Dutch companies blaze a trail with private wireless

Tulips, windmills, wooden shoes, and red lights are symbols that many Americans associate with the Netherlands, but those in the wireless industry may be more likely to think of private networks. For several years, the Dutch government has recognized the value of dedicated spectrum for private enterprise networks, and many early adopters can be found in the Netherlands.

FWA projected to grow dramatically, but it still has problems

There’s a huge opportunity for fixed wireless access (FWA) growth around the world, and that opportunity has been especially highlighted during the Covid-19 pandemic.

T-Mobile’s retail store count climbs past AT&T, Verizon

Since sunsetting the Sprint brand earlier this month, T-Mobile now has the most retail stores of any postpaid carrier, overtaking AT&T’s footprint by more than 2,000 stores based on Wave7 Research counts.

Kentik serves up deeper insights into multi-cloud deployments

With more businesses taking a multi-cloud approach, Kentik announced a new tool to gain insights into public and private cloud deployments. Kentik's Hybrid Map gives NetOps teams a single, unified view into the topology of their traffic flows, network performance and device health between multi-clouds, on premise and internet infrastructures.

U.S. Cellular CFO: We’re watching cable

Competition from cable companies is not keeping executives at regional operator U.S. Cellular up at night, but it’s something they’re watching.

Cricket offers 5G, but it requires a pricey phone and plan

The target market for prepaid wireless plans is typically cost-conscious customers. So today’s announcement from Cricket that it will offer 5G might be a bit of a nothing-burger, considering that it will require an expensive phone and plan.

Union questions whether Frontier will split-off fiber assets

The Communications Workers of America (CWA) and The Utility Reform Network (TURN) filed comments with the FCC on Thursday that raised concerns that Frontier may split off its fiber assets, among other items, as part of its restructuring plan.

Italy’s TIM/Open Fiber battle of wills intensifies

The Italian government wants TIM to get involved in a national broadband monopoly but not control it. Tim’s not so keen.

Earnings rewind: Charter rules the quarter

By most any metric, the recent round of earnings reports for service providers was unlike any others, but we're prepared to declare Charter as the hand-down winner.

IoT asset tracking forecast to boom on falling costs and power usage

IoT asset tracking device shipments are expected to surge 51 percent year-on-year through to 2024.

EE comes out well in latest Ofcom moaning numbers, Virgin not so much

UK telecoms regulator Ofcom has published its latest numbers on which providers have been moaned about most and EE put in a solid performance.

CityFibre takes a £64m jaunt down the M4 corridor

CityFibre has revealed that Swindon and Slough will be the next stops on its full-fibre rollout.

Altitude TV scores streaming breakthrough

Altitude TV has notched carriage on AT&T TV and AT&T TV Now even as the regional sport net's tiff with Comcast and Dish drags on.

Daily Roundup: Pandemic Fuels Security Push

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.

Crown Castle won't sell fiber biz to appease Elliott: analysts

Elliott Management wants Crown Castle to ditch its fiber operation, which underpins its small cell strategy. Wall Street analysts don't think that will happen.

How Comcast overhauled its ops during the pandemic

Comcast made swift changes in how it handled service installs, customer interactions and network maintenance as business-as-usual was turned on its head during the pandemic.

Assessing Cloud Native’s Reach Into 5G

Cloud-native technology is well proven in cloud-enabled services and platforms, and it’s quickly becoming the de facto standard for telecommunications operations, but network operators are still in the early stages of adoption, according to analysts at ACG Research.

Vodafone Spain falls foul of GDPR regs (again)

Spanish operator incurs once more the wrath of Spain's data protection agency for mishandling personal data.

Leading Lights 2020: The Awards

Light Reading's editors congratulate the finalists and announce the winners of the 2020 Leading Lights awards.

T-Mobile, AT&T push 5G into prepaid, but Verizon holds back

AT&T said it will offer 5G on its prepaid Cricket Wireless brand. T-Mobile already does that. But Verizon said it will continue to withhold 5G from its prepaid customers.

Fortinet Puts ASICs at Heart of SASE Play

Fortinet recently acquired secure access service edge (SASE) startup Opaq to deliver security wherever the customer needs it, CMO John Maddison said in an interview with SDxCentral.

