News 

The rumours come amid financial difficulty in the sector 

Nokia has officially denied rumors that it plans to sell its mobile networks division to Samsung.  

Speculation about a potential sale emerged after a Bloomberg report yesterday suggested that Nokia was considering selling or spinning off its mobile networks business, which could be valued at around $10 billion, with Samsung mentioned as a potential buyer. 

Citing people familiar with the matter, the article explained that the investment interest has come “amid increasing pressure to find new growth in the troubled telecom equipment sector.” 

Nokia swiftly rejected these claims, stating in a regulatory filing that it “is issuing this stock exchange release in response to the recent trading activity of its stock due to a market rumour. Nokia has nothing to announce in relation to the speculations published in an article today, and no related insider project exists.” 

The company emphasised its commitment to its mobile networks division, describing it as a “highly strategic asset critical to both Nokia and its customers”.  

This division remains crucial for Nokia despite recent financial challenges, including a 25% decline in sales and a 32% drop in operating profit in Q2 2024. 

In December last year, Nokia suffered a significant blow after AT&T chose Ericsson to supply the Open RAN equipment that will carry 70% of its wireless traffic by the end of 2026.  The $14 billion deal will result in Nokia equipment in AT&T’s network being replaced with Ericsson tech in certain areas.  

Nokia CEO Pekka Lundmark called the news “disappointing” in a statement. 

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Also in the news: 

Network access provider Openreach (BT) has revealed that they will finally withdraw their old Fibre Voice Access (FVA) product from 1st December 2024. The service has long since been superseded by retail broadband ISPs launching their own IP / VoIP based digital phone services.

In case anybody has forgotten, FVA enabled a broadband ISP to offer a public switched telephone network (PSTN) quality voice service to customers over their Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) lines. In order to deliver this, they built an Analogue Terminal Adapter (ATA) into the optical modem (ONT) that goes on your wall, which was able to support two analogue phone ports.

However, FVA was perhaps a bit of an awkward and awkwardly timed product and, as stated earlier, retail ISPs have now largely opted to launch their own IP (Internet Protocol) based voice solutions that connect via your router rather than through the ONT – avoiding the need to take a special service from Openreach.

The FVA service never really took off, and Openreach stopped selling it to new customers on 31st March 2020. The change today is that they’re going to completely withdraw FVA from 1st December 2024, which will of course affect any existing customers that remain (virtually all of those should have already been moved to different products by now).

Press Release

Ericsson and Telstra today announced a groundbreaking, world-first achievement in mobile connectivity with the deployment of Ericsson’s 4th generation of Radio Access Network (RAN) purpose-built compute platform, paving the way  for a consistent 5G Advanced platform for Australia.

With live deployment on August 14, 2024, this technology marks a new era in mobile data and connectivity, setting a new benchmark for speed, reliability, and efficiency.

Telstra deployed Ericsson’s RAN Processor 6672 in a baseband pooling configuration, also called a Centralised RAN (C-RAN) configuration, delivering greater than three times capacity compared to the previous generation. The latest RAN processors are engineered to deliver exceptional data speeds with higher efficiency and reliability. These RAN Compute units handle all the digital signal processing tasks of the RAN including the modulation, demodulation, encoding and decoding and scheduling of a users’ LTE and NR traffic. A more advanced RAN Compute platform allows more data to be processed simultaneously, a better user experience optimised with advanced AI capability all while consuming less energy.

Telstra is the first telco globally to test, validate, and operate commercial traffic on this RAN Compute platform within their C-RAN hubs that service multiple radio sites. In a C-RAN configuration, the new RAN processors offer up to 60 percent lower energy consumption compared to a distributed deployment. This architecture also enables more flexible operations, remove single points of failure and efficient scaling of compute with the use of Ericsson’s packet fronthaul technology.

