All Tech News

Veon has partnered with ZTE to deploy Uzbekistan’s largest virtualised SDM (Subscriber Data Management) platform via its local unit Beeline.

Seamless viewing, gaming and download experiences for customers in Bahrain could receive a boost after a recent deal between Tata Communications, a digital ecosystem enabler, and Bahrain Internet Exchange (BIX), its exclusive cable landing partner in Bahrain.

After signing a partnership agreement with Ericsson in late 2020, Telia Lietuva has begun deploying the Swedish vendor’s next generation mobile base stations across Lithuania.

After a slow 2020, Vietnam has logged record revenue growth from the export of handsets and components during Q1 2021.

Global payments company Mastercard and Saudi fintech business Geidea have announced a strategic partnership agreement to accept Mastercard payments for Tap on Phone solutions in Saudi Arabia. This is claimed to be the first such agreement to be signed in the Middle East and North Africa.

Zimbabwean financial services provider First Capital Bank has announced the launch of Alisa, a WhatsApp banking chatbot, bringing together machine learning and cognitive computing technologies to provide customers and clients with various banking services.

Filipino operator Globe Telecom has gone live with Amdocs’ service and network automation platform for network functions virtualisation (NFV) and cloud orchestration.

China Mobile Cloud has selected Nokia to provide its Nuage Networks end-to-end SDN solution for nationwide deployment of a public cloud service.

Tencent Cloud, the public cloud service provider business of multinational technology conglomerate holding company Tencent, has announced the launch of its first internet data centre (IDC) in Indonesia.

UAE-based operator du has selected Netcracker’s Digital BSS for its digital transformation program.

Polish operator Orange Polska (OPL) has partnered with pension fund management company APG for the deployment of fibre to the home (FTTH) in Poland through a 50-50 joint venture. 

Tele2 Russia has launched new base stations via the 2300MHz band to bolster its commercial 4G/LTE services in Moscow and St Petersburg.

MTN Nigeria is engaging with local banks to discuss pricing models after it was blocked from selling products and airtime last week after it attempted to reduce commission on transactions.

With E-band spectrum seen by some as the key to supporting microwave and meeting increased capacity requirements for both backhaul and fronthaul, it may be no surprise that Kenya’s leading operator Safaricom has gone down the E-band route.

The enterprise arm of Indian operator Vodafone Idea, also known as Vi, has strengthened its IoT portfolio with the launch of what it calls integrated IoT solutions for enterprises.

Millicom has announced that its Tigo Business division has teamed up with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to expand and integrate its managed and professional services into its cloud solutions portfolio in a number of Latin American countries.

Airtel’s Kenyan and Sri Lankan units are bolstering their coverage via 5G upgrades and new site deployments respectively.

Etisalat has collaborated with Parallel Wireless, Intel and Supermicro to deliver Central Asia’s first cloud-native O-RAN compliant 5G 4G 3G 2G Open RAN solutions in Afghanistan.

While South Africa is home to the largest concentration of data centres on the African continent, the appeal of West Africa seems to be growing, with new developments planned for both Senegal and Nigeria.

ZTE Corporation has implemented Africa’s first live 3G/4G/5G Tri-RAT dynamic spectrum sharing solution, ZTE’s SuperDSS, in South Africa.

The global drive to encourage digital payment continues – this time with an announcement from Sri Lankan operator SLT-Mobitel that its mobile money arm mCash has partnered with payments solution giant Visa.

Bharti Airtel has announced the expansion of what it calls its green energy footprint with the commissioning of a captive solar power plant for its data centres in Uttar Pradesh.

The formation of a new Indian telecommunications industry body has just been announced. It’s called the Satcom Industry Association (SiA-India).

Suriname’s leading operator Telesur has signed a ten-year contract with Cerillion for a fully convergent BSS/OSS platform.

Data centre provider ST Telemedia Global Data Centres’ India unit has announced a new partnership with Indian cleantech company Avaada Energy to procure renewable energy.

Nokia and Mobily have completed a narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) network deployment in the L-800 band in Saudi Arabia.

According to a blog on the IBM website, the technology giant has launched a proof of concept (PoC) with Movistar, a Telefonica brand, to deploy one of the first fully functional Open RAN networks, covering 81,000 inhabitants in the city of Puerto Madryn in Argentina.

A major new announcement from pan-African data centre developer and operator  Raxio is a useful reminder of the continuing acceleration of data centre development across Africa.

Namibia will require all mobile phone users to register their SIM card prior to accessing services following the introduction of new regulation.

Not to be outdone by its longtime rival Globe Telecom, which this week announced a major upgrade to its 4G services while pledging new 5G coverage, Smart Communications confirmed that it has activated over 2000 5G sites in the Philippines.

Nokia and Safaricom have confirmed yesterday’s news that East Africa’s first commercial 5G services have been launched in parts of Kenya, and have added more detail about the technology involved.

Kenya’s leading operator Safaricom has announced plans to launch a 5G network this Friday in Nairobi and western Kenya.