Leading Lights 2020: The Winners

Find out which companies our editors have selected as winners in the 2020 Leading Lights awards.

Light Reading Hall of Fame 2020

The Hall of Fame welcomes FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, Dish Network Chairman Charlie Ergen, YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki and Infonetics Research Co-Founder and Analyst Michael Howard.

News outlets ask Apple how to land lower fees

Trade group Digital Content Next is the latest to query App Store fee structure, demanding to know how to lock in the same low rate as Amazon's Prime Video.

Axiata Group sells stake in India’s Vodafone Idea

Uncertainty surrounding Vodafone Idea's future in the country seems to be the main reason for Axiata to exit the Indian market.

Will the Pandemic Boost Cybersecurity Budgets?

If there’s any silver lining in the COVID-19 pandemic, the consensus among cybersecurity professionals interviewed over the past few months is that it amplified the need for a strong security posture — and skilled security professionals.

MTS steers a steady course and maintains 2020 guidance

Russian mobile operator experiences headwinds from the pandemic but is confident enough to confirm previous guidance for the full year.

Podcast: BT Security's Kevin Brown on remote working and human firewalls

BT Security's Kevin Brown joins the podcast to discuss remote working in a pandemic, including all the risks, changes and advantages the 'new normal' has for service providers. We'll also cover BT's concept of a 'human firewall' and how companies can prioritize their security approach based on people, not technology.

China's CBN still short of 5G cash and answers

China Broadcasting Network (CBN) is far behind 5G rivals, stymied largely by funding challenges, and time is running out.

Eurobites: Minister deals blow to TIM's network-control hopes

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Ofcom measures mobile and broadband satisfaction in UK; developer targets online bullying; analyst giant swallows smaller rival.

WiCipedia: Networking helps get women on boards

This week in our WiC roundup: Pinterest's discrimination story is far from over; diversity on boards; tackling bias head-on; and more.

Verizon expands state deals for 4G LTE distance learning

Verizon expanded its distance learning initiative, signing new agreements in Texas and Massachusetts to make it easier for up to 23.6 million students to access connectivity and tools as the school year starts amid an ongoing pandemic.

Clearfield simplifies fiber hand-offs for 5G networks

Small cells for 5G are further out in the network than ever before, and all these small cells need fiber connectivity.

World slowly recovers from fitness app pandemic

Concerns about a ‘new normal’ in working out from home are abating as people around the world start to realise it’s OK to sit around again. According to new data from app marketing platform Adjust, the start of the coronavirus lockdown prompted an alarming spike in downloads of health and fitness apps. Even more concerning […]

Nokia touts 5G NSA trial with StarHub in Singapore

Nokia and StarHub say they’re conducting Southeast Asia’s first live 5G non-standalone (NSA) network trial across Singapore, leading up to StarHub’s commercial 5G launch next year.

Wave, RCN and Grande add new features to Meraki SD-WAN services

RCN, Wave Business Solutions and Grande have beefed up their Cisco Meraki-based SD-WAN services with new features and enhancements.

SoftBank lands on U.S. secure 5G telco list

Japan’s SoftBank Corp. has joined a list of global telecoms that the U.S. considers secure under the State Department’s “Clean Network” initiative, with the operator having excluded China’s Huawei as a 5G supplier last year.

Ligado: No, the Earth isn’t flat

It’s been about four months to the day that the FCC announced it had approved Ligado Networks’ application to deploy a low-power nationwide network in the L-Band to support 5G and IoT services. But the company is still being dogged by Department of Defense (DoD) and other opponents who insist Ligado’s planned use of the spectrum threatens military GPS.

Comcast changed the game with its digital tools during Covid-19

Comcast's years of investment in digital solutions paid off for the cable operator and its customers during the Covid-19 pandemic. Covid-19 changed the way Comcast's subscribers interacted with customer service, which included allowing them to interact digitally with Comcast on their own terms, and will continue to do so going forward.

How much compute and storage will move to the edge?

During a recent FierceTelecom virtual event about artificial intelligence (AI), the panelists discussed the proliferation of edge computing. One point of discussion was: how much compute and storage will need to move to the edge and how much can remain in a centralized data center?

