Money Moves: August 2020

Here are some of the most prominent venture capital and merger and acquisition news items from the past month. If you’d like SDxCentral to report on your company’s VC or M&A activity in our monthly Money Moves section, or if you have any tips on that activity, please send the information to Sydney Sawaya (ssawaya@sdxcentral.com).

Verizon, Vodafone talk open networks and innovation

Network operators are seeking a wider ecosystem of vendors to increase choice and acceleration innovation.

Are Hyperscalers the Yin to Network Operators’ Yang?

Are cloud providers poised to eat wireless network operators’ lunch? Milo Medin, VP of wireless services at Google, sidestepped that question at Mobile Future Forward this week, but he did underline the lengths at which carriers are cozying up with hyperscalers.

Ericsson hits 5.4 Gbps throughput in MU-MIMO C-band test

Ericsson’s 16-layer multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO) capabilities are in the spotlight again this week. This time hitting a benchmark of 5.4 Gbps peak cell capacity during tests over a live C-Band campus network at the Swedish vendor’s U.S. headquarters in Texas.

Metro dealers accuse T-Mobile of trying to poach customers

Fears on the part of Metro by T-Mobile dealers are escalating, as they see proposed changes by T-Mobile as threatening to their livelihoods.

Verizon’s DSS launch remains mystery, but 5G iPhone looms large

It’s unknown exactly when Apple will launch its 5G iPhone. Reports suggest a September 15 event will focus on the iPad and Apple Watch. But when the 5G iPhone does launch, probably in October by the looks of things, Verizon had better be prepared, analysts say, and that means having dynamic spectrum sharing (DSS) ready for prime time.

Survey says: Nvidia, Oracle employees stress over Covid-19

According to a survey, 100% of Nvidia's employees and 91% of Oracles' are experiencing heightened stress levels related to the Covid-19 pandemic.

EdgeConneX hooks up with Azure ExpressRoute in Phoenix

EdgeConneX's Phoenix customers now have a direct path into Microsoft's cloud services via private connections.

Google releases latest version of diet Android

Hot on the heels of Android 11 comes Android 11 (Go edition), which is designed to work on lower-specced smartphones.

Google gets green light for sixth data center in Hamina, Finland

Google is, once again, beefing up its presence in Hamina, Finland after garnering approval for its sixth data center at the complex. According to a story by YLE, Google expects the newest data center in Hamina will be up and running next year. The Regional State Administrative Agency of Southern Finland recently signed off on the environmental permit and operating license for the latest data center.

Private LTE keeps Rotterdam terminal afloat

For Rotterdam World Gateway, private LTE was the solution to an unforeseen problem. In 2015, the Dutch company decided to build a new terminal at the Port of Rotterdam. Europe’s largest port was expanding to accommodate the increasing number of ships from China, and Rotterdam World Gateway wanted to participate. From the beginning, the company envisioned an automated system with a limited number of workers manning the terminal. What the company didn’t envision was congested Wi-Fi networks that made its automated terminal too expensive to operate. 

UK reports fibre growth, but it’s still a postcode lottery

The UK is making steady, if not world-beating, progress in the rollout of full fibre, but residents’ ability to connect is still highly dependent on where they live.

Altice Europe bids to go private

Patrick Drahi, the founder and 40% shareholder of telecoms conglomerate Altice Europe, reckons the time is right to take it private.

Q4 consumer tech sales primed for 18% surge

Having spent spring and summer equipping their homes for work and education, US consumers are expected to turn their attention in Q4 to more leisurely pursuits.

CBRS a good guide for 3.45-3.55 GHz: WISPA

As the FCC looks to open up spectrum between 3.45-3.55 GHz for 5G, industry group WISPA wants the commission to apply some of the same features for licensing and sharing that it used for the 3.5 GHz CBRS band.

Daily Roundup: Microsoft Warns of Election Attacks

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.

Is 5G fixed wireless getting ready for its comeback?

Analysts have derided early FWA services in 5G as relatively small-scale operations. But new products, technologies and spectrum resources could change the calculation.

The case of the missing British open RAN plan

As other countries look to national technology providers, the UK's lack of homegrown alternatives to Huawei is a concern.

Cisco Hitches Azure vWAN to Meraki SD-WAN

Cisco is making it easier for Meraki SD-WAN customers to take advantage of cloud-hosted applications through a new collaboration with Microsoft Azure.

RDK widens supplier ecosystem as battle with Android TV rages

Set-top juggernaut Skyworth and chipmaker Amlogic combine on IP-powered 'accelerator' box underpinned by Reference Design Kit software.

Founder Drahi plans to take Altice Europe private

Patrick Drahi makes €2.5B ($3B) offer to buy out smaller shareholders in the telecoms company.

Coronavirus cuts summer mobile roaming

Telcos saw much less roaming in summer 2020, as consultation closes on renewing the EU roaming regulations after 2022.

China can't manage domestic cybersecurity, let alone the world's

China has a long way to go in providing a fair and equitable domestic cybersecurity environment.

Ericsson Warns of Open RAN Security Risks

Ericsson threw a bucket of cold water on open radio access network (RAN) architecture this week, citing a series of unresolved security challenges and shortcomings.

Microsoft Warns Hackers Target Trump, Biden Campaigns

Microsoft warned that nation-state sponsored hackers from Russia, China, and Iran have attacked hundreds of organizations and individuals associated with U.S. President Donald Trump’s reelection campaign and Democratic candidate Joe Biden’s presidential campaign.

Eurobites: Proximus sizes up Be-Mobile for the slab

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Czech operators unhappy at 5G auction conditions; Vodafone's spare processing power helps in coronavirus fight; Google adds a Finnish data center.

Accelerating open radio for 5G pico cells

Radio hardware is an expensive and difficult proposition, but one way to address this barrier to market competition and bring the benefits of scale to more vendors is through open RU reference designs.

Walker: Vendors results signal a weak a second half in 2020

With 99% of the vendor market reporting, we can close the books on the second quarter. Vendor revenues in the telco network infrastructure (telco NI) market declined again on a year-over-year (YoY) basis, for the third straight quarter.

Vodafone’s CEO has a public moan

Nick Read reckons there’s not enough competition in Italy, but too much in Portugal and the Czech Republic, all countries in which Vodafone does business.

Verizon’s Vestberg to give CES 2021 virtual keynote

The audience may be sheltered mostly in place, but the CES 2021 show must go on as a virtual event, and Verizon Chairman and CEO Hans Vestberg will give the kick-off keynote with a focus on 5G.

MetTel taps former AT&T exec to lead federal program

MetTel announced on Thursday that it has hired former AT&T executive Robert Dapkiewicz to lead its federal program. Dapkiewicz is now general manager and senior vice president of MetTel's federal program, and is based in Washington D.C. Dapkiewicz spent more than 20 years in various senior executive positions at AT&T in both commercial and government sectors.

T-Mobile pulls more out of 2.5 GHz in MU-MIMO 5G demo

T-Mobile boasted spectral efficiency gains in a new 5G demo with Ericsson that saw eight devices on the same cell hit speeds of 700 Mbps.

Container security vendor StackRox rakes in $26.5M in funding

Bolstered by a 240% increase in revenue for the first half of this year, StackRox has raked in $26.5 million in funding. The funding, which StackRox called a "Series B-1" round, will be used to expand its business into new geographies, such as the recently announced EMEA region, and to continue its R&D efforts across its Kubernetes-native security solutions.

EarthLink accuses Charter of a scheme to steal its subscribers

On Wednesday, EarthLink filed a complaint against Charter Communications that alleged Charter is attempting to steal its broadband subscribers.

Huawei’s Harmony OS won’t be fully available until October next year

Anyone hoping Huawei will challenge the smartphone OS duopoly anytime soon is likely to be disappointed.

GTT gets a boost from $2 billion fibre assets offer

GTT Communications has been seeking a buyer for its infrastructure business for most of this year and now looks to have a serious offer at a price that should find favour with its board and shareholders.

Nokia powers Telefónica Spain’s 5G land grab

Telefónica has an ambitious timescale for its 5G deployment, and it has tapped Nokia to put it on the right track.

