This Industry Viewpoint was authored by Lakshmiprasad A, Associate Director, Prodapt

Service providers in the Connectedness industry are challenged with increasing security threats as they handle sensitive data and provide critical services to customers. Security is the need of the hour as service providers target to balance rapid service delivery with adequate security measures, manage the security of complex infrastructure, including networks, servers, and cloud environments, and meet compliance requirements such as GDPR and HIPAA. … [visit site to read more]

Keep up-to-date with all the latest news, articles, event and product updates posted on Developing Telecoms.
Subscribe to our FREE weekly email newsletters for the latest telecom info in developing and emerging markets globally.

News 

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has launched a consultation into the possibility of a free Wi-Fi network across London 

The consultation is currently being carried out by telecoms and digital infrastructure specialists such as the Wireless Broadband Alliance, London borough authorities, and other international cities that have already completed similar projects.  

The report is set to publish its recommendations early this year. 

The Mayor has allocated a budget of £20,000 to create a plan to improve the city’s connectivity. If the scheme is approved, it will form part of the Mayor’s “Digital Access for All” mission, which aims for every Londoner to have access to high quality connectivity, basic digital skills, and the device or support they need to be online by 2025. 

“I want every Londoner and visitor to have the very best experience possible and in our connected world that means having access to fast, reliable, seamless internet access,” said Khan. 

“This consultation will be the first step towards delivering better digital services for all, building a better and more prosperous city for everyone.” 

Similarly, the Mayor has been bolstering London’s mobile connectivity on the city’s transport networks. Since forming a 25 year-long strategic partnership with Boldyn Networks (previously BAI Communications) in 2021, Transport for London (TFL) are deploying 4G and 5G connectivity on the London Underground. Currently, 18 out of 121 underground stations have coverage, which is set to grow steadily under the partnership. 

Boldyn Networks have also partnered with the city of Sunderland to expand the city’s free public Wi-Fi infrastructure, ultimately seeking to make Wi-Fi coverage citywide –although this is on a much smaller level than London. Residents and visitors within the range of the Wi-Fi can benefit from connection speeds of up to 500Mbps. 

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

Also in the news:
Nokia won’t reach end of year financial targets for 2023 
How 5G standalone can help our shift to Net Zero 
BT misses Huawei equipment removal deadline 

We started the week with the question of consolidation targets in the US, and now it’s time for the other side of the coin.  What network operators are most likely to be consolidators in 2024?  We’ll take it as a given that ‘infrastructure funds’ would top the more general list of likely buyers, of course, but let’s focus on the existing network operators looking to expand inorganically in the US.  Last year the perennial favorite Zayo topped the list with Crown Castle and Lightpath in 2nd and third. … [visit site to read more]

The chairman of Thailand’s National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), Dr Sarana Boonbaichaiyapruck, has outlined a plan to create more MVNOs in the country.

The plan, which includes a scheme entitled One Region, One Mobile Virtual Network Operator, aims to create four more MVNOs by 2026, in addition to the country’s three existing mobile phone operators.

The regulator also plans to bring in free access to state digital services nationwide by 2026. This means all Thais will be able to use basic state services without internet charges on their mobile tariffs. This will be implemented in collaboration with mobile phone operators, according to the NBTC chairman.

The NBTC office will start implementing both the One Region, One MVNO scheme and free government digital services policies this year.

Will market demand sustain these new entrants against True Corporation, Advanced Info Service (AIS) and National Telecom (NT)? The Bangkok Post points out that the combined subscribers of AIS and True Corp represent more than 96% of total subscribers in the market.

It is also not clear that major operators will want to rent their network capacity to MVNOs at a low fee. However, the NBTC’s proposed regulations imply they may have little choice. That said, major mobile operators can hold a share of the regional MVNOs – but no more than 25%.

As for opportunities, MVNOs may have trouble competing with larger rivals in the mass market but there could be business opportunities in the 5G private network market.

All of this remains to be seen, however. So far The WhiteSpace, the owner of the Penguin SIM brand, is the only MVNO in Thailand. The Bangkok Post suggests its subscriber base is a little over 40,000 in a country of nearly 70 million people.

