Following the launch of a similar centre in Paris, France, earlier this month, Orange is now celebrating the launch of its second European ODC, this time in the Belgian capital, Brussels. The operator calls the ODC a “complete ecosystem for acquiring digital skills testing and fine-tuning actual projects”, with the centre positioned directly in the centre of the city, in the BeCentral hub within Brussels Central Station. The ODC comprises numerous elements, the including a Digital Academy and a digital production workshop known as the Solidarity Fab Lab. At the Digital Academy, participants will receive training in various digital training programmes…

Following the launch of a similar centre in Paris, France, earlier this month, Orange is now celebrating the launch of its second European ODC, this time in the Belgian capital, Brussels.

The operator calls the ODC a “complete ecosystem for acquiring digital skills testing and fine-tuning actual projects”, with the centre positioned directly in the centre of the city, in the BeCentral hub within Brussels Central Station.

The ODC comprises numerous elements, the including a Digital Academy and a digital production workshop known as the Solidarity Fab Lab.

At the Digital Academy, participants will receive training in various digital training programmes, including Big Data, Artificial Intelligence, CyberSecurity and even 5G network applications. It will also host public training sessions on more basic topics, such as how to use the internet for administration tasks, with a major focus on ‘training the trainer’ giving people the skills to help support family members.

The Solidarity FabLab, meanwhile, was described by a spokesperson as ‘putting the physical into the digital learning of the ODC’, allowing participants to receive training and the use of a 3D printer, a laser cutting machine, a digital embroidering machine, and IoT electronics.

The project will also have close ties with other Orange programmes, like Orange Fab, the Group’s start-up accelerator, and Orange Ventures, its investment arm, which may invest in successful start-ups coming out of the Digital Academy. Around 600 people are expected to receive training in the Brussel’s ODC this year.

The creation of the centre is part funded by the Belgian government, which has committed €2 billion, with Orange committing €1 million.

According to Deputy Prime Minister, Petra De Sutter, who was present at the launch, as many as four in ten Belgian’s are at risk of digital exclusion.

The launch comes as part of Orange’s broader Engage 2025 plan, which aims to extend digital inclusion and training programmes to 34.5 million people throughout Europe by 2025. The company also aims to train a further 4.5 million people in more advanced digital skills, such as coding and the use of AI.

This plan also includes the launch of ODCs in each of Orange’s European markets by 2023, with these plans initially being impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.

“Covid was both an acceleration and a slowing down,” explained Jégo-Laveissière. “It’s accelerated our capabilities to create new content, especially for e-learning, but it slowed us down because nobody was able to able to meet with partners or even physically open a new location.”

According to Jégo-Laveissière, Orange will open ODCs in Poland, Spain, and Luxembourg by the end of the year, followed by Romania, Moldova and Slovakia in 2023. Discussions are ongoing with various governments and local authorities regarding joint funding and collaboration, though Orange admits that it may have to go it alone in some markets.

“We need to be ready with an ecosystem – if we create these things together, it’s much more powerful,” said Jégo-Laveissière. “We are working closely with the authorities, whether they are local or global, but in some countries we are doing it on our own.”

The opening of this centre cannot come soon enough. According to the Belgian government, up to 40% of Belgian society is at risk of digital exclusion in the years to come, much of which comes from a lack of education and engagement with the requisite skills and technologies. While just 7% of Belgians have no access to the internet at all, 17% of those with access only do so in a limited way and cannot perform basic tasks online.

“Digital literacy is more than crucial today and it determines how much you have access to digital services. In this way, digital skills are a ticket to fully participating in society,” explained Belgian Deputy Prime Minister, Petra de Sutter. “Up to 40% of the population is at risk of digital exclusions, even when considering access to the internet and smartphones.”

Particularly following the rapid digitalisation of services following the pandemic, the digital divide remains a major challenge worldwide, disproportionately affecting a wide array of very different demographics, from children to the elderly to those with less education. As a result, attempts to combat digital exclusion need to be similarly varied, and that seems to be what Orange is attempting here, creating a one-stop-shop for the local society’s digital needs, from the basics to digital start-up incubation.

