Worldwide spending on telecoms and pay-TV services is forecast to reach US$1.585 trillion in 2026, up 2.3% year on year, due to inflation and rise in energy costs, according to IDC.

Bharti Airtel reported a 16.7% year-on-year increase in consolidated revenue to INR608.78 billion (US$6.8 billion) for the second quarter of its 2026-27 financial year, driven by growth in India and Africa.

Recent news from tech giant Huawei underlines the growing interest in many regions in the use of communications to enhance transport systems – specifically railways.

TRAI (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) has set out draft guidelines for the implementation of AI (artificial intelligence) into telecom networks, infrastructure, and services.

The GSMA has re-elected Bharti Airtel executive vice chairman Gopal Vittal (pictured, below) as its chair for the 2027-28 term, while MTN Group CEO Ralph Mupita and Vodafone Group CEO Margherita Della Valle have retained their positions as co-deputy chairs.

Satellite operator SES revealed on Thursday it has been selected by Kazakhstan’s flagship airline, Air Astana, to install next-gen in-flight connectivity services across its Airbus A321LR fleet.

State-owned operator Uztelecom has upgraded 1,566 base stations and launched 380 new ones across Uzbekistan as it expands mobile coverage and develops its 5G network.

Kazakh telco Transtelecom (TTC) and payments firm CNP Processing announced a partnership on Thursday that will enable local enterprises to use Amazon Web Services (AWS) technologies for payment services, with local data storage and processing.

India’s Jio Platforms faces questions over its debt obligations, future tax payments and valuation ahead of a proposed INR302.13 billion (US$3.2 billion), according to GlobalData.

The Trans-Caspian Submarine Cable System linking Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan was officially launched on Thursday, linking the respective telecoms infrastructures of AzerTelecom and Kazakhtelecom with 400 Tbps of capacity.

Global digital operator Veon – which owns Beeline Uzbekistan – said on Monday it has struck a deal to buy rival telco Rubicon Wireless, which operates under the “Perfectum” brand, for US$207 million.

The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) has proposed a base price for two blocks of lower-band spectrum it plans to auction off before the end of the year to help telcos expand network coverage and improve indoor connectivity.

Veon announced on Friday that its Bangladesh operator, Banglalink, has launched Starlink’s direct-to-device (D2D) satellite service in the country, making it the third Veon-owned telco to launch the service in the past year.

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has questioned the influence of Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani as Starlink continues to await approval to launch its satellite internet service in India.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has urged mobile industry leaders to make digital services more affordable and accessible, while calling for technology-driven measures to tackle cyber fraud and identify AI-generated content.

Veon-owned Beeline Kazakhstan announced on Tuesday that it has commercially launched Starlink Mobile direct-to-device (D2D) satellite service in the country, enabling customers to access apps and messaging in areas outside of its terrestrial coverage.

Veon and Bangladeshi conglomerate Square Group have received approval from Bangladesh Bank for a digital bank licence, expanding Veon’s digital financial services operations in the country.

State-owned Uzbektelecom (a.k.a. Uztelecom) commissioned two new data centres in Bukhara and Kokand on Tuesday to boost cloud services, AI resources and GPU-as-a-Service (GPUaaS) offerings in Uzbekistan.

Satellite communications giant Amazon Leo has announced a new agreement through which it says it will expand internet connectivity across Uzbekistan with the help of satellite communication service company UZ-SAT.

Reliance Jio and T-Mobile US have claimed the world’s first 5G Standalone roaming connection between their respective networks in India and the US.

Veon Digital Financial Group and Veon-owned Beeline Kazakhstan announced on Tuesday they have signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with the National Bank of Kazakhstan to explore the development of digital payment services in the country.

Bangladesh telcos Grameenphone and Robi Axiata have launched separate AI subscription services that aim to make overseas AI models easier to access and pay for.

Azerconnect’s international backbone operator AzerTelecom announced on Friday it has entered into a strategic partnership with DE-CIX to launch a new internet exchange in Azerbaijan.

Vodafone Idea has secured about US$3.5 billion in debt financing from a consortium led by State Bank of India (SBI), providing the Indian operator with funding to rebuild its network and compete with rivals Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel.

Pakistani operator Jazz has reached 1,000 5G sites across the country, claiming the largest 5G network footprint in Pakistan as it targets more than doubling its coverage by the end of 2026.

The Bangladesh government’s Posts and Telecommunications Division has reportedly blocked the deployment of two subsea cable vessels into Bangladesh's territorial waters to install the privately-owned Bangladesh Private Cable System (BPCS).

India is set to see the launch of locally designed smartphones from three companies within the next 10-14 months, as the government pushes manufacturers to develop original devices rather than copy existing products.

Kazakh telco Transtelecom (TTC) said on Tuesday it’s currently installing Starlink connectivity on trains operated by Passenger Transportation JSC, a subsidiary of national railway company Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ).

According to a number of local press reports, Kazakhstan expects to launch the first facility at Data Centre Valley, a large data centre campus in the country’s northeast, in the summer of 2027.