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Telecom News

Vodafone UK switches on wind and solar-powered mobile phone mast

By Aiste Kryzanovske June 16, 2022

The UK’s first live wind and solar-powered mobile phone mast has been activated in Pembrokeshire (Wales) by Vodafone UK. The self-powered mast will provide 4G service to the community of Eglwyswrw and will be powered by a wind turbine, solar panels and on-site battery storage. The new mast contributes to Vodafone’s goal of achieving net zero emissions by 2027 for its UK operations. The mast is meant to eliminate the requirement for a connection to the national energy grid, a strategy that will assist in delivering connectivity in rural and distant places that are now without those critical services. The mast is equipped with a one-of-a-kind wind turbine that can generate electricity even in low wind conditions and can be deployed without the need for electrical connections. This infrastructure is also extremely quiet, making it ideal for installation in sensitive locations. The study is being carried out…

Telecom News

Telefonica Germany to begin 3G shut down in July

By Aiste Kryzanovske June 29, 2021

Telefonica Deutschland has comprehensive plans for a sweeping shut down of its 3G network starting in July, making it the last operator in Germany to phase out legacy technologies in favor of 4G and 5G. Approximately 16,000 3G sites are scheduled to be shut down by the company. The resources that were needed for 3G will now be repurposed for the 4G network by the end of the year. According to the operator, 4G will use the frequencies of current 3G transmitters at 2,100 MHz. This upgrade from 3G to 4G will benefit Telefónica Deutschland’s customers, as well as customers of its other brands, providing a better and faster network. A full upgrade of the first 500 3G sites will begin on July 1st. An additional 1000 sites will be repurposed two weeks later. The regions where the upgrade will begin are Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, Brandenburg and Mecklenburg-Western…

Telecom News

Ericsson to offer secure on-site connectivity with Private 5G

By Aiste Kryzanovske June 24, 2021

Ericsson has announced the launch of its Private 5G, which will reshape on-site connectivity by providing secure and simple 4G LTE and 5G Standalone Connectivity (SA), targeting the manufacturing, mining and process industries, offshore and power companies, as well as ports and airports. Ericsson Private 5G enhances and makes business operations using cloud network management easier, keeping sensitive data on-site without downtime, and guarantees high performance under Service-Level Agreements (SLAs). The Ericsson 5G Private network is based on a 4G/5G radio and dual-mode core technology for extensive indoor and outdoor environment use cases, that include tracking assets and real-time automation, a digital twin to help optimize production operations, effective quality checks using augmented reality, and smart surveillance drones. This technology seamlessly merges with a variety of business projects, devices, and applications to increase productivity, deliver new offerings, boost customer engagement, and improve the overall work environment. The…

Telecom News

Rakuten and NEC to promote Open RAN

By Aiste Kryzanovske May 20, 2021

Two Japanese companies, Rakuten Mobile and NEC Corporation, have announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to promote Open RAN in mobile telecommunications markets worldwide. The MoU is based on Rakuten’s current partnership with NEC, where NEC supplies 5G radio equipment to the operator. The pair is also jointly working on developing a Rakuten standalone 5G core. Under the Memorandum of Understanding, Rakuten Mobile and NEC will continue to expand their local collaboration to provide 5G and 4G radios and engineering services for Open RAN systems that are compliant with O-RAN specifications. These services will be applicable to markets worldwide and will boost the global development of the Rakuten Communications Platform (RCP). RCP is Rakuten Mobile’s fully virtualized and containerized cloud-based mobile network platform, enabling telecom businesses to station virtual networks rapidly and inexpensively. Tareq Amin, executive vice president and CTO at Rakuten Mobile, said: “Rakuten…

Telecom News

A quick roundup of the news in Telecoms | Week #47

By Aiste Kryzanovske November 20, 2020

European Commission staying out of O2 UK and Virgin Media UK merger Typically, the European Commission, or one of the myriad other state-owned organizations that are a part of the EU, would be involved in the proposed merger between O2 UK and Virgin Media UK. However, in this case, these organizations are steering clear of this deal. The theory is this: because the UK will no longer be part of the EU from the beginning of next year, the EU will no longer be interested in what UK companies do. Even if the EU had not made this decision now, it is likely that they would have just waited until 2021, when its jurisdiction over UK matters comes to an end. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/y2n84cgn Telia Carrier expands its connectivity in US Telia Carrier is expanding its coverage in the US, while increasing the diversity and range of its routes.…