News 

Billionaire Xavier Niel, who owns French telco Iliad, has expressed an interested in purchasing Altice Portugal, according to a report from Bloomberg 

Altice Portugal, which is part of Altice Group and serves customers using the brand name Meo, is owned by French billionaire Patrick Drahi, who indicated his intention to sell the unit in summer last year.  

Since then, Altice has reportedly received interest from numerous buyers, with Drahi set to narrow down the current pool of bidders into a shortlist at some point early this year.  

It is widely known that Saudi Telecom Company (STC) are in the running, but some other companies involved have asked not to be identified. Portuguese business newspaper Jornal Económico has reported that Altice has received three non-binding offers, but did not disclose any further details. 

Discussions on this deal are ongoing and nothing has been decided as of yet. 

Meo is currently the leader in the Portuguese telecoms market, with a 48% market share of the mobile segment and a 41% share of the fixed broadband segment. While valuations for the business have not been disclosed, sources suggest that current bids range between €7 billion to €9.5 billion. 

Altice Group itself is currently laden with a debt pile of around $60 billion, which Drahi is seeking to rectify with Meo’s sale and other divestments. Altice announced its intention to sell off the control of its data centre business in November, entering into an agreement with Morgan Stanley to sell a 70% share of the business for €535 million to create a new venture named UltraEdge. 

Altice’s financial woes have not been helped by an ongoing scandal involving co-founder and COO Armando Pereira, who was arrested in July on suspicion of tax fraud, corruption, and money laundering. 

This deal with Morgan Stanley is not yet completed, but if approved by regulators, is expected to close in the first half of next year. 

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

Also in the news:
Streamlining success: The crucial role of order management
Ooredoo Lighting up Qatar with Fibre
Could Vodafone Idea hand Elon Musk the keys to India? 

Two bits of inorganic activity, and a new subsea cable alongside some other M&A talk over in Europe: … [visit site to read more]

Keep up-to-date with all the latest news, articles, event and product updates posted on Developing Telecoms.
Subscribe to our FREE weekly email newsletters for the latest telecom info in developing and emerging markets globally.

News 

Nokia has announced that it is set to miss its financial year targets for 2023 after a weak last quarter and numerous licensing renewal agreements were not closed by the end of the year 

The company noted that intense negotiations between the relevant parties (including Vivo and Amazon) and courts are ongoing, saying it will prioritise protecting the value of its patent portfolio over achieving results within certain timeframes. 

Nokia also cited challenging market conditions for their results, Including reduced customer spending and global economic instability. 

“The quarter has proved somewhat more challenging than expected given on-going customer spending constraint and the recently communicated customer purchasing decision. Profitability in Nokia’s networks businesses is however expected to remain solidly within the comparable operating margin assumptions the company had previously communicated,” said Nokia in a press release last week.  

Nokia’s Q3 results showed the company’s net sales were down 40%. 

In an attempt to combat their poor performance, the company is aiming to shrink its costs by €1 billion by 2026. As part of this process, Nokia has recently announced that it will cut 14,000 jobs, reducing the company workforce to around 72,000. 

Speaking on its third quarter results, President and CEO Pekka Lundmark said: “We continue to believe in the mid-to-long-term market, but we are not going to sit and wait and pray that the market will recover anytime soon…we simply don’t know when it will recover.”  

In related news, last month America’s AT&T selected Ericsson over Nokia to become the operator’s main Open RAN equipment vendor. Nokia described the decision as “disappointing”, with their share price plummeted 8% upon the news. 

Contracts with AT&T represented 5-8% of Nokia’s mobile networks net sales in 2023. 

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

Also in the news:
How 5G standalone can help our shift to Net Zero
BT misses Huawei equipment removal deadline
Could Vodafone Idea hand Elon Musk the keys to India? 

Happy New Year to all!  Last year’s fiber/network M&A activity wasn’t that, well, active in the USA.  And based on the responses to last year’s poll that didn’t surprise too many people, as there was little consensus as to who might be a target.  The Cox/UPN/Segra and Shentel/Horizon deals did land, and on the FTTH front there were some small deals, but the big action was over in Europe in 2023.  Will 2024 be any busier on this side of the Atlantic?  Who you think are the likeliest candidates to be sold (in part or in whole) in 2024.  (Not including already pending transactions). … [visit site to read more]