TELECOMS Archives | Page 37 of 42

Telecom News

Orange lays its hands on Telekom Romania

By Aiste Kryzanovske November 10, 2020

Orange Romania, the largest provider of broadband Internet and mobile services in Romania, has entered into an agreement to acquire a controlling stake in the fixed operator Telekom Romania Communications (TKR) in order to strengthen its position in the country and increase its market share in the sector. The reason given for Orange paying over $268 million for TKR, is that it is aiming to become the popular choice among customers for combined services in the Romanian market. Orange will gain a controlling 54% stake from the Greek company OTE, most of which is owned by Deutsche Telekom. According to Orange, the deal gives TKR a value exceeding $590.5 million. The transaction is subject to normal regulatory scrutiny and is expected to be completed in the second half of 2021. TKR, being the second largest fixed line provider in the country, achieved revenues of over $739 million in…

Best ways to fight robocalls

By Aiste Kryzanovske November 9, 2020

Robocalls calls have become a plague. It is estimated that Americans alone received more than 58.5 billion robocalls in 2019. While some robotic calls may be from legitimate sources, they can also be scams seeking to deceive or bully people to provide personal information.

Early on, robocalls were easy to detect and ignore because the calls came from an area code you did not recognize. However, the scam has become much more sophisticated with the increase in Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) dialing, which makes it relatively easy to “spoof” a phone number so that the caller ID shows a different number than the one actually calling.

Telecom News

SK Telecom launches blockchain wallet

By Aiste Kryzanovske October 29, 2020

SK Telecom, the South Korean wireless telecommunications giant, with the approval of the Ministry of Public Administration and Security, has announced the launch of a new blockchain-based wallet for digital document storage. This major step could prompt South Korea to rapidly digitize state-issued documents. As claimed by SK Telecom, the wallet will be driven by blockchain technology and will work together with the Government24 Digital Initiative program, which endorses the issuing and distribution of certificates digitally. This initiative is especially relevant as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to spread worldwide. The company’s blockchain-powered wallet will work in conjunction with the Government24 app, sharing documents seamlessly between these endpoints, as well as with local and government institutions, banks and insurance providers. Citizens will be able share documents such as immigration certificates, copies of resident registration cards, health insurance documents using the mobile app managed by the blockchain. As reported by…

Telecom News

NEC to develop 5G network in the UK

By Aiste Kryzanovske October 27, 2020

NEC Corp., a major Japanese information technology company, has agreed to support the development of the UK’s fifth-generation wireless networks across the country, as reported by the British government. The announcement came after Japan and the United Kingdom signed a bilateral free trade agreement following Brexit. Details of the deal are currently unavailable. Since the UK has banned Huawei from deploying its 5G network and has decided to fully remove Huawei’s equipment altogether by 2027 because of potential security issues, the question of who can intervene to fill the empty space left by the Chinese seller has remained open. While European giants Ericsson and Nokia were obvious choices, other candidates also made an appearance. The UK government asked Japan to help deploy 5G networks in the country back in July. British officials then told colleagues in Tokyo that the Japanese technology companies NEC and Fujitsu could be the…

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

RingCentral introduces new SMS services

By Aiste Kryzanovske October 22, 2020

RingCentral, a US-based provider of high-performance cloud communications and collaboration solutions for businesses, has announced a new high-volume and fully integrated SMS service that allows businesses to send SMS messages and updates to their customers promptly and seamlessly. Developers can build custom applications by using the Application Programming Interface (API) that interfaces with RingCentral’s business communication platform. RingCentral also provides a service with pre-built applications that can be obtained from the RingCentral App gallery. By using RingCentral phone numbers for bulk SMS messages, companies can send one-time messages or bundle requests. In addition, the company supports message insights, such as status, logs, storage and analysis for more progressive compliance. The API also permits RingCentral customers to use SMS for services such as mass marketing, automated messaging, customer surveys, chatbots, two-factor authentication and one-time passwords. The API is currently in beta version and available as part of RingCentral’s…

Market Trends

Blockchain in Telecoms: Benefits and Capabilities

By Aiste Kryzanovske October 21, 2020

Maintaining an edge over competition, staying on track with ever-shifting customer needs and seeing steady revenue growth, can be hard in the fiercely competitive environment of telecoms. That is why the telecom industry needs to consider introducing new technologies into their business practices. One such promising technology that can give telecommunications business owners leverage in the industry is blockchain. Blockchain was created as a technology that brings trust where it does not exist. Currently, the telecommunications blockchain market is in its early stages, with only a few vendors having launched telecommunications blockchain solutions. Given the complex nature of blockchain and distributed ledger technology, it is clear that in order for it to succeed in the telecommunications industry, vendors will need to pool their knowledge of blockchain technology and the telecommunications industry. Bringing blockchain into play can create significant benefits and opportunities for a variety of telecommunications sectors. Some of these…

Telecom News

A quick roundup of the news in Telecoms | Week #42

By Aiste Kryzanovske October 16, 2020

Apple reveals 5G iPhones Apple waited a little longer than other manufacturers to introduce 5G phones, probably because they wanted to be certain their first 5G iPhones are top class. The company unveiled its new iPhone 12 phones on Tuesday. All new iPhones are built around the fast Apple A14 Bionic chip, they support 5G wireless connectivity, and are protected by a ceramic shield to make the phones more damage resistant. Bringing 5G to the iPhone is a huge step forward for the company, as it will provide a new level of performance for downloads and uploads, video streaming, games, real-time interactivity and more. Read more at: https://tinyurl.com/y6mum7wh Masergy launches Work From Anywhere solutions Masergy, a software-defined network and cloud platform for the digital enterprise, announced two new SD-WAN Work From Anywhere solutions. Masergy’s SD-WAN Secure Home is a lightweight Fortinet Secure SD-WAN device for fast connection via the residential…

Telecom News

Twilio to acquire startup Segment for $3.2B

By Aiste Kryzanovske October 13, 2020

Twilio, a USA-based cloud communications platform, on Monday announced its largest acquisition to date. The company is buying the customer data startup Segment for $3.2 billion in Twilio Class A common stock, on a fully diluted and cash free, debt free basis. Segment is a customer data platform (CDP) that helps collect, clear and manage customer data. This platform allows organizations to move customer data from one application to another through an API, and use the platform to better control how the customer data travels through the systems. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2020, and Segment will emerge as a part of Twilio. This acquisition could help Twilio expand beyond its core communications capabilities, and also could bring approximately $5 billion in revenue to both companies. This purchase is Twilio’s largest acquisition to date. Back in 2018, the company bought the email…

Telecom News

Cellnex and Everynet partner up to deploy IoT network

By Aiste Kryzanovske October 6, 2020

Cellnex Telecom, a Spanish wireless telecommunications infrastructure and services company, and Everynet, a leading LPWA pioneer and network operator, have signed an agreement to deploy IoT networks in Italy, the UK and Ireland based on LoRaWAN technology. The IoT networks will utilize the Cellnex infrastructure in these three countries, and will be dependent on the Everynet network solution. Cellnex not only provides towers, but also has its own IoT management platform. For data collection, Cellnex will provide an integrated IoT platform for real-time management and diagnostics, and the platform also includes the ability to immediately act predictively or preventively, manually or automatically. In addition, Everynet will be responsible for providing and managing the LoRaWAN network infrastructure. Both companies have stated the network will be available for a wide range of IoT devices and use-cases, including industry 4.0 services for asset tracking or monitoring, as well as smart cities…