Although the original deadline for a final deal was 15^th January, Etisalat has stated that it will persist in its attempt to purchase a 46% stake in Zain although its initial offer has now expired...

Compared to many other Middle Eastern countries, Jordan’s telecommunications sector is flourishing, with a liberalised market and healthy competition...

VimpelCom and Telenor still appear to be at loggerheads over the former’s acquisition of the newly renamed Wind Telecom (previously known as Weather Investments), if official statements issued by the two operators are to be believed...

The Chennai-based Global Networks Solutions Centre operated by Nokia Siemens Networks is to be expanded and relocated to a new site in the same Indian city...

India is apparently following in China’s footsteps in the field of network development, as its telecoms department has reportedly detailed swathes of 2G and 3G spectrum to be “exclusively used for developing indigenous telecommunications networks”...

Sixteen WiMAX operators from across the globe gathered in Taipei this week to draft roaming agreements and bring consumers one step closer to true global roaming on 4G networks. The first WiMAX Forum Global Operator Summit served as an interactive working event for all service providers to gain a concrete understanding of the opportunity for roaming and how to build a best-in-class framework for execution...

Etisalat’s attempted acquisition of a 46% stake in Zain is facing more trouble in the form of competition from the Turkish conglomerate Cukurova, which is currently in talks with Zain shareholder Al-Fawares Holding...

Small and medium business (SMB) spending in India on Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), a key component of cloud computing, is anticipated to rise by a sizable 43% in 2011...

A leading provider of energy saving solutions has launched a new hybrid renewable energy solution which provides cost effective, uninterrupted green energy. The solutions have been launched as part of Delta Electronics’ SolutionE concept, which aims to overhaul market standards by enabling substantial direct and indirect energy savings...

Robert Schumann, a Manager at Anaylsys Mason, examines Kenya’s forward-thinking approach to 4G network-sharing...

A new comprehensive web security appliance has been unveiled by Blue Coat Systems. The ProxyOne appliance brings the same enterprise-class Web security used by 88% of the FORTUNE Global 500 to organisations that require a low-touch solution at a lower price point...

One of the Philippines’ largest network operators, Globe Telecom, will now be able to manage its network changes via a Network Operations Centre, guaranteeing data integrity and improving service assurance. The second phase of Globe Telecom’s NOC implementation has been completed by the solutions provider Clarity...

Thailand’s state-owned operator TOT is inviting bidders for a contract to build its 3G network infrastructure, and the auctions have thus far attracted four consortia of vendors...

A new research centre is to be established in Bangalore, India, by The International Data Corporation (IDC). The centre will be wholly owned by IDC, signalling the end of the firm’s long-standing relationship with Cyber Media (India) Limited, which served as IDC's partner and representative in India...

One of Panama’s largest telecommunications carriers, Telefónica Moviles Panama, S.A., has interconnected to iBasis’s network for the exchange of international fixed and mobile phone calls. The network spans more than 100 countries, delivering more than 24 billion minutes of voice traffic annually...

Costa Rica’s state-owned operator is set to face competition for the first time, as the Latin American country has awarded mobile operating licences to Telefonica and America Movil. The two firms won licences with bids of US$95 million and $75 million respectively...

Going into 2011, new reports on the telecommunications sectors of two Middle Eastern countries detail the past year’s progress and potential future developments...

A new partnership between mobile solutions provider Comviva and Airtel Bangladesh will provide messaging solutions across Bangladesh via Comviva’s Unstructured Supplementary Service Data, Short Message Service Centre and Bulk Messaging Gateway portfolio...

The world’s largest mobile operator, China Mobile, has received permission from China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology to commence trials of TD-LTE technology in six cities across the country...

A new acquisition could see the early deployment of 3G services by Thailand’s third-largest operator. True Corp, which owns the operator True Move, has confirmed that it will purchase the entirety of Hutchison Telecommunications International’s local CDMA business, complete with associated firms...

A new network-sharing agreement in India between two private operators and state-owned operator MTNL will see extended 3G services in two of the country’s major cities, Delhi and Mumbai...

Russia’s largest operator Mobile TeleSystems has filed a case against Turkmenistan’s regulatory authorities, following the latter’s decision to suspend the licence of Barash Communications Technologies – a subsidiary of MTS – for one month...

The world’s two fastest growing economies, India and China, will soon enjoy a direct underground terrestrial link offering seamless connectivity to customers transiting India or China to reach key global destinations...

Nokia Siemens Networks has announced that it has completed the closing of the agreement to acquire all shares of IRIS Telecom. IRIS is a telecom and engineering services firm headquartered in Istanbul, Turkey...

A new solar power system designed specifically for the Indian telecom market has been launched by Eltek Valere, a provider of high efficiency power systems...

In response to increasing demand for wireless internet access, GTA TeleGuam has installed four new cellsites to boost wireless capacity in high-use areas across Guam...

New information on the telecommunications sectors in two West African countries details the successes of privatisation in Mali, as well as the problems faced by Senegal’s Internet market...

The board of VimpelCom has approved the proposed merger with Weather Investments, the parent company of Egypt’s Orascom. Two thirds of the nine board members voted in favour of the deal, with opposition coming from the three representatives of Norwegian firm Telenor...

A memorandum of understanding has been signed between the Indian operator Reliance Communications and the China Development Bank Corporation which will see the former receive funding of US$1.93 billion...

The designer of China Mobile’s Ophone operating system is reportedly planning on bringing future versions more closely in line with Google’s Android, the platform on which Ophone is based...

India will soon witness the launch of a new device which purports to deliver fast broadband via 3G mobile infrastructure, even in areas with weak 3G signal...

Cybercom has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with China’s biggest wireless broadband service provider, CECT-Chinacomm...

Subscribers of Bharti Airtel in Ghana now have access to a new Voice SMS service, supplied by Kirusa...

Following a recent conference in London on financing telecoms in emerging markets, Developing Telecoms Publisher Alec Barton reflects on the recent spate of mergers and acquisitions amongst mobile network operators in emerging markets, particularly in Africa. He looks at some of the causes and considers whether the trend towards consolidation will continue...