The 25 highest-paid execs in wireless/telecom in 2019

We’re back again with Fierce’s annual installment of the 25 highest-paid executives in wireless and telecom. After combing through a deluge of regulatory filings for names and numbers, our FierceVideo Editor Ben Munson has compiled the scoop on who was paid what in 2019.

Scotland shows England how to do a contact tracing app

While the English government insisted on trying to reinvent the wheel, semi-autonomous Scotland did the sensible thing and went with the off-the-shelf decentralised model.

SK Telecom Forms Global Cooperation for 5G NFV Technology Evolution

SK Telecom today announced that it signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Samsung Electronics, Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) and Intel for cooperation in the commercialization of an evolved 5G network functions virtualization (NFV) platform.

PacketFabric co-founder: Diverse leaders are cornerstones of inclusive teams

PacketFabric's Anna Claiborne explains the formula for successfully leading a diverse team, the top cybersecurity concerns facing the telecom industry, and her professional advice for other women in comms.

CBRS spectrum auction maps: Who won what, and where

Stephen Wilkus of Spectrum Financial Partners, Moise Advisory and JMA Wireless provide detailed Auction 105 results in terms of spectrum and location.

Daily Roundup: Cisco Tackles Rural Broadband

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Palo Alto Networks Patches Critical Firewall Vulnerabilities

Palo Alto Networks this week patched four serious vulnerabilities affecting PAN-OS equipped firewalls. The vulnerabilities were discovered by researchers Mikhail Klyuchnikov and Nikita Abramov of Positive Technologies.

Will VMware Join the Cool Kids Kubernetes Klique?

VMware isn’t shy about its Kubernetes aspirations. And if any questions remained, VMware CEO Pat Gelsinger made it crystal clear at yesterday’s Citi Global Technology virtual conference: “We want to pave the world with VMware Kubernetes.”

EarthLink throws book at Charter

EarthLink, which has tried to renew an expiring wholesale deal with Charter, alleges that the cable operator is duping subs into switching providers and tarnishing the EarthLink brand.

Footprint expansions boost cable's broadband growth

Cable operators have raked in broadband subs during the pandemic, but the reasons behind the surge run far and deep, according to a top industry analyst.

Europe is showing Huawei the exit

The Chinese equipment giant is facing eviction from networks in some of Europe's biggest markets.

Nvidia Aims Cloud-Based Graphics at Remote Workers

Nvidia wants to make it easier and less expensive for remote workers to collaborate on graphics-intensive workloads through a newly revamped program that puts the chipmaker’s highest performing GPUs in the hands of cloud service providers.

SKT joins forces with Samsung, HPE, Intel on 5G NFV

Collaboration aimed at easing pain of multi-vendor NFV integration and to speed up time to market for 5G-based services.

Ericsson issues warning on open RAN security

Ericsson said that 'with any nascent technology, including O-RAN, security cannot be an afterthought.' The move comes amid a rise in open RAN interest.

SK Telecom Snags Samsung, HPE, Intel to Speed NFV for 5G

SK Telecom signed a deal with Samsung, Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE), and Intel to develop an NFV platform targeted at 5G deployments. The move comes as operators are beginning to deploy standalone (SA) 5G networks that can begin fulfilling the long-held promise of 5G.

Heavy Reading's Gabriel Brown on O-RAN's progress and the challenges of SA 5G

Heavy Reading's Gabriel Brown discusses how O-RAN is gathering momentum in 5G networks and why that matters. He also weighs in on operator moves to embrace standalone 5G, and what's holding some of them back.

Eurobites: Telenor brings 5G to central Stockholm

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Nokia and Ericsson fire Telefónica's 5G in Spain; Telia's backseat driver; mobile habits in lockdown and beyond.

Is Facebook facing the end of EU-US data transfers?

Ireland's data regulator says Facebook has to stop transferring data to the US about EU users, after the EU's top court struck down Privacy Shield.

Broadcom Next-Gen Jericho Chip Gains Speed, Security

Broadcom today announced a major update to its Jericho routing chipset with higher speeds and more security.