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A new subsea link between Greece and Egypt is on the card after Telecom Egypt signed Heads of Agreement with a subsidiary of the Independent Power Transmission Operator (IPTO) of Greece, Grid Telecom. The link will actually be an extension of a subsea cable system…

A new subsea link between Greece and Egypt is on the card after Telecom Egypt signed Heads of Agreement with a subsidiary of the Independent Power Transmission Operator (IPTO) of Greece, Grid Telecom.

The link will actually be an extension of a subsea cable system, which is currently being laid across the Mediterranean Sea and will provide a new reliable telecommunications corridor interconnecting Africa, Asia and Europe – addressing increasing traffic demand between the three. The link will provide the shortest route across the Mediterranean basin to the Balkans as well as improving connectivity to the likes of Genoa and Marseilles.

The Managing Director and CEO of Telecom Egypt, Adel Hamed, commented:
“With the increasing demand for connectivity regionally and around the globe, Telecom Egypt is working on improving and extending its international network and continuously investing in new cables. Our collaboration with Grid Telecom will increase our network’s resiliency and reach.”

The Chairman and CEO of IPTO, Manos Manousakis, stated:
« The Southeast Mediterranean incubates major synergies that will contribute to the wider region’s emergence as a significant hub for both data and energy. In this context, with the fact that Egypt is a key hub location for all subsea cables from East to West, we are very pleased that the cooperation between IPTO’s subsidiary Grid Telecom and Telecom Egypt, will bring a new international route that will enhance the strategic role of Crete island as a neutral open-access node on the intersection of three continents. »

Google and Vodafone Spain recently faced a EUR14 million fine by the country’s data protection authority, with reports revealing that the total number of fines for GDPR enforcement now totals EUR1.6 billion. Four years after the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into effect in the EU, the threat of fines for businesses continues to grow as a host of new regulations and enforcements are set to come into effect this year, including the Data Governance Act and ePrivacy Regulation…

Google and Vodafone Spain recently faced a EUR14 million fine by the country’s data protection authority, with reports revealing that the total number of fines for GDPR enforcement now totals EUR1.6 billion.

Four years after the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into effect in the EU, the threat of fines for businesses continues to grow as a host of new regulations and enforcements are set to come into effect this year, including the Data Governance Act and ePrivacy Regulation.

Dufrain, the data consultancy, today urges telcos businesses to do more to ensure they have proper data governance processes in place to protect both themselves and their customers from data breaches. As such, it outlines the steps telcos can take to manage their data effectively and mitigate risk.

Sorting out unstructured data
Unstructured data, that is data held by an organisation that cannot be used or detected by technology, presents a serious compliance risk for telcos, which are typically exposed to huge amounts of personal customer information. Common examples of unstructured data include emails, PDFs or documents saved via Microsoft Teams, but data left in this way can mean businesses breach data protection laws and face the threat of potentially crippling fines.
Bespoke technological solutions can be implemented to bring unstructured data under control in the same way as structured data, making it easier to manage and mitigate risks before they arise.

Prepare properly for mergers and acquisitions
Deal value for M&A in the telecommunications sector rose by 48% in 2021 with ‘scale deals’ – when companies merge to increase market share – making up the bulk of activity.
To reap the full benefits of M&A activity and scale up, the data of the two companies must be combined. However, this migration is often slow and inefficient as businesses have to merge masses of data from many disparate systems. Technical solutions that are designed to speed up and simplify the data migration process can be extremely cost effective and allow businesses to properly integrate data from an acquired or merged business into their reporting. Ensuring that businesses have oversight of all data guarantees it is stored properly, while also driving better informed business decisions and profitability.

Implementing a strong data governance strategy
By developing an overarching data governance strategy, businesses improve the quality of data to drive effective decision making for the future while also ensuring that all information is stored safely to eliminate the threat of fines for non-compliance. Data consolidated in one central, organised system means that insights from all areas of the businesses can be drawn upon to inform decisions that enable growth and better meet customer needs.