Verizon and Twitch hurl 5G at game-streaming to see what sticks

Verizon has partnered with game-streaming behemoth Twitch to see whether 5G can unlock any new and compelling experiences for those who like to watch competitive videogaming.

Vodafone takes the driver out of golf

A partnership autonomous vehicle maker Aurrigo will see Vodafone help golfers get around at the Wales Open without having to interact with potentially pestilent drivers.

Facebook hops on the home working bandwagon by adding Webex, Zoom apps to Portal

Facebook hopes to benefit from the COVID-fuelled growth in home working by adding several major collaboration apps to its Portal video-calling service.

Lumina Networks turns out the lights for good

Open-source SDN startup Lumina Networks has thrown in the towel, citing slower than hoped open-source adoption, thanks in part to COVID-19.

Goodbye 3G: Here's when T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon will shut it off

3G ushered in the iPhone, and the smartphone era in general, but now AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile are making initial moves toward shuttering the technology in the next few years.

NTT revs up Indy 500 with AI and IoT

NTT's Accelerate Smart initiative aims to strengthen safety measures and improve data analytics for Indycar.

Cisco Patches Critical WAN Software Bug

Cisco patched a critical vulnerability in its enterprise WAN software that could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to log in with administrator privileges.

Cable's 'GAP' initiative feeds urge-to-converge network

Emerging standard for interoperable, modular nodes will help cable operators bring unity to a multitude of access network technologies, including PON, LTE, Wi-Fi and future 5G deployments.

Daily Roundup: Cisco Smashes SD-WAN, Kubernetes

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.

Trump now forcing global carriers to pick a side

The US State Department is now issuing 'Clean Telco' stickers to SoftBank, Telstra and others. The implication is that operators without the sticker are dirty.

Amazon ACK Serves Up Kubernetes Control

Amazon Web Services (AWS) today introduced its AWS Controllers for Kubernetes (ACK), a new tool that enables users to leverage Kubernetes for more control over AWS service resources.

Cisco CN-WAN Smashes Together SD-WAN and Kubernetes

Cisco launched its Cloud Native SD-WAN (CN-WAN) project in a move to more tightly integrate an organization’s network operations and DevOps team to bolster the deployment of Kubernetes-managed microservices.

Why do telco software companies have such lame valuation multiples?

Many cloud software companies in the telecom sector look more like services companies than developers of products.

Vodafone buddies up with Aurrigo for autonomous shuttle

UK operator uses Welsh golf tournament ISPS Handa Wales Open to showcase autonomous driving, using vehicles to transport golfers while social distancing.

ZTE Powers China Mobile's Initial 5G Core Wave

China Mobile, the world’s largest mobile network operator, is inching closer to deploying a standalone (SA) 5G network riding on a 5G core. ZTE today said it supplied its routers to power a 5G core network for the operator in Jilin, a province in northeastern China.

Singapore gets taste of 5G as Malaysia dithers

Singapore is now getting its first taste of 5G, while neighbor Malaysia is still stuck at the starting line.

MediaTek, Inmarsat take 5G NB-IoT to the skies

Successful trial of NB-IoT bi-directional link between Fucino Space Center in Italy and Alphasat GEO satellite.

Versa Widens SD-WAN Net With Telesystem, Telarus

Versa wants to bring SD-WAN to the little guy this week through a partnership with managed service provider Telesystem and technology distributor Telarus.

Eurobites: Sunrise tries on Red Hat for size

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Kudelski H1 whacked by pandemic; CityFibre rolls along M4 corridor; Spotify goes quiet.

Losing the 5G 'race' might not matter

A year after its commercial launch in parts of Asia, the mobile technology still looks like an improvement over 4G rather than an economic game-changer.

Cisco scores a multi-year networking deal for online gaming

Cisco has racked-up a multi-year deal to become the official enterprise networking partner of Riot Games' League of Legends Esports.

Everyone is chasing T-Mobile – analyst

How to summarize the wireless industry’s second quarter of 2020? A number of narratives could do the job, according to the Wall Street research firm MoffettNathanson.

CommScope eyes CBRS secondary market options

The FCC’s auction for 70 MHz of priority access licenses (PALs) in the shared CBRS band is winding down and when it’s over some might decide to take advantage of the CBRS secondary market.  

