Ericsson, a global networking company, has announced its plan to buy Vonage, a cloud-platform company based in the United States, for $6.2 billion. Ericsson is getting a more contemporary communications strategy with Vonage, which includes a cloud contact center, communications APIs, and a VoIP solution. The move reflects Ericsson’s growing attempts to join the enterprise market, with the goal of enabling these clients to take use of new services in addition to the high speeds enabled by 5G networks. This merger, though, is not about 5G. Ericsson is concentrating on Vonage’s communications APIs, which it hopes will allow it to access a global network of developers working on 4G and 5G technologies. Vonage is a cloud-based communications provider that allows clients to incorporate communications, such as voice, video, and messaging, into apps and products through its Vonage Communications Platform. Ericsson believes that Vonage’s cloud platform, which now serves…
BT is opening a robotics research facility BT Labs in Suffolk, England, will open a 5,000-square-foot robotics research laboratory to create robotic solutions for telecom and civil engineering. The lab is the first of its kind in the United Kingdom. BT anticipates that academics at the new facility will collaborate with colleges and utilities to create and test technologies that will advance the pace of BT’s fiber rollout as well as the upgrading of the power and water providers’ subterranean and overhead networks. The researchers will concentrate on issues such as installing new fiber infrastructure without digging up roadways and sidewalks, providing trenchless infrastructure utilizing robotic locomotion and excavation techniques, and more. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/dm6ujvnz Cisco powers AT&T managed SASE offering AT&T is adding a new product to its worldwide, managed Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) portfolio. AT&T SASE with Cisco is an unified network and security management solution…
IBM to purchase security firm ReaQta IBM intends to buy endpoint security firm ReaQta in order to improve its automated cybersecurity threat detection and response capabilities. The acquisition broadens IBM’s capabilities in the extended detection and response (XDR) sector, consistent with the company’s objective to supply security through an open approach that spans diverse technologies, data and hybrid cloud environments. IBM also introduced QRadar XDR, a new suite of XDR capabilities designed to assist security analysts in breaking down the walls between the industry’s growth of point products and gaining full insight through security tools and data sources, both in the cloud and on-premises. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/ftyj3ds Airtel Africa and UNICEF enter a multi-million-dollar partnership Airtel Africa, an African telecoms service provider, has established a partnership with UNICEF to expedite the roll-out of digital learning by connecting schools to the Internet and assuring free access to educational platforms in…
VMware announces RAN intelligent controller This week, VMware released several of their initiatives aimed at bolstering and solidifying the company’s telco cloud plans. The debut of the RAN intelligent controller is one of the recent announcements (RIC). The VMware RIC will be accessible in two deployment models: centralized and distributed, and will be capable of abstracting the underlying RAN architecture and providing RAN programmability via xApps and rApps. Wireless operators, according to VMware, are ready to transition from relatively inflexible conventional RAN infrastructures to more heterogeneous, multi-vendor virtualized RANs. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/2nxkde8x Verizon teams up with Project Kuiper Verizon and Amazon’s Project Kuiper, a low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite network, have established a collaborative partnership to provide broadband solutions for unserved and underserved populations. Project Kuiper and Verizon have begun to establish technical specifications and define early business strategies for a variety of connection offerings for US consumers and…
Google introduces Distributed Cloud In order to address the needs of its enterprise customers, Google has announced their Distributed Cloud, which will allow users to balance their workload on the public cloud and private infrastructure. It is “a portfolio of solutions consisting of hardware and software that extend our infrastructure to the edge and into your data centers,” commented Sachin Gupta the GM and VP of Product for IaaS at Google. Built on Anthos, the Google Distributed Cloud is the perfect platform for local data processing, edge computing and on-premises modernization. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/mc2ye95c Facebook rolls out Live Audio Rooms for creators worldwide Live Audio Rooms, Facebook’s new feature designed to help public figures and groups to connect with their communities, has been released to a global audience. First launched only in the US back in June and limited to only iOS users, the solution…
