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This article was originally published by Grace Dawes for Movemnt 

Telecoms service giant AT&T has partnered with lamppost electric vehicle (EV) charging start-up Voltpost to provide IoT connectivity to EV charging posts across Michigan and the Metro-Detroit area.

Voltpost operates by retrofitting lampposts into a modular EV charging platform, providing connected charging infrastructure in cities and companies as well as scalable curbside and parking lot charging.

Use and deployment of curb side charging is rare in the States yet helpful for those incapable of charging EVs at home.

The collaboration with AT&T reportedly aims to “enhance charger uptime and help ensure reliable charging access for drivers”.

“We are dedicated to fostering innovation and supporting emerging tech that will shape the transportation sector. As cities move toward a more sustainable future, enabling cities to scale their charging networks with existing infrastructure and advanced connectivity is a game-changer,” said Joe Mosele, Vice President, AT&T Connected Solutions. 

Voltpost has reported a pipeline of upcoming deployments, with chargers to be installed at several sites across Michigan, New York, and Illinois.

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AT&T recently announced its gigaton goal to help businesses reduce 1 billion metric tons of CO2 by 2035 through connectivity backed solutions such as fibre, 5G and IoT.

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The agreement is set to come into effect on November 19 

Telecom Acquisitions Limited (TAL) has announced the signing of a wholesale partnership with KCOM, the main broadband provider in Hull, East Yorkshire, and North Lincolnshire. Through the deal, TAL’s Eclipse Broadband brand will now offer services on KCOM’s expanded fibre network in these areas. 

Eclipse, originally a KCOM brand acquired by TAL in 2021, will complement KCOM’s services, enhancing customer choice, the companies said. 

“This project has been some time in the making, but we’ve always had a great working relationship with the KCOM team which has made this exciting opportunity possible. This offering will state ‘powered by KCOM’ and is supported by the TAL brands combined Trustpilot Rating 4.4 “Excellent” with the support of over 15,000 reviews,” said TAL’s CEO Nigel Barnett in a press release. 

“The agreement reinforces his group’s presence in the Hull, East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire area following the acquisition of bases developed by ISP’s Open Fibre, Link Broadband, Infinics Broadband and Zybre,” he continued. 

“KCOM’s full fibre network powers thousands of homes and businesses across Hull, East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire. This new deal with TAL means that more customers in our expansion areas can access the benefits of our fast, secure and reliable network via the Eclipse broadband brand,” echoed Jan Collins, the MD of KCOM Enterprise. 

Join the conversation about connectivity in the North of the UK by attending Connected North, 23-24 April in Manchester. Get discounted tickets here! 

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The two companies first signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the cable in 2022 

Saudi Arabian telco Mobily has partnered with Telecom Egypt to launch the first submarine cable connecting Saudi Arabia and Egypt through the Red Sea. The new cable, which will be wholly owned by Mobily, aims to improve connectivity and meet the growing demand for internet services in both countries. 

The cable will land at two stations: Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt and Duba in Saudi Arabia. The connection will allow Mobily to link the Arabian Gulf and neighbouring countries to Egypt, enhancing access to various international networks. 

“The new cable represents a significant milestone in strengthening Saudi Arabia’s position as a leading international hub for telecommunications services and data traffic, in alignment with the goals of Saudi Vision 2030,” said Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al-Badran, Mobily’s CEO. 

“Complementing the newly established landing station in Sharm El Sheikh, we are developing new crossing routes to connect Sharm El Sheikh to the Mediterranean Sea. Telecom Egypt is dedicated to advancing the international telecommunications infrastructure by enhancing the geographical diversity of the global subsea cable networks. We are confident that this commercial agreement will be a valuable addition to our ongoing efforts to support this critical sector and cater to the rising demand for capacity and connectivity,” added Mohamed Nasr, Managing Director and CEO at Telecom Egypt.

