Where to draw the line on free speech – Facebook thinks it has nailed it

One of the most difficult decisions to make when looking at social media is where the line is; what opinions should be deemed as free speech, and which fall into the offensive category.

Ericsson ups US investments in search of regionalised relevance

Ericsson has announced it will increase investments for R&D in the US as it revs its engines in pursuit of much-hyped 5G market share.

Ericsson ups US investments in search of regionalised relevance

Ericsson has announced it will increase investments for R&D in the US as it revs its engines in pursuit of much-hyped 5G market share.

H3C Among Top Data Center Ethernet Switch Vendors, Says IHS Markit

Respondents to IHS Markit’s survey indicated they expect a 1.5x increase in the average number of physical servers in their data centers by 2019.

Cox Business will enter SD-WAN arena via RapidScale

Cox Business strengthened its managed services hand with its purchase of hybrid cloud service provider RapidScale.

CenturyLink: We won’t buy spectrum at auction

CenturyLink said it doesn't have plans to purchase spectrum at auction.

Megaport has pole position in interconnect market: analyst

Megaport CEO Vincent English made quite the impression as a keynote speaker during a conference earlier this week, according to an analyst report.

Ericsson Throws 5G Investment Fuel on U.S. Market That's 'On Fire'

The investment plans include producing equipment stateside to be closer to its customers, opening a new software development center, and hiring several hundred employees.

SDxCentral's Weekly Roundup — August 10, 2018

Oracle debuts another autonomous database cloud service; Facebook open sources its transport layer security library; and AWS rolls out serverless option for Amazon Aurora.

Qualcomm finally gets a legal win in Taiwan

The Qualcomm lawyers are building a reputation as the hardest working in the industry, though at least they no-longer have to battle the Taiwanese Fair Trade Commission.

Alphabet’s Chronicle Exec Talks IoT Security

The security company that spun out of Alphabet’s secretive X research lab in January still hasn’t set a release date for its analytics platform.

Alphabet’s Chronicle Exec Talks IoT Security

The security company that spun out of Alphabet’s secretive X research lab in January still hasn’t set a release date for its analytics platform.

Launch of Note 9 and smart speaker will test power of Samsung’s brand

Samsung has decided to test the loyalty of its fanbase with the launch of its latest smartphone, which is has priced at an eye-watering $1000, while also entering the smart speaker battle with Galaxy Home.

Launch of Note 9 and smart speaker will test power of Samsung’s brand

Samsung has decided to test the loyalty of its fanbase with the launch of its latest smartphone, which is has priced at an eye-watering $1000, while also entering the smart speaker battle with Galaxy Home.

Ericsson to expand U.S. manufacturing, R&D efforts to support 5G

Ericsson announced it will expand its R&D and manufacturing efforts in the United States ahead of the launch of 5G services here.

Ericsson Ramps Its 5G Activity in US

Vendor set to hire at least 380 new tech staff and start manufacturing locally to better support its important US customers, but where will these experts come from?

Layoffs at Ericsson's iconectiv

Industry sources say Ericsson's iconectiv unit, formerly Telcordia Interconnection Solutions, has implemented staff cuts at its number portability team.

Ericsson Ramps Up Its 5G Activity in US

Vendor set to hire at least 380 new tech staff and start manufacturing locally to better support its important US customers, but where will these experts come from?

NBCU Building OTT Lure to Hook Viewers

Programmer sets sights on free 'WatchBack' app that will let viewers sample shows for points that can be redeemed for rewards and perks.

Magic Leap Jumps to the 5G Future

AR startup's pricey 'Creator Edition' goes on sale, but Magic Leap still needs to jump a much larger hurdle if it's to forge a connection to the consumer mainstream.

WiCipedia: AI for Social Good & a Fitbit Fail for Women

This week in our WiC roundup: Gender diversity in AI; female entrepreneurs in sub-Saharan Africa; Fitbit fails women with new feature; and more.

Eurobites: Ericsson Pumps Up Its US 5G R&D

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Openreach reins in Gfast rollout; Fitch returns Nokia to investment-grade status; Huawei powers Fastweb's WiFi; UK smart meter program in crisis.

Indian Telcos May Avoid Next Spectrum Auction

Mountainous debts, a surplus of spectrum and the weak business case for 5G could all compel India's telcos to skip a forthcoming auction.

VMware strikes a deal to buy part of Dell EMC

VMware announced a definitive agreement Thursday afternoon to buy the technology and engineering team of Dell EMC Service Assurance.

Extreme Networks Stock Drops After Its Brocade, Avaya Acquisitions Disappoint in Revenues

Extreme had predicted the Brocade assets would generate over $230 million in annual revenue and that the Avaya assets would generate a minimum of $200 million in revenue in fiscal 2018.

BT creates 1k jobs as customer services shifts back to the UK

BT has announced the creation of 1,000 new jobs as it continues the pursuit of answering customer calls in the UK and Ireland by the end of 2020.

BT creates 1k jobs as customer services shifts back to the UK

BT has announced the creation of 1,000 new jobs as it continues the pursuit of answering customer calls in the UK and Ireland by the end of 2020.

AI is a $200bn opportunity, and Intel has already grabbed $1bn of it

The newly emerging artificial intelligence market will be a money-maker, that is no secret, though Intel appears to have taken an early march on the prospering technology.

AI is a $200bn opportunity, and Intel has already grabbed $1bn of it

The newly emerging artificial intelligence market will be a money-maker, that is no secret, though Intel appears to have taken an early march on the prospering technology.

Quality of Experience Is What Distinguishes SD-WAN Products, Says NSS Labs

Fortinet bragged today that it was the only vendor with security capabilities to receive an SD-WAN recommended rating in the first NSS Labs software-defined wide area networking test report.

Samsung’s Galaxy Note9 drops with big price tag

Samsung sprung its new Galaxy Note9 today with a big 6.4-inch Super AMOLED display and a massive $1,000 price tag to match.

VMware Acquires Dell EMC’s Service Assurance Suite to Boost 5G Support

The platform will be integrated into VMware's Telco NFV portfolio. This will add automated service assurance capabilities to support virtual network function deployments.

CenturyLink cashes in on Level 3 deal

CenturyLink is starting to reap the rewards of its $34 billion deal to buy Level 3, which were outlined in its second-quarter earnings results.

Microsoft- and Facebook-Led Cybersecurity Tech Accord Tackles Router Security

On the sidelines at Black Hat, a Microsoft exec said the Tech Accord is an example of how the company works with other technology vendors to advance security.

AT&T risks getting creepy with its ad biz

AT&T is making clear its digital advertising intentions. And they are significant.

China Mobile adds 18mn mobile subs in first half – and that’s not a typo

China Mobile has reported its numbers for the first half, with the ridiculous figures just demonstrating how much potential there is for those who can crack the Great Firewall of China.

LF Deep Learning signs up 5 more members

The Linux Foundation's LF Deep Learning Foundation announced it has added Ciena, DiDi, Intel, Orange and Red Hat to its membership roster.

DT blames dodgy results on toll roads

Profits might have plummeted but that hasn’t stopped Deutsche Telekom from raising its full-year outlook as subscriber gains in the US business drags the rest of the group forward.

DT blames dodgy results on toll roads

Profits might have plummeted but that hasn’t stopped Deutsche Telekom from raising its full-year outlook as subscriber gains in the US business drags the rest of the group forward.

Europe might force Apple to ditch Lightning Cable

A leaked email suggests the European Commission will revive efforts forcing manufacturers to standardize smartphone chargers, after previous commitments were simply disregarded.

Europe might force Apple to ditch Lightning Cable

A leaked email suggests the European Commission will revive efforts forcing manufacturers to standardize smartphone chargers, after previous commitments were simply disregarded.

Jonathan Davidson to take over as Cisco executive

There's been a shakeup in Cisco's service provider division with the expected departure of top executive Yvette Kanouff.

China is clear leader in the 5G race – Deloitte

Consulting firm Deloitte claim China has taken pole position in the 5G race, owing to a continued focus on network infrastructure and future investments which are matched by no other nation.

Zigbee will account for 85% of mesh IoT chipsets by 2023, report says

A new report finds that half a billion Zigbee chipsets have been sold to date and predicts that 3.8 billion Zigbee chipsets will be sold by 2023.

Two Cisco Senior Vice Presidents Depart the Company

Cisco Senior Vice President Christine Heckart has left the company. The marketing executive hailed from Brocade.

Prometheus Joins Kubernetes on CNCF Graduation Stage

The project is an open source monitoring tool, which is now seen as table stakes for cloud native and container deployments.

Feeling the heat? Verizon expands 55+ plan for seniors to more states

Verizon launched a plan for customers in Florida who are 55 years old and over. Now, the carrier is expanding that offering to two more states.

Samsung makes $22.4B investment push into AI, 5G

Samsung will invest $22.38 billion in AI and 5G tech in hopes of tapping into growth opportunities for its businesses as the smartphone market stalls.

Liberty Global: A Tale of Two Companies?

Despite continuing struggles in its other European markets, Liberty Global boosts subscribers, revenues and operating cash flow in Q2, largely due to Virgin Media's strong performance.

Cox Business Bulks Up With RapidScale Buy

Deal gives Cox biz services unit a broader set of managed cloud services targeted to a mix of verticals.

AT&T Tests in Austin: 5G High & Rising

Ma Bell gets 39GHZ mmwave infrastructure and devices tested ahead of its planned mobile 5G commercial launch at the end of the year.

Roku's Free Streams Go Outside the Box

OTT company will pump its ad business and extend its reach as Roku's free video offering, The Roku Channel, hits web browsers.

Why Do You Need a 5G Cloud-Native Core?

To deliver the new services promised by 5G, your existing 4G core will not be enough.

Windstream Claims US SD-WAN Leadership

In announcing Q2 earnings, Windstream says its sold more SD-WAN services than anyone else in the US and expects to keep rolling.

Eurobites: Virgin Media Boosts Liberty Global's Second Quarter

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: NTT seeks to offload Italian mobile content specialist; Allot, McAfee and Telefónica España team up on SMB cybersecurity; Tele2 blip prompts Dutch security scare.

Dumb Networks, Not Just Dumb Pipes

The CEO of one of the largest ISPs in the world isn't so keen to use artificial intelligence to manage its network. He just doesn't need it.

China Mobile Sees NB-IoT Boom as Profits Rise

China's NB-IoT push has led to a dramatic increase in IoT connections on the network of the country's biggest mobile operator.

Multi-Gig Brings Star Trek Holodeck to Cable

Even relatively small light field display applications require big bit-rates, CableLabs CEO says.

Deutsche Telekom Raises Outlook on US Growth

German operator's second-quarter results tell a familiar story of rampant growth in the US and an underwhelming performance in Germany and Europe.

Intel Reinventing Xeon for AI – but Is It Too Late?

Intel is late to market with AI-enabled chips, but it's determined to catch up.

CenturyLink: Faster Integration Driving Brighter Future

Execs upgrade the guidance for 2018 saying the integration of Level 3 is going well and will drive major new business opportunities.

Tivo Might Sell Off Its Products Business

All options still on the table, but interim CEO says there's a 'very strong possibility' that Tivo could seek scale by combining its products biz with another company.

Google’s Project Zero Chief: Stop Playing Security Whack-A-Mole

During the Black Hat Keynote, Google’s Parisa Tabriz, who manages the Project Zero bug hunting team, urged tech companies to build coalitions to solve complex security problems.

Verizon is a 'fiber giant' for 5G, report says

A new report from Cowen declares Verizon as a fiber giant, well positioned to leverage its fiber holdings for its future fixed wireless and 5G plans.

Capsule8 Rides 1.0 Platform Launch to $15M Series B Funding

The company's CEO said the firm was not looking just yet at a Series B, but that reception to its platform sped up the process.

Telefonica bags 470k assistant downloads – perhaps the telcos can feature in the smart home

In the three months since the launch of Telefonica’s digital assistant, Aura, has been downloaded by 470,000 users; perhaps the telcos can muscle in on the smart assistant market currently dominated by Google and Amazon.

Telefonica bags 470k assistant downloads – perhaps the telcos can feature in the smart home

In the three months since the launch of Telefonica’s digital assistant, Aura, has been downloaded by 470,000 users; perhaps the telcos can muscle in on the smart assistant market currently dominated by Google and Amazon.

New Relic Broadens Its APM For Kubernetes, Microservices, and Infrastructure

In New Relic's fiscal first quarter earnings call with investors, CEO Lew Cirne said that its business continues to grow as it adds new points of visibility to its core APM platform.

Apple joins Thread Group

Apple's addition to the wireless networking group could indicate the company is planning a smart home push.

Accenture: Cost reduction should be a deep building block of planning

A report from Accenture Strategy counsels communications service providers to drastically adjust and deepen their cost-reduction strategies.

Samsung writes $22bn cheque for AI and 5G to fill smartphone hole

With the smartphone segment not looking as profitable anymore, Samsung has announced an investment worth roughly $22 billion to boost credentials in artificial intelligence and 5G.

Samsung writes $22bn cheque for AI and 5G to fill smartphone hole

With the smartphone segment not looking as profitable anymore, Samsung has announced an investment worth roughly $22 billion to boost credentials in artificial intelligence and 5G.

AT&T buys more spectrum in Mexico

AT&T is expanding its operation in Mexico with the $76 million purchase of roughly 80 MHz of 2.5 GHz spectrum.

Telefónica wants 'internet for all' in Latin America

Telefónica's "Internet para Todos" program is using machine learning and AI to connect 100 million users in Latin America who lack reliable…

AWS Eyes the 6,000 Enterprise Clients of DXC Technology as Public Cloud Prospects

AWS and DXC Technology have agreed to build a new multibillion-dollar DXC-AWS Integrated Practice that will help DXC clients migrate their existing IT environments to AWS.

Rural wireless group calls bullsh*t on Verizon coverage claims

The Rural Wireless Association (RWA) has filed a request with the FCC asking the watchdog to investigate Verizon’s 4G coverage claims, sniffing out some creative communications from the telco.

SoftNAS Calculator Targets AWS, Azure Storage Costs

The SD-storage and cloud data provider launched a free calculator that compares costs associated with using its automated storage tiering feature versus public cloud vendors.

Aussie watchdog reviews termination regulations

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has kicked off a public inquiry to decide whether to extend, vary or revoke the domestic mobile terminating access service (MTAS) declaration.

Verizon’s wireless chief outlines more 5G use cases

The chief executive of Verizon’s wireless business offered a few more insights into the company’s 5G strategy.

Frinx Does Software-Defined Networking for SoftBank

"SoftBank trusted us in 2016, and we’ve been working with them as partners ever since," says Frinx's CEO. "Folks say it is very important who your first customer is.”

Snap has a minor dip but can it learn Facebook’s lessons?

Snap has reported its numbers for the second quarter, and while the news is not wall-to-wall blockbusters, there does seem to be long-term confidence in the business.

Snap has a minor dip but can it learn Facebook’s lessons?

Snap has reported its numbers for the second quarter, and while the news is not wall-to-wall blockbusters, there does seem to be long-term confidence in the business.

Coriant Deal and CenturyLink Spending Fail to Assuage Infinera Investors

The company's CEO attempted to moderate his previous comments about growing pricing pressure from larger rivals, stating "You should assume that I communicated very poorly last quarter."

U.S. Cellular launches fixed services over existing LTE network

U.S. Cellular is now offering a fixed wireless service over its existing LTE network in select locations throughout its coverage area.

Samsung Steps Up Investment for Future Growth, Takes Initiative to Build Innovation Ecosystem

Samsung announced plans to boost investments in businesses that will drive its future growth, committing to a KRW 25 trillion investment over the next three years, primarily led by Samsung Electronics, in the areas of artificial intelligence (AI), 5G, automotive electronics components and biopharmaceuticals.

Cisco's Top Service Provider Exec Jumps Ship

Amid sale of Cisco's video software unit, Yvette Kanouff sets her exit to embark on 'third career chapter.'

Driving Low Latency: VZW Prez Talks 5G Apps & More

Verizon Wireless' president starts to unveil a 3-year plan for 5G, starting early in 2019.

AT&T VP: Using AI to Hyper-Automate Processes

With the use of microservices and AI, AT&T is looking to speed up and change the processes that will ultimately help it transform its network operations and become more efficient.

The Cloud Can Prevent Machine-Learning Failures

The cloud gives enterprises an express lane to machine learning.

Samsung to Pump $22.3B Into AI, 5G, New Tech

South Korean equipment maker aims to address shareholder concerns about its future competitiveness with an ambitious new investment plan.

NBN Finally Revs Up DOCSIS 3.1 Engine

More than two years later than originally planned, Australia's government-backed wholesale broadband operator says it has started deploying the multi-gigabit DOCSIS tech on its HFC network.

Net Neutrality Controversies Yield No Clarity

The FCC lies about getting hacked and net neutrality proponents cheer when Alex Jones is censored, but so what?

Eurobites: MTN Manages H1 Growth, Despite Headwinds

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Ericsson and Vivacom do VoLTE in Bulgaria; Telefónica's Aura gaining users; Brit Internet trends.

Magyar Telekom's AI Trial Success Baffles Engineers

The Hungarian operator is trialing AI tech from startups including Uhana and Anodot, and the results have so far been compelling.

Fox's Sky Offer Doesn't Trump Comcast's, but Could Extend Bidding War

Filing of formal offer paperwork sets stage for Fox to unleash a bigger bid in the coming weeks.

For AT&T, 5G Is a City Kitty, Not a Residential Fat Pipe

AT&T will bring more mid-band spectrum into the 5G picture through next year.

Salesforce Now Has 2 Bosses – COO Keith Block Joins Marc Benioff as Co-CEO

Block will be responsible for growth strategy, executions and operations, while Benioff continues as chairman, leading vision and innovation.

Some sad news about Colin Gibbs

Colin Gibbs, our editor of FierceWireless, passed away on July 29 due to complications from cancer.

Trump administration doubles down on killing already dead net neutrality

An Ajit Pai led FCC trampled all over Tom Wheeler’s net neutrality legacy, though a new filing from the Trump administration to the US Supreme Court is looking to crush the final remains into dust.

Trump administration doubles down on killing already dead net neutrality

An Ajit Pai led FCC trampled all over Tom Wheeler’s net neutrality legacy, though a new filing from the Trump administration to the US Supreme Court is looking to crush the final remains into dust.

Iran State-Sponsored Hackers Pose Growing Threat, Accenture Says

"It’s somebody’s day job to make sure they exploit you and remain a presence on your network,” said Josh Ray, global cyber defense lead for Accenture Security.

China will almost certainly win the race to 5G. Here’s why

Another new report comes to the same conclusion that a number of other analyst firms have: China is going to beat the United States to 5G.

AI Pie is Google’s latest recipe for Android

Google has released the latest version of the Android operating system, named Pie, which unsurprisingly bigs up artificial intelligence credentials for the digital economy.

Telecom Italia, Ericsson turn up vRAN deployment in Turin

Telecom Italia has put the final touches on the deployment of an LTE Advanced (LTE-A) virtual radio access network (vRAN) in the city of Turin.

DoJ appeals AT&T/Time Warner deal on grounds of ignorance

The Department of Justice has attacked a trial judges approach and methods when reviewing AT&T’s much debated acquisition of Time Warner, in it’s appeal against the greenlight for the deal.

Cisco adds Viptela SD-WAN to routers

Cisco has added Viptela's SD-WAN technology into its enterprise routers.

SDN, NFV, 5G Part of AT&T’s 2018 Capex Splurge

“But once you get there those investments you are making to achieve that goal ebb out. They either come down or effectively stabilize,” said CFO John Stephens.

Cisco Is Ready To Upgrade a Million Routers With SD-WAN Software

The Viptela software can run on all Cisco ISR and ASR routers, as well as ENCS 5000 routers, that are four years old or younger.

VMware and Mist Collaborate for Wireless LAN, WAN Visibility and Troubleshooting

The joint offering boasts interoperability between Mist’s Learning Wireless LAN and VMware VeloCloud-based NSX SD-WAN to bring AI and open programmability to WLAN and WAN.

National security starting to become ‘free pass’ as India seeks to block social media

In years gone governments used the idea of defending national security as a means to justify invasions of foreign lands, nowadays its turning into a free pass for rule-makers to do whatever they want.

AT&T’s CFO promises 5G will grow wireless revenues

AT&T’s CFO said that the carrier’s move to 5G network technology will create new opportunities for the company to generate new revenues.

Juniper Networks’ Security Acceleration Card Targets 5G Firewall Performance

The new service processing card can provide up to an 11-fold performance boost to Juniper’s SRX5000 line of firewalls compared to the earlier version, the company claims.

Verizon continues pushing latest unlimited plans in ad spending

Verizon remained at the forefront of the wireless industry in terms of spending on TV advertising.

Survey: 15% of activations are customers' current phones

According to a survey of retail representatives conducted by Wave7 Research, roughly 13-17% of customer activations occur on “bring your own” devices.

