Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison (IOH) expanded its partnership with Google Cloud to develop AI solutions for enterprises and consumers, a move for the Indonesian operator to diversify its paths to growth.

Infostellar, a Japan-based ground-segment-as-a-service (GSaaS) provider, is planning to deploy a network of Infostellar-owned antennas focused on serving its global clients’ interests in the Asia-Pacific region.

Recent satellite internet news coming out of Latin America and India is a reminder that Starlink isn’t having things entirely its own way when it comes to satellite internet.

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

A data centre campus, Narra Technology Park, is being planned in the Philippines, with a launch date for the first phase of the development taking place in late 2025.

Yet another massive communications-related investment is coming Malaysia’s way, this time from ByteDance.

India has a new communications minister. His name is Jyotiraditya Scindia. The former civil aviation minister takes over some, though not all, of the portfolio of his predecessor, Ashwini Vaishnaw.

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

ZTE Corporation, a global leading provider of integrated information and communication technology solutions, recently released the company's Sustainability Report 2023, detailing its strategies, actions and progress in green innovations, social contributions and corporate governance.

The volume of data centre launch news items may perhaps only be matched by news of initiatives to mitigate the power demands of this fast-growing industry. One such this week involves Asia-focused data centre platform company Digital Edge (Singapore) and Peak Energy Investments, a leading renewable developer and independent power producer with operations across Asia.

Constl, which delivers digital telecom infrastructure solutions within the B2B sector, says it is deploying networking systems, services and software company Ciena’s optical technology to offer high-speed metro area network (MAN) and national long distance (NLD) connectivity services across its pan-India network.

Global smartphone shipments are predicted to grow by 4% year-on-year in 2024 to 1.21 billion units due to rebounding consumer demand.

Google has announced plans to invest US$2 billion in Malaysia. It aims to develop its first data centre in the country, along with a Google Cloud hub.

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.

Apple continued its retail expansion in Asia by revealing it will open its first Apple Store in Malaysia in June.

XL Axiata, one of the leading telecommunication companies in Indonesia, has partnered with Ericsson to deploy its dual-mode 5G core solution.

Intelsat, operator of one of the world’s largest integrated satellite and terrestrial networks, has announced that it has become the first foreign GEO satellite operator licensed to sell products in the Philippines.

Malaysia is apparently targeting an estimated US$107 billion – or more – in investment for its semiconductor industry, an industry in which it is already well established, accounting for 13% of global testing and packaging, according to some reports.

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.

Ericsson and Huawei have made separate announcements showcasing advances in carrier aggregation for 5G microwave backhaul – one with Malaysian 5G wholesaler Digital Nasional Berhad (DNB) and the other with China Unicom Inner Mongolia, respectively.

Following news earlier this week of major UK development investments in telecoms  in Senegal and Tanzania come announcements from the US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) of support for projects in two Asian countries.

Co-hosted by the Fiber Network Council APAC (FNCA) and Yangtze Optical Fibre and Cable Joint Stock Limited Company (YOFC), China FIBERTalk 2024 was held in China’s Optics Valley on May 17th.

Globe Telecom CEO Ernest Cu said the operator group’s fintech division may go public as the company looks to diversify its business away from traditional telco revenue drivers.  

Cambodia-based Smart Axiata tapped telecoms cybersecurity firm SecurityGen for software to bolster its defences, as connectivity adoption rises in the South East Asian nation.

It seems Vietnam’s success as a manufacturing base may be challenging its ability to power growth. Some reports are suggesting that Vietnamese officials have called on Apple supplier Foxconn to reduce power use by 30% at its assembly plants in the north of the country, an area that suffered power outages last year.

The SpaceX satcoms service Starlink is now live across the more than 300 islands in the Republic of Fiji, marking, the company says, the 99th country, territory or market around the world where Starlink’s high-speed internet service is available.

The Indonesia smartphone market saw a sharp rise in smartphone shipments due to the holiday season, as it continued its recovery. 

BW Digital, a subsidiary of BW Group, a global energy and maritime group, and PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia International (Telin), a provider of premium international carrier services, have announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the joint development and construction of the Hawaiki Nui 1 submarine cable system.

Over 1.5 billion women used mobile internet in 2023 in developing nations, as women are adopting connectivity faster than men, according to the GSMA.

Technology giant Huawei, alongside Chinese electrical appliance manufacturer, Midea, Thai operator AIS, and Chinese operator China Unicom say they have jointly implemented the first 5G fully connected factory in Southeast Asia, setting what they describe as a new standard for smart manufacturing in the region.

General insurance provider Tata AIG has launched what it calls its Satellite In-Orbit Third-Party Liability Insurance policy for satellite manufacturers and operators in the Indian space industry – a first, it seems, for Indian insurance provision.