In October last year, the Red Sea saw a rise in paramilitary activities, with Yemeni Houthi forces attacking commercial vessels, reportedly in response to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.  

By February, the situation, dubbed the “Red Sea crisis,” escalated to a critical issue for global telecommunications as damage to submarine cables in the area severely disrupted data traffic across Europe, Africa, and Asia. It is unclear whether or not this damage was deliberate.  

A report from network service provider RETN last month, said that the cable cuts impacted up to 70% of Europe–Asia data traffic – far greater than the 25% previously estimated. 

Join us at next year’s Submarine Networks, 18-19 February in London. Get discounted tickets here!

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Freedom Fibre and Zen Internet ink network sharing deal 

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The partnership will expand connectivity options for businesses in the North-West and West Midlands 

Freedom Fibre has teamed up with Zen Internet to deliver full-fibre ethernet to thousands of businesses across the North-West and West Midlands. Using Freedom Fibre’s XGS-PON network, Zen will be able to provide businesses with high-speed ethernet and broadband options. 

The partnership supports Freedom Fibre’s recent launch of business products as it aims to expand its customer base across a network now reaching over 315,000 locations. The collaboration also aligns with efforts to close the digital divide by increasing access to reliable, high-speed connectivity. 

Businesses can choose between options like FibrePlus, a flexible service designed to grow with business needs, and FibreDirect, a premium offering ideal for larger companies, with speeds up to 10Gb/s and a five-hour repair time. 

“We are the UK’s oldest ISP that still exists in its original form and also the best, according to the IT professional readership of PC Pro, who have voted Zen the UK’s best broadband provider every year since 2004 – 20 years and counting. I’m looking forward to launching our services shortly through Freedom Fibre’s first-class fibre network,” said Zen internet CEO Richard Tang in a press release. 

The partnership also reflects a commitment to sustainability and customer care. Zen, which holds a B-Corp certification and is a Which? Recommended Provider, shares Freedom Fibre’s focus on quality service and environmental responsibility, making the alliance a strong move for both companies and their customers, the companies said.

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

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The partnership aims to meet the rising demand for 5G while supporting sustainable, digital growth across Spain 

Ericsson has partnered with newly merged MasOrange, Spain’s largest telco, in a five-year project to upgrade its network with Open RAN technology. 

Announced this week, the collaboration aims to make MasOrange’s network one of Europe’s most modern and powerful 5G networks, the companies said. 

Under the deal, Ericsson will help integrate the networks of Orange Spain and Masmovil, creating a stronger, more efficient system. The network will use sustainable technology and energy-saving equipment from Ericsson to reduce costs and improve performance.  

Part of the plan includes rolling out 5G Standalone (5G SA) in rural areas of Spain, which will expanding high-speed internet access to more communities. 

The upgraded network will feature Ericsson’s advanced antennas and computing systems, which will boost data speeds and allow MasOrange to offer new, improved services. This includes the use of Massive MIMO technology, which uses multiple antennas to send and receive data faster and improve user experience. 

“This collaboration with Ericsson represents a decisive moment not only for MasOrange, but also for European telecommunications industry as a whole and for the Spanish market, as we lead the development of Open RAN and we lay the foundation for an open and programmable mobile infrastructure that will drive technological advances and sustainable growth,” said MasOrange’s CEO Meinrad Spenger in a press release. 

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Lit Fibre customers will be unaffected by the change of ownership  

CityFibre, the UK’s largest independent full-fibre network provider, has sold its ISP subsidiary Lit Fibre consumer internet service back to its co-founders, Tom Williams and Ben Bresler.  

CityFibre, which initially acquired Lit Fibre in May 2024, aims to complete integration of Lit Fibre’s 10Gbps network by year-end, bringing up to 300,000 more premises onto its network. 

As a wholesaler, however, CityFIbre is seemingly uninterested in retaining the company’s ISP unit, hence the sale for an undisclosed sum. 

