Mixer Technology For Advanced Communications, Part 1: Mixer Basics
Cadence Design Systems released a white‑paper titled “Mixer Technology For Advanced Communications, Part 1: Mixer Basics,” highlighting the growing importance of mixers as 5G matures and 6G looms. The ebook examines how mixer performance influences RF front‑end behavior, covering frequency translation, linearity, noise, and image suppression at wide bandwidths and mmWave frequencies. It is offered as a downloadable PDF through Microwave Journal, with the sponsor’s profile data shared upon download. The paper aims to educate engineers on modern mixer design trade‑offs for next‑generation networks.
MikroTik CRS418-8P-8G-2S+5axQ2axQ-RM Review The All-in-One PoE Switch Router with WiFi 6
MikroTik’s CRS418‑8P‑8G‑2S+5axQ2axQ‑RM combines a 16‑port Gigabit switch, PoE+ on eight ports, and two native 10 GbE SFP+ uplinks with an integrated Qualcomm ARM CPU and dual‑band Wi‑Fi 6 (4×4 MIMO). The device retains the Marvell Prestera ASIC of the standard CRS418 while adding...
Wireless Broadband Alliance Claims Wi-Fi Security on a Par with Cellular
The Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA) released a new Wi‑Fi security framework that it says puts Wi‑Fi on equal footing with cellular networks in terms of security. The guidance consolidates standards such as WPA3, OpenRoaming (Passpoint) and RadSec, covering authentication, encryption,...
GSMA Report Urges Japan to Take Bold Action to Convert Technical Excellence Into Global Digital Leadership
The GSMA released its “Digital Nations 2026: Accelerating the Digital Leap in Japan” report at the Digital Nation Summit in Tokyo, urging Japan to convert its technical strengths into global digital leadership. The study highlights three priority actions: completing the...
Beyond Connectivity: Elevate the Passenger Experience and Aircraft Operations
Airbus is rolling out its Connected Aircraft program, featuring the HBCplus modular connectivity system that can link to multiple satellite constellations—including LEO, MEO and GEO—without requiring structural airframe changes. The open, end‑to‑end digital platform aggregates onboard and ground data, enabling...
Kepler Awarded $30.1 Million Prime Contract for European Space Agency HydRON Optical Network
Kepler Communications, a Toronto‑based satellite operator, has been awarded a €18.6 million ($30.1 million) prime contract from the European Space Agency to deliver HydRON Element 3, a hosted‑payload mission that will validate the interoperability of multiple European optical communication terminals. The satellite bus,...
Kepler, Astrolight to Test ESA’s ‘Fiber in the Sky’
The European Space Agency has chosen a Kepler Communications‑led team to test its HydRON "fiber in the sky" optical network. Kepler will launch a satellite in 2027 carrying Astrolight’s ATLAS‑X laser communications terminal, which will operate as a third‑party user...
Funding Secured for 2.7 GHz Studies, NTIA Says
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) announced it has nearly secured funding to study repurposing roughly 200 MHz of the 2.69‑2.9 GHz federal band for commercial wireless use. The agency cleared relocation plans and cost estimates for the two primary users,...
FCC Just Handed Netgear a De Facto Router Monopoly in the US
The FCC granted Netgear conditional approval that lifts the ban on foreign‑made consumer routers, effectively giving it a de facto monopoly on new router sales and servicing in the United States until October 1 2027. The approval covers Netgear’s Nighthawk and Orbi mesh...
NTIA Holds Panel Showcasing Benefits of Fixed Wireless
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration hosted a panel on April 14 highlighting fixed wireless as a practical solution to the digital divide in remote regions. Panelists emphasized lower start‑up costs, rapid scalability and superior climate resilience compared with traditional...
FTC Moves to Crack Down on Hidden, Unfair Rental Fees and Perhaps Bulk Billing
The Federal Trade Commission opened an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to curb hidden, deceptive rental fees, reviving the possibility of regulating bulk‑billing internet arrangements after the FCC abandoned its ban. More than 1,500 comments from industry groups, consumer advocates,...
Saudia and Neo Space Group Launch Advanced IFC
Saudia has partnered with Neo Space Group to roll out an advanced inflight connectivity (IFC) service that will provide complimentary high‑speed internet across its global network. The system is powered by NSG’s Skywaves platform and SES’s Open Orbits multi‑orbit satellite...
SES and Boeing Move Toward Factory-Installed Multi-Orbit Inflight Connectivity
SES and Boeing have agreed to integrate SES’s multi‑orbit inflight connectivity hardware into aircraft production, starting with Boeing 737s and later 787s, moving away from retrofit installations. The hardware will become fully line‑fit by 2028 after an initial phase that...
USTelecom Pushed for White House Environmental Review Guidance
USTelecom successfully lobbied the White House to issue new Council on Environmental Quality guidance that expands categorical exclusions for federal infrastructure projects. The memo directs agencies to reuse existing environmental reviews and adopt peer exclusions, aiming to cut duplicated NEPA...
Ziply Fiber’s Seattle to Chicago “Northern Link Route” Goes Live
Ziply Fiber announced that its 2,100‑mile “Northern Link Route” connecting Seattle to Chicago is now fully live, offering a 400 Gbps, low‑latency pathway across major Northwest and Midwest cities. The route delivers a record 39.5 ms round‑trip latency between Seattle and Chicago,...
BEAD Program Drives $100M+ Broadband Expansion in Spokane County
The federal Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program has allocated more than $100 million to Spokane County, Washington, with a provisional $90 million award to public development authority Broadlinc and matching state funds. The money will finance a hybrid rollout of...
Apple Chooses Amazon Satellites for iPhone, Years After Rejecting Starlink Offer
Amazon announced a $11.6 billion acquisition of Globalstar and a partnership that makes it the primary satellite service provider for iPhone and Apple Watch. The deal gives Amazon access to Globalstar’s existing low‑Earth‑orbit constellation, spectrum and Mobile Satellite Service licenses. Amazon...
Virginia Enacts Law to Streamline Wireless Infrastructure Upgrades
Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger signed House Bill 277 into law, streamlining upgrades to existing wireless infrastructure by restricting local governments from denying modification requests that do not substantially change a facility’s dimensions. The bill defines “substantial change” to include work...
Delta Air Lines Contracts Airbus to Install Hughes Co-Developed IFC on Upcoming A350-1000 Aircraft
Airbus will outfit 20 of Delta's upcoming A350‑1000 jets with a multi‑orbit in‑flight connectivity system co‑developed with Hughes, making Delta the first North American customer for Airbus' HBCplus line‑fit offering. The HBCplus modular solution supports up to two antennas and...
KRYTAR Announces a New Compact, 4-Way MLDD Power Divider Covering 7.125 to 15.35 GHz
KRYTAR, Inc. introduced a new 4‑way ultra‑broadband power divider (Model 707125‑1535) that operates from 7.125 GHz to 15.35 GHz, covering C‑ through Ku‑bands. The device delivers >18 dB isolation, ±0.5 dB amplitude tracking, ±10° phase tracking, 1.9 dB insertion loss, and a 10 W input rating in...
Trump Mobile's 'T1 Phone' Might Actually Be Released Soon
Trump Mobile, the venture of Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, has refreshed its website and publicly displayed the gold‑trimmed T1 smartphone for the first time. The T1 features a 6.78‑inch AMOLED panel, 120 Hz refresh rate, four 50‑megapixel cameras, a...
Haivision Launches Falkon X4 5G Transmitters
Haivision introduced the Falkon X4, a 5G‑enabled mobile video transmitter designed for live‑sports and news remote productions. The unit features a four‑modem, 2×2 MIMO architecture with eight cellular antennas and can bond 5G, 4G, Wi‑Fi, Ethernet and LEO satellite links for resilient,...
8 Wi-Fi Security Guidelines Issued by Wireless Broadband Alliance
The Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA) has published eight security guidelines aimed at elevating Wi‑Fi networks to carrier‑grade protection. The recommendations span certificate‑based authentication, WPA3‑Enterprise encryption, privacy‑preserving identities, end‑to‑end credential safeguards, hardened access‑network infrastructure, and secure AAA signaling. They also stress...
Oil and Gas Buyer’s Guide for Private Cellular Networks
The oil and gas sector is turning to private 5G cellular networks to overcome fragmented connectivity, labor shortages, and rising safety and environmental pressures. By consolidating multiple legacy systems into a single, secure platform, companies can enable real‑time data, high‑resolution...
ATIS Insights Into Work on Rel-20
The ATIS webinar on April 14, 2026 detailed 3GPP Release 20, a dual‑track effort that continues 5G‑Advanced development while laying the groundwork for 6G. Rel‑20’s three‑stage cadence—Stage 1 frozen June 2025, Stage 2 80% complete with a September 2026 target, and a functional freeze in March 2027—provides a...