Gerry Goodwin, Sales Director at Dufrain, said:
“The fine imposed on Google and Vodafone shows that, four years on from the implementation of GDPR, the regulators are as stringent as ever in its enforcement. Focusing on implementing a data strategy that encompasses all aspects of data usage, ownership and management is vital for avoiding potentially crippling fines, especially as the world becomes increasingly digital. In the first instance, that means knowing where all their data is and how its stored and used, both to mitigate data breaches as much as possible, but also to ensure that they can make the most of the data in a compliant way to develop the business and drive growth.”
 

Today, Telus has announced its purchase of human-resources firm LifeWorks for $2.3 billion, including debt, with plans to combine it with the operator’s existing healthcare subsidiary, Telus Health.
Toronto-based LifeWorks currently runs pension plans, absence management, and other health support services for corporate clients…

Today, Telus has announced its purchase of human-resources firm LifeWorks for $2.3 billion, including debt, with plans to combine it with the operator’s existing healthcare subsidiary, Telus Health.

Toronto-based LifeWorks currently runs pension plans, absence management, and other health support services for corporate clients. 

These capabilities will be integrated with Telus Health’s existing service offerings, creating a holistic mental health and wellness platform.

Once combined, Telus Health will have a revenue of roughly $1.6 billion, with corporate clients in over 160 countries. 

“Today’s announcement will enable us to combine the respective skills and capabilities of LifeWorks and Telus Health, creating a globally leading, end-to-end, digital-first employee preventative and mental health and wellness platform covering more than 50 million lives,” said Darren Entwistle, President and CEO of Telus.

Telus Health initially began life back in 2008, when the operator purchased Emergis, a Canadian medical records business. Since then, the company has now grown to offer a wide variety of healthcare-related services, including virtual medical care, health benefits management, and e-proscription services. 

The motivation for the acquisition appears to be primarily one of scale, with Telus suggesting that the changing corporate environment post-pandemic is putting an increasing emphasis on employee-wellness services.

“Access to care is a big challenge, and mental health is a growing theme across the world,” said Telus Health’s VP of virtual care Daniel Martz. “Employees are increasingly expecting to receive broader health and wellness and work-life support in this environment.” 

As always, the acquisition will await the typical approvals from regulators and shareholders, with Martz telling analysts on a conference call earlier today that he expected the process to the “smooth sailing”. 
 

This week, reports from the covert activist group Justice for Myanmar (JFM) suggest that Burmese operator Mytel is helping the military junta track defecting soldiers via their SIM cards. 
Back in 2018, before the commercial launch of Mytel, the operator launched a sales campaign called Aung Ta Khon (‘Banner of Victory’), handing out free SIM cards to soldiers with the backing of military leadership. 
Having been given access to data pertaining to the soldiers&’…

This week, reports from the covert activist group Justice for Myanmar (JFM) suggest that Burmese operator Mytel is helping the military junta track defecting soldiers via their SIM cards. 

Back in 2018, before the commercial launch of Mytel, the operator launched a sales campaign called Aung Ta Khon (‘Banner of Victory’), handing out free SIM cards to soldiers with the backing of military leadership. 

Having been given access to data pertaining to the soldiers’ name, rank, and ID number, Mytel then assigned SIM cards to each soldier that corresponded to the soldiers’ military ID, typically prefixed with 0969. In this way, the military could easily identify its troops by their phone numbers alone.  

It is worth noting that the choice of 0969 is seemingly no coincidence: the 696 Movement is a Buddhist nationalist movement that broadly opposes the Islamic religion within Myanmar. 

Now, JFM is alleging that the military is using these SIMs to track the movements and conversations of its soldiers, saying that a number of soldiers trying to defect had been arrested after having used their Mytel SIMs.

“Two soldiers connected with us via their Mytel SIM cards because they cannot buy another SIM card at the frontline,” explained Nyi Thuta, a former captain the Burmese military who defected after the coup and now helps others to do the same. “Later, they were arrested while on their way to us.”

Following the Aung Ta Khon promotion, similar SIM cards were given to government officials and business leaders in the country, many of whom, including State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and President U Win Myint, have since been detained by the military junta following the coup.

JFM is calling on Mytel to be sanctioned by the international community, saying that the company’s profits are being used by the military to commit crimes against humanity.