MediaTek and Inmarsat create ‘first’ NB-IoT satellite connection

Taiwanese chip-maker MediaTek has claimed a world first by connecting an NB-IoT device with an Inmarsat satellite 35,000 kilometres above the earth.

Verizon fights for timely C-band transition

Intelsat is asking for changes in the C-band relocation process, and Verizon is having none of it. The telco told the FCC last week that what Intelsat is asking for would end up delaying network planning for new 5G services and slow the C-band transition.

Amazon plans to hire 3,500 new employees

While most companies are carefully planning how they can return to their office and campus locations, Amazon is on a hiring and office-buying spree.

EdgeConneX finds a new home with EQT Infrastructure

Investment company EQT Infrastructure announced on Wednesday that it's buying data center provider EdgeConneX for an undisclosed sum. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of this year after it meets customary closing conditions.

ServiceNow has bold ambitions across the telecoms space

ServiceNow has its tentacles in various verticals as it works to become the top digital workflow assurance company, and its now taking a more targeted approach at communications service providers.

China says the US has stopped pretending to care about the free market

In apparent response to the latest escalation of measures against Huawei by the US, a Chinese government spokesperson has accused the US of hypocrisy.

Australians embrace SVoD as Foxtel flounders

Subscriptions to home entertainment services in Australia grew by 5.6 million in the year to the end of June as consumers sought out ways to deal with the Covid-19 lockdown.

The Sunrise has got its Red Hat on

Swiss MNO Sunrise has picked open-source software specialist Red Hat to build a hybrid cloud-ready platform, to make sure it’s nice and agile.

China’s 5G market is not as big as it seems

China’s telecoms operators are reporting impressive growth in 5G customer additions, but they are not all true 5G users.

Verizon, T-Mobile, AT&T balk at drive testing their networks

Verizon's 'Can you hear me now?' ad campaign focused heavily on network testing, but the company told the FCC it would be 'prohibitively expensive' to conduct extensive drive testing.

Cisco Silicon One Sings Eco-Friendly Tune

Cisco claims its latest router based on its Silicon One chip provides 163-times better power efficiency over its earlier 2012 100G ASR 9000 systems.

Cable must cut costs to mount a serious mobile threat – analyst

CBRS spectrum will be critical to Comcast and Charter if they are to chop costs and not be limited to competing with entry-level, 'no frills' unlimited plans from major mobile players.

AT&T lights up open RAN design with Samsung and Ericsson

A Samsung radio connecting to an Ericsson baseband unit at several AT&T cell sites in Dallas is a major step forward in open RAN, Signals Research Group says.

Daily Roundup: Nokia Loan Furthers Verizon Uncertainty

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.

Podcast: What's the story with 5G spectrum?

On this episode of 'What's the Story?' – a new series from the Light Reading Podcast – Mike Dano talks with pod host Nicole Ferraro about the FCC's CBRS auction, and the forthcoming C-band spectrum auction: the latest news, why it matters and what's likely to happen next.

EQT to acquire EdgeConneX

Acquisition enters the picture nearly a year after reports surfaced that EQT was in talks to snap up the cloud and edge network specialist for at least $2.5 billion.

SpaceX lands $1.9B, Starlink launch hits 650 satellites

Reuse of Falcon 9 boosters fire up business case for Musk's satellite broadband project, as 75 investors close SpaceX funding round on valuation of $46 billion.

Nokia’s Wobbly Verizon Footing Grows Shakier

A new loan secured by Nokia for its contract with Verizon lends credence to previous SDxCentral reporting about the vendor’s unstable footing with one of its flagship operator customers. 

Telefónica called out over 75% loss of value over ten years – report

El Economista claims Telefónica lost €60 billion market value, risking EuroStoxx slot, as operator moves close to sale of El Salvador operation to America Movil.

Cloudflare's SASE Ambitions Put the Network First

If Cloudflare’s Teams platform is starting to looking suspiciously SASE, that’s because it is.

Eurobites: Nokia patent injunction stops Daimler in its tracks

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: du, Software AG collaborate on IoT; Deutsche Telekom researches drones; Merthyr Tydfil gets a gig.

India's PLI scheme interests device makers – including Samsung

Indian government initiative to attract foreign firms sees 22 mobile device makers pledge $1.5 billion to set up in India, with Samsung mulling Vietnam switch.

COVID-19 hasn't infected operators' capex plans

Operators typically buy around 20% to 30% additional capacity per year to keep pace with traffic growth. Due to the pandemic, that rose to between 30% and 50%.

Open source vendor Lumina Networks pulls the plug

After three years, open source vendor Lumina Networks is shutting down operations over the coming month.

Ericsson deploys 25K base stations for Tele2 upgrade in Russia

Since signing a 5-year deal in early 2019, Ericsson and Tele2 have moved quickly on upgrades to the operator’s network infrastructure in Russia. That includes deploying 25,000 5G-ready base stations across the country.

Matrixx scores Dish 5G BSS deal

Disruptive US BSS vendor Matrixx has managed to jump aboard the Dish train after its converged charging system (CCS) was chosen to monetize its greenfield 5G network.

Dish picks Matrixx Software with eye on dynamic 5G pricing

Dish is eyeing 5G monetization with dynamic pricing. Today the company announced that Matrixx Software will supply its converged charging system for Dish’s forthcoming 5G network.

AT&T and Big Blue team up on transforming business operations

The Covid-19 pandemic has evolved into a fluid situation for businesses, but IBM and AT&T have a few ideas on how they can adapt going forward.

FCC’s Open RAN forum goes virtual

The COVID-19 pandemic prevented the FCC from holding its Forum on 5G Open Radio Access Networks in March, but the show will go on, virtually.

Affirmed predicts Microsoft will offer mobile core as a service

Affirmed Networks is still basically acting as a stand-alone company even though it was purchased by Microsoft in April. Affirmed announced today that it’s working with the Swedish company Netmore to set up a private 5G wireless network in the U.K.

Zoom opens doors on new data center in Singapore

Zoom Video Communications has expanded its horizons with a new data center in Singapore, which is its first in Southeast Asia. The Singapore data center brings Zoom's total to 18 sites across the globe. In July, Zoom expanded its presence in India by opening a data center in Bangalore.

Toyota hitches its cloud wagon to Amazon Web Services

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has extended its relationship with Japan's Toyota Motor Corp. by agreeing to build cloud-based data services for the automaker.

Consumers are stacking it up when it comes to video streaming

Consumers in major global media markets are willing to subscribe to between two and four additional video streaming services, which translates to a possible 3 billion more SVoD contracts.

Global RAN market unaffected by coronavirus

While the rest of the world came grinding to a halt in the first half of this year due to the pandemic, the radio access market grew at its fastest pace in a decade.

Telemedicine is top of Chile’s 5G wishlist

Chile has formally opened its 5G licensing process and it is clear from the outset that connecting hospitals is high on the government’s agenda.

Apple faces an Epic PR disaster

Gadget giant Apple has decided to completely cut off developer Epic in a major escalation of their dispute over in-app purchase fees.

Irish National Broadband Plan gets a speed boost

National Broadband Ireland has revealed that the minimum speed it will offer when it launches later this year will be 500 Mbps, more than three times higher than originally slated.

Four things we've learned from China operator results

China Telecom has rounded out results season with a flat first-half result. China Mobile and MIIT results are also already out. Here's what we've learned.

Lumina Networks Pins Demise on Delayed Operator Support

Lumina Networks, a startup spun-off from Brocade three years ago, is shutting down. The company, which developed a business on open source OpenDaylight software to provide SDN and virtualization to network operators, raised $14 million in venture capital and counted AT&T and Verizon among its largest investors and customers.

Mobile network operators face app tsunami

App Annie highlights app-spending frenzy in H1 (and greater strain on mobile networks).

Leading Lights 2020 Finalists: Outstanding Test & Measurement Vendor

EXFO, Infovista, Keysight Technologies, Netrounds, Sandvine, Spirent Communications, Tutela Technologies and Viavi Solutions stand out as the eight final contenders for outstanding test and measurement vendor this year.

Pluto TV alters its orbit

ViacomCBS's free, ad-based streaming service intends to optimize viewing and discovery of more than 100,000 hours of programming via a revamp featuring new 'channels' and an updated slate of genres.

