Five significant buildouts and upgrades to note from metros around the US: … [visit site to read more]

Ethio Telecom launched seven new cloud-based enterprise services on Wednesday – ranging from banking and push-to-talk communications to cattle management – which it says are designed to streamline operations and elevate customer service.

The new cloud-based core banking solution, targeted at micro-finance institutions and savings and credit cooperatives, promises to modernize their operations, expand their reach, drive financial inclusion and enable scalable growth by eliminating the need for costly on-premises infrastructure.

The solution is also integrated with Ethio Telecom’s Telebirr mobile money platform, which it says enables convenient and secure mobile payments for loan disbursements, repayments, and savings contributions.

Ethio Telecom also launched a push-to-talk/video (PTT/PTV) service aimed at sectors such as security, construction, transportation and hospitality that use trunked radio systems for communication. The PTT/PTV service offers a cost-effective cellular-based alternative that uses regular smartphones and also supports multimedia messaging, location-based services and geofencing.

Meanwhile, the real-time digital cattle tracking solution leverages RFID, GPS and mobile technologies to enable farmers and ranchers to monitor their livestock in real time, track their location, and assess their health status. The service is also integrated with Telebirr, and additionally provides a service for streamlining insurance claims.

Other cloud-based services include an education management system to optimise learning environments and administration, an office collaboration and productivity solution, a cloud-based contact centre offering and an integrated ERP solution that consolidates key functions such as finance, HR, supply chain and customer relationship management onto a unified system hosted on Ethio Telecom’s cloud.

Ethio Telecom said it has over 456 enterprise customers and partners using its cloud and data centre services.

News from around the world plus the American southwest: … [visit site to read more]

Telefónica has announced a US$1.2 billion deal to sell its entire stake in its Argentinian unit to Telecom Argentina, though the transaction could be blocked by government intervention over competition concerns.

In a brief statement, Telefónica said the deal is part of its strategy to reduce exposure in Latin America and create value for shareholders. The announcement follows speculation about Telefónica divesting from multiple Latin American markets, including Mexico and Peru.

Telecom Argentina stated that the acquisition will be financed through loans and that it plans to invest in fibre and 5G deployment in the coming years, while also expanding its capabilities in video on demand, IoT, corporate services, fintech, e-commerce, AI, and cloud services.

Telecom Argentina CEO Roberto Nobile said: “With this transaction, Telecom once again demonstrates its commitment to continued investment in Argentina, despite the current macroeconomic conditions, which provide certainty and stability for private and competitive investment.”

Argentina’s telecoms regulator ENACOM and competition authority CNDC have been instructed by President Javier Milei to investigate whether the deal would create a monopoly.

A translated statement from the Office of the President warned that the acquisition could give Telecom Argentina control over 70% of the country’s telecommunications services, effectively creating a monopoly that has benefited from decades of state support.

“If this is the case, the national government will take all necessary measures to prevent it,” the statement added.

Telecom Argentina and Telefónica originally acquired divisions of the state-owned monopoly ENTel in 1990, when Argentina moved to privatise its telecoms sector.

From the legendary Maasai warriors to the annual great migration of wildebeest and zebra, Kenya has no lack of cultural and natural wonders. One thing the country does lack, however, is the application of digital technologies. According to data from the Communications Authority of Kenya, just 58% of Kenyans were connected to the Internet in 2024.

Call from the silent world

« Kuwa Nawe, Kua Nawe. » Thirteen-year-old student Melisa Ngami uses sign language to express this Swahili phrase, which means, « Be with you, grow with you ».

Melisa studies at Machakos School for the Deaf, which is located more than 60 kilometers from downtown Nairobi. Like all teenagers, the students at this school are curious about the world.

« My learners are visual learners. They can hear sometimes. They need to see something to relate with it. Because they use their eyes to learn, and learning has been quite hard, » explains Kenneth Bidan, Teacher, Machakos School for the Deaf.

Schools in Kenya are mainly limited to traditional teaching methods, where teachers write on a blackboard and students take notes. This is not sufficient for enabling curious students to learn new things. Moreover, the unbalanced distribution of educational resources in Kenya exacerbates learning challenges for deaf students.

Technology delivers an answer

Today, teachers and students at Machakos School for the Deaf are witnessing positive changes. This is thanks to Huawei’s TECH4ALL initiative, together with UNESCO and the Government of Kenya, including the Ministry of Education, Kenya Institute of Special Education, Ministry of IC&DE and ICT Authority. Including Machakos School for the Deaf, the project has so far connected 30 schools to the Internet through optical fiber networks, in turn transforming them into inclusive digital schools.

Machakos’ students can now unlock the potential of visual learning and access a wealth of online materials such as images and videos. More intuitive and easily digestible content allows the students enjoy a more relaxing and pleasant learning experience.

« On the Internet, I can learn sign language quickly, and also learn English and Math. I have become more confident,”signs Melisa Ngami, a student at Machakos School for Deaf.