This deployment is a crucial step toward future-proofing the network and lays the groundwork for forthcoming 5G Advanced and associated technologies. With the latest RAN Compute technology Telstra’s network is set to evolve for the future, offering consumers new and improved features as soon as they are available. The new platform supports advanced automation and AI/ML capabilities, enabling a programmable network that offers enhanced flexibility and responsiveness. Compared to previous generations, the new RAN processors can have up to 20 times more pre-loaded AI models with higher inference capacity enabling superior user experience through AI. This capability will benefit various industries and applications through improved services and innovative network features.

Emilio Romeo, Head of Ericsson, Australia, and New Zealand, says, “The deployment of our latest Generation RAN compute platform with Telstra represents a significant global milestone in mobile technology. This breakthrough not only enhances current services but also prepares the network for future innovations providing a more reliable, sustainable experience.

Telstra’s Executive for Wireless Network Engineering, Sri Amirthalingam added, “We aspire to give our customers a world leading mobile experience and this technology will unlock new capabilities and support increased capacity in the network. With Ericsson’s support, it will help us meet our customers’ data needs more efficiently as they rely on their mobile for day-to day tasks and is an important step in laying the foundations for 6G.”

News 

According to the FCC’s most recent data, over 14 million households and businesses in the US lack 5G access 

The US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has approved new rules to provide $9 billion in subsidies to help roll out 5G in rural areas across the US. 

The decision finally progresses the 5G Fund for Rural America, a scheme was first devised in 2020 and aims to bring advanced mobile connectivity to regions less likely to receive 5G service without financial assistance, helping to bridge the US digital divide.   

The 5G Fund for Rural America has faced significant delays, primarily related to outdated coverage maps. This, the FCC feared, could have led to funding being allocated to areas that did not need it, while underserved areas might have been overlooked. The FCC paused implementation until updated maps were curated. 

In a bipartisan vote, the FCC has now agreed to move forward with targeted investments aimed at connecting households and businesses in rural areas.  

“With the progress we’ve made in mapping broadband service availability, there is no reason to wait to put the 5G Fund to work connecting households and businesses in rural communities across the country,” said FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel in a statement. 

“We are ready to use every tool available to make sure that those who live, work, and travel in rural America have access to advanced, 5G mobile wireless broadband services,” she continued. 

The first phase of the project will allocate up to $9 billion through a reverse auction process, but a date for this process has not yet been set. The FCC has also allocated up to $900 million in incentives for networks that use Open RAN (Open Radio Access Network) technology.  

The new rules also broaden the criteria for areas eligible for support, including Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. 

Join the conversation around America’s broadband ecosystem at next year’s Connected America, 11-12 March in Dallas, Texas. Tickets are available here! 

Also in the news:
Coastguard’s emergency network gets an upgrade from Telent
AT&T fined nearly $1m over 911 failings
How will the CityFibre–Sky deal really affect BT? 

News 

China’s objective is to establish a comprehensive computing power infrastructure system by the end of 2025 in the face of US restrictions 

China has invested more than 43.5 billion yuan ($6.1 billion) in data centre investment over the past two years, according to an official statement on Thursday reported by Chinese state publication Xinhua. 

The funds have paid for the construction eight computing hubs as part of China’s “East Data, West Computing” initiative, launched in 2022 by Chinese National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC). 

The concept involves storing data in the more economically developed eastern regions of China, where digital and industrial activity is concentrated, and processing it in the western regions, which have plenty of land and energy but lower data demand.   

The $6,1 billion investment includes the deployment of three server hubs on China’s populous east coast and five hubs in China’s central/western corridor.  

Speaking at a big data expo in Guiyang, in southwest China’s Guizhou Province, Liu Liehong, the head of the National Data Administration, reported that total investments linked to the hubs deployment had surpassed 200 billion yuan ($28.2 billion). He also mentioned that the number of data center racks now exceeds 1.95 million. 

This project is a critical element of China’s digital infrastructure strategy, aiming to boost the capacity of inland areas to store and manage data. China also has plans to create 10 national data center clusters as part of this broader effort.  

