TELECOM – THIS WEEK (2512)
1.???? Ericsson UK chief cites continued 5G challenges
“There’s lots more to do,” the executive said, adding “it feels quite different in different places. If you’re in an urban area, it’s great. If you’re in a rural area, probably not quite so great”. Among the challenges cited were further use of mid-band spectrum and expansion of SA 5G, alongside pushing for more devices to be available in the market to support the newer variant.
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2.???? Huawei Named a Customers' Choice in 2025 Gartner? Peer Insights? Voice of the Customer
Huawei was named a Customers' Choice in 2025 Gartner??Peer Insights? Voice of the Customer for Enterprise Backup and Recovery Software Solutions. According to the Gartner report, as of November 2024, Huawei scored 99% for "Willingness to Recommend" based on 155 reviews of its OceanProtect Data Protection.
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3.???? Ericsson, Aduna and the gradual rise of 5G APIs
Ericsson tells that in order to use 5G APIs, operators will need to have secure exposure capability and expose the network core layer, according to the CAMARA standard. Recently during MWC, Fredrik Gessler, head of global network platform product management at Ericsson, said: “It takes a while for [operators] to establish the exposure layer.”?
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4.???? AI could be the key that unlocks digital twin proliferation
Anyone who’s been around the tech and telecom industry long enough can name at least a handful of big ideas that never quite lived up to their potential. Think extended reality (XR), foldable phones, the metaverse and – dare we say – 5G and network APIs. There’s one more to add to the list: digital twins. But AI could flip this flop.
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5.???? Nvidia eyes 6G with AI-native telco stack
In its latest effort to make itself an indispensable vendor and partner to the telecom network operator community, AI technology giant Nvidia has teamed up with T-Mobile US, Cisco and others to develop an AI-native wireless network hardware, software and architecture for 6G.
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6.???? SoftBank, Tech Mahindra unveil ‘large telco models’
In an effort to develop tech that might at last make better use of the massive volumes of network and operational data they have at their disposal, Japan’s SoftBank and India’s Tech Mahindra have developed so-called “large telco models” (LTMs) – customised, multimodal large language models (LLMs) trained specifically on telco network data – that can be used to introduce automated processes, improve productivity and enable operational efficiencies.
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7.???? Google announces agreement to acquire Wiz
Google LLC announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Wiz,?Inc., a leading cloud security platform headquartered in?New York, for?$32 billion, subject to closing adjustments, in an all-cash transaction. Once closed, Wiz will join Google Cloud.
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8.???? Nokia strengthens Worldstream’s hosting security
Nokia announced that Worldstream, a leading cloud infrastructure provider, will use Nokia’s network security technology to protect businesses in the Netherlands and globally against large-scale DDoS attacks. Nokia Deepfield Defender and 7750 SR routers have been deployed across Worldstream’s network to offer an eightfold increase in DDoS mitigation capacity. With this network security upgrade, Worldstream customers can now rely on fast network-based mitigation of even the most complex and high-volume cyberattacks and AI-driven threats.
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9.???? Nokia and Hetzner enhance hosting infrastructure
Nokia?has been selected by?Hetzner, a leading European hosting provider, to upgrade its data center and core network infrastructure. With growing demand for high-performance hosting services, this deployment enables Hetzner to scale efficiently, improve automation, and maintain industry-leading uptime, ensuring seamless digital experiences for businesses and end users.
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10.? Ericsson, Volvo Group and Bharti Airtel announce R&D collaboration
In a groundbreaking step towards accelerating Industry 4.0 and Industry 5.0 adoption in India, Ericsson, Volvo Group, and Bharti Airtel today announced their research partnership to explore the potential of Extended Reality (XR) ,Digital Twin technologies and AI in the manufacturing sector. By leveraging the power of 5G and 5G Advanced, this collaboration aims to transform industrial operations, enhance workforce training, and drive real-time process optimization.
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11.? TIM Brazil partners with Ericsson for comprehensive billing modernisation
TIM Brasil has announced a strategic partnership with Ericsson to modernize its billing systems, consolidating multiple platforms and unifying systems across its consumer, corporate, and fixed customers segments with the cloud-native Ericsson Billing solution. With a long-standing collaboration, TIM Brasil has selected Ericsson as a trusted partner to address both immediate and long-term operational needs. Ericsson Billing will be deployed on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, with a public cloud deployment model.
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12.? Zayo to acquire Crown Castle’s fibre solutions business
Zayo, a leading communications infrastructure provider backed by DigitalBridge and EQT, today announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Crown Castle’s Fiber Solutions business in a transaction valuing the business at approximately $4.25 billion.
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13.? Verizon, T-Mobile take their rivalry to the skies
Verizon and T-Mobile are at it again, and this time, it’s more about what’s above their terrestrial networks than what’s on the ground.
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14.? SoftBank splashes $6.5bn on chip firm Ampere Computing
SoftBank Group, the Japanese technology and investment giant founded and run by its chairman and CEO Masayoshi Son, has taken the next step in its efforts to become a global leader in the AI infrastructure sector with an agreement to acquire chip developer Ampere Computing, based in Santa Clara, California, for $6.5bn in cash, a move that will also strengthen SoftBank’s hand in the next-generation radio access network (RAN) tech sector.?
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15.? Is the next big telecom M&A deal on the horizon?
According to New Street Research, the biggest and most likely deal to surface this year is the sale of Lumen’s Mass Market business, its consumer fiber operation. Considering how laser-focused Lumen has been on?chasing AI growth?to support enterprises and data centers, the idea it could offload residential fiber to further double down on that goal doesn't sound too far-fetched.
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16.? Don’t expect a telco spending recovery in 2025
Network equipment vendors hoping to see an uptick in telco spending in 2025 might need to think again, according to the analyst team at Dell’Oro Group, which has reported an 11% year-on-year dip in worldwide telecom equipment revenues in 2024 and expects the value of the market to be flat in 2025.?
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