Amazon Buys Globalstar and Does Satellite Deal with Apple
Amazon announced it will acquire Globalstar, folding the satellite operator’s fleet, spectrum licenses, and infrastructure into its Amazon Leo business. The deal secures Globalstar’s existing 85% capacity allocation to Apple, while Amazon and Apple signed a new agreement to keep iPhone...
Amazon Just Bought Its Way Into the Satellite-to-Phone Race — And the Real Target Is SpaceX
Amazon announced it will acquire satellite operator Globalstar, instantly gaining licensed mobile‑satellite spectrum, an operational L‑band fleet, and ground infrastructure that already supports Apple’s emergency messaging. The deal, structured as cash and stock, is slated to close in 2027 pending...
Xfinity Mobile and Spectrum Mobile Outpace Industry Speeds with Wi-Fi-Driven Gains
Comcast’s Xfinity Mobile and Charter’s Spectrum Mobile have surged ahead of traditional carriers, posting 4.4‑times and 2.7‑times speed gains respectively from Q1 2023 to Q1 2026. The acceleration stems from aggressive Wi‑Fi offloading, with up to 90% of mobile traffic routed through...
From Signal to Insight
Mining firms are turning to private 5G to overcome the limitations of legacy radio and Wi‑Fi networks, enabling real‑time data flow for autonomous equipment and safety systems. Ericsson and Becker‑Lasec’s partnership combines Ericsson’s private 5G infrastructure with LASEC’s Smartflow platform,...
Here Comes Starlink, the Next Telecom Giant
Starlink, five years into commercial service, is now reshaping the telecom landscape by offering ultra‑low latency broadband that rivals traditional GEO and MEO satellites. Its partnership with MVNO US Mobile marks a foray into fixed‑line bundling, while Asian markets see incumbents...
Ask Your Questions on SGP.32 – Live AMA with Emnify
The upcoming live AMA on May 12 will dive into SGP.32, a new software‑defined IoT connectivity model that replaces static SIM management with programmable control. emnify will demonstrate how it implements SGP.32, enabling instant‑on connectivity, operator independence, and global scalability....
A Year Later: Examining Google Media CDN’s Evolution in Scale, Monitoring, and Architecture
Google’s Media CDN has dramatically expanded over the past year, tripling delivery capacity by leveraging both its own infrastructure and YouTube’s network. New features such as Flexible Shielding provide regional caching in South Africa, the Middle East, and the U.S.,...
Cloudflare Launches Mesh to Secure the AI Agent Lifecycle
Cloudflare announced Mesh, a private networking solution built for AI agents that unifies agents, humans, and multicloud infrastructure into a single secure fabric. The service replaces legacy VPNs and manual tunnels, letting developers provision private connectivity in minutes while keeping...
AI Is Driving Network Energy Costs Up. Here’s How to Control Them
Communications service providers are confronting soaring energy costs as AI workloads become integral to 5G and future 6G networks. A new whitepaper by TNS and Kaleido Intelligence warns that data‑center capacity could grow two‑to‑six‑fold by 2030, turning energy efficiency into...
Indus Towers: Jefferies Cuts Rating to Underperform, Gives Reasons for Bear Outlook
Jefferies downgraded Indus Towers to "underperform" and lowered its price target to Rs 375 (about $4.5) amid renewal risk for roughly 10 % of sites built in 2016‑17. The broker warns that contract expirations in late 2026‑early 2027 could force the company...
Taara Expands Into Video Distribution, Sizes up Data Center Opportunity
Taara, the free‑space‑optics spin‑out of Google X, is entering remote video distribution through a partnership with production‑tech firm Cintegral. The collaboration will showcase 4K and 8K wireless feeds powered by Taara’s Lightbridge platform at the NAB Show, leveraging up to...
Eurobites: Deutsche Telekom Plugs Thüga Into 'Sovereign' AI
Deutsche Telekom announced a partnership with German utilities group Thüga to deploy its “sovereign” AI suite on the operator’s T‑Cloud Public, keeping all data processing within the EU legal framework. The deal highlights a broader European push for data‑sovereign cloud...