With more and more companies looking to gain flexibility, scalability and achieve growth, cloud-based PBX providers are becoming increasingly popular as the top choice in communication systems. The PBX virtual phone system is secure, convenient and reliable, making it a great choice for businesses. Because no physical hardware is required, it is economical, easy to scale, has plentiful features, a wide range of integration possibilities, and takes very little time to set up. If you have decided that a cloud PBX is what your business needs, this summary lists the top 10 hosted PBX providers to help you find the right choice for you. phone.systems™ is a scalable, feature-packed and fully integratable cloud telephony solution for businesses of all sizes. This platform is designed to seamlessly interconnect with any service provider without the need for hardware or software to be purchased or maintained. The phone.systems™ unique and easy…
To keep up with rising customer expectations, contact center service providers strive to offer a broader range of services and expand their area of coverage. The Czech technology company Daktela, that specializes in providing complete solutions for contact centers and customer communications, has announced a strategic partnership with DIDWW, a global telecoms operator that offers premium quality VoIP communication and SIP trunking services for businesses and telecom carriers all over the world. As part of this cooperation, Daktela will benefit from DIDWW’s extensive virtual phone number coverage, allowing its contact center business to grow and operate efficiently across multiple countries and territories. While maintaining one of the largest VoIP cloud infrastructures in Europe, Daktela continues to expand its market presence globally. For this purpose, the company will use the DIDWW API and online portal for immediate service provisioning. In addition, Daktela will also utilize DIDWW’s fully compliant global…
There are a few things that are as challenging and thrilling as running your own business. But owning a business is also a big responsibility. Today’s markets are highly competitive and there are numerous experienced business owners who might intimidate you with their knowledge and work experience. In every business, your communication with customers is often the most important component of your success. Direct communication allows you to explore your customers’ habits and interests, but most importantly, build relationships with them. You might think that Internet telephony only benefits larger enterprises, but that is simply not true. In fact, small businesses, especially startups, can greatly benefit from the extra freedom, flexibility and lower costs that an Internet phone service offers. VoIP has helped small businesses improve their phone call handling by 67%, message management by 63% and remote work by 57%. Why Hosted VoIP? There are many good reasons to…
Vodia now interoperable with Skyetel Vodia has announced the completion of interoperability with Skyetel, an independent telecom carrier. Skyetel clients now have access to Vodia’s certified VoIP telephone system thanks to the proven compatibility of Vodia’s PBX software with Skyetel’s SIP trunks. Skyetel’s multi-tenant SIP trunking platform is set up so that resellers may simply connect to Vodia to provision and manage their DID inventories. Relationship pricing is also available to resellers without the need for contracts, obligations or upfront payments. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/2nhhhfn5 Nokia updates its in-house routing silicon With the introduction of its new FP5 processor, Nokia has updated its in-house routing silicon, considerably boosting capacity, reducing power consumption and incorporating encryption to improve security. The FP5 has a 4.8 Tbps network processor, which doubles the 2.4 Tbps available on the FP4, and is Nokia’s first chip to handle 800-gig Ethernet routing interfaces. Other benefits include enhanced…
Telefónica and NEC Corporation announced an agreement to undertake pre-commercial Open Radio Access Network (Open RAN) tests in Telefonica’s four key worldwide markets: Spain, Germany, the United Kingdom and Brazil. This is a step toward Telefonica’s goal of achieving a 50% expansion of their current radio network based on Open RAN by 2025. According to a joint press release, Telefonica will perform open RAN trials in Spain, Germany, the United Kingdom and Brazil, with the objective of offering commercial alternatives to at least 800 locations across the four countries beginning in 2022. Under the terms of the agreement, NEC will serve as the primary system integrator for the implementation and testing of multi-vendor Open RAN solutions with the Telefonica group’s operational businesses. Telefónica and NEC will also cooperate with the newly formed Telefónica Technology and Automation Lab in Madrid to validate and implement cutting-edge Open RAN technologies and…

