News 

Ten areas across the UK have won a share of a £36 million government funding injection as they become designated 5G regions 

The funding was announced in July by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), aimed at turning local and regional authorities into ‘5G Innovation Regions’, ensuring that broader areas of the UK take advantage of advanced wireless connectivity. Each of the ten regions face individual and unique challenges which will be aided by the funding. The original announcement stated a budget of £40 million, which now appears to have been reduced to £40 million. 

Regions that were able to successfully demonstrate how they would adopt and develop 5G technologies across a variety of sectors were eligible for the funding, then becoming designated 5G regions. 

The funding competition is a key component of the government’s ‘Wireless Infrastructure Strategy’, to commit to its pledge to extend 4G coverage to 95% of the UK population. 

“We’re channelling millions into local areas to unlock the potential of cutting-edge 5G wireless and digital technologies which will reshape our public services, drive economic growth and boost innovation. This new fund will give local areas from across the country the opportunity to be at the forefront of Britain’s world-leading 5G revolution,” said Minister of Data and Digital Infrastructure Sir John Whittingdale. 

“For instance, by using 5G for farming and creating science parks, we’re not just helping local communities, but also encouraging new ideas all over the UK. This is more than just linking smartphones. It’s about using powerful digital connections to transform various sectors in the economy and the public sector throughout the entire country,” he continued. 

The breakdown of the ten winners is as follows: 

1. Belfast City Council – £3.8 million
   Use 5G tech to digitise port operations; ‘5G-in-a-box’ technology for high-capacity uplinks for on-location filming and production studios; and exploiting advanced wireless connectivity on transport routes. 
2. Greater Manchester Combined Authority – £3 million
   5G-enabled heat pumps to accelerate the creation of Smart Energy Grids; and a digital road network to reduce congestion and carbon emissions .
3. West Midlands Combined Authority – £3.8 million
   Scale proven 5G applications in advanced manufacturing and smart communities through new adoption hubs. 
4. Oxfordshire County Council – £3.8 million
   Creation of 5G Science Parks at the Harwell campus in Oxfordshire supporting R&D in Quantum, Space, Health, and Energy Clusters.
5. North Ayrshire Council – £3.8 million
   New Regional Strategic Wireless Innovation Hubs will place Ayrshire as a UK leader in advanced manufacturing by accelerating the adoption of digital and wireless technologies. 
6. Sussex County Council – £3.8 million
   Develop and scale 5G applications to support future farming and growing practices that increase sustainable food and drink productivity. 
7. Cumberland Council – £3.8 million
   Use 5G and advanced wireless tech at key sites across the Borderlands Region to demonstrate how it can help build the tourist economy, protect the environment and local businesses. 
8. Shropshire Council – £3.7 million
   Embed advanced wireless connectivity technology at the heart of technological innovation across rural industries, water management and public services. 
9. Sunderland City Council – £3.8 million
   5G-enabled port operations to enhance port competitiveness and safety, and Cooperative Intelligent Transport Systems that improve road transport efficiency.  
10. Glasgow City Council – £3.2 million
    Use Internet of Things and smart city applications for Asset Monitoring and Maintenance, Net Zero Social Housing, and Health and Social Care Monitoring.

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Also in the news: 
Outgoing BT CEO asks UK government for tax break
Stratospheric Platforms prepares airborne 5G trial
Verizon doubles down with second private 5G deployment at Port of Virginia 

Payments fintech company Cellulant has obtained initial approval as a Payment Service Provider and Payment Facilitator in Egypt.

With its collections and disbursement payment solutions, Cellulant says it will enable global and regional merchants operating in Egypt to easily manage their B2B and B2C payments seamlessly in-country and internationally, whether through mobile money, wallets, cash, card, or direct bank transfers across multiple payment methods in various currencies.

Egypt’s payments sector has snowballed in recent years, with current regulations enabling instant payments and fintechs revolutionising how financial services are delivered, challenging traditional banking models and altering consumer payment preferences.

According to the 2022 Mastercard New Payment Index, 88% of Egyptians have used at least one emerging payment method, with usage expected to increase further. Customers are expanding their purchase methods, requiring businesses to expand their payment methods to alternative and locally relevant ones.

« With the prevalence of prepaid cards and mobile wallets already exceeding 40% of the adult population in Egypt, the timing of Cellulant’s acquisition of these licences could not be more opportune,” says Ahmed Marwan, Cellulant’s General Manager for Egypt and North Africa. “More importantly, we’re committed to intensifying our efforts to provide reliable payment options for businesses in the region. By simplifying their business payment process, they can focus on their growth.”

The company says that by acquiring licences to serve Egypt it strengthens its operations in Africa where it claims to have the most comprehensive payment infrastructure, integrating over 370 payment methods and operating in 35 markets, with licences and physical offices in 19 countries.

Zayo has gotten in some pre-Thanksgiving M&A activity, and in a somewhat surprising direction. The Boulder-based infrastructure provider has announced a definitive agreement to acquire Globalways GmbH. … [visit site to read more]

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News 

As Phillip Jansen embarks on his final few weeks in office, he laid out his closing arguments in favour of BT tax breaks 

BT’s CEO Philip Jansen has called for the UK government to implement permanent tax breaks for infrastructure investment.  

In a plea to UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt ahead of his upcoming Spending Review, Jansen explained that the introduction of a tax Super Deduction in April 2021 – which reduced tax on new plan and machinery equipment by 25% – had allowed BT to increase its fibre rollout targets from 20 million homes to 25 million homes.  

Now, as economic hardship increased last winter and the Super Deduction measures have come to an end, the pressure to hit these targets has greatly increased. 

Thankfully, the Super Deduction scheme was replaced in spring by a new policy of Full Expensing, allowing companies a 100% tax relief on qualifying plant and machinery investments between April 2023 and April 2026. 

This measure has, according to Jansen, allowed BT to keep on track with its 25 million premises target, and increase its capital investment by £300 million per year.  

However, the Full Expensing scheme is expected to expire in just over two years, with Jansen arguing continued private investment in telecoms infrastructure will be difficult without these tax breaks. 

As a result, he is calling for the government to make these tax breaks permanent to ensure that the UK’s telecoms industry can make the additional investment of £20 billion to meet government fibre and 5G targets. 

Further explaining how tax breaks are key for incentivising investment for large firms, Jansen added that it “would give businesses like BT Group genuine long-term certainty to plan and shift the investment environment in Britain from good to great.”  

“I know the Chancellor is considering this as one option for next week’s Autumn statement. He has said he would like to take this step when the economic conditions allow. With billions of pounds of potential investment at stake, it’s also important to ask whether, as a country, we can afford not to,” continued Jansen. 

Jeremy Hunt is set to announce his autumn statement on 22 November. 

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Also in the news:
Globe Telecom plagued by network battery theft
Digital Infrastructure: Riding the resurgent wave of telecom investment
Boldyn Networks snaps up Cellnex’s private networks business unit 

Press Release

A team of UK companies led by Stratospheric Platforms Limited (SPL), a Non Terrestrial Networks telecoms developer, has won a significant contract trialling advanced airborne 5G connectivity from a Britten-Norman Islander. Aircraft manufacturer Britten-Norman will be providing key design and trials support for the project, with Marshall Futureworx providing important cooling systems technology.

SPL is pioneering the concept of using a High-Altitude Platform (HAP) with airborne antenna to provide widescale coverage of high performance 5G from the stratosphere.  The goal of the project is to deliver an unmanned, liquid hydrogen-powered aircraft, designed with a 56-metre wingspan that will, due to its lightweight structure and significant power source, enable a flight endurance of over a week.

The contract will see SPLs 5G airborne phased array integrated to a Britten-Norman Islander, with flight trials due to begin in July 2024. The turbine-powered BN2T-4S Islander variant has been selected for the programme due to its performance and payload capacity and the simplicity with which it can be modified to accommodate the equipment. The trial will be conducted under Britten-Norman’s Civil Aviation Authority test conditions.

Britten-Norman will operate the aircraft from its Solent Airport aircraft maintenance (MRO) facility, with the mission to be performed over the North Sea. The 5G phased array will be linked via a backhaul link to the Adastral Tower in Suffolk, England, from which the telecommunications and mission equipment will operate.

Garnet Ridgway, Flight Test Engineer at Britten-Norman, remarked:

“This is a great opportunity to demonstrate the full capabilities of both Britten-Norman as an accomplished trials organisation and the Turbine Islander as a highly capable trials aircraft. Working closely with our partners, the project includes deliverables from our design, manufacture, MRO, continued airworthiness, flight test and flight operations teams.

The project requires a test platform that can be easily modified; the BN2T-4S Islander has a combination of payload capacity, endurance, climb performance, twin engine reliability, robustness and electrical power generation that makes it unbeatable for this mission.

We are very pleased to have been selected by Stratospheric Platforms to assist in pioneering this innovation.”

Kevin Bean, Chief Technical Officer at Stratospheric Platforms Limited said:

“We are delighted to be working with Britten-Norman on this programme. The Islander is a great workhorse for this kind of engineering because it can be rapidly and extensively modified to accommodate our equipment.

The role-based type of mission which can readily be executed by the Islander, combined with the stability of the platform, is ideal for a programme where telecommunication trials require predictable performance.”

Kieren Paterson, Managing Director of Marshall Futureworx, commented:

“We’re delighted to be deepening our relationship with SPL, Cambridge-based technology leaders, through this project. It is easy to see why they are considered among the UK’s most promising innovators.

This is an exciting project to be part of, with so much potential to dramatically broaden and transform access to high-speed communication—while also providing global leadership in areas such as uncrewed aviation and zero emission flight.”

Also in the news:
Globe Telecom plagued by network battery theft
Digital Infrastructure: Riding the resurgent wave of telecom investment
Boldyn Networks snaps up Cellnex’s private networks business unit 

News

The private 5G network will enable new technologies including drones, autonomous vehicles, and push-to-talk mobile capabilities

In the summer of last year, Verizon Business stuck up a deal with the Port of Virginia, pledging to deploy a private 5G network at the Virginia International Terminal (VIT), one of the port’s main container terminals.

The partners said the deal would allow the port operator to explore the use of cutting-edge technologies throughout the location, most notably autonomous over-the-road trucks to drop-off and pick-up shipping containers.

Now, roughly 18 months later, it seems that the deployment has been a major success, with Verizon announcing its intention to repeat the deployment at another of the port’s neighbouring locations, the Norfolk International Terminal (NIT).

The new deployment will cover 270 acres of the NIT, replacing the existing Wi-Fi solution. The network’s hardware will be provided by Ericsson.

As before, Verizon says the private 5G network will facilitate the use of a wide range of modern industrial solutions, including safety and surveillance drones, autonomous trucks, and remotely controlled cranes. Combined, these new technologies should greatly improve the port’s operational efficiency and reduce downtime, as well as increasing worker safety.

It will also incorporate Verizon’s Push-to-Talk (PTT) solution – an app-based solution that essentially turns the user’s smartphone into a walkie-talkie. PTT can reportedly allow up to 250 people to communicate via the push of a button, not only transmitting voice data but also files, photographs, and video.

“The expansion of Verizon’s private 5G presence at the Port of Virginia shows that companies can modernize and improve their operations by starting small with new technology, proving out the use cases and applications that are right for their business, and then scaling up to do even more,” said Kyle Malady, CEO of Verizon Business. “The Port of Virginia, through the private 5G journeys at VIT and NIT, epitomize how to adopt cutting edge technology to transform a business efficiently and productively.”

Verizon has been deploying private 5G networks in ports for almost two years now, the first of which having taken place in the UK at the Port of Southampton.

The fact that the Port of Virginia is seemingly satisfied enough with Verizon’s private 5G solution to essentially buy it twice is surely a major feather in Verizon Business’s cap. It also vouches for the solution’s scalability – a factor which is often bragged about in company press releases but rarely demonstrated when it comes to private networks.

Are private networks delivering on the industrial promise of 5G? Join the operators in discussion at this year’s Connected America conference live in Dallas

Also in the news:
Globe Telecom plagued by network battery theft
Digital Infrastructure: Riding the resurgent wave of telecom investment
Boldyn Networks snaps up Cellnex’s private networks business unit 

This Industry Spotlight  was authored by Soma Naidoo, Global Head of Telco at Endava

Did you know that roughly half the global population would rather have their smartphone instead of their wallet when away from home? An unsurprising trend given that the rate at which we rely on our digital devices grows every day. This has a direct impact on the telecommunications industry and is intensifying the already fierce competition among carriers and networks. … [visit site to read more]