Using the high-speed all-optical network, Kenya Institute of Special Education (KISE) provides live distance learning classes and high-quality online teaching materials for Machakos School for the Deaf, allowing students to interact with KISE’s education experts in real time.

« We offer online and offline training and courses for teachers and students with special educational needs,” says Dr. Zipporah Nudge a lecturer at the Department of Hearing and Communication Difficulties for KISE. “We have live streaming for students learning. We also have online classes for teachers.”

Dr. Nudge believes that the network can save time and resources, and ensure consistent course quality and educational resource distribution across the country.

“We ensure that whatever content is shared reaches the students, live from KISE. And the students will be getting the same materials as those that are in urban centers, even in the remotest parts of this country,” she adds.

Connecting Kenya with optical networks

Digital technologies are critical to the development of modern education. Lamine Mamadou Sow, Chief of Education, UNESCO Regional Office for East Africa, states that one of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals is to provide quality and inclusive education as well as lifelong learning opportunities for all.

Connectivity, capabilities, and content are the three key dimensions for education development.

« We see ICT as an equalizer because ICT has the potential to reach out to disadvantaged children and people on low-incomes wherever they are in rural places. It’s a bridge,” explains Sow.“It’s something that can provide equity and inclusion in education so that all children can have equal access to learning opportunities and quality education resources. I am delighted to see that the DigiSchool project was successfully launched with the support of UNESCO, partners, and Huawei’s TECH4ALL initiative. »

Connectivity is the first step in transforming into digital schools. Huawei’s all-optical access and FTTR-B solutions enable all-optical Wi-Fi connections and high-speed networks for online courses and live classes, empowering students and teachers with digital capabilities. The 30 all-optical digital schools so far connected consist of 4 girls’ schools, 6 schools for deaf children, and 20 standard primary and secondary schools.

The project has benefited more than 12,000 teachers and students in remote areas of Kenya.

Huawei also supported M-PESA Foundation Academy, which serves talented but economically disadvantaged students with demonstrated leadership potential, and has a high-speed fibre network and campus-wide Wi-Fi provided by Safaricom.  According to Paul Ngugi, Head of Technology and Learning Innovation at M-PESA Foundation Academy, the academy integrates digital technologies into teaching to cultivate talent for Kenya’s digital future.

« The high-speed all-optical network co-provided with Huawei turns our vision into reality and drives the development of digital education,”states Ngugi.

Kenya is transforming digitally at a rapid pace. The government has launched the Digital Superhighway Project, which involves constructing a high-speed fiber network spanning 100,000 km that will, among other outcomes, connect all schools in Kenya by 2030.

Thomas Bwaley, Director for Programmes & Standards for the ICT Authority, explains that, « Cooperating with partners such as Huawei, the Kenyan government provides high-speed Internet and Wi-Fi connectivity for educational institutions using all-optical access technologies. This can improve learning experiences and allow students in remote area to have the same opportunities as those in developed regions, bridging the education gap across the country.”  

The Kenya Digital Superhighway Project will connect 100,000 institutions and markets across Kenya. The increasing number of fiber connections in the last mile will drive the digitalization of a diverse range of industries, including e-commerce and healthcare.

“Now we are building 25,000 public Wi-Fi hotspots and 1,450 digital hubs to bridge the digital divide and boost Kenya’s digital economy,” says Bwaley. 

With MetroConnect underway down in Florida, there should be plenty of regional and last mile news to take a look at this week.  Here’s a start: … [visit site to read more]

The vision of building a subsea cable that leverages shorter routes through the Arctic Ocean to connect Europe, Asia, and North America has been around for a while. Making that vision reality has been elusive, but recent moves suggest it might not be that far off now. A collection of companies and other entities with infrastructure experience in that part of the world have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to explore a Pan-Arctic Cable System (PACS). … [visit site to read more]

Philippine telco Globe Telecom announced on Monday that it’s collaborating with Nokia to expose its network APIs to provide banks and other enterprises with enhanced security.

Specifically, Globe is testing Nokia’s Network Exposure Platform solution, which expands and simplifies the number of APIs available to Globe, its enterprise partners and developers  to create security-focused applications using deep network data.

Joel Agustin, Globe’s head of service planning and engineering, said the collaboration is focused on banking and financial services customers due to the increased need for security as cyberattacks on such services are escalating in the Philippines.

“We are now at the stage of testing how Nokia’s NEP can support our customers in the banking and enterprise sectors with security verification tools to prevent fraudulent transactions,” Agustin said in a statement.

Nokia’s NEP is based on the GSMA Operator Platform, which standardises a common platform that exposes operator capabilities to developers. Globe joined the GSMA’s Open Gateway Initiative for standardised open network APIs in June 2024.

Nokia said the NEP complements and integrates with its Network as Code platform and developer portal, which aligns with the GSMA Open Gateway aggregator concept and provides a cloud-based platform to connect and monetise service provider networks with app developers.

Nokia also said its Network as Code ecosystem – launched in September 2023 – now includes 48 partners, including BT, Orange, StarHub, Telefonica and Telecom Argentina.