« Mytel is a product of the Myanmar military’s systemic corruption, supporting war criminals including Min Aung Hlaing and the illegal military junta that he is heading, with revenue, technology and intelligence,” said JFM spokesperson Yadanar Maung speaking to Radio Free Asia.

As a joint venture between the Burmese military and Viettel, controversies surrounding Mytel’s relationship to the military are nothing new.

Granted a telecoms licence in 2017, the company has since been embroiled in numerous scandals due to its links to the military, including having receiving preferential treatment by the government and launching nationalistic disinformation campaigns over social media.

Following the military coup d’état against the government in February 2021, Mytel has been boycotted by Burmese consumers, with the resulting campaign reportedly resulting in a loss of around $25 million in profits and two million subscribers in the two months following the overthrow.

Since then, the company has seen hundreds of its mobile towers sabotaged by resistance groups, with its leadership even being targeted for assassination. In November last year, Thein Aung, Mytel’s chief financial officer and a former navy officer, was shot dead outside his home in the capital of Yangon. It is currently unclear who was responsible for the attack.

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The Malaysian government is this week standing firm against pressure from telcos to change its strategy surrounding 5G mobile services. 
Rather than auctioning off 5G spectrum, as is the norm in most countries around the world, in 2021 Malaysia chose to set up a national wholesale 5G network operator, DNB. The government reasoned that this would allow for a faster and more equitable rollout of the new technology across the country and greatly reduce unnecessary overbuild by rival operators…

The Malaysian government is this week standing firm against pressure from telcos to change its strategy surrounding 5G mobile services. 

Rather than auctioning off 5G spectrum, as is the norm in most countries around the world, in 2021 Malaysia chose to set up a national wholesale 5G network operator, DNB. The government reasoned that this would allow for a faster and more equitable rollout of the new technology across the country and greatly reduce unnecessary overbuild by rival operators. 

The existing mobile players, however, disagreed, saying that the prices DNB charged were too high and that they would have been able to deploy 5G in a more effective and affordable way themselves. 

By the end of 2021, only a few very minor mobile players had signed up for DNB’s services, leading the government to change tack in early 2022 and offer the telcos a combined 70% stake in DNB.

While this plan was initially met with approval from the telcos, upon closer inspection they insisted that individual minority stakes would still not offer them good value. The four largest operators – Digi Telecom, Celcom Axiata, Maxis, and U Mobile – made a joint suggestion that those four alone should own a combined 51% stake of DNB, but this was rejected by the government last month. 

Now, the operators have a deadline of the end of the month to agree to a stake or else lose out on access to 5G spectrum entirely. 

Today, despite pushback from the mobile industry, the Malaysian government is sticking to its guns, saying that the end-of-the-month deadline will stand. If the telcos refuse, then licences could instead be offered to new market entrants.

« The larger issue is Malaysians’ and businesses’ access to 5G technology. If telcos, particularly the larger ones, continue to delay providing 5G services to their customers, as recently mentioned by the Minister of Communications and Multimedia, his Ministry will consider other options such as issuing new licences to new players to enable the speedy delivery of 5G services in the country,” said Finance Minister Tengku Zafrul to The Straits Times. « Indeed, the interests of Malaysia and its people must take precedence over the telcos’ narrow commercial interests. »

The Malaysian government has estimated that the rollout of 5G could create around 750,000 high-value jobs and boost the economy by almost $15 billion by 2030.

He said that no operator will be allowed to hold a stake in DNB greater than 20%, or 25% in the case of mergers between the operators, while the Ministry of Finance will retain its 30% stake.

“All 5G spectrum will be available only through DNB,” he said. “DNB is able to obtain financing to fund the network rollout because 5G services will undoubtedly be in demand in the country. I am aware that DNB has discussed financing with various banks.”

According to sources, various private equity firms are also interested in taking stakes in DNB.

Nonetheless, Tengku Zafrul said that telcos would be prioritised over any foreign investors if they do choose to invest. 

With less than two weeks to go, the future of Malaysian 5G is balanced on a knife edge.
 

