The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) stated that 227 million new people connected to the internet for the first time in 2024, bringing the total number of connected people to over 5.5 billion.

Satellite communications company Viasat has announced that it has successfully demonstrated direct-to-device (D2D) satellite connectivity in Saudi Arabia for the first time, in conjunction with its ecosystem partners.

South African operator MTN is launching an own-branded 5G smartphone. Called the Icon 5G, the new MTN smartphone will sell for 2,499 rand (about US$138). The smartphone is manufactured by ZTE.

A reminder of the difficulties that can be faced by a global brand working in multiple territories with specific local rules and concerns comes from multinational technology company Apple, which is facing two very different regulatory challenges in two very different regions. 

Optical networking vendor Ciena says that HGC Global Communications is deploying its connectivity solutions to support the telco's recently announced data centre interconnect (DCI) service in the Philippines.

Orange announced on Tuesday it is partnering with OpenAI and Meta to fine-tune AI large language models (LLMs) to incorporate regional languages in Africa that are currently not understood by any GenAI model.

Malaysian telco CelcomDigi said on Tuesday it has renewed its partnerships with tower companies Edotco Group, Edgepoint Infrastructure, D’Harmoni Telco Infra and PDC Telecommunication Services as part of its ongoing project to integrate and modernise its network.

Another distributed antenna system (DAS) contract relating to transport hubs has been won by Indian RF equipment manufacturer Frog Cellsat, this time in the largest city of the Indian state of Assam in northeastern India.

Digital technology, the web and data analysis for predictive maintenance have come together in a new services agreement between Saudi Railway Company (SAR) and smart and sustainable mobility company Alstom.

Pan-African operator Axian Telecom has announced the rebrand of its five mobile units to Yas, a move aimed at unifying the operators and creating synergies for future growth.

MTN Group announced on Monday it has commercially launched its 5G network in Congo-Brazzaville, making it the group’s sixth 5G launch in Africa along with last week’s launch of 5G in Benin.

ZTE says it is collaborating with True Corp’s enterprise arm TrueBusiness and Thai company Charoen Pokphand Foods (CPF) to develop a private 5G network solution designed to enable smart manufacturing in Thailand.

Indian state-owned telco BSNL’s recently issued 5G tender has reportedly been poorly received by potential bidders – particularly by Ericsson and Nokia, who are unhappy with BSNL’s plan to use only indiginous gear to build the network.

Aramco Digital, the technology subsidiary of Saudi petroleum and natural gas company Aramco, is widely reported to be in talks to invest about US$1 billion in telecommunications software maker Mavenir.

As expected, Mexico has gone ahead with plans to abolish a number of regulatory bodies, including telecoms watchdog the Instituto Federal de Telecomunicaciones (IFT). However, it hasn’t been the wholesale clear-out some commentators feared.

Mobile broadband service revenue in the Asia-Pacific region is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.2%, from US$229.6 billion in 2024 to US$296.2 billion over the next four years, driven by the availability and adoption of 5G services.

Telecom operator MTN Benin officially launched the country's first commercial 5G network on Friday, with initial services available in select areas of the port city of Cotonou and Abomey-Calavi.

China Telecom Global has officially kicked off operations in Saudi Arabia with the launch of new subsidiary China Telecom Gulf, which has already secured its first cooperation agreements with local telcos STC and state-owned BTC Networks.

Thai satellite operator Thaicom said on Friday it has successfully relocated its recently acquired Thaicom 9A satellite to the 50.5º East orbital slot just a few days before Thailand’s rights to the slot expired.

Brazilian neutral network, digital infrastructure and data centre group V.tal has agreed a contract with Atlas Renewable Energy, an international renewable energy solutions provider, which says it is entering the data centre sector in Latin America through the deal.

TIM has claimed that it is the first operator in Brazil to carry out 5G network slicing on a public network for real-time video transmission. The initiative took place with help from Ericsson in the design and optimisation process.

Another attempt to manage virtual private network (VPN) use is under way in Pakistan, where the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has extended a deadline for unregistered VPN owners to give their details until the end of this month.

Underlining Saudi Arabia’s reputation as the fastest-growing data centre market in the Middle East are no fewer than three data centre-related announcements this week.

Analyst house Canalys revealed that the African smartphone market grew by 3% year-on-year in Q3 2024 despite macroeconomic challenges. It predicted that smartphone shipments would grow by a “cautious” 1% in 2025.

Indonesian telco Telkomsel said on Thursday it has teamed with ZTE to implement an AI-powered network solution in its 4G network to optimise base station performance after completing tests in Makassar and Kendari.

China Mobile Pakistan (CMPak), which operates under the brand Zong 4G, says it has developed its own in-house large language model (LLM) designed specifically for customer service support for its telecoms services.

Ghana’s National Communications Authority (NCA), in collaboration with the ministry of communications and digitalisation and mobile network operators, recently began negotiations with relevant stakeholders in The Gambia to advance the implementation of the ECOWAS Free Roaming Initiative.

SpaceSail, a Chinese low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite company, has signed an agreement to enter the Brazilian market. The signing took place during Chinese President Xi Jinping's recent state visit to the capital, Brasilia.

There’s been good news on the tax front for India’s telecommunications industry. However, one of the beneficiaries, operator Vodafone Idea, has received less positive news from banks relating to letters of credit.

Ukraine’s telecoms regulator said it raked in UAH2.8 billion (US$67.7 million) during its spectrum auction on Tuesday, with Vodafone, Kyivstar and Lifecell buying five lots of spectrum in the 2100, 2300, and 2600-MHz bands.

MTN South Africa and sportech company Telecoming said on Wednesday they have extended their partnership to launch a new cloud gaming service in South Africa.  

Apple has reportedly offered to invest an additional US$100 million in Indonesia to convince the government to approve its new iPhone 16 to be sold in the country.