Mobile Industry Extra: June 2022

BT and MTN form strategic alliance in Africa

BT and MTN Business are working together to enhance communications services in Africa. The partnership will see BT’s services and technologies delivered to MTN’s enterprise customers on the continent.

Amdocs acquires Mycom OSI to boost 5G portfolio

Telco software specialist Amdocs has bought UK-based service assurance SaaS developer Mycom OSI for $188 million. Amdocs said its new acquisition would allow it to offer closed-loop automation to help operator customers deliver scalable 5G.

KCOM expands fibre footprint and partner ecosystem

Hull-based broadband provider says its full fibre network now reaches 300,000 properties, while it now has more than 150 wholesale partners. Its network extends across Hull into East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire.

Plan.com agrees MVNO deal with BT EE

Plan.com has agreed a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) with BT to bring EE’s 4G and 5G services to customers, including VoLTE and VoWi-Fi. It is Plan.com’s second MVNO agreement, expanding the choice it offers businesses through its platform.

Greggs ‘rolls’ into the future with IT upgrade

Daisy Corporate Services will deliver SD-WAN, LAN Switching, WiFi and 4G/5G connectivity technology to food retailer Greggs. The upgrade will help Gregg’s 2,100 shops in the UK operate more effectively.

CityFibre secures £4.9bn financing deal for full fibre rollout

Full fibre altnet CityFibre has confirmed a debt package totalling £4.9 billion that fully funds CityFibre’s rollout to a third of the UK market by 2025. The company says the package is one of Europe’s largest ever full fibre financing.

Daisy makes acquisition to communicate better

Daisy Communications has acquired IT, mobile, telephony and telematics provider Communicate Better and will integrate the firm’s services into its portfolio. The telematics offering diversifies Daisy’s portfolio and will help it better serve customers.

Sampath to replace Irwin as Verizon Business CEO

Sowmyanarayan Sampath will become the chief executive of Verizon Business on July 1, replacing Tami Erwin who will remain a strategic advisor until the end of the year. Sampath joined Verizon in 2014 and is currently chief revenue officer of Verizon Business.

Openreach fibre head joins G.Network chief exec

Kevin Murphy has left his role as managing director for Fibre and Network Delivery at Openreach to become chief executive for G. Network. The full fibre altnet was founded in 2016 and raised £1bn in 2020 to help fund plans to reach 1.3 million premises in London.  

Realme appoints new Europe CEO

Chinese smartphone vendor Realme has named Francis Wong as its the new CEO for Europe. Wong was previously CMO of realme Europe and India and becomes one of the youngest chief executives in the smartphone industry.

David Willis to lead Ofcom’s spectrum efforts

UK communications watchdog Ofcom has appointed David Willis as its spectrum group director, bringing 30 years of experience to the role. Willis was most recently President of the Communications Research Centre, the Government of Canada's research centre for advanced wireless telecommunications, and has held roles at BlackBerry and Nortel Networks.

KCOM appoints new chairman

Johan Dennelind is the new chairman of KCOM, replacing Nathan Luckey who will remain on the board of directors. Dennelind was previously chief executive at Nordic operator Telia. Fiona Goldsmith also joins the company’s board.

Vodafone claims to be UK’s largest full fibre broadband provider

Vodafone says it now has the UK’s largest full fibre footprint, with its service available in eight million homes. BT’s Openreach network accounts for a significant share of this footprint, supplemented by a separate wholesale agreement with CityFibre.

Former Vodafone exec joins Liberty Global leadership team

Madalina Suceveanu has been appointed to the newly-established role of Managing Director, Mobile & Cloud Technology at Liberty Global, tasked with developing the firm’s tech strategy and investments in mobile and cloud. Suceveanu had previously held senior leadership at Vodafone Group and was CTO at Orange Romania.

Three officially opens new UK HQ in Reading

Mobile operator Three has officially opened its new UK headquarters in Reading. The operator has combined its two previous sites in the Thames Valley region into a single 117,000 site, with the first staff moving in last year.

4G remains primary cellular IoT tech

Despite the advent of 5G technology, 4G LTE remains the primary technology for 60% of cellular IoT module models, according to a new study from ABI Research. The report found that 2G and 3G module development had all but ceased, with sales continuing for the next few years, with all eyes on the role 5G will play in the IoT mass market in the coming years.