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Also in the news: 
ITU’s Partner2Connect project sees $18.5 billion in pledges to connect the unconnected
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The top reported business challenge in the last year, according to a study on CEOs’ most important business challenges in 2022 by Forbes, Covid-19 continues to concern business leaders, alongside other worries such as rising inflation, labour shortages, supply chain disruptions and changing consumer behaviours.  
More specifically, companies are struggling to provide a consistent and holistic omnichannel experience for their customers while blending remote and in-person work.  
 
For many organisations, improving the management of customer data is their top customer experience (CX) priority over the next 12 months. This is because they recognise that creating the immersive, personalised, and compelling experiences customers expect comes from integrated customer data systems, improved uses of customer data to generate insights…

The top reported business challenge in the last year, according to a study on CEOs’ most important business challenges in 2022 by Forbes, Covid-19 continues to concern business leaders, alongside other worries such as rising inflation, labour shortages, supply chain disruptions and changing consumer behaviours.  

More specifically, companies are struggling to provide a consistent and holistic omnichannel experience for their customers while blending remote and in-person work.  

For many organisations, improving the management of customer data is their top customer experience (CX) priority over the next 12 months. This is because they recognise that creating the immersive, personalised, and compelling experiences customers expect comes from integrated customer data systems, improved uses of customer data to generate insights, and the combining legacy technology with modern, cloud-based solutions. 

What is the metaverse and who is using it? 

This is where the metaverse comes in. It is largely a virtual world that represents the data that companies collect about their customers – and, of course, customer data is a top CX priority for executives.  

Many notable companies are already venturing into the metaverse, such as Sky, Disney, Meta (formerly known as Facebook) and Nike. However, getting started on the journey is a struggle for many businesses, who are often challenged with getting executive buy-in and with aligning internal leadership teams to support the adoption of what is a more holistic platform and accompanying strategy. 

How can you make the metaverse more immersive? 

Three of the key elements to consider when starting out on your metaverse journey are augmented reality, 3D assets and 360° video file creation and avatars. 

1. Augmented reality  

More and more businesses are capitalising on the increasing popularity of augmented reality (AR). 

However, the technology needs specialised equipment and software to create the illusion of an object added to the real world, such as smart glasses or headsets. And these in turn need cameras and sensors in order to create a smooth and seamless AR experience, not to mention 5G and enough power to process real life images, creating the AR object which will be superimposed by the projector (which is also required, at an expense!) 

2. 3D assets and 360° video file creation 

3. Avatars – 3D digital characters 

Traditionally when a customer interacts with a chat bot online, it’s been through automated messages, an often impersonal and sometimes unempathetic and frustrating experience. 3D avatars instead offer the customer a digital character to engage with, empowering companies to connect more authentically with their audiences. 

Modern avatars can show emotion and empathy through their facial expressions and speech patterns, powered by audio-driven speech animation technology. They can even react to sentiment from the customer, all of which combines to give a more meaningful interaction. 

Will there be major changes to CX in the metaverse? 

Consumers can definitely expect to see familiar services be tailored to suit the metaverse. One defining characteristic of CX in the metaverse is that it will be a more interactive and potentially more complex version of its real-world counterpart. 

Service provider brands have several key points they should consider, including: know your target audience; make sure you have the technology needed to operate optimally in the metaverse; prioritise creating virtual-first experiences that truly are virtual; and conduct studies and testing to learn more about the buyer’s journey, so that you can appropriately modify it to fit into the context of the metaverse. 

However, a word of warning. Companies should avoid adopting virtual CX and then forcing it to become something that it’s not. They should instead focus on building a metaverse channel that can be used to meet individual customer needs efficiently and with empathy in a whole new space. 

Many brands, particularly from the e-commerce and retail industry, have become early adopters of this exciting new technology – and there is no doubt that companies who are able to dive into the metaverse have an opportunity to strengthen relationships with their loyal supporters and to gain new fans. 

Find out more on how you can innovate your customer experience today in preparation for future metaverse environments, by attending Capita’s virtual roundtable Make Way for the Metaverse: Planning for the new CX Universe. 