“Our strategy has always been to be the wholesale provider of choice, building a nationwide, full fibre network that enables all of our partners to access market-leading products, pricing and service and gives consumers a greater choice of full fibre ISPs. We are really pleased to see Lit Fibre continue with its co-founders, who are passionate about the business, and we look forward to continuing to partner with Lit Fibre across our network,” said Greg Mesch, City Fibre CEO in a press release. 

“As the nation’s third digital infrastructure platform, we continue to evaluate potential acquisition opportunities alongside accelerating CityFibre’s build to reach at least 8 million premises across the UK,” he continued. 

Catch CityFibre at next year’s Connected North, 23-24 April in Manchester. Get tickets here! 

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The 19,000km cable system is set to connect Malaysia to the US

This week, Philippines operator Globe Telecom has announced that it has been selected to build and manage the local section of the MYUS cable system, including building a landing station at Davao City.

The $720 million MYUS cable system is set to span roughly 19,000km, heading from Sedili, Malaysia, to Florence, Oregon, USA, via the Philippines and Guam. Branching units will also link the cable to Indonesia at Batam, Jakarta, and Balikpapan.

The cable will have 16 fibre pairs, capable of delivering a minimum capacity of 15 Tbps.

According to Hexa, the company in charge of the cable project, Globe had been selected in part due to their experience with the Philippine Domestic Submarine Cable Network.

“Our cable landing facilities offer diverse route connectivity to global and regional carriers…Access to customers using our robust state-of-the-art network should give confidence to operators looking to interconnect with domestic and international constituents. Davao is a critical hub for subsea fiber optic cables, which are the backbone of today’s Internet,” said KD Dizon, head of Globe Business told the Manila Standard.

The submarine cable industry is evolving rapidly. Join the discussion at the world’s leading subsea cable conference, Submarine Networks EMEA

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Press Release

Juniper Networks, a leader in secure, AI-Native Networking, today announced that Thai Airways has modernized the network infrastructure of its headquarters in Thailand, by deploying Juniper’s AI-Native Networking Platform to deliver the right data, the right real-time response and the right infrastructure for reliable, measurable and secure wired and wireless services. With the upgrades, Thai Airways can now achieve better simplicity, productivity and consistent performance at scale to deliver exceptional end-to-end operator and end-user experiences.

With a vision to implement better processes for improved operations and workflow while also enhancing the customer experience when researching, booking and managing flights online, the airline embarked on a digital transformation. It selected Juniper to overhaul and upgrade its network solutions – becoming the first organization in Thailand to deploy Wi-Fi 6E through the use of Juniper AP45 access points, alongside Juniper EX Series Ethernet switches for its core, distribution and access networks. 

“Slow, unreliable Wi-Fi was previously hampering productivity and efficiency at our Bangkok head offices, but the upgrades have turned networking complaints into compliments. With the Juniper solution, we are now also able to unify management of our wired and wireless networks through an industry-leading, cloud-native solution purpose-built to leverage AIOps. Enabled by Juniper, we are excited to continually uplift the user experiences of our operators and customers alike, as Thai Airways continues to grow and soar into the skies internationally going forward,” said Tana Kantipan, Team Lead, Network and Cybersecurity, Thai Airways.

The deployment is driven by Mist AI™, which leverages purpose-built AIOps trained on nine years of insights and data science development, to deliver rich insights into user experiences and proactive fault resolutions that can reduce network-related trouble tickets by up to 90%. In unifying the end-to-end management of Thai Airways’ wired and wireless networks, Juniper Mist Wired and Wireless Assurance cloud services were implemented to enable efficient operations of its business-critical systems, requiring minimal human intervention while ensuring every connection is reliable, measurable and secure for every device, user, application and asset. 

In addition, the Marvis Virtual Network Assistant allows the airline’s IT team to detect and resolve networking issues through a seamless conversational interface, determining the root cause of issues, providing proactive insights and suggesting prescriptive actions. This has resulted in a significant decrease in issues and user complaints since the upgrades, ultimately reducing the overall time required for network operations by Thai Airways, enabling it to focus efforts on delivering stronger value, services and outcomes for its customers. 

Thai Airways’ Network: Strategic for Business Growth

As Thailand’s national carrier and a strategically located flight hub and gateway to Asia, Thai Airways is regularly ranked amongst the world’s top airlines, renowned for its hospitality and services across an extensive global network. To maintain its reputation while meeting surging demand for post-pandemic travel, the airline recognized its corporate network as a key strategic component of its planned business growth.

The new network from Juniper empowers Thai Airways’ IT team to continue delivering exceptional end-to-end operator and user experiences across all its stakeholders – especially as it explores further extending the roll-out of Juniper’s solutions to its hubs at Thailand’s two major international airports, deployments which could potentially surpass the scale of the current deployment at its head office.

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The state-owned telco has reportedly deployed over 50,000 4G sites nationwide,

Today, India’s Ministry of Communications has announced that state-run telco Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has successfully deployed over 50,000 4G sites across the country, around 41,000 of which are currently operational.

This represents half of the 100,000 sites that the company estimates will be required to achieve national coverage of its new network.

The deployments have been completed using equipment solely from Indian vendors, supporting the government’s Atma Nirbhar Bharat (Self-Reliant India) initiative. Participating vendors include Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Tejas Networks, the Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT), and ITI Ltd.

The announcement marks a significant acceleration of BSNL’s 4G rollout in recent months, with around 25,000 of the total sites deployed in the last quarter alone.

But while BSNL’s 4G rollout now seems to be happening apace, it is worth noting how heavily delayed this process has been. The company had initially targeted nationwide coverage and a commercial launch for 4G by December 2023, but various operational challenges have seen the rollout delayed three times.

In fact, earlier this month BSNL moved the goalposts once again, suggesting that the company is now targeting nationwide 4G by June 2025.

The company’s ambitions with regard to 4G market share have also been revised; the company had initially been targeting a 20% 4G market share by the end of 2024, but the numerous delays mean the company is now aiming for a 25% market share by the end of 2025.

Interestingly, BSNL says that it will be able to upgrade all of its sites to 5G within a month of the June deadline, having already conducted trials of the new technology in New Delhi.

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

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Backed by £93 million from UKRI funding, the National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) is envisaged as a centrepiece of the UK’s quantum strategy 

The UK’s NQCC officially opened last week by Science Minister Lord Vallance. Located at the Harwell Campus in Oxfordshire, the 4,000-square-meter facility will house 12 quantum computers used for further research into quantum technology.  

Unlike similar facilities worldwide, the NQCC offers open access to researchers, industry, and students across the UK. With over 70 staff members, the centre aims to close skill gaps through the UK’s first dedicated quantum apprenticeship programme, as well as PhD placements.  

The initiative aligns with the UK’s goal of using quantum technology to drive advancements in sectors like healthcare, energy, and artificial intelligence. 

The NQCC is also set to play a major role in the UK’s ten-year quantum strategy, which will invest £2.5 billion on quantum research, innovation, and skills. Key projects within this strategy include optimising energy grids to reduce power loss, accelerating drug discovery, and improving climate predictions.  

Quantum computing is expected to be orders of magnitude more powerful than traditional supercomputers, allowing for calculations that would normally take years to be completed in minutes’  

The National Quantum Computing Centre marks a vital step forward in the UK’s efforts to advance quantum technologies,” said Science Minister Lord Vallance in a statement. 

“By making its facilities available to users from across industry and academia, and with its focus on making quantum computers practically useable at scale, this Centre will help them solve some of the biggest challenges we face, w 

hether it’s delivering advances in healthcare, enhancing energy efficiency, tackling climate change, or inventing new materials,” he continued. 

Join us at next year’s Connected North, 23-24 April in Manchester. Get your discounted tickets here! 

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