Telecom News

The EIB and Iliad sign a new loan agreement

By Aiste Kryzanovske November 19, 2020

The French telecommunications provider Iliad, that provides fixed and mobile telephony services, prepaid phone cards, Internet access and hosting services, has signed a new $356 million loan deal with the European Investment Bank (EIB) to help the Iliad Group finance its mobile network deployment in France, in particular to consolidate its 4G network and deploy its 5G network. Since 2009, the EIB has financed Iliad, and with this new loan the total financing exceeds $1.3 billion. Having helped finance the development of the Iliad fixed network for more than a decade, the EIB is once again working with the group to provide financial support for the company’s latest generation of mobile networks. There was little information on what exactly the latest loan would be used for, but Iliad said it is devoted to providing digital coverage to the whole of France, including most rural areas. Ambroise Fayolle, Vice-President…

Telecom News

A quick roundup of the news in Telecoms | Week #43

By Aiste Kryzanovske October 23, 2020

8×8 partners up with Pax8 8×8, the provider of a leading integrated cloud communications platform, announced that Pax8, a cloud solutions platform, has become a strategic partner and has joined the 8×8 Open Channel Program. In accordance with the agreement, Pax8 is now offering their US partners an 8×8 Open Communications Platform that combines voice, team chat, meetings and a contact center in one solution, allowing organizations to move to the cloud. According to Pax8, the two companies will work together to support their partners as they help customers accelerate their digital transformation efforts, ensure business resilience, and improve employee experience and engagement. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/y3xg4fu4 Telefónica aims at partnership with Allianz According to Spanish media reports, the telecommunications giant Telefonica is seeking to partner with a private equity subsidiary of the German insurance company Allianz, to launch a fiber-optic joint venture worth about $5.8 billion. The joint venture,…

Telecom News

A quick roundup of the news in Telecoms | Week #39

By Aiste Kryzanovske September 25, 2020

Germany to retire its 3G network Deutsche Telekom, Telefonica Deutschland and Vodafone Germany have announced the dates of their 3G network service withdrawal. Deutsche Telekom announced that it will aim to shut down 3G networks by the summer of 2021, while the Vodafone Germany target date was announced to be a few months earlier. Similarly, Telefonica Deutschland has stated that it would like to switch off its 3G technology by the end of 2021. This means that Germany will be essentially dependent on LTE and 5G in just over a year. Deutsche Telekom says the coverage gaps left after the 3G shutdown will be filled by 4G. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/y48ot9p5 Rogers Communications expanding 5G services On September 22, the Canadian communications and media company Rogers Communications announced the launch of 5G technology in five new cities. The Ericsson-powered operator has the largest 5G network in Canada. According to the…

Telecom News

A quick roundup of the news in Telecoms | Week #37

By Aiste Kryzanovske September 11, 2020

Ribbon announces hybrid slicing for 5G Ribbon Communications, a provider of real time IP-based communications and software solutions, announced that it has partnered with Xilinx Inc. to develop a 5G hybrid slicing solution for next-generation networks. Slicing is important in 5G, as it enables the separate 5G integral service classes. Hard slicing is necessary to meet the strict requirements for availability, bandwidth and security of highly sensitive services, while soft slicing provides benign insulation for services with a lower critical limit value. Ribbon will highlight its 5G solutions, including hybrid slicing, during its 5G Perspectives virtual event on September 14, 2020. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/y6tm8bqa Oi sells its mobile assets to Claro, Telefónica and TIM Three operators, Claro, Telefónica and TIM, formerly known as Telecom Italia, have won the bid for the Brazilian operator Oi’s mobile assets valued at more than $3 billion. In the past, these operators had a…

Telecom News

Airtel and Nokia to deploy the largest cloud-based VoLTE network in India

By Vilija Simkiene July 15, 2020

The Indian telecom giant Bharti Airtel has selected Nokia’s CloudBand-based software products to power its Voice over LTE (VoLTE) network. Nokia stated that this network supports more than 110 million customers, making it the largest cloud-based VoLTE network in India and the world’s largest VoLTE service managed by Nokia. According to the Finnish telecom gear maker, the deployment of cloud-based VoLTE will enable Airtel to provide its mobile customers with faster, more reliable and cost-effective call connectivity. Nokia’s solution, which has been deployed to cover all 22 telecom service areas in India, uses commercial, off-the-shelf IT hardware with cloud-based Virtual Network Functions (VNFs). Nokia noted that cloud-native VNFs consume far less power and space compared to traditional 2G or 3G circuit-switched legacy cores. With Nokia’s VoLTE platform, Airtel will be able to reduce its 3G network traffic and use the freed-up spectrum to deploy 4G / LTE services for higher speeds…