Huawei HarmonyOS 2.0 ready for smartphones in 2021

Huawei says the updated OS can currently support IoT devices with RAM of up to 128MB, such as smart TVs, wearables and cars.

T-Mobile Tech Leader Belittles 5G in US as ‘Meaningless’

The first set of 5G waves to hit the U.S. are uninspiring and haven’t made much of an impact to date, Neville Ray, president of technology at T-Mobile US, said at this week’s Mobile Future Forward event.

Vodafone CEO slams Italy's single fiber network plans

Nick Read warns against a move towards 'effective renationalization' of Italy's telecoms market.

Masmovil follows Orange with 5G in Spain

Another operator is on the board with 5G in Spain, as Masmovil launched next-gen services Wednesday, shortly after Orange and Telefónica earlier this month.

Dish adds more wireless ammo with Sparks, Becker

Dish Network is adding more expertise to its wireless ranks with a couple of recent hires, including Craig Sparks, formerly of C Spire, and Steve Becker, who’s career includes roles at Sprint and Cox Communications.

Telit lands 5G connected NFL helmet gig

A company that specializes in embedding cameras in American football helmets is using Telit to connect them via 5G.

OmniClouds picks Versa for SD-WAN across Middle East and Africa

In order to branch out its services across the Middle Ease and Africa, OmniClouds has picked Versa Networks' SD-WAN solution.

AT&T CFO: Wireless still hit by lost roaming revenues

AT&T’s business has remained resilient overall, but less international travel due to the COVID-19 pandemic continues to drag down roaming revenues in its wireless segment, according to finance chief John Stephens.

Cox targets the edge for better network performance and security

In the mad scramble to get to the network edge, Cox Communications is solidifying its strategy around network performance, the cloud and security. 

Casa Systems banks on FWA at mmWave frequencies

Casa Systems has been working on fixed wireless access (FWA) for years, but it’s particularly bullish on millimeter wave (mmWave) spectrum, which it believes will provide the advantage FWA needs to viably compete with wired solutions.

Cisco takes aim at rural digital divide with network solutions

Cisco is aiming to help service providers bridge the digital divide in rural areas across the U.S. by offering network solutions.

China close to massive 5G base station target

China is close to hitting its target of rolling out a staggering 500,000 5G mobile base stations by the end of the year.

Android 11 released with new messaging, control and privacy features

The latest version of the operating system that runs most of the world’s smartphones has been unveiled.

Italian TV companies want in on single network plan

Italy’s national broadcaster Rai appears to be looking at in buying into the country’s single high-speed network, and there is interest from the private sector too.

Samsung set to cut off Huawei due to US sanctions

Korean component makers Samsung and SK Hynix will be forced to stop supplying Huawei on 15 September if they don’t get a special license from the US.

SCTE, NAB shows will clash in 2021

NAB's revised plan to hold its 2021 confab next October overlaps with dates set for next year's SCTE/ISBE Cable-Tec Expo in Atlanta.

T-Mobile to start seeding 5G market

T-Mobile's John Saw is in charge of a 5G developer-outreach effort at the carrier that will include the construction of more development centers around the country.

Altice USA undaunted after Cogeco spurns offer

Altice USA is committed to working toward an 'end game' to acquire Cogeco's US assets. 'This is a marathon, not a sprint,' Dexter Goei says.

Daily Roundup: Why Pandey’s Leaving Nutanix

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.

Troubled SoftBank Group slices telco stake in SoftBank Corp

SoftBank Group, after its market capitalization fell $13 billion between Monday and Wednesday, is cutting its stake in telco SoftBank Corp for cash.

Ryan Reynolds, Rick Moranis hype Mint Mobile but not 5G

Here's what Deadpool actor Ryan Reynolds, Rick Moranis (from the 'Honey I Shrunk the Kids' movies) and a T-Mobile MVNO have to do with 5G.

Suitors finally emerge for GTT's infrastructure division

Macquarie Group, 3i Group and AustralianSuper are reportedly in the frame for GTT's European fiber assets.

Broadcasters tee up 5G demo for virtual IBC

A team of broadcasters will demo a series of 5G technologies live at the IBC virtual showcase event, as the industry looks to capitalize on stable data transfer.