NAB Show: LiveU to Showcase LU900Q's 'Quantum Leap' In Intelligent Connectivity, Workflows
LiveU unveiled its LU900Q encoding platform at the 2026 NAB Show, positioning it as the company’s first AI‑powered, intelligent production unit. The compact device combines native LiveU IQ, eSIM, 5G modems and a MIMO antenna to deliver 4:2:2 encoding, dual‑camera...
Photon Bridge and PHIX Partner on DWDM External Laser Sources for Hyperscale AI Data Centers
Photon Bridge of Eindhoven and PHIX of Enschede have teamed up to commercialize a high‑performance DWDM external laser source transmit optical sub‑assembly (TOSA) aimed at co‑packaged optics in hyperscale AI data centers. Photon Bridge will supply end‑to‑end photonic chip design,...
Open Broadcast Systems Unlocks IP Distribution for BBC World Service TV
Open Broadcast Systems announced that its low‑latency IP decoders have been chosen by BBC World Service TV for global distribution. The compact units support major IP video protocols—including SRT, RIST and Zixi—allowing flexible, reliable, and cost‑effective delivery to rebroadcast partners...
Police Tech Body Adds Six Months and £30m to Deal for Airwave Devices to Cover ESN Delays
The Police Digital Service (PDS) has extended its Airwave handset contract with Sepura and Motorola Solutions by six months, adding roughly $38 million to the deal. The agreement now runs until 30 June 2027, lifting the total contract value to about $114 million. The...
ACT Abandons Home Affairs Identity Fees Lawsuit
The Association of Comms & Technology (ACT) has withdrawn its high‑court challenge to Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber’s steep identity‑verification fee increase, opting for members to negotiate directly with the department. The fee rose from 15 cents to R10 per query...
UK FWA Specialist Expands to US
Cambridge Broadband Networks Group (CBNG), a UK‑based fixed wireless access (FWA) equipment vendor, opened its first U.S. facility in Richardson, Texas. The site serves as a distribution hub, logistics centre, and engineering lab, providing on‑ground support for its 5G mmWave...
The Firmware Fallacy: Why Bridging the NTN Gap in Massive IoT Still Requires a Hardware Reality Check
The article warns that adding Non‑Terrestrial Network (NTN) connectivity to massive IoT devices cannot be achieved through a simple firmware‑over‑the‑air update. While 3GPP Release 17 introduces native NTN support for NB‑IoT and LTE‑M, the physical differences in antenna patterns, RF front‑end...
VodafoneZiggo Adds Low-Cost Broadband and TV Offer to Hollandsnieuwe
VodafoneZiggo is extending its budget mobile brand hollandsnieuwe into the Dutch fixed market, offering broadband and TV services over the Ziggo network. Customers can pick 100 Mbps or 1 Gbps speeds and a streaming‑based TV package with more than 50 channels. Introductory...
Airtel Expands Network Capacity in Latest Move to Close Gap with MTN
Airtel Nigeria has accelerated its network build, adding 1,561 sites to reach roughly 17,200 towers by December 2025 and committing $500 million to the effort. The expansion targets high‑traffic corridors where congestion threatens service quality as internet consumption hit 1.26 million terabytes...
C-DoT to Commercialise Indigenously-Developed 5G Radio Network
India’s Centre for Development of Telematics (C‑DoT) has completed an indigenously developed 5G radio that operates in both non‑standalone and standalone modes, partnering with VVDN Technologies and WiSig Networks. The consortium is set to begin field trials in Ambala after...
Tetra-Networks-for-Mission-Critical-Voice-Communications
Motorola Solutions highlights TETRA private mobile radio (PMR) networks as essential for mission‑critical voice communications in public safety. Operating around 400 MHz, TETRA offers longer reach and better indoor penetration than 4G/5G, especially in reinforced concrete structures. Built‑in redundancy and direct‑mode...
Telecom Network Market Rebounds to $215.8 Bn in 2025 as AI and 5G Investments Accelerate
Global telecom network infrastructure revenues hit $215.8 bn in 2025, up 4.2% year‑over‑year, with Q4 alone reaching $61.8 bn, a 7.2% rise. The rebound follows a slowdown in 2023‑24 and is driven by operator spending on 5G upgrades, fiber expansion and AI‑enabled...
Telecom News: Vodafone Idea, BSNL–Vodafone Idea, Capex Optimization
Vodafone Idea (Vi) is accelerating its network transformation by deploying over 117,000 new broadband sites to strengthen 4G coverage and lay the groundwork for a focused 5G rollout in high‑revenue urban circles. The operator is also modernizing legacy systems, which...