In recent months, European operators have once again been urging regulators to force big tech companies to help pay for their expensive infrastructure rollouts. In a recent study from the European Telecommunications Network Operators’ Association (ETNO), the telcos argued that Meta, Alphabet, Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, and Netflix should contribute &€…

In recent months, European operators have once again been urging regulators to force big tech companies to help pay for their expensive infrastructure rollouts. In a recent study from the European Telecommunications Network Operators’ Association (ETNO), the telcos argued that Meta, Alphabet, Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, and Netflix should contribute €20 billion annually towards their network costs, since they account for over 56% of annual traffic on telco networks.

European Commissioner Margrethe Vestager has said that the EU will consider this proposal, saying that these players have so far “not been contributing” to enabling the traffic that they generate. Detractors, meanwhile, say such plans unfairly punish the tech players, with a group of non-government organisations also recently pointing out that such a tax would arguably run contrary to European rules surrounding net neutrality. 

Now, it seems that Romania is already moving to redress the balance of power, at least when it comes to streaming services, implementing a new tax of 4% on the revenues of video-on-demand providers. The tax will apply on revenues generated from both individual transactions and repeat subscriptions.

The funds raised from this tax will be given to the national film fund, managed by the Romanian Film Centre, to help develop the country’s domestic film industry.

The tax is being implemented to create a more level playing field between streaming services and the broader film industry, with Romania’s domestic cinemas already obligated to dedicate 4% of their revenues to the film fund.

”The contributions to the Cinematographic Fund, as they are provided in art. 13 of Government Ordinance 39/2005 regarding cinematography are 4% for the traditional operators, respectively the cinemas. On-demand audiovisual media services, generically known as VoD platforms, are in fact still operating. Thus, a discrimination in the way in which one operator contributes to the Film Fund in relation to another does not find any objective justification,” said the government in a translated statement.

Services with audience levels below 1% or with revenues of less than €65,000 a year will be exempt from this new tax.

The law will also see streaming platforms required to dedicate at least 30% of their libraries to media produced in Europe.

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Also in the news: 
ITU’s Partner2Connect project sees $18.5 billion in pledges to connect the unconnected
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When it comes to wireless technologies, it should come a no surprise that environments like mines have presented major challenges for many years. However, as these technologies improve, we are beginning to see mining operations around the world upgrading their infrastructure, thereby enabling the IoT, industrial automation…

When it comes to wireless technologies, it should come a no surprise that environments like mines have presented major challenges for many years. However, as these technologies improve, we are beginning to see mining operations around the world upgrading their infrastructure, thereby enabling the IoT, industrial automation, and autonomous mining vehicles. 

Now, Intracom Telecom has announced that it has deployed its latest FWA and IoT platform at a major mining operation in sub-Saharan Africa. 

The FWA solution, called WiBAS, uses Point-to-Multi-Point (PtMP) technology to deliver high capacity over long distances. In addition, the company is also deploying its uni|MS IoT control and management platform, which includes “a sophisticated alarm flow coupled with key performance indicators, available on reports and graphs…[to] elevate the Operators’ experience and ensure timely optimizations”.

« We have been serving our customers in Africa for their needs to connect remote location in mines since 2011. We are very pleased to extend our cooperation with one of the biggest African mines so to provide modern communications to ground crews and machine operating personnel, while safeguarding and monitoring the perimeter of the mine, » said John Tenidis, Marketing Director of Wireless Network Systems at Intracom Telecom.

Details of the mine and the mining company itself were not revealed. 

Intracom are not alone in their growing interest in mining operations. For example, late last year, Ericsson announced a plan with Russian operator MTS to deploy a 5G-ready private network at an iron ore mine in the Republic of Karelia, pledging to improve automation and site safety. 

Nokia has also announced a similar deal to supply a private network at a gold mine in Finland. 

However, it should be noted that in April Ericsson announced that it is withdrawing from the Russian market as a result of the invasion in Ukraine, so the future of its Russian mining deployment is unclear. 

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Also in the news: 
ITU’s Partner2Connect project sees $18.5 billion in pledges to connect the unconnected
Telefonica strikes deal with German fibre association to connect 5G sites
Enterprise data opportunities in the 5G era