Charter in 'no rush' to roll out DOCSIS 4.0

There's still plenty of speed and capacity to mine out of DOCSIS 3.1, Charter CFO Chris Winfrey says.

Cisco, MuralNet Tackle Rural Broadband With Tribal Network Program

Cisco teamed up with MuralNet, a nonprofit organization that helps indigenous peoples build and operate their own broadband networks, to launch the Sustainable Tribal Network program, which seeks to bridge the digital divide for indigenous communities in rural areas across the U.S. 

Podcast: Closing the digital divide during COVID-19

CommScope's Morgan Kurk and Dave Wright join the podcast to discuss challenges service providers face in delivering rural broadband services, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Amazon, Microsoft, Google Dominate Gartner’s Cloud Quadrant

In what is likely a surprise to no one, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform (GCP) rank, in that order, as the leading cloud infrastructure and platform services (CIPS) providers in the latest Gartner Magic Quadrant report.

How T-Mobile Weaved Cisco, Ericsson, Nokia Into Its 5G SA Core

T-Mobile US’ 5G standalone core is novel insofar as it’s an industry first, but the achievement was also delegated to the same mix of vendors that provision and supply its 4G LTE network core.

Oi accepts $3.1B offer for mobile biz from three rivals

América Móvil, Telefónica and TIM gain stalking horse status for the 'mobile assets UPI' of the Brazilian operator.

India's Airtel awards FTTH deal to ITI

The deal is significant because it is a rare instance of a private telco working with a domestic state-owned vendor.

Vodafone hits bum note with 5G piano demo

The latest 5G offering from the UK operator is a connected grand piano played by someone normally seen behind the wheel of a car.

Nutanix CEO Dheeraj Pandey Talks Remote First Grade, Why He’s Leaving

No one likes remote learning — not teachers, not students, and definitely not parents — and it’s especially tough with a Zoom room full of early-elementary school kids. Twins make it doubly difficult, and Nutanix CEO Dheeraj Pandey knows this from personal experience. Two of his kids are 6 years old.

China's fast 5G rollout is widening its digital divide

Chinese operators have deployed nearly 500,000 5G basestations, but MIIT figures show they serve a tiny proportion of potential users.

OmniClouds Adds Versa to Hybrid Cloud Services Offering

Versa Networks is expanding deeper into the Middle East and African markets today by partnering with Singapore-based cloud service provider OmniClouds.

Inmarsat sees in-flight broadband take off

Inmarsat CEO Rupert Pearce boasts of record data traffic volumes over the European Aviation Network, a joint venture with Deutsche Telekom.

Eurobites: Nokia lands transport deal with Italy's Open Fiber

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Leroy pops up at Deutsche Telekom; UK launches National Data Strategy; Sky plays ROXi music.

5G security suffering from too many cooks in the kitchen

The Department of Homeland Security's cybersecurity agency said it's going to 'analyze components from 5G vendors,' but the details of the program are unclear at best.

FCC tees up 3.45 GHz proposal for September meeting

The FCC is set to make moves later this month on more mid-band spectrum for 5G.

Report: Huawei top-telecom vendor in first half of 2020

Despite President Trump's efforts, Huawei emerged as the leading telecoms vendor in the first half of 2020, according to a report by Dell'Oro Group.

Deutsche Telekom gives serial board member Leroy a top non-exec role

Dominique Leroy, who was due to be KPN’s CEO until an insider trading investigation got in the way, is set to join the DT board.

Samsung scores $6B network deal with Verizon

Samsung signed a major network deal with Verizon, worth $6.65 billion, as the South Korean electronics giant deepens its presence in the U.S. and boosts network credibility.  

Orange Business Services teams up with Moogsoft for virtual NOCs

Orange Business Services and Moogsoft are combining their forces on a new virtual network operations center (NOC) to help customers prevent network outages.

Google’s Orion Wifi aims to fix Wi-Fi roaming

While the Wi-Fi industry has been deploying Passpoint for years, it’s slow going. That and other efforts to make Wi-Fi roaming as easy as cellular lacked automation, which is where a new platform from Area 120, Google’s in-house incubator for experimental products, comes in. A team within Area 120 is pitching an easy way for public venues, such as a grocery store, medical office or mall, to sell Wi-Fi capacity to cellular carriers. Called Orion Wifi, the platform complements the work being done in the Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA) on the emerging OpenRoaming standard.

Google puts kibosh on renting office space in Dublin

In what is perhaps a sign of the times during Covid-19, Google has decided against renting office space in Dublin for up to 2,000 employees.

Private networks, fixed wireless are winners in CBRS auction

Dish Network, Verizon Communications and cable companies such as Comcast, Charter and Cox Communications grabbed the headlines last week when the FCC announced the winning bidders in the recent auction of the Citizens Broadband Radio Services (CBRS) 3.5 GHz spectrum.

Australia is giving the Google/Apple smartphone duopoly a closer look

The Aussie competition authority thinks the ecosystem around mobile app stores, which is controlled entirely by just two companies, merits closer inspection.

Pentagon stands by decision to award $10B contract to Microsoft

On Friday, the U.S. Department of Defense stood by its decision to award its $10 billion JEDI cloud contract to Microsoft months after Amazon filed a legal challenge. Despite the latest setback, Amazon said in its Friday blog that it would continue "pursuing a fair, objective, and impartial review" of the Pentagon's decision.

Mobile, cloud to drive videogame market growth

Global videogame revenue is forecast to hit $200 billion a year by 2023 according to Juniper Research, which predicts revenue this year will come in at $155 billion.

GSMA and ETNO keen for EU to scrutinise online giants

European telco lobby groups GSMA and ETNO are – funnily enough – only too happy for the EU to subject online giants to greater scrutiny.

Huawei prepares to switch from Android to Harmony

Ahead of Huawei Consumer’s developer conference the company is doubling down on its in-house smartphone operating system.

South Korea fleshes out regressive ‘Netflix law’

Consumers in South Korea could soon end up paying twice to watch Netflix thanks a proposed new law.

Beamformers…Your 5G Transformers

If I was asked to name one key enabling technology behind superb 5G performance, I wouldn’t hesitate to choose beamformers.

Five Reasons You Need a Data Streaming Platform

5G networks and devices are just starting to trickle into the market, but make no mistake: in a few years, there will be a flood of 5G devices and ubiquitous coverage that will bring with them a never-ending stream of data. That’s not meant to scare you, but to prepare you for a very different world where telcos will need to manage and analyze massive volumes of streaming data in real time. The data analytics and storage path that you take in the next 12 months could very well determine whether you sink or swim when the 5G wave finally arrives.

The DOCSIS CPE landscape is about to change

Poised to apply pressure on CommScope and Technicolor, a cadre of original device manufacturers have been pushing new DOCSIS 3.1 devices through CableLabs at an increasing rate.

Approaching the edge: IBM is ready for the 5G factory

5G and edge computing are expected to meet on the factory floor, and IBM will be there waiting.

US earns participation medal in the race to 5G

China, Finland, Japan and India are all making moves to shore up their 5G positions. Meanwhile, US operators aren't impressing 5G network testing engineers.

HPE Entry-Level Hybrid Storage Adds Automation, Cloud Backup

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) updated its entry-level, hybrid-flash storage portfolio to enable automatic tiering, integration with HPE Cloud Volumes Backup, and eliminate common causes of downtime via a new Health Check tool.

Daily Roundup: Samsung Stings Nokia With Verizon 5G Deal

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.

Samsung’s Massive Verizon 5G Contract Spells Doom for Nokia

Samsung inked a $6.64 billion deal with Verizon to supply 5G radio access network (RAN) equipment to the operator through 2025. The agreement effectively marks the end of Nokia’s long established RAN contract with Verizon in a shakeup that could be one of the most significant vendor losses in a decade, according to Ryan Koontz, analyst at Rosenblatt Securities.

STC set to revise Vodafone Egypt offer – reports

Saudi Telecom Company said to be in discussions to reduce its $2.39 billion offer for Vodafone Group's 55% stake, potentially scuppering eight months of talks.

China draws up its own rules on cyber sovereignty

The China-US tech war continues apace, with China proposing global rules of 'data sovereignty' countering the US's 'Clean Network' program.

Google to give Wi-Fi roaming another try

Wi-Fi roaming has been a topic of discussion for almost two decades. Now, Google is hoping to move the space forward with its new Orion Wifi platform.

Amazon Vows to Overturn 'Politically Corrupted' JEDI Contract

Jilted cloud provider Amazon Web Services (AWS) plans to continue contesting the Pentagon’s decision to award the $10 billion Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure (JEDI) contract to Microsoft, claiming the contract was “politically corrupted” by President Donald Trump.

Nutanix Extends HCI Stack to Microsoft Azure

Nutanix kicked off its virtual .NEXT event today with a Microsoft Azure hybrid cloud partnership, a managed Kubernetes platform, and hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) software updates.

Chef Sells Its DevOps Kitchen to Progress

Application development provider Progress is acquiring DevOps provider Chef for $220 million in a deal that will broaden the former’s reach into the developer market. The deal comes on the heels of Chef CEO Barry Crist admitting that the firm was being “highly impacted” by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

LG on a Wing and a prayer

South Korea's LG Electronics places bets on rotating, dual-screen 5G smartphone.

Eurobites: Google gets cold feet on new Dublin office

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: NetIX adds exchanges; Pluto TV arrives on European browsers; KPN issues €600 million Eurobond.

Telco obsession with speed is growing in 5G era

5G was supposed to bring a paradigm shift, but it has made telecom operators even more fixated on the usual metrics.

China's SMIC in US firing line

Sanctions could be devastating to the Chinese fab and Huawei, but they could also sharpen China's focus on becoming self-reliant.

The cost of replacing Huawei and ZTE in US networks will be nearly $2 billion

The US communications regulator has released the results of a ‘supply chain data request’, which lists all US CSPs that have any Chinese gear.

China’s biggest chip fab is next in the US crosshairs

It has been reported that the US government is thinking of putting SMIC on its entity list, which would confer similar restrictions to those afflicting Huawei.

Samsung joins the 5G RAN big leagues with $6.6bn Verizon deal

Samsung Electronics has won a KRW7.9trn ($6.6 billion) deal to supply network equipment to Verizon.

Vodafone Idea seeks a fresh start by rebranding as Vi

Sometimes the best way to deal with seemingly insurmountable odds is to buy a new outfit and just front up.

TIM topples another 5G speed record, reaching 4 Gbps

Italian incumbent TIM is evidently still keen to prove mmWave spectrum is worth all that money.

Facing US sanctions, Huawei sells more stock to employees

As US trade sanctions bite, Huawei has decided to raise money by selling shares to employees.

What Loving, Texas, tells us about the future of 5G

Midband spectrum licenses in the middle of nowhere, Texas, sold for an astounding $141 per MHz/POP. And that has significant implications for private networks, IoT and 5G.

India's Vodafone Idea rebrands as 'Vi' for a fresh start

Three years after the merger between Vodafone India and Idea Cellular, Vodafone Idea has rebranded itself as 'Vi.'

Eurobites: Telia, Telenor ready to roll on Danish 5G

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Ericsson gets TDC 5G-ready; MTN Ghana fights market dominance ruling; A1 Austria in wholesale TV deal.

Telefónica continues cyber shopping spree with iHackLabs

Telefónica makes a second cybersecurity acquisition, eyeing the 300,000 unfilled cybersecurity expert vacancies in the EU by 2022.

Telecom Italia flags 4Gbit/s 5G with Ericsson, Qualcomm

Italian operator showcases its highest speed to date in collaboration with its vendor partners, and claims a European record.

Samsung's $6.6B 5G deal with Verizon bodes ill for Nokia

The South Korean vendor has landed one of the biggest 5G deals outside China so far, and it may have come at the expense of the Finns.

China's biggest private broadband player heads for the exit

Dr. Peng sells wholly owned Great Wall Broadband and other assets to new state-backed technology firm Zhongan Industrial Investment.