BT to make EE its flagship brand BT Group has announced intentions to make EE its main consumer-facing brand. This move is intended to streamline the mobile operator’s service while also propelling the company into new areas of convergence. The BT brand will be more focused on consumers who utilize standalone broadband and telephone services, while BT Sport will remain unchanged. BT will also continue to be the name for its Enterprise and Global divisions. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/bdk4ef3k NTT and Sky Perfect JSAT forma joint venture NTT and SKY Perfect JSAT have agreed to form a joint venture company to increase humanity’s use of space. The formation of the joint venture is a significant step toward the construction of the space-integrated computer network specified in the two companies’ partnership agreement of 2021. The collaboration will help to advance the global space industry and promote the achievement of a sustainable…
BT putting its digital voice service rollout on halt Last year, BT began rolling out Digital Voice, which is a VoIP solution that works over the company’s broadband network rather than the old analogue network, as the name implies. This service is an essential improvement, as BT points out, to replace analogue technology, which is rapidly becoming outmoded. The operator is, however, delaying the Digital Voice switchover for consumers who do not wish to switch right away. BT did not specify how long the halt will occur, nonetheless, it is confident that the switchover will take place soon. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/mt23py8u DigitalBridge enters into mobile infrastructure deal with Telenet Telenet has agreed to sell all of its mobile telecommunications towers in Belgium to DigitalBridge, a US-based real estate investment trust and a subsidiary of the DigitalBridge Group. The investment firm has agreed to pay $820 million for Telenet’s 3,322…
BT and ABB, a Swedish–Swiss multinational corporation specializing in robotics, power and automation technology, have announced a collaboration to upgrade the latter’s globally managed communications infrastructure to new levels of performance and flexibility to support the company’s new operating model. Under this partnership, BT will modernize ABB’s network infrastructure in cooperation with ABB’s Information Systems team to build a sustainable, robust and secure core platform with a highly automated and data-driven managed service. BT will provide an end-to-end, comprehensive, multi-layered cyber security environment to support ABB’s cloud-first goals. The company will install, operate and monitor over 1,100 end-point devices, constantly validating every device, user and application that is connected to the network. Security is a primary focus as ABB implements its cloud plan, which involves consolidating data centers and sending more apps and data to the cloud. With nearly 600 locations in 60 countries, the communications infrastructure will…
Nokia inks a 5G deal with Elisa Estonia Elisa Estonia, a subsidiary of Elisa Finland, has selected Nokia for a national 5G RAN deployment, as well as the replacement of current 4G infrastructure in a five-year arrangement. On completion of Estonia’s spectrum auction in early 2022, deployment is planned to begin in the following year. Nokia will supply Elisa with equipment from its newest ReefShark System on the chip-powered AirScale equipment portfolio, which will cover the nation’s countrywide radio network. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/y4bvm323 BT announces the creation of a Clinical Advisory Board BT has announced the formation of a Clinical Advisory Board, which will be made up of experienced healthcare experts. The aim of this initiative is to help drive the development of innovative, connected healthcare solutions that will improve results and experiences for the NHS and their patients. The professionals will contribute decades of expertise and deep knowledge…
Telefonica to offer industrial 5G services in 2022 For the first time, Telefonica will provide a range of industrial 5G services to selected partners starting in January 2022. In recent years, Telefonica has tested approximately 80 use cases across several industries, with a handful of solutions now ready for implementation. Telefonica will market three particular 5G use cases for industry through its Telefonica Tech unit: autonomously guided vehicles (ATGs), remote support solutions and drone solutions. Customers will be able to access all of these services via Telefonica’s public mobile network, as well as a virtual or dedicated private network. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/46x6mcdj Verizon scores a $34.6M contract The US Department of Energy has awarded Verizon Public Sector two Enterprise Infrastructure Solutions (EIS) contracts for $34.6 million. Verizon will offer voice and data services to a variety of DOE sites, including the agency’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. Under the terms…
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…
Virgin Media O2 tests 5G emergency services drone Virgin Media O2 has released information on a trial it conducted with the Swiss public safety drone expert Fotokite to provide a video feed from a drone to help first responders on the ground. The two businesses discussed several incarnations of the drone, including its capacity to function in difficult conditions at any time of day or night, the simplicity of setting up, launching, and flying, and how valuable the data feed is to first responders dealing with emergency situations. Utilizing 5G networks to control and manage drones for emergency services demonstrates the possibilities that 5G technology provides in terms of higher speeds and lower latency. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/36ax8jrc BT trials quantum key distribution (QKD) over hollow core fiber BT has tested quantum key distribution (QKD) over hollow core fiber (HFC), promoting the technology as a method to improve data security…
Lumen to sell its Latin American business Lumen Technologies has signed an agreement to sell its Latin American business to infrastructure investment company Stonepeak for $2.7 billion. This deal comes from Lumen’s goal of freeing up more cash for its future growth plan. This transaction is expected to be completed in the first half of 2022. After the sale has been completed, Lumen’s Latin American division will become an independent subsidiary of Stonepeak, continuing with the current management team. Despite the sale, Lumen will not sever ties with the subsidiary, as the operator plans to maintain a strategic relationship with the new company. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/4728y9f Verizon signs a deal with US Air National Guard Verizon’s Public Sector business entered into a second agreement with the US Department of Defense (DoD). The latest $78.8 million contract is to help the Air National Guard (ANG) modernize their network services. Under…
BT, the UK’s largest telecoms and network provider, has launched hollow core fiber trials at the BT Labs in Adastral Park, Ipswich, in a joint venture with Lumenisity, the University of Southampton’s spin-off company and Mavenir, the Open Radio Access Network (O- RAN) mobile carrier. The research is being carried out at BT’s research and engineering facilities, with the researchers using a 10-kilometer-long hollow-core fiber cable made by Lumenisity. This state-of-the-art network cable has a hollow, air-filled center that extends through the entirety of the cable. The hollow core fiber will be tested for a myriad of applications, such as the possible benefits to 5G networks and highly secure communications such as Quantum Key Distribution (QKD). Reducing the latency of hollow fiber light could provide immense benefits, including high-frequency trading and reduced mobile network costs. This joint venture has revealed that the usage of hollow core fiber can…