LEO satellite operator Starlink has scored another licence in the Pacific Islands to offer services – this one in the Solomon Islands, after two years of discussions with the government.

Google announced on Thursday it will invest US$850 million in its long-planned Terros data centre in Canelones, Uruguay, a month after convincing the government that the facility won’t exacerbate the country’s water shortage due to drought.

Malaysian telco CelcomDigi and agritech startup BoomGrow Productions say they have partnered to launch 5G and AI-powered machine farms that they say will enhance sustainable farming practices and food production in the country.

Indonesian operator Telkomsel announced an expansion of its ‘Hyper 5G’ network in Bali, as part of broader plans to deliver comprehensive 5G across the nation.

Nokia is expanding its Fixed Networks R&D facility in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.

Reliance Jio’s parent company, Reliance Industries Limited, is reportedly planning to build AI-ready data centres in Jamnagar as part of the company’s overall strategy of “democratising” access to AI infrastructure.

Orange Liberia and ZTE said on Thursday they have successfully completed a project to build new base station sites in rural areas across the country that they say significantly enhances network coverage in those areas.

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has set 14 September 2024 as the final registration date for subscriber identification module (SIM) subscribers, just under four years since the country’s SIM registration procedure began.

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets, and tech giant Microsoft have signed a strategic agreement to identify and enhance investment opportunities in digital transformation across Latin America and the Caribbean.

Malaysian operator U Mobile joined rival Maxis in signing a 5G cooperation agreement with China Mobile International (CMI) to explore how to advance 5G connectivity.

Hong Kong-based global ICT service provider and network operator HGC Global Communications (HGC) announced on Wednesday that it has launched a data centre interconnect (DCI) solution in Bangkok.

Telkom Indonesia’s international arm Telin said on Wednesday it has signed a strategic partnership with Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison to develop ICE System 2, the latest announced leg of Telin’s Indonesia Cable Express subsea cable project.

There’s been a flurry of African news from Starlink – satellite communications company SpaceX’s low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite internet service – in recent days, culminating with this week’s announcement that Botswana has granted an operating licence to the service.

Bite Group has selected Nokia’s Packet Core appliance-based solution as it seeks to deploy advanced 5G services while simplifying its network architecture in Latvia and Lithuania.

Bayobab Kenya, part of Bayobab Group, the digital infrastructure business arm of MTN Group, announced on Tuesday the completion of a terrestrial fibre network connecting Mombasa to Uganda via the border cities of Malaba and Busia.

Telkom Indonesia said on Tuesday that it has struck a strategic collaboration deal with Silