Saturday, April 04, 2020

Headcount: Firings, Hirings, and Retirings — March 2020

Here are some of the latest executive hirings, promotions, and staff changes that happened in March. If you’d like SDxCentral to report on your company’s movers and shakers, or if you’ve got a tip about layoffs and restructuring, please send the information to Sydney Sawaya (ssawaya@sdxcentral.com) for inclusion in the monthly headcount column.
           

Friday, April 03, 2020

IBM awards second Open Source Community Grant to Outreachy

IBM has named internship and mentor program Outreachy as the winner of its second $50,000 Open Source Community Grant. Outreachy is a nonprofit that provides internships in the free and open source software (FOSS) space for people from groups that face under-representation, systemic bias, or discrimination in the technology industry of their countries.
           

T-Mobile fights CPUC over merger

T-Mobile announced the closure of its merger with Sprint on Wednesday, but the same day, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) said the companies could not begin merging their California operations until after the CPUC issues a final decision.
           

5G base stations use a lot more energy than 4G base stations

Carriers have been looking at energy efficiency for a few years now, but 5G will bring this to top of mind because it’s going to use more energy than 4G. Telcos spend on average 5% to 6% of their operating expenses, excluding depreciation and amortization, on energy costs, according to MTN Consulting. And this is expected to rise with the shift to 5G.
           

Vodafone to add 4 Tbps of capacity due to COVID-19

While service providers have largely kept up with the networking demands related to the COVID-19 pandemic, Vodafone is upgrading its network by 4 Tbps of capacity in order to be ready for the long haul. According to a blog post by Vodafone Group CTO Johan Wibergh, his company has seen six months of forecast demand growth emerge over the past month as more countries have adopted outright quarantines or stay-at-home policies.
           

Coronavirus flushes IT spending to a 2.7% decline: IDC

As the coronavirus pandemic becomes more entrenched across the globe, IT companies are slashing their spending and tuning up their contingency plans. According to revised research by International Data Corporation (IDC), worldwide IT spending is now expected to decline by 2.7%.
           

AT&T sees surge in cloud-based VPN usage due to COVID-19

When AT&T decided to virtualize network functions while embracing software-defined networking, it didn't have the coronavirus pandemic in mind. But those decisions have made AT&T battle-ready in the face of the COVID-19 outbreak, especially as companies send their entire workforces home.
           

Ericsson: Part of 6 GHz should be licensed for 5G

While Wi-Fi advocates are applauding the move by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to make 1,200 megahertz of 6 GHz spectrum available for unlicensed use – the FCC will vote on a proposal at its April 23 meeting – Ericsson is among those asking the FCC to consider licensing some of the band.
           

Thursday, April 02, 2020

Daily Roundup: AT&T Sees 700% SD-WAN Surge

In case you’ve been stuck in video conference meetings all day, here are today’s top stories from SDxCentral. Also, make sure to subscribe to our daily newsletter to get these stories in your inbox.
           

AT&T SD-WAN Absorbs 700% Coronavirus-Related Surge

AT&T reported that customer connections into its SD-WAN Static Network Based product has surged 700% over the last few weeks tied to the ongoing COVID-19 virus outbreak. However, it noted that it has been able to maintain network performance because of the platform’s cloud-based nature.
           

Cellular network usage up 10-20%, operators tell FCC

U.S. communications networks are generally “holding up quite well” to increased demand during the day and in more suburban areas as many Americans stay at home during the ongoing coronavirus crisis, the FCC said following a call with service providers, including AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, U.S. Cellular, and Verizon.  
           

Colt CEO: SDN and employees shine in time of coronavirus

The silver lining for tough times is that crises can cause the cream to rise to the top. That's the case for Colt Technology Services' employees and its software-defined network as both work to keep pace with increased bandwidth demands due to the coronavirus pandemic.
           

Zoom promises to get better at security

Video conferencing firm Zoom is now one of the most recognisable brands across the world, but recent days have seen a barrage of criticism directed towards its security and privacy credentials.
           

Wednesday, April 01, 2020

T-Mobile to Slash $30M in Cloud Costs With Kubernetes

T-Mobile US has found success with Kubernetes and currently operates 20,000 containers across its virtualized cloud infrastructure. In fact, over the next year the carrier claims the combination of centralized management of Kubernetes containers and a normalized approach to clusters will help it to slash $30 million in cloud costs. 
           

Do Coronavirus SOCs Look Like Zoom War Rooms?

When a network breach or another cybersecurity incident occurs, enterprises typically rely on their on-site security operations centers (SOCs) to isolate and stop the threat. But what happens when the SOC analysts are working remotely because of, say, the global coronavirus pandemic?
           

Global IT Spending Falls Into Rapid Decline

Global IT spending projections have slid from positive to negative territory in a matter of weeks. The market, which includes hardware, software, and IT services, is now expected to decline at a greater rate than gross domestic product overall, according to a new report from IDC. 
           

Microsoft, AT&T create edge compute zones

Microsoft is working with AT&T to bring ultra-low-latency edge compute to joint customers. Its Azure Edge Zones are local extensions of the Microsoft Azure cloud. They’ll bring compute, storage and networking closer to end users. And Microsoft is planning to work with other operators soon, including Rogers, Telefonica, Vodafone Business, SK Telecom, Telstra, Etisalat and NTT Communications.
           

FCC sets all 1,200 MHz in motion for 6 GHz unlicensed

The Wi-Fi community is finally getting a much-needed infusion in the form of spectrum in the 6 GHz band. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai announced that he’s circulating draft rules permitting unlicensed devices to operate in the 6 GHz band, making all 1,200 megahertz of spectrum available for unlicensed. While he had signaled his intent to do that last year, some groups, namely CTIA, continued to lobby for a portion of the band to be set aside for licensed 5G services.
           

T-Mobile closes Sprint merger, Sievert takes over

It’s the end of the era for Sprint as T-Mobile US announced it officially completed its merger with Sprint to create the new T-Mobile, an effort that was about two years in the making. The combined company will operate under the name T-Mobile.
           

Cyberthreats target COVID-19 opportunities, according to Nokia

Where the rest of the world sees tragedy related to the COVID-19 pandemic, cyber criminals see opportunity, according to research from Nokia's Threat Intelligence Lab. Nokia's Threat Intelligence Lab outlined several cyber threats related to the coronavirus outbreak, including malware disguised as a "coronavirus map" that targets the Windows platform.
           

CenturyLink embraces COVID-19 response

Like other service providers around the globe, CenturyLink is stepping up in its effort to provide internet connectivity where it's needed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Unlike some of those providers, CenturyLink can lean into its COVID-19 response via its large fiber backbone, fiber-lit buildings and a staff that can quickly turn up services.
           

COVID-19 puts Year of 5G on hold

The telco industry might be in the limelight for the moment, but 5G looks like it is now taking a breather as the coronavirus pandemic continues to wreak havoc on society.
           

Blaber: Time to kick ‘Good Times’ delusion to the curb

It can be hard to suddenly change mentality and a pre-set way of thinking. We’re conditioned to like consistency, and for all the talk of “disruption” in our industry it takes time to deliver. Disruption is more a steady process of iteration than a sudden and dramatic event.
           

Tuesday, March 31, 2020

KDDI, SoftBank Target 5G at Rural Japan

Japan mobile operators KDDI and SoftBank solidified plans to work together on the deployment of 5G infrastructure targeted at rural areas of the country. The move comes on the heels of Japan’s largest operator NTT DoCoMo launching commercial 5G services and just ahead of new entrant Rakuten Mobile’s push into the market.
           

Daily Roundup: T-Mobile Closes Sprint Merger

In case you’ve been stuck in video conference meetings all day, here are today’s top stories from SDxCentral. Also, make sure to subscribe to our daily newsletter to get these stories in your inbox.
           

Intel CEO Bestows Optimism Despite Pandemic Perils

Intel CEO Bob Swan painted a bright and hopeful picture of the chipmaker’s future in his annual letter. He talked up the company’s record performance in 2019, its position in emerging markets like artificial intelligence (AI) and edge computing, and a return to rapid innovation.
           

T-Mobile US Closes Sprint Merger

The biggest shakeup to hit the U.S. wireless market in at least 15 years is now upon us. Following a nearly two-year battle, with many ups and downs, T-Mobile US and Sprint have officially merged, the companies announced today.
           

SCTE launches Explorer program for seven new working groups

SCTE•ISBE has taken the wraps off of a new program that was designed to fuel new standards for broadband connectivity and emerging technologies that are key to the cable industry. The Explorer program is launching with seven working groups that are tasked with developing each area into new SCTE•ISBE standards.
           

Palo Alto Networks nabs CloudGenix for $420 million

After being a security partner for SD-WAN vendors, Palo Alto Networks is now a competitor in the SD-WAN sector with its $420 million purchase of CloudGenix. Palo Alto announced the all-cash deal on Tuesday, and it is expected to close in its fiscal fourth once it clears the usual regulatory hurdles.
           

NTT DoCoMo shuts down NB-IoT service

Japan’s NTT DoCoMo announced it is terminating its NB-IoT service, which it started offering almost a year ago. “In light of the current business environment, we have decided to stop providing this communication system in order to concentrate management resources,” the operator said in a translated press release.
           

Verizon boosts pay for essential field, retail employees

Verizon is increasing pay for its mission-critical employees who are unable to work from home during the coronavirus pandemic. The identified employees include those who must work in the field to fulfill broadband orders, handle connection issues and maintain the networks. Eligible employees also include some retail store workers. The carrier didn't specify a monetary amount or percentage that pay is being increased.
           

Monday, March 30, 2020

Microsoft Dives Into 5G With Azure Edge Zones

Microsoft today announced the preview of Azure Edge Zones, which are designed to embed compute, storage, and networking resources at the edge of carriers’ 5G networks. With the move, Microsoft is embracing a trend that is percolating throughout the industry to blend cloud computing with mobile networks to bolster edge computing for enterprises, IoT, and applications that require low latency.
           

Nokia Blends AI, Cloud for 5G Automation

Nokia today formally unwrapped a series of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning features that are already being used by operators in the Asia-Pacific region, Europe, and North America. Nokia AVA 5G Cognitive Operations is designed to increase automation of network operations by maintaining service requirements and predicting challenges before they occur.
           

AT&T: Wi-Fi calling up 76%

Wireless carriers say their networks are holding up as more Americans do their work, schooling and entertainment from home. Of course, much of the work is being conducted over Wi-Fi.
           

U.S. uses location data to track movements during coronavirus

U.S. government and health officials appear the be the latest tapping anonymized cell phone location data to understand Americans' movements amid the novel coronavirus outbreak, according the Wall Street Journal. Unnamed sources familiar with the matter told the WSJ that federal – via the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – state, and local governments are starting to get information about movements and places where crowds are still gathering, in risk of further spread of COVID-19. It also can provide a general sense of how well populations in certain geographic areas are adhering to stay-at-home orders, and virus-related economic impacts like declines in people at retail stores.
           

Comcast Business scores $9.3M government contract for Ethernet

Comcast Business has notched a 10-year, $9.3 million contract from the U.S. Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) to deploy Ethernet gateways. DISA will use the commercial Ethernet gateways to provision Ethernet connections to its Defense Systems Network (DISN) in the Northeastern U.S.
           

Windstream's network withstands the COVID-19 strain

Windstream's network is holding up to the increased demand related to employees working from home and students not being in school due to COVID-19. Since mid-March, Windstream has seen a 50% increase in its voice traffic and 30% spike in data traffic.
           

Rakuten explains vendor roles in greenfield network

Despite COVID-19 and the upheaval it has wreaked across the globe, Rakuten Mobile is still planning to commercially launch its greenfield 4G network in Japan on April 8. Rakuten Mobile CTO Tareq Amin said that when the operator offered a March promotion for early subscribers, it was overwhelmed with the number of applications. It crashed Rakuten Mobile’s website, and the number of Twitter posts about the launch made the Guinness Book of World Records in Japan.
           

WOW CEO Elder hospitalized with COVID-19

WOW CEO Teresa Elder was admitted to a Denver hospital on Friday after testing positive for COVID-19. Elder, who was named as WOW's CEO in 2017, had been working from home since March 16 as part the cable company's decision to transition all non-essential positions to work-from-home status.
           

Secure your Critical Infrastructure with Trusted Hardware

With the proliferation of the Internet of Things (IoT) and increased access to worldwide mobile networks, there are more devices online than ever before. The Cisco Visual Network Index (VNI) forecasts approximately 26 billion connected network devices by the year 2022, with video comprising 82% of all IP traffic. Bandwidth growth and low-latency performance demand will push operators to expand their service network infrastructure. This expansion may sometimes involve less-secure locations, creating greater risk to the network operation.
           

Sunday, March 29, 2020

5G Enterprise Plans Blossom at SK Telecom

SK Telecom today shared more details about its plans for mobile edge computing, enterprise services, and concentrated clusters of 5G coverage spread across South Korea. It has created 70 of these 5G clusters in densely populated areas and commercial districts nearly a year after it became the world’s first mobile operator to deploy a standards-based mobile 5G network.
           

Microsoft Cloud Usage Spikes 775% in COVID-19 Hot Spots

Microsoft cloud and collaboration services witnessed a significant spike in usage over the past week as organizations continue to deal with an increase in remote workers due to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. That spike has forced the cloud giant to tweak some of its services in order to deal with the increased load.
           

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