The push comes as the country has faced tight sanctions from the US, which have included exports of some advanced computing products. 

As computing power is emerging as a vital productive force in the digital economy, Liu explained that China will support cities in exploring new approaches over the next few years to determine the most effective solutions for data infrastructure development countrywide. 

Keep up to date with the latest international telecoms news by subscribing to the Total Telecom daily newsletter 

Also in the news:
Coastguard’s emergency network gets an upgrade from Telent
AT&T fined nearly $1m over 911 failings
How will the CityFibre–Sky deal really affect BT? 

Business broadband ISP, cloud and technology provider Daisy Communications has managed to irritate some of their UK customers after the provider automatically added a new internet security feature – ‘SafeWeb Plus’ – to their accounts, at a cost of £11.99 ex. VAT per month, without first getting consent.

It seems like only last week that we were reporting on how Onestream had attracted the ire from some of their customers for doing something similar with NordVPN (side note: it was literally last week). But while consumers have plenty of laws to defend them against such practices, it can be a bit more of a grey area when it comes to businesses (they don’t enjoy as many protections).

Nevertheless, there is usually a little something called business ethics, even in B2B transactions, which in most cases helps to ensure that companies play fair with each other. However, in this case, the concept of such ethics appears as if it could have been placed under some strain. This occurred after Daisy Communications added the paid SafeWeb Plus add-on to customer bills without first getting their express consent.

In fairness, Daisy did include a link to an opt-out form, but this isn’t a simple ‘click to decline‘ style affair. Instead, you have to actually waste time filling in the full form, and that’s just so you can avoid being billed for something that you probably didn’t ask for in the first place. This is of course assuming you didn’t a) accidentally overlook the email (easily done in today’s land of daily promotional spam), or b) fail to read much further down to where it mentions the service charge, as well as the opt-out.

Extract from Daisy Communications’ Customer Email

Subject: Protect your business with Daisy Communications

That’s why we’re adding SafeWeb Plus, one of our cyber security solutions, designed to help to keep your business data safe and protected, to your account.

… (then much further down the email) …

From 1 September 2024, you will have SafeWeb Plus added to your account. So, you will see a monthly fee of £11.99 (excluding VAT) added to your bill.

To opt out of SafeWeb Plus please fill in the form here: https://daisycomms.co.uk/h2-safeweb-plus-opt-out

None of this is to say that SafeWeb Plus is a bad service, in fact it could be a very useful feature to have. But is it so hard to simply get the customer’s consent first, before adding it to their bills? According to some of the feedback we’ve seen, this might not be the first time that Daisy has done something like this, although that requires further investigation.

We have contacted Daisy Communications for a comment.

Welsh broadband ISP Ogi, which is building a multi-gigabit speed Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network to premises across South Wales, has added around 30 additional businesses to their coverage thanks to a new deal with the Caerphilly County Borough Council. This has enabled them to expand across the Tredomen Business and Technology Park.

Located on the same site as the Council’s HQ, the business park is home to some 30 local businesses, from law firms to accountancy practices and tech startups. Ogi has completed the installation of a new bespoke “Ogi Pro” full fibre business network on the site, which leverages its £5m deployment in nearby Hengoed and can supply “affordable business-grade connectivity” at speeds of up to 8Gbps, with capacity to increase as demand grows.

The deployment, which should also support the council’s efforts to make the Ystrad Mynach site greener (fibre uses less energy than the old copper network), appears to be another one of that will harness their 25Gbps Nokia (25G PON) network. Ogi became the first UK broadband ISP to deploy this commercially in 2022 (here).

Ogi’s Director of Business Sales, Andy Dow, said:

“Business Parks like Tredomen are economically important to their regions, and it’s only right they have the same access to good connectivity as places like Cardiff and Newport.

As more of us look to work closer to home, innovation can happen anywhere, and it’s important we invest in the foundations – the infrastructure that’s needed – to help these companies grow at scale. I’m delighted Ogi has been able to partner with Caerphilly Borough Council at Tredomen, helping to make the park more attractive to existing tenants and new companies moving in – and I can’t wait to see what those businesses do with this new technology.”

The network operator has so far covered a total of 100,000 premises (Ready for Service) with their new full fibre network – most of them residential – in Wales up to the end of 2023. In addition, they’re home to over 20,000 customers. But we haven’t seen as much build activity from them during 2024 as in previous years.

News

Ireland is currently home to over 80 data centres 

Google’s proposal to build a major 72,400 square metre data centre in Dublin has been rejected by the South Dublin County Council.  

In its refusal, the council noted concerns over the potential strain on the national power grid, saying there is currently “insufficient capacity in the electricity network” as well as a “lack of significant on site renewable energy” to power the data centre once it became operational in 2027..  

Strain on Ireland’s power grid 

Currently, data centres account for 21% of Ireland’s total electricity use, with this share expected to rise by up to a third by 2026

Data centres are becoming infamous for their high energy consumption. With the demand for digital services, cloud computing, and AI booming worldwide, major tech firms are investing billions in regional data centre infrastructure to support future growth. Whether the data centres’ local power grids will be able to meet that demand, however, is increasingly uncertain. 

EirGrid, Ireland’s national grid operator, has warned of “rolling blackouts” if the number of foreign tech giants’ data centres was allowed to continue unchecked. 

Environmental concerns 

The Irish National Trust highlighted that Google’s planned data center could also contribute an additional 224,250 tons of CO2 emissions annually, roughly 0.44% of the country’s total carbon output. This increase, they argued, would be in conflict with Ireland’s commitments to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.  

National Trust planning officer Sean O’Callaghan warned that the data centre “is entirely incompatible with our obligations to reduce emissions”. 

The rejection of Google’s data centre proposal reflects broader concerns in Ireland and beyond about the sustainability of data centres. As data centres now consume more electricity than all urban households combined in Ireland, the decision reflects the need to balance technology advancements with environmental responsibility.  

Google, who have not commented on the decision, may yet appeal the decision. 

Keep up to date with the latest international telecoms news by subscribing to the Total Telecom daily newsletter  

Also in the news:
Coastguard’s emergency network gets an upgrade from Telent
AT&T fined nearly $1m over 911 failings
How will the CityFibre–Sky deal really affect BT? 

The RAN (Radio Access Network) automation market traces its origins to the beginning of the LTE era when SON (Self-Organizing Network) technology was introduced to reduce cellular network complexity through self-configuration, self-optimization and self-healing. SON’s shortcomings, together with the cellular industry’s shift towards open interfaces, common information models, virtualization and software-driven networking, are driving a transition to Open RAN automation with standards-based components – specifically the Near-RT (Real-Time) and Non-RT RICs (RAN Intelligent Controllers), SMO (Service Management & Orchestration) framework, xApps (Extended Applications) and rApps (RAN Applications) – that enable greater levels of RAN programmability and automation.

While the benefits of SON-based RAN automation in live networks are well-known, expectations are even higher with the RIC, SMO and x/rApps approach. For example, Japanese brownfield operator NTT DoCoMo expects to lower its TCO by up to 30% and decrease power consumption at base stations by as much as 50% using Open RAN automation. It is worth highlighting that domestic rival Rakuten Mobile has already achieved approximately 17% energy savings per cell in its live network using RIC-hosted RAN automation applications. Following successful lab trials, the greenfield operator aims to increase savings to 25% with more sophisticated AI/ML models.

Although Open RAN automation efforts seemingly lost momentum beyond the field trial phase for the past couple of years, several commercial engagements have emerged since then, with much of the initial focus on the SMO, Non-RT RIC and rApps for automated management and optimization across Open RAN, purpose-built and hybrid RAN environments. Within the framework of its five-year $14 Billion Open RAN infrastructure contract with Ericsson, AT&T is adopting the Swedish telecommunications giant’s SMO and Non-RT RIC solution to replace two legacy C-SON systems. In neighboring Canada, Telus has also initiated the implementation of an SMO and RIC platform along with its multi-vendor Open RAN deployment to transform up to 50% of its RAN footprint and swap out Huawei equipment from its 4G/5G network.

Similar efforts are also underway in other regions. For example, in Europe, Swisscom is deploying an SMO and Non-RT RIC platform to provide multi-technology network management and automation capabilities as part of a wider effort to future-proof its brownfield mobile network, while Deutsche Telekom is progressing with plans to develop its own vendor-independent SMO framework. Open RAN automation is also expected to be introduced as part of Vodafone Group’s global tender for refreshing 170,000 cell sites.

SNS Telecom & IT’s “RAN Automation: 2024 – 2030” report predicts that global spending on RIC, SMO and x/rApps will grow at a CAGR of more than 125% between 2024 and 2027 alongside the second wave of Open RAN infrastructure rollouts by brownfield operators. The Open RAN automation market will eventually account for nearly $700 Million in annual investments by the end of 2027 as standardization gaps and technical challenges in terms of the SMO-to-Non-RT RIC interface, application portability across RIC platforms and conflict mitigation between x/rApps are ironed out. The wider RAN automation software and services market – which includes Open RAN automation, RAN vendor SON solutions, third party C-SON platforms, baseband-integrated intelligent RAN applications, RAN planning and optimization software, and test/measurement solutions – is expected to grow at a CAGR of approximately 8% during the same period. For more information, please visit: https://www.snstelecom.com/son

News 

The Group has seen a 10.3% revenue increase year-on-year, with strong subscriber growth across France, Italy, and Poland 

Iliad Group has claimed it is now one of Europe’s top five telecom companies upon the release of its H1 2024 accounts this week.

With nearly 50 million subscribers across its operations in France, Italy, and Poland, the company reported a revenue increase of 10.3% in the first half of the year, reinforcing its position as a key player in the European telco market.  

Growth across key markets 

In France, revenues rose by 9.6% in the first half of 2024, with a particularly strong performance in the second quarter, where it saw a 9.1% increase year-on-year. Iliad added 120,000 new mobile subscribers in Q2 2024, and gained 189,000 new fibre subscribers. 

Iliad argued that its new Wi-Fi product, the Freebox Ultra, which launched in January, played a crucial role in retaining its customer base in France.   

In Italy, revenues rose to 11.5% in the first half of the year. The company maintained its market leadership in net mobile subscriber additions for the 25th consecutive quarter, adding 279,000 new subscribers in Q2 alone. In the fixed market, Iliad Italia added 35,000 new fiber subscribers, strengthening its foothold in a highly competitive environment. 

Poland saw a 12.0% revenue increase. Play, Iliad’s Polish subsidiary acquired in 2020, continued to gain market share in the mobile segment, adding 62,000 new post-paid mobile subscribers and 67,000 prepaid users in the second quarter. The fixed-line segment saw more modest growth, with 17,000 net additions.  

Overall, the company’s EBITDAaL (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortisation, and leasing) rose by 13.2% to €1.86 billion in the first half of 2024, with a margin increase to 37.8%. This growth was particularly strong in Italy (up 26%) and Poland (up 15%). 

Operating free cash flow increased by 61% to €971 million, “allowing the Group to reinforce its financial structure, with its leverage ratio coming in at 2.8x at end-June 2024 versus 3.0x at end-2023″, read the statement. 

“The Iliad Group has reached a historic milestone by becoming one of Europe’s top five operators. Our growth is a testament to our commitment to innovation, investment in our networks, and dedication to providing the best services to our customers,” said group CEO Thomas Reynaud. 

Keep up to date with the latest international telecoms news by subscribing to the Total Telecom daily newsletter 

Also in the news:
Coastguard’s emergency network gets an upgrade from Telent
AT&T fined nearly $1m over 911 failings
How will the CityFibre–Sky deal really affect BT?