Juniper, Samsung, Alibaba Jump On Fungible DPU

Fungible today at Hot Chips 2020 announced a new class of microprocessor it calls the Fungible data processing unit (DPU), which won endorsements from Alibaba Cloud, Juniper Networks, and Samsung Electronics.

Apple TV+ bulks up by bundling

The à la carte model is alive and well in the OTT era, but Apple TV+'s tie-in with CBS All Access and Showtime shows that discounted bundling isn't dead despite the decline of pay-TV.

Daily Roundup: VMware Pushes Kubernetes Automation

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.

John Deere wants 5G to cover 'every ear of corn and stalk of soybean'

The tractor company says 5G is critical to the sustaining America's agriculture industry and food supply.

Oracle latest TikTok suitor, as video app defends virtue

Oracle joins the race for ByteDance's TikTok social video app – as the company launches a site dedicated to rebutting President Trump's security allegations.

Amazon Dominates Google, Microsoft in Developer Usage

Amazon Web Services (AWS) continues to wield a significant usage advantage by the software developer community over rivals Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud Platform (GCP) though that advantage is starting to wane. That angle is provided by a survey of more than 17,000 software developers put together by SlashData and released by the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF).

Amazon Vows to Hire 3,500 Tech Professionals

Amazon today said it plans to create 3,500 new technology and corporate jobs at its hubs in Dallas, Detroit, Denver, New York, Phoenix, and San Diego.

Eurobites: Ericsson prepares Tele2 Russia for full-on 5G

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Sunrise opts for Nokia's charging software; ElevenPaths uses AI for malware detection; Proximus makes amends in the Congo.

Arista Lofts Network Management Into the Clouds

Arista launched its CloudVision network management platform into the stratosphere today with a new software-as-a-service (SaaS) offering.

Facebook faces heat over hate speech in India

Facebook is in a tough spot in India following a report claiming it allowed hate speech on the platform from members of the ruling BJP.

Can Malware Detectors Respect Privacy? Telefónica Says Yes

Telefónica’s cybersecurity arm ElevenPaths developed a privacy-protecting malware detector that scans Microsoft Office 365 and PDF documents without processing the content of the files.

IoT, cloud ride to rescue as Telit doubles profit in H1

M2M company Telit saw revenues hit by the COVID-19 pandemic – however adjusted EBITDA and profit in cash figures rose in H1.

Norway's Ice Group claims 10% market share

Third mobile operator in Norway is aiming for a 20% market share in the medium term as it seeks to break up the Telia/Telenor party.

Kubernetes, DevOps Star in VMware vRealize Updates

VMware added Kubernetes operations support to its vRealize Cloud Management products along with a slew of other updates to its cloud management portfolio.

Marvell Spotlights ThunderX3 at Hot Chips 2020

Marvell shed some light during this week’s Hot Chips 2020 event on its upcoming ThunderX3 server chips and teased early performance benchmarks.

Dish Network promises dynamic 5G pricing with Matrixx

Dish joins the likes of Verizon and Vodafone in partnering with Matrixx for billing, and will use the company to start 'dynamically changing prices throughout the day.'

The game of cat-and-mouse between Huawei and the US continues

Yet another set of restrictions have been placed by the US on Huawei and anyone even slightly associated with it.

Amazon in talks to invest in Rackspace: report

According to Reuters, Amazon is in preliminary discussions to invest in cloud services provider Rackspace. If there's a deal to be struck, Reuters' source said it could take one to two months to negotiate.

Baker: Smartphone market defies the virus blues, so far

The smartphone market showed remarkable resilience in the second quarter, dropping by single digits or only low double digits in many markets that went through weeks of comprehensive lockdowns.

Vodafone UK offers second line of broadband for work from home

With no end in sight for millions of remote workers due to Covid-19, Vodafone UK is now offering its subscribers a second broadband connection for work-from-home (WFH).

Qualcomm touts 5G first with wideband 700 MHz data call

Qualcomm is party to another 5G first, on Monday announcing a successful large-bandwidth 5G data call over the 700 MHz FDD band with state-owned operator China Broadcasting Network (CBN).    

U.S. clamps down on Huawei’s attempt to ‘circumvent’ export rule

Today, the U.S. Department of Commerce further put the screws to Huawei, saying no company that is subject to Commerce export-control jurisdiction may deal with Huawei or any other company on Commerce’s Entity List. And Commerce added another 38 Huawei affiliates across 21 countries to its Entity List.

Cisco blends its SD-WAN with Megaport's new virtual edge

After six months of development, Cisco's Viptela SD-WAN will be available on Megaport's new virtual edge platform, Megaport Virtual Edge (MVE.)

O2 UK launches IoT kit to help businesses adapt to COVID-19

As UK businesses try to make a few quid despite the fact that there’s a bug going around, O2 reckons it can help with the arcane safety measures required.

Competition suffers in Canada as government backs big guns in wholesale battle

The Canadian government has completed a review of wholesale rates instigated by the country’s main fixed-line providers and it looks like they are coming out on top.

TIM talks up fibre milestone as it clings on to network control

TIM is trumpeting its latest efforts to connect underserved areas to high-speed broadband, a move that could well allow it to retain control of its – and Italy’s – fixed infrastructure.

Google claims to champion the little guy in defence against new Aussie law

Internet giant Google has had the nerve to position itself as the defender of individual interests over corporate ones in Australia.

CBRS spectrum auction heads for the home stretch

Bidding is beginning to cool off in the FCC's auction of 3.5GHz CBRS spectrum licenses. But the event has already exceeded some expectations.

Daily Roundup: Cisco, Megaport Embrace Multi-Cloud With SD-WAN

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.

US adds 38 more Huawei-related firms to its naughty list

The US Commerce Dept. closes loopholes in its trade restrictions involving Huawei and puts more Huawei affiliates on the Entity List.

Time for some actual rules on China tech trade

President Trump told a weekend press conference that after banning TikTok he would turn his attention to e-commerce giant Alibaba and other Chinese companies.

Verizon ties streaming to new 'Mix & Match' 5G plans

Among Verizon's batch of new, unlimited wireless plans, 5G subs can tie in Disney+, ESPN+, Apple Music and Hulu's ad-supported SVoD service starting at $55 per line.

IBM Bakes AI Into Power10 Chips

IBM is going all in on artificial intelligence (AI) infused hybrid-cloud deployments with its latest generation of Power-series chips based on Samsung’s 7-nanometer manufacturing process. The company took the lid off its new chips today at Hot Chips 2020.

TIM says 65% of rural families can access ultra-broadband

Italy's biggest operator says accelerating fiber-optic rollout means

Verizon kills plan to charge $10/month for 5G

When Verizon first launched commercial mobile 5G in March 2019, the operator said it was worth an extra $10 a month. But the operator doesn't seem to believe that anymore.

Facebook launches paid live events, profit-shames Apple

COVID-19 spurs Facebook to launch paid events for businesses, free for the first year (unless you're on iOS) while Telegram launches video calling.

Bouygues scores Mediapro deal to showcase top-flight soccer

French operator teams up with Spanish media group's new Téléfoot subscription service to broadcast domestic and European games.

Cisco, Megaport Embrace Multi-Cloud With SD-WAN

Megaport and Cisco announced a partnership that integrates Cisco SD-WAN with Megaport’s software-defined interconnects to cloud providers and services.

Red Hat OpenShift Gains Management Features, Lower Edge Profile

Red Hat released the latest iteration of its OpenShift platform with general availability of virtual machine management tools, Kubernetes cluster management features, and the option for a smaller operating footprint targeted at low-resource edge environments.

Operator Opex Rises as Automation Renders Some Jobs Obsolete

Network operators stand to significantly revise the talent makeup and costs associated with labor as they pursue network automation initiatives, according to new research from MTN Consulting. 

Why 5G needs better fixed broadband

As the telecom industry focuses on rolling out 5G mobile broadband technology across the globe, the real key to success lies in improving fixed broadband networks and smoothing the network evolution path.

Eurobites: Vodafone UK hops aboard dedicated-broadband bandwagon

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Cellcom Israel dinged by COVID-19; HEVC Advance files lawsuit in Germany; Amazon faces German antitrust probe.

Qualcomm claims another 5G data call first over 700MHz

Silicon designer completes demonstration of 5G data call using China Broadcasting Network's 700MHz spectrum, hitting over 300 Mbit/s on a Snapdragon X55 device.