Evolute Container Migration Platform Slices Enterprise Complexity

The automated migration process carves out only the assets needed to operate the application in a container environment.

AT&T Nabs Control of Otter Media

Deal gives AT&T full ownership of an over-the-top video portfolio that includes Ellation and Fullscreen and pumps more digital assets into its WarnerMedia unit.

DOJ Says Judge Erred in AT&T-Time Warner Merger Appeal

The US Department of Justice claims the judge in the AT&T-Time Warner merger case failed to consider fundamental economics and common sense when approving the deal.

Tower Companies Brace for an Edge Computing Bonanza

Cell towers represent a logical location for edge computing and their owners see major opportunity, once they figure out the business model. Two major operators are already on the move.

Seven Bidders Register for Italy 5G Auction

Italy's 5G auction could exceed a government target of raising €2.5 billion ($2.9 billion) after attracting interest from companies outside the mobile market.

Lessons From the App Store: The Benefits of Standardizing VNF Onboarding

The telecom industry can learn from Apple in its efforts to make virtual network function (VNF) deployment quicker and easier.

CuriosityStream Expands Its OTT Video Model

After starting as a pure-play subscription VoD streaming service, CuriosityStream is tweaking its business model to include a cheaper service, sponsorships and a TV-style linear feed.

SoftBank Eyes $30B IPO – Report

Japanese telecom and technology giant is planning an IPO of its mobile business that would be the world's biggest-ever listing, according to a report.

Eurobites: Turin Shrouded in vRAN by TIM, Ericsson

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Facebook to live-stream top-flight European soccer; FTTH = fiber to the Highlands; Telia helps test the Ironmen's mettle.

Cisco Blends Viptela SD-WAN Into Router Stack

Cisco's goal is to speed up and simplify WAN deployments, with centralize management and improved visibility.

Netflix & Sony Bet That Consumers Will Pay for 4K

At a press event in Manhattan, Sony recently announced a new 4K HDR display with a 'Netflix Calibrated Mode' – a setting that can match the picture settings finalized in a Hollywood post-production facility. But will consumers go for it?

America Is Losing the 5G Race, Says Deloitte

While US operators are good at talking about 5G, the Chinese are doing are much better job of preparing their country for the potentially game-changing technology, according to compelling new research.

Network Visibility & the Bigger Picture

Network visibility needs to extend into the virtual domain and enable visibility across virtual and physical environments in a uniform and consistent manner.

SoftBank Eyes $30B IPO – Sources

Japanese telecom and technology giant is planning an IPO of its mobile business that would be the world's biggest-ever listing, according to a report.

A 5G Device Timeline for 2018 & Beyond

We're now on the runway for a mobile 5G device take-off. Fasten your seatbelts!

Vodafone Idea Is Born, but Can It Thrive?

Indian regulators have approved the country's biggest telecom merger, but the new operator will have to combine two very different businesses while competition remains fierce.

Smart home is $11.2bn opportunity, but are the telcos ready for it?

ABI Research estimates the smart home segment could potentially be worth in the region of $11.2 billion by 2022, but the diversification question still remains for the telcos.

Arista agrees to pay Cisco $400M to resolve patent fight

It wasn't exactly the Hatfields versus the McCoys, but Arista and Cisco reached an agreement on their long-standing patent court battle.

Arista Will Pay Cisco $400 Million to Settle Litigation

In today’s agreement the companies said that, with limited exceptions, they will not bring any new litigation over patents or copyrights related to existing products for five years.

US Democratic candidates told Huawei and ZTE are a no-no

Democratic National Committee (DNC) has warned candidates against using devices manufactured by either ZTE or Huawei due to the threat the pair pose to US national security.

Oracle Security Makeover Highlights CASB, Identity Automation

The company calls its new security framework Trust Fabric and says it can help companies predict, prevent, and respond to threats using integrated technologies and automation.

Altice: We won’t lose money on mobile

An Altice executive hinted that the company might be able to make a more profitable run at the wireless business than Charter and Comcast.

Open Fiber banks €3.5bn for Italy FTTH push

Open Fiber has raised €3.5 billion from a pool of commercial banks, Cassa Depositi e Prestiti and the European Investment Bank (EIB) to fuel the firms FTTH push across Italy.

