Optus Appoints New OSS Chief
Optus has named former Wipro partner Wajid Baryalai as head of its Operational Systems and Support (OSS) division, a move that underpins a newly created unit focused on network resilience. The appointment coincides with an accelerated plan to insource network‑management functions currently outsourced to Nokia. Optus is navigating a parliamentary inquiry into a fatal triple‑zero outage that exposed gaps in processes and accountability. The carrier also announced broader staffing shifts, cutting 200‑300 offshore roles while expanding its Australian workforce to 6,800‑7,500 employees within a year.
Fort Bragg Fiber Deployment Sees Delays, Higher Costs
Fort Bragg, California’s municipal fiber project has encountered significant setbacks after the city dismissed its original construction‑management partner, GHD. The budget has ballooned from an initial $14.7 million to $18.9 million, driven by added fiber‑flower‑pot enclosures and street‑restoration costs. Direct city oversight...
OpenROADM Touts Multi-Operator Support
At OFC 2026, the IOWN Global Forum and OpenROADM demoed a multi‑domain, multi‑operator photonic fabric built on the OpenROADM Multi‑Source Agreement. The showcase integrated ROADMs, transponders and switches from four vendors (1Finity, Ciena, NEC, Nokia) and was controlled by the open‑source...
Hyper Photonix Showcases 1.6T SiP Optical Transceivers at OFC 2026
Hyper Photonix unveiled a 1.6 Tbps silicon‑photonic (SiP) optical transceiver line built on a 200 G per lane architecture at OFC 2026, targeting AI‑driven data‑center traffic. Live demos at booth 449 highlighted the module’s high bandwidth, power efficiency, signal integrity and thermal robustness. The...
FCC, DOJ Defend USF to Fifth Circuit
The FCC and DOJ are defending the $8 billion‑per‑year Universal Service Fund (USF) before the Fifth Circuit, arguing the program complies with the Constitution. The challenge, filed by Consumers’ Research, targets the “additional” and “advanced” service provisions that allow subsidies for...
AT&T Expands Guarantee to FWA Small Business Customers
AT&T has broadened its AT&T Guarantee program to include small‑business customers using its Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) service. The new policy provides automatic bill credits for outages lasting 20 minutes or longer and promises same‑day or next‑day technical assistance. This...
Singapore Prepares for TSGs#112
Keysight Technologies is set to host the 3GPP TSG #112 plenary in Singapore from June 8‑12, 2026, marking the first time the standards body meets outside its traditional venues. The event will be held at the Marina Bay Sands Expo & Convention...
Internet Goes Down in Congo in Time for the Election
Internet monitoring group NetBlocks reported a nation‑scale outage in the Republic of Congo coinciding with the presidential election, echoing a similar three‑day blackout in 2021. The shutdown occurred despite the telecom regulator ARPCE’s recent directives urging service continuity and resilience....
U.S. Should Streamline Spectrum Allocation, Congressional Report Says
The U.S.-China Economic Security and Review Commission released a report urging Congress to direct the FCC and the NTIA to study ways to streamline spectrum allocation. It highlights China’s rapid 5G licensing—completed within months—versus the United States’ slower, auction‑driven process...
Nokia Lifts Lid on Tech Suite to Meet AI Demands
Nokia announced a new optical networking suite designed to handle the massive data traffic generated by AI workloads. The portfolio combines coherent optics, a compact multi‑line in‑life amplifier and full‑band transponders, promising up to 40‑times more services per footprint while...
L3Harris Unveils P25 Device with 5G, Satellite D2D Functionality
L3Harris introduced the XL‑300P, a redesigned P25 handheld that adds a built‑in LTE‑5G modem and satellite direct‑to‑device (NTN) capability. The device can switch among P25, Wi‑Fi, commercial LTE bands—including Band 106—and T‑Mobile’s Starlink‑backed satellite service, with an AI‑driven selector that chooses...
The Path to ‘Mobile AI’ Laid Out in GSMA Report
The GSMA and GTI Telecom report outlines a "Mobile AI" ecosystem where 5G expansion drives AI workloads from the cloud to devices and edge nodes. It predicts AI‑related traffic will grow at a CAGR above 70% and could outpace traditional...
