The global race for future technologies has accelerated even further, with the South Korean wireless carrier SK Telecom announcing that it is joining forces with network hardware providers Ericsson, Nokia and Samsung Electronics to carry out collaborative research and development projects to pave the way for 6G mobile network technologies. The partnership will also help to upgrade the already-advanced 5G technology, and expand its adoption in other areas, including self-driving cars and in-built solutions. Park Jin-Hyo, Chief technology officer and Head of ICT R&D Center of SK Telecom, said, “Through strengthened cooperation with Ericsson, Nokia and Samsung Electronics, SK Telecom will be able to secure the world’s best 5G quality and lead the way towards 6G mobile network communications.” In accordance with the terms of the signed memorandums of understanding (MOUs), SK Telecom will work closely with each company to promote the advancement of 5G network technologies. They…
The Philippines operator Globe Telecom has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with ISOC Infrastructure Inc. and Malaysia-based tower company Edotco Group Sdn. Bhd., to support the common tower initiative of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT). By entering this three-party agreement on the set-up of 150 mobile towers across the Philippines, Globe becomes the first telecommunications company to support the DICT initiative. According to Globe, unlike in most other countries, the information and communication technology (ICT) infrastructure spending in the Philippines has been left solely to the private sector, leading to huge gaps in cell site and wired broadband coverage across the country. For example, Vietnam has 90000 cellular towers compared to 17850 cellular stations in the Philippines. Furthermore, according to the latest data reports from TowerXchange, there are 34300 cellular towers in Pakistan, and 30000 sites in Bangladesh. In a statement, Globe Telecom president and CEO…
The San Francisco-based cloud giant Salesforce has reached an agreement to buy Tableau Software Inc. in an all-stock deal valued at $15.7 billion. By acquiring Tableau, which provides easy-to-use tools for data visualization and management, Salesforce has positioned itself as the latest major technology company to play an important role in helping enterprises analyze data, make smarter decisions, drive intelligent, connected customer experiences, and facilitate innovation. “We are bringing together the world’s #1 CRM with the #1 analytics platform. Tableau helps people see and understand data, and Salesforce helps people engage and understand customers,” stated Marc Benioff, chairman and co-CEO, Salesforce. “It’s truly the best of both worlds for our customers – bringing together two critical platforms that every customer needs to understand their world. I’m thrilled to welcome Adam and his team to Salesforce.” Currently, Tableau has more than 86,000 business customers around the world, including Charles Schwab,…
Juniper Network, a provider of high-performance networking and cybersecurity solutions, has been selected by the UK’s telecoms giant British Telecommunications (BT) to deliver its Network Cloud infrastructure initiative. This arrangement will help support the rollout of BT’s upcoming unified cloud networking platform, which will integrate the company’s networks, including 5G, Wi-Fi and fixed-line, into one virtualized service and enable more efficient infrastructure management and implementation. This new and more flexible network infrastructure will also generate a range of innovative applications that support services such as Internet access, TV and business network functions, improved voice and video delivery, and scalability. The Network Cloud platform will be built according to a common framework, and shared across BT’s offices throughout the UK and globally. “This move to a single cloud-driven network infrastructure will enable BT to offer a wider range of services, faster and more efficiently to customers in the UK…
The American chipset manufacturer Nvidia is rolling out its EGX platform to bring real-time artificial intelligence (AI) to the edge of the network. Nvidia EGX is an accelerated computing platform, which boasts low-latency AI that enables companies to perceive, understand and act in real time on continuous streaming data between 5G base stations, warehouses, retail stores, factories and beyond. AI computing will occur at the edge of the network, where sensors collect data before it is sent to cloud-connected data centers. This platform is expected to satisfy the increasing demand for AI applications to assist numerous devices streaming continuous raw sensor data and is designed for high-throughput AI at the edge where data is primarily sourced to achieve instantaneous and guaranteed response times while reducing bandwidth to the cloud. According to the company, by 2025, there could be up to 150 billion machine sensors and the Internet of Things (IoT) devices streaming…
The Chinese telecommunications, enterprise and consumer technology and equipment provider ZTE Corporation has launched its first domestic cybersecurity lab in Nanjing, China, thus confirming its commitment to the ICT industry to counter cybersecurity threats. The company is also planning to expand across the globe with similar facilities in the near future, with the first installations being in Italy and Belgium. According to a statement by ZTE, the opening of a new lab represents an important milestone for the company as it aims to increase transparency and enhance trust with third parties, including customers, global regulators and other stakeholders. This initiative is in direct response to the national security concerns that are prompting several countries to apply restrictions on the use of equipment from Chinese vendors in 5G rollouts. Zhong Hong, Chief Security Officer at ZTE, said, “The security lab is an open and cooperative platform for the industry.…
Global satellite operator Telesat, the Vodafone Group and the University of Surrey in the UK, have successfully accomplished the world’s first 5G backhaul demonstration deploying a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) communications satellite. This successful trial demonstrates that LEO satellites are able to provide efficient backhaul transport channels for mobile network operators (MNOs), including for 5G advanced services. During the live test conducted by these partners in April, Telesat’s Phase 1 LEO satellite was connected to the University of Surrey’s 5G testbed network, with the support of specialist Vodafone engineers. Vodafone also provided some funding and arranged licensing for the demonstration system. John Miller, Head of Satellite Engineering at Vodafone, said: “The use of LEO satellites provides an additional mobile backhaul option and can be an important part of the delivery system particularly to customers in our markets who live in rural areas.” Professor Barry Evans, University of Surrey, said: “The University of Surrey is very…
Norwegian telco Telenor Group and Malaysia-based Axiata Group have announced their discussions regarding a prospective non-cash merger of their telecom and infrastructure assets in Asia, in which Telenor would take a majority stake. Telenor and Axiata’s jointly owned telecommunications giant MergeCo would combine the two companies’ operations in South and Southeast Asia, and in its headquarters in Malaysia would serve almost 300 million customers using approximately 60,000 communication towers located across Asia. Gunn Wærsted, Chair of Telenor Group, said: “Today we announce that Telenor and Axiata are in discussions on joining forces in Asia, one of the most dynamic and innovative regions in the world. Together, we aim to create a leading and well-diversified pan-Asian telecom and infrastructure company with substantial synergy potential and strong regional operations. It is Telenor’s strategy to develop and create value from our core telco assets in the Nordic and Asian region. This potential merger…
American technology companies Ribbon Communications and Neustar have announced an expansion of their cooperation to provide a comprehensive solution designed to tackle the issues of robocalling and call spoofing. Ribbon, a global software leader providing IP-based real-time communications security and software solutions, is working in partnership with Neustar, the exclusive host of the ATIS Robocalling Testbed, to develop and support an integrated platform for their STIR-SHAKEN implementation. Secure Telephone Identity Revisited (STIR) standards and the Signature-based Handling of Asserted information using toKENs (SHAKEN) framework were developed by the IETF and ATIS/SIP Forum NNI Task Force, respectively. STIR-SHAKEN is a major industry initiative set up to help service providers protect consumers against illegal robocalls and caller ID spoofing. The Ribbon session border controller, as well as policy and routing products coupled with the Neustar Certified Caller platform will enable service providers to promptly detect suspicious calls and inform business and…
The Global mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) has launched the first database in the telecommunications industry to track worldwide 5G devices. This new 5G device tracking and reporting facility, which forms part of the GSA Analyser for Mobile Broadband Devices (GAMBoD) database, “represents an important milestone for the 5G ecosystem as it moves from service trials and prototype user equipment to commercially available services and devices”. In its first survey, 5G Device Ecosystem Report, dated March 2019, the GSA identified a total of 23 vendors that have confirmed the upcoming availability of 5G devices, with 33 different devices available, including regional variants. There were 7 publicized 5G device form factors, namely phones, hotspots, indoor CPE, outdoor CPE, modules, Snap-On dongles, adapters and USB terminals. On a per form factor basis, the report identified 12 phones (plus regional variants), 5 hotspots (plus regional variants), 8 CPE devices (indoor and outdoor),…