Google looks for help scaling the Great Firewall amid political posturing

Google’s cloud business unit is reportedly in talks with Tencent, Inspur and other domestic companies in an effort to launch services in the lucrative Chinese market.

CenturyLink's Simlot takes up virtualization baton

CenturyLink's Anil Simlot has a lot on his plate now that he's the new leader of the telco's virtualization organization.

Red Hat's expanding relationships with telcos

Traditionally, U.S. operators turned to Red Hat for their IT needs, but for the past several years Red Hat has been involved on the network side.

T-Mobile rolls out cheaper tier of unlimited service

T-Mobile introduced a less expensive version of its unlimited plan, offering four lines of no-frills service for $120.

Lumina Networks Helps Cable Operators via OpenDaylight Software

This is the first product that Lumina Networks has introduced in the cable operator space. But the company sees it as a stepping stone to broadening support for MSOs.

China Unicom, AliCloud Establish $51.4M Venture to Build Government Cloud Services

China Unicom will leverage the cloud prowess of Alibaba to offer cloud and IT services for government and enterprises as Google potentially makes a play to take cloud share from Alibaba in China.

Symantec to Cut Global Workforce Amid Declining Enterprise Security Sales

The layoffs will target about 900 employees and are part of a larger restructuring plan to save about $115 million annually.

Telcos will be honest if you force them to – Which research

New research from Which has suggested telcos will be honest and realistic about download speeds as long as there are rules preventing them from blatantly misleading the consumer.

Wi-Fi Alliance working on recommendations for 6 GHz

The Wi-Fi Alliance is among those urging the FCC to quickly release a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for the the 6 GHz band.

Globalstar remains focused on 3GPP process

Globalstar is sitting on what some believe to be prime real estate: 2.4 GHz, which was approved for terrestrial wireless uses in 2016.

Dish Networks to Build Virtualized 5G Network From Scratch

The satellite firm’s plans are in two phases. Phase one will be a NB-IoT network. Phase 2 will be a standalone 5G network.

KT Corp. Unveils New AI Hotel in South Korea

KT, South Korea’s largest telecommunications company, is pioneering a new era in the hospitality industry with its innovative artificial intelligence (AI) technology.

Cord-Cutting Pace Slows in Q2

With certain OTT TV assumptions factored in, it's possible that the total of live TV subscribers grew for the first time since 2012, analyst says.

Arista Shelling Out $400M to Settle Cisco Litigation

Arista will write a big check to dismiss the suit charging that it ripped off Cisco's intellectual property.

The Great 5G Spectrum Devaluation

Operators are rattled about the payments they make for spectrum, but telco spending on frequency licenses has continued to fall.

Acacia Spies Return of ZTE Revenues

With the ZTE sales ban now lifted, optical components specialist Acacia is expecting a bump in second half sales and that's given its stock a welcome boost.

CableLabs Connects With Kubernetes

CableLabs broadens its work in open-source with a stack that eyes product interoperability as cable ops continue to flirt with SDN and NFV access network strategies.

Versa's CEO, Kelly Ahuja: Securing & Software-Defining the WAN Edge

Kelly Ahuja, CEO of Versa Networks, gives his insights into how Versa is #Winning, #Growing and #Innovating. And why the Versa Secure Cloud IP Platform is enabling managed service provider partners and enterprise customers to securely transition to multicloud, transforming the WAN edge into an automated, secure and business intelligent services architecture.

India Takes First Steps Toward Data Protection

India's version of Europe's GDPR legislation is badly flawed but still represents a step in the right direction.

Digital Twins: A New Tool in the Network Management Arsenal

The concept of digital twins could be taken to a much higher level in areas like network planning and design, programmable networks and field service management.

Cisco's Multi-Year Buying Binge

It may seem like Cisco buys companies the way the rest of us buy smartphone apps – just for the heck of it, when they're bored. But there's actually a plan.

Eurobites: Ageing VxWorks OS Raises UK Security Concerns Over Huawei – Report

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: cable body slams judgement on VodafoneZiggo; MTS gets into IT outsourcing; new advertising rules force UK ISPs to be more honest about broadband speeds.

Customers Weigh In on Wholesale Telecom Suppliers

But some of the biggest buyers of bandwidth in the world – Google, Spotify, Facebook and others – prefer to keep their opinions quiet.