Private 5G Seen as Fix for Warehouse Robot Connectivity
Private‑5G specialist Celona and Digi International have teamed up to deliver a plug‑and‑play Robots‑as‑a‑Service (RaaS) platform that replaces unreliable Wi‑Fi in large‑scale warehouses. By integrating Digi’s rugged edge routers and gateways with Celona’s 5G LAN, the solution offers low‑latency, high‑capacity...
How Safaricom’s New M-PESA Masked Phone Number Feature Will Work
Safaricom will roll out a phone‑number masking feature for M‑PESA transaction alerts at the end of March 2026. Alerts will replace full numbers with a partially hidden format such as 0722*000**, while still displaying the sender’s first and second names....
Ericsson and VNPT Upgrade Airport Connectivity in Vietnam
Ericsson and Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications (VNPT) have teamed up to upgrade connectivity across Vietnamese airports, deploying Ericsson's new C‑band radios and RAN Compute baseband kits. The solution delivers high‑capacity indoor coverage, multi‑band roaming and a software‑defined architecture that scales...
Over 5.23 Lakh 5G BTS Installed Across India; Services Reach 99.9 Percent of Districts
India has installed over 523,000 5G base transceiver stations, extending network reach to 99.9% of districts nationwide. The deployment accelerates data speeds, capacity, and supports both urban and rural digital services. The government is promoting 5G use cases in telemedicine,...
Kenya Moves to Let Courts Order ISPs to Block Illegal Livestreams
Kenya’s draft Copyright and Related Rights Bill 2026 would empower courts to issue blocking orders against internet service providers that host illegal livestreams of sports and entertainment events. The legislation introduces a formal notice‑and‑takedown regime and safe‑harbour protections for platforms...
DoCoMo and Keio University Demonstrate ‘World’s First Stable, High-Fidelity Robot Teleoperation via Commercial 5G Using Low-Latency Slicing
NTT DoCoMo and Keio University demonstrated the world’s first stable, high‑fidelity robot teleoperation using commercial 5G with low‑latency slicing (Configured Grant). The system combined Configured Grant slicing and Keio’s Real Haptics to transmit force feedback with minimal latency and jitter....
UK Government Unveils Gigabit Broadband Upgrade Tracker
The UK government has launched an online address checker that lets businesses and households verify whether they are slated for a gigabit broadband upgrade under the Project Gigabit scheme. The programme, funded with £5 billion, now brings gigabit‑capable service to more than...
Tells.co Among First U.S. Platforms Approved for RCS Business Messaging
Tells.co has become one of the first U.S. platforms cleared to run Rich Communication Services (RCS) Business Messaging campaigns. RCS upgrades traditional SMS with high‑resolution images, branded sender IDs, interactive buttons, and swipeable product carousels, and its adoption is accelerating...
Du and Huawei Partner to Deliver 10 Gbps 5G-A Network Experience
UAE telecom du has signed an MoU with Huawei to roll out a 10 Gbps‑class 5G‑Advanced (5G‑A) network across the United Arab Emirates. The partnership will deploy Huawei’s U6G radio and 3‑component carrier aggregation to deliver ultra‑large bandwidth in both outdoor...
MTN South Africa Struggles as Competition Bites in Prepaid Market
MTN South Africa reported a 10.1% drop in EBITDA to R17.7 billion, driven by a shrinking prepaid base, higher bad‑debt provisions and a modest 2% rise in service revenue. Prepaid subscribers fell 0.7% and prepaid revenue contracted 2.3% (3.9% in Q4),...
The Techco of Tomorrow: Comarch Communications’ Autonomous Approach to Satellite-Terrestrial Convergence
At Mobile World Congress 2026, Comarch Communications’ CSO Tymoteusz Wrona outlined the company’s push to embed agentic artificial intelligence into its OSS/BSS platforms to create autonomous, API‑driven networks. The strategy targets measurable efficiency gains and positions telcos to monetize satellite‑terrestrial...
Tejas Networks Wins Deal to Supply 4G RAN in South Asia
Tejas Networks announced it has secured a contract to supply its 4G radio access network equipment to an unnamed telecom operator in South Asia. The deal, disclosed in a regulatory filing, marks a strategic push to broaden the company’s international...
