across the country.

Veon Group announced revenue was up by 6.6% US$942 million, and maintained its full-year guidance for revenue of between 16% and 18%.

The long-rumoured merger of Indonesian telcos XL Axiata and Smartfren moved another step closer to reality on Wednesday as parent companies Axiata Group and Sinar Mas announced they have officially signed an MoU to explore the proposed merger.

Malaysian telco CelcomDigi says it’s close to the halfway mark in integrating and modernising its mobile network across the country, which puts it ahead of schedule in its post-merger transformation plan.

­Bharti Airtel signed a long-term agreement with Google Cloud to deliver cloud and gen AI solutions in the Indian B2B market.

Vodacom reported a dip in profits due to higher energy costs and forex rates which have also affected other operators on the African continent.

Airtel Africa reported a loss of US$89 million as it also suffered from the devaluation of the Nigerian naira, despite growth in customer base.

Veon-owned Bangladesh operator Banglalink said on Thursday that it has become the first mobile operator in the country to phase out 3G services as it shifts focus to boosting performance of its 4G network.