“Nokia NEP will help Globe Telecom organize, control, and secure the way its network is integrated into developer ecosystems and platforms, ensuring choice, flexibility, and security in creating new application use cases,” said Shkumbin Hamiti, head of network monetization platform, cloud and network services at Nokia.

Telefónica has announced it will integrate Generative AI into its digital workplace management software to enhance operations at security firm Prosegur across the Iberian Peninsula and Latin America.

In a statement, Telefónica said the upgrade will impact nearly 24,000 Prosegur employees across Spain, Portugal, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay.

As part of the upgrade, employees will gain access to a virtual assistant called GenIA, designed to help them manage their work environments more efficiently.

Telefónica first deployed its workplace management solution, Smart Workplace All in One, at Prosegur five years ago.

María Muñoz, Director of Industry, Services, and Retail at Telefónica Spain, stated: “Smart Workplace All in One enables Prosegur to implement a unified management solution with a common governance model for its offices on both sides of the Atlantic. This solution automates processes, positively impacting 70% of Customer Service Centre activities by reducing service and waiting times and improving user satisfaction. Now, we are taking it a step further—thanks to AI, we will not only resolve incidents more efficiently but also improve our ability to prevent them.”

Movistar, Telefónica’s mobile carrier in Mexico, and Helium, a pioneer in decentralised wireless communications, are beginning to roll out the Helium Network, with plans to activate service to over two million Movistar subscribers across Mexico. We asked Mario Di Dio, General Manager of Network at Helium, to tell us a bit more about the technology and the business model it enables.

Movistar Mexico has been supported in this initiative by Telefónica Innovación Digital, a part of parent company the Telefónica Group that promotes innovation. Together with Helium, it has developed a pioneering controller solution that can be integrated with other operators who want to implement decentralised telecommunications networks based on Helium’s blockchain technology.

But let’s start with the basics. What is the technology behind what Helium calls its mini-Hotspots?

The Helium Mobile Network is an expanse of people-owned Hotspots and existing Wi-Fi networks that provide cellular services to phones and other devices in exchange for crypto or US dollars. Helium is used by many major US carriers as an offload solution for when faster, better or more affordable coverage is needed.

Thus, Mario Di Dio explains: “The Hotspots are part of the Helium Network’s decentralised wireless network. They act as mini cell towers that individuals can easily set up in shops, businesses, venues and other areas where there is high foot traffic.” He continues: “Helium Mobile Hotspots are Wi-Fi access points with a technology called Passpoint, which allows seamless and secure connectivity for mobile devices.”

It is, he adds, possible to upgrade existing Wi-Fi infrastructure with Passpoint technology to become Helium-enabled.

As for Movistar subscribers, they will be able to use the Hotspots where coverage is available in Mexico, thanks to a jointly designed architecture that allows them to seamlessly connect to the Helium Network. This removes the need for Movistar to rely entirely on traditional cell towers. It also reduces the infrastructure costs for the operator. 

In 2024, Movistar and Helium carried out a pilot project with real Movistar customers. The pilot aimed to extend the operator’s coverage in the country in certain areas to allow the offloading of mobile data traffic onto the Helium Network. 

Indeed, during pilots in Mexico City and Oaxaca, Movistar subscribers offloaded an average of 390 MB of data daily to the Helium Network and maintained roughly one hour of daily connection time.

Di Dio says: “Movistar can expand coverage quickly without the high capital costs associated with building and maintaining traditional cell towers. This reduces the need for expensive backhaul, site leasing and maintenance.”

The Helium community will deploy Helium Mobile Hotspots, which, in the coming months, will be made available for purchase in Movistar retail stores and online channels, to rapidly expand coverage in Mexico. As part of this agreement, Movistar will also be able to resell Helium Network coverage to other local MVNOs.

Hotspot deployers earn HNT (a type of cryptocurrency) as a reward for helping to build the network and for transferring data. Like other tokens, HNT is available on third-party exchanges and platforms.

The system has, it seems, already proved itself. At the moment over 60,000 mobile Hotspots are deployed across the US and Mexico, serving over 300,000 daily users from Helium Mobile and other major carriers. One might assume, however, that the involvement of Movistar could take it to another level.

The initial phase of this new partnership will include network expansion in over 300 sites. Some 2.3 million Movistar subscribers will soon gain access to the Helium Network as coverage becomes available. So where will Helium go next? 

“This is just the beginning of what’s possible for Helium,” says Di Dio. “We’re excited to partner with Movistar as coverage expands in Mexico and we’ve already seen demand from other carriers who want to leverage this people-powered network to offload subscriber data as well.”

What about the regulatory environment in other countries? “Helium’s decentralised model allows for flexibility, as it can adapt to local regulatory standards as needed.”

For now, of course, the focus appears to be on making the most of an alliance with a major Mexican carrier, or, as Di Dio puts it: “Helium is on a mission to make connectivity more affordable for the masses. Collaborating with Movistar amplifies our vision of decentralised connectivity, inviting millions of their subscribers to use the Helium Network.”