Australia Mobile Services Market: Telstra, Optus, and TPG Drive 5G Growth and Rising Data Revenue
Australia’s mobile services market remains dominated by Telstra, Optus and TPG, which together control the majority of subscribers and revenue. Telstra leads with roughly 40% share and A$10 billion annual mobile revenue, backed by an A$800 million four‑year 5G investment to reach...
Reliance Communications Files Review Plea Against SC Order on Spectrum Sale Under IBC
Reliance Communications has filed a review petition in the Supreme Court challenging the February 13 order that bars the sale or transfer of spectrum under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC). The court held that spectrum, as a scarce public resource,...
Fiber Frenzy
Charter rolled out Spectrum fiber services in Jefferson, Gibson and Henderson counties, Tennessee, linking over 3,000 homes and businesses. GFiber, fresh from its merger with Astound Broadband, began offering symmetrical speeds up to 8 Gbps in Las Vegas from a new Summerlin...
CSIRO Farm Trials Point to Low-Frequency Mining Connectivity Potential
CSIRO’s Data61 team is testing sub‑1 GHz low‑frequency signals as a rugged, long‑range communications layer for remote industries. Farm trials with Sharp demonstrated live video and AI‑driven livestock monitoring using a 240 MHz signal at just 0.01 mW. The research shows the spectrum...
Patchy Wi-Fi at ACCC Despite Access Point Expansion
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) disclosed ongoing Wi‑Fi performance problems across its nine‑office footprint despite a recent rollout of 60 new wireless access points, bringing the total to 168. The issues include connection dropouts, weak signal strength, and...
Why Your Expensive New Router Feels Slow: 5 Next-Gen Features Disabled by Default
Many new Wi‑Fi 7 routers ship with key performance features turned off, causing users to experience slower speeds despite premium hardware. By default, routers often restrict channel width and disable OFDMA, MU‑MIMO, Target Wake Time, and Multi‑Link Operation. Enabling these settings...
How Verizon Handles Customers Who Misuse 5G Home Internet Service
Verizon’s 5G Home Internet serves roughly 40 million U.S. residences, offering speeds of 100‑300 Mbps at a base price of $35 per month. The service is strictly limited to the address listed in the customer’s order and is intended for non‑commercial residential...
My Broadband Upgrade
British Telecom’s push to retire copper lines forced a small‑business owner to migrate his broadband and landline to digital services. The ISP mishandled the number‑porting request, leaving the business without its primary phone for a week while the new fibre...
Telecom News: Kyivstar, Apple, Samsung, Vodafone Idea
Kyivstar reported a 26% rise in core profit for 2025, with EBITDA of about $648 million, driven by a surge in digital services after acquiring ride‑hailing platform Uklon. Digital revenue jumped 467% to $124 million, and monthly active users of its super‑app...
Pagers and Paper Maps Make a Comeback in Moscow as the Internet Goes Dark
Moscow and parts of St. Petersburg have experienced intermittent mobile internet blackouts, cutting off apps, rides, and even basic calls. The Kremlin says the restrictions are security‑driven and may involve testing a “whitelist” that only permits essential services. The outages have...
The $41 Billion Telecom Fraud Secret
Global telecom operators reported $41.82 billion in fraud losses, a rise from the previous year, while consumer losses from spoofed calls remain largely hidden. Spoofed caller ID enables large‑scale authorized push payment scams, accounting for up to half of voice‑channel attacks....
AAP's Raghav Chadha Reignites Demand for 30-Day Tariffs, Affordable Voice-Only Plan
AAP MP Raghav Chadha has called on Indian telecom operators to align prepaid recharge cycles with calendar months and to keep essential voice and SMS services active long after a pack expires. He also proposed an inexpensive incoming‑only plan for...
TRAI Moots Termination Charges to Tackle Spam
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has drafted rules to impose termination charges on commercial Application‑to‑Person (A2P) calls, aiming to curb bulk spam calls that masquerade as personal conversations. The proposal mirrors existing fees on commercial SMS and exempts...
Airtel Postpaid Plans 2026 Detailed: Full Price List, Data Benefits, Family SIM Options and OTT Offers
Bharti Airtel’s Infinity Postpaid portfolio in India now spans six tiers, priced from ₹449 to ₹1,749 monthly. Each plan bundles unlimited voice, 300‑420 GB of data, and a suite of digital services such as OTT subscriptions, 100 GB Google One storage, and...
