Today's Telecom Pulse
EE fast‑tracks UK 5G+ rollout, leveraging $51 bn BT network upgrade
EE, owned by BT, is accelerating its 5G+ deployment across the UK, using Advanced RAN Coordination to boost download speeds by up to 20% without adding new masts. The rollout will activate 5G+ at more than 25 major events and 30 tourist destinations, extending coverage to 75% of the population, and is part of BT’s roughly $51 bn network‑upgrade programme.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Optimum raises $300M in preferred equity
AT&T Launches New App to Simplify Customers’ Digital Experience
AT&T announced the rollout of a new unified mobile app that lets customers manage both wireless and home internet services from a single interface. The app features a generative AI assistant, usage insights, device controls, and an upgraded shopping experience, aiming to streamline support and notifications. AT&T plans to add more functionalities throughout the year, positioning the platform as the digital hub for its converged services. The launch leverages the company’s extensive network and the AT&T Guarantee to reinforce a seamless, AI‑driven customer experience.
Tait Announces Shared-Channel Version of DMR Tier 3
Tait Communications has unveiled the OpenTrunk shared‑control‑channel solution, a DMR Tier 3‑based trunking system that operates on shared spectrum instead of a dedicated control channel. The offering addresses the scarcity and high cost of licensed spectrum in major U.S. metros such...
NCA Discusses Draft Numbering Regulations Ahead of SIM Registrations
Ghana’s National Communications Authority (NCA) has convened telecom operators and other industry participants to review its draft Numbering Resource Registration Regulations. The draft incorporates feedback from earlier consultations and is positioned to underpin the upcoming mandatory SIM‑card registration drive. NCA...
Ericsson Welcomes US Economic Affairs Under-Secretary to 5G Manufacturing Base
Ericsson hosted U.S. Under Secretary for Economic Affairs Jacob Helberg at its 5G Smart Factory in Lewisville, Texas, showcasing a domestic manufacturing hub for next‑generation network equipment. The tour, attended by the U.S. ambassador to Sweden, the Swedish ambassador, CEO...
ETSI Releases First Version of Open-Source Operator Platform to Enable Telco Cloud Network Federation & 6G Experimentation
ETSI’s Software Development Group has launched OpenOP Release 1, the first open‑source Operator Platform for the Telco Cloud. The platform bundles an Open Exposure Gateway, Service Resource Manager, Federation Manager, a transformation‑function SDK, a developer portal, and an AI² layer that...
UK, European Consortium Launches Nomadlink Connectivity Solution
A UK‑European consortium comprising Excelerate Technology, Eutelsat and Livewire Digital has unveiled the Nomadlink connectivity trailer. The mobile unit promises near‑instant broadband for rural and isolated sites, targeting large public gatherings, major incidents and other high‑demand scenarios. By integrating satellite...
Summa Networks, Cataleya Partner on Secure Core and VoIP Platforms
Madrid‑based Summa Networks and communications‑software specialist Cataleya have announced a partnership to deliver secure, cloud‑native core‑network and VoIP signalling platforms for mobile operators. The joint offering combines Summa’s modular HLR, HSS, EPC and IMS stack with Cataleya’s Orchid Link Session Border...
Russia Sees Investment in Public Wi-Fi Networks More than Double in 2025
Russia’s public budget for public Wi‑Fi upgrades jumps to 9.62 billion roubles in 2025, more than double the 3.77 billion allocated in 2024. Data traffic on these networks surged 10.6‑fold year‑on‑year, reaching 13.8 million petabytes. The growth is linked to mobile‑internet disruptions caused...
Brazil Aims for 80% 5G Population Coverage by 2026
Brazil's Ministry of Communications aims for 80% of the population to have 5G coverage by the end of 2026, spanning 2,220 municipalities. This exceeds the original target of 1,469 cities. To date, 5G is active in about 1,420 municipalities, focusing...
Carr Reaffirms Longstanding Public‑Interest Broadcast Requirement
Policyband Quote of the Day: “@BrendanCarrFCC critics pretend he said something radical. However, the Communications Act in Section 309(a) has long required broadcasters that use public spectrum to operate in the ‘public interest.’ That principle is the foundation of...
AT&T App Adds GenAI Assistant for Faster, Personalized Service
"The new AT&T app is built around a GenAI assistant, making it faster to find what you need with a more personalized experience." https://t.co/rqlH2QUpWO $T
Vantage Towers Strengthens Rural Network Resilience with PowerX AI Platform
Vantage Towers has teamed with PowerX Technology to install its AI‑driven monitoring platform at 220 off‑grid rural tower sites. The system provides continuous telemetry, replacing manual diesel oversight and delivering real‑time visibility into energy usage. Integrated battery data now supports...
GSMA D2D Analysis Misses Indoor Coverage‑demand Paradox
Interesting piece on D2D from GSMA. Gets the physics and capacity limitations right, but doesn't resolve the inherent contradiction between the lack of indoor coverage and what that means for actual end user demand in rural unserved areas https://t.co/0ncbKgndSC
No Magic Bullet Will Solve the Upper C-Band
The FCC will auction 100‑180 MHz of upper C‑band spectrum by July 2027, forcing broadcasters to vacate a band that currently underpins U.S. video distribution and supports emerging 5G/6G services. Industry leaders warn that no single technology can replace the band’s five‑nines...
Achieving Operator Growth in the AI Development Era
At MWC Barcelona 2026, Huawei introduced an “Agentic Operations” framework for telecom operators, leveraging AI agents across user interaction, experience operations, and network O&M. The approach showcased rapid GTM acceleration in Kenya, a 30% reduction in handling time in Hong...
ELVA-1 Reports Rising Demand for Solid-State Noise Sources Operating at mmWave & Sub-THz Frequencies
ELVA-1 reports a surge in demand for solid‑state noise sources that operate beyond 100 GHz, driven by expanding research in 6G, imaging, spectroscopy and radio astronomy. Engineers need high excess noise ratio (ENR) references to overcome waveguide losses and the inherently...
Vodafone UK Buddies up with Hiya to Tackle Scam Calls
Vodafone UK has activated Hiya’s Secure Branding on its network, allowing verified businesses to display their identity when calling customers. The service uses Vodafone’s open APIs and is limited to approved entities such as banks and government bodies. With 85% of...
Mirrorcle Announces Renewed Orders From Taara at OFC 2026
Mirrorcle Technologies announced renewed production orders from Taara at OFC 2026, extending a decade‑long partnership that underpins Taara's Lightbridge terrestrial laser‑communication system. The Lightbridge product delivers 20 Gbps over 20 km using Mirrorcle's MEMS fine‑steering mirrors, now moving into volume production. Mirrorcle...
NCTA CEO Demands Encrypted Wi‑Fi, Privacy Safeguards at WRC‑27
D.C. Memo: @NCTAitv CEO Has a Big Concern about WRC-27 in Shanghai — China Spying; Cable broadband leader wants WRC-27 delegates to have ‘reliable encrypted Wi-Fi connectivity’ and ‘appropriate privacy safeguards in meeting spaces and lodgings.’ https://t.co/U8Opk4syIc https://t.co/eYFMmRVpf3
Nokia Rebuilds Its Optical Engine, One Building Block at a Time
Nokia’s $2.3 billion acquisition of Infinera is bearing fruit as the company unveils a modular "building‑block" optical engine featuring four new DSPs and interchangeable indium‑phosphide, silicon‑photonic, and lithium‑niobate front ends. The approach lets customers mix and match components to serve 13...
Fixing Federal Permitting
The House passed H.R. 5419, the Enhancing Administrative Reviews of Broadband Deployment Act, directing the Interior and Agriculture departments to assess and report on administrative barriers to broadband permits on federal lands within a year. The bill follows previous executive...
The Incoming BEREC Chair Calls for Joint Efforts to Build a Future-Proof Digital Europe
Incoming BEREC Chair Alejandra de Iturriaga outlined the regulator’s 2026‑2030 strategy at the IIC Digital Communications and Media Forum. The roadmap targets a secure, competitive, inclusive and sustainable digital Europe by strengthening connectivity, open ecosystems and resilient infrastructure. Implementation will...
Cutting Planning Red Tape Will Take the UK From Laggard to Leader in Connectivity
The UK lags in 5G, ranking 24th of 30 European nations, while VodafoneThree has committed £11 bn to build a network covering 99% of the population by 2030. The rollout relies heavily on upgrading existing sites—96% of work—allowing a 30% reduction...
U Mobile Meets Local Ownership Condition for 5G Rollout
U Mobile satisfied Malaysia’s local‑ownership rule for 5G by letting Mawar Setia acquire a majority stake, while Singapore’s ST Telemedia retained a 20% share. The ownership shift also saw Tunku Tun Aminah become chair. With compliance secured, the operator can...
Netcracker Reaches Significant Milestone with Major OSS Modernization Program for BICS
Netcracker Technology announced that BICS, a Proximus Global subsidiary, will upgrade its entire Netcracker Digital OSS deployment as part of a strategic modernization program. The upgrade covers all core OSS components—including inventory, service management, and network planning—to improve stability, security,...
CEF-Digital Info Session: 2026 Calls
The European Commission launched two new Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) Digital calls for 2026, targeting equipment for smart European cable systems and backbone connectivity for digital global gateways. Together the calls allocate €200 million to support high‑capacity network projects, including submarine...
Vislink Debuts DragonFly V 5G Dual-Modem Video Transmitter
Vislink Technologies has introduced the DragonFly V 5G Dual‑Modem, a miniature bonded video transmitter that combines two cellular links with Wi‑Fi. The device supports live streaming up to 1080p 50/59 from compact cameras, helmet‑mounted rigs, and UAVs. It integrates with Vislink’s LinkMatrix...
Six Critical 5G Security Challenges as Connectivity Expands
5G’s rollout introduces unprecedented bandwidth and low latency, enabling applications from autonomous vehicles to remote surgery, but also expands the cyber attack surface dramatically. The architecture’s reliance on software‑defined networking, network slicing, and edge computing creates new vectors such as...
Bouygues Telecom Taps Polystar to Drive Analytics and Performance Management
Bouygues Telecom has launched a cloud‑native Analytics and Performance Management platform built on Polystar’s Kalix suite, completing a multi‑year migration. The solution unifies data from over 60 core and RAN systems, delivering granular KPI insights across vendors. Customized dashboards and...
Triple Zero Guardian to Ponder Minimum Mobile Network Performance Rules
The Australian government will launch a comprehensive review of the triple zero (000) emergency‑calling framework, asking the designated custodian to consider minimum mobile network performance standards. The move follows two major Optus outages, one of which caused emergency‑call failures linked...
Telecom News: Alaska Communications, Mobileum, MWC 2026, TeraSignal
Alaska Communications will deploy fiber and next‑generation fixed wireless to over 9,000 unserved locations after securing a $124 million BEAD grant, with private funds covering an additional 12,000 sites. Mobileum unveiled its “Signal to Value” strategy at MWC Barcelona 2026, promoting...
Akamai Deploys AI Grid Across 4,400 Edge Locations, Accelerating Real‑Time Inference
On March 18, 2026, Akamai Technologies announced the launch of its AI Grid, a distributed inference platform that leverages thousands of NVIDIA RTX PRO 6000 Blackwell GPUs across 4,400 edge locations worldwide. The rollout, built on NVIDIA AI Enterprise and BlueField DPUs,...
EchoStar’s DISH Wireless Walks Away From $9 B Tower Leases, Raising Alarm in U.S. Telecom
On March 15, 2026, EchoStar’s DISH Wireless unit announced it would void roughly $9 billion in long‑term tower lease contracts, invoking force majeure after the FCC warned it failed to meet spectrum‑buildout benchmarks. The move has triggered lawsuits from tower owners...
Pakistan Leaps to 7th in Global Telecom Rankings After $507M 5G Spectrum Auction
On March 10, 2026 Pakistan concluded a landmark IMT spectrum auction that added 480 MHz of 5G‑ready bandwidth, raising total assigned spectrum to nearly 754 MHz. The auction generated about $507 million for the government and lifted Pakistan from 14th to 7th place...
AT&T Commits $250 B to Build AI‑Ready Network, Sparking Industry Upgrade Race
On March 16, 2026, AT&T announced a $250 billion, five‑year capital program to upgrade its U.S. fiber and wireless infrastructure for generative AI and edge computing, targeting more than 100 million customers. Industry analyst Jeff Kagan highlighted the move as a bellwether...
Ofcom Extends Openreach Oversight, Expands Price Caps to Boost UK Fibre Rollout
On March 17, 2026, Ofcom announced a five‑year extension of its regulatory framework for BT Openreach, widening wholesale price caps to 80 Mbit/s and laying out new rules for the final phase of the UK’s full‑fibre broadband rollout. The decision, made...
ScaleFibre Announces Strategic Expansion Into North America
ScaleFibre announced the creation of ScaleFibre USA Inc., marking its first dedicated foothold in the North American market. The U.S. entity will streamline logistics, provide localized technical support, and accelerate delivery of the company’s high‑density optical fiber solutions. By focusing...
Lite Coms Executives Talk Multi-Orbit Innovation and the Future of Tactical VSAT
Lite Coms, a seven‑year‑old satcom firm, has deployed almost 1,000 tactical VSAT terminals for U.S. and allied forces. Its core strategy centers on multi‑orbit, constellation‑agnostic terminals that operate across GEO, MEO and LEO networks, highlighted by the upcoming 2026 Ku/Ka...
Ripple Fiber Introduces Collaboration with Eero
Ripple Fiber announced a partnership with eero, an Amazon‑owned Wi‑Fi company, to equip all Gig‑package customers with the eero Pro 7 mesh system at no extra charge. The deal bundles eero Signal, which automatically switches to cellular backup during outages, and...
IMT-2030 (“6G”) Minimum Technology Performance Requirements for Radio Interface Technologies
At the February 2026 ITU‑R WP 5D meeting in Geneva, the working party reached consensus on the technical performance requirements for IMT‑2030, the forthcoming 6G standard. The draft report defines 20 minimum performance requirements, including seven entirely new metrics, to evaluate...
Reading the Signals: What Broadband Policy Shifts Mean on the Ground - Episode 680 of the Community Broadband Bits Podcast
In this episode, host Chris interviews broadband veteran Doug Dawson to dissect recent industry shifts, including the Astound‑Google Fiber merger and New Mexico's new state‑level affordable connectivity program. They explore how consolidation drives economies of scale for fiber deployment, the...
Carbon Nanotube 'Black Paint' Absorbs Terahertz Radiation to Cut 6G Interference
Researchers at Skoltech and KTH have developed an ultrathin carbon‑nanotube black paint that absorbs terahertz radiation, addressing interference in emerging 6G photonic circuits. The coating, applied via aerosol chemical vapor deposition, can be tuned from 2 to 53 nm, with the...
Telecom Act Aides Say Partisanship Is Behind Lack of Universal Service, Broadband Access
John Windhausen, a staff architect of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, warned that partisan politics have stalled universal broadband, leaving up to 15% of Americans offline. He cited delays in the BEAD program and insufficient, poorly overseen Universal Service Fund financing...
Ikea Tried to Build a Smart Home for Everyone — Here’s Why It’s Not Working Yet
Ikea launched a low‑cost Matter‑over‑Thread smart‑home line promising universal compatibility, but users encountered frequent onboarding and connectivity failures across major platforms. Reports highlighted Apple Home struggling more than Google Home, while Ikea’s Dirigera hub required multiple firmware updates to improve...
Private 5G Connects California School Campus at IWCE26
Next up at #IWCE26 @IWCEXPO is a session on private 5G for schools @mosonetworks & Ataya 200-acre private school campus in California https://t.co/V6xjv3LZMs
Resilient Communications Require Layered Systems, Not Single Points
Comms strength isn’t one system. It’s how layers hold under pressure. Radio. Data. Priority access. Satellite. When incidents scale, coordination depends on resilient, mission-critical communications, not a single point of failure. @T_Priority Partner https://t.co/9rc48ZIfG4
Public Consultation on Europe's Telecom Reality Check: Draft BEREC Fact Finding Report on Connectivity, Competition and Regulatory Highlights in Different...
During its 66th meeting, BEREC released a draft “Telecom Reality Check” fact‑finding report for public consultation, comparing EU connectivity, competition and regulation with the US, China, Japan and other leading markets. The report finds the EU telecom sector competitive with...
Ensuring Spectrum Safety for 2026 World Cup, 2028 Olympics
Back at @IWCEexpo Day 2 Panel on spectrum & public safety for major sports events - esp the 2026 World Cup and 2028 LA Olympics https://t.co/jqA6kUrLLf
2027 Market Nears $600B, Networking Over $60B
2027 more likely to be closer to $600B. Networking alone could be north of $60B.
Researchers Find Driverless Cars and Digital Twins Need More than 5G
Researchers at the University of Glasgow and Heriot‑Watt University, funded by the TransiT hub, discovered that everyday traffic can significantly degrade 5G signals needed for autonomous vehicles and digital twins. In a simulated 160‑metre urban road, high congestion reduced the...