Some BEAD Winners Seeing Tight Fiber Market
Rural broadband providers participating in the $42.45 billion BEAD program are encountering unexpected cancellations of orders for Build America, Buy America‑compliant fiber. Prices for BABA‑qualified cable have surged roughly 40 percent, straining project budgets and timelines. Manufacturers such as Corning cite...
Trump Mobile Is Just One in the Crowd of Conservative Carriers
Trump Mobile joins a growing list of conservative‑leaning MVNOs that lease network capacity from the big carriers. The article compares its $26‑per‑month Freedom of Speech plan to rivals such as Liberty Mobile, Patriot Mobile, Radiant Mobile, PureTalk and Charity Mobile,...
AT&T CEO Pitches Trump Amid $23 Billion Antitrust Review
AT&T CEO John Stankey met with President Trump as the Justice Department conducts a $23 billion antitrust review of AT&T’s planned purchase of EchoStar’s spectrum licenses. The meeting was framed as a preview of AT&T’s broader $250 billion commitment to U.S. infrastructure...
Kyivstar Reports Strong Fourth-Quarter Results
Kyivstar Group posted a robust fourth‑quarter, delivering $321 million in revenue, a 28.4% year‑over‑year increase. Telecom services generated $271 million while digital offerings surged to $50 million, marking a 619% jump and accounting for 15.7% of total sales. EBITDA rose 21.7% to $172 million...
Greenlight Networks Accelerates Builds in Scranton, Wilkes-Barre
Greenlight Networks announced an accelerated fiber‑optic build‑out across Scranton, Wilkes‑Barre and surrounding Northeast Pennsylvania communities, backed by more than $24 million in new investment. The rollout follows its 2025 acquisition of Loop Internet, which added over 50 local employees and expanded...
Navy Bolsters Platforms with 5G, Eyes Ship-to-Ship Connections
The Navy’s 5G Integrated Product Team is accelerating the deployment of fifth‑generation wireless across every platform, from small unmanned aerial systems to aircraft carriers. It has successfully tested high‑speed, low‑latency ship‑to‑shore links and is now exploring ship‑to‑ship connectivity using the...
Orange Conducts 5G Standalone Trial for Emergency Services in Spain
Orange Spain and Madrid City Council completed Spain’s first real‑world 5G Standalone (SA) trial for emergency services, demonstrating network slicing that gives absolute priority to police, SAMUR and fire departments during a major public event. The trial, part of the...
Another AT&T FirstNet User Gets Shocking $6,200 Bill, at $2 per Megabyte
AT&T’s FirstNet service mistakenly charged two users roughly $6,200 each for about 3.1 GB of data at a $2‑per‑megabyte rate. The first case involved a Texas police officer in December 2024, the second a Florida active‑duty service member in March 2026, both receiving...
O’Rielly Wants Lutnick to Help Kill USDA’s Broadband Programs
Former FCC commissioner Michael O’Rielly wrote an op‑ed urging Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to block the renewal of three USDA broadband programs, arguing they duplicate the NTIA’s BEAD initiative and the FCC’s Universal Service Fund. O’Rielly points to $109 million in...
Inverto and SES Join Forces to Advance Next-Generation Q-Stream Solution Powered by DVB-NIP
Inverto and SES have announced a strategic partnership to fast‑track the development and commercial rollout of Q‑stream, an end‑to‑end content delivery platform built on the DVB‑NIP (Native IP) standard. The solution leverages satellite to distribute IP‑based video streams directly to...
Telefonica Tech Sees Bright Future for Burriana
Telefonica Tech has equipped the Spanish town of Burriana with a smart street‑lighting network, linking more than 6,300 nodes using NB‑IoT. The project, commissioned by a Ferrovial Energia‑Endesa joint venture, utilizes Tellink‑manufactured sensors to provide remote monitoring, brightness control, and...
Cisco Edges Huawei in Indoor Wi-Fi 7 Revenue
Cisco took an early lead in indoor Wi‑Fi 7 access‑point revenue in 2025, edging out Huawei with nearly $2 billion in sales. The advantage stems from aggressive pricing and faster‑than‑expected enterprise adoption of the new standard. Dell’Oro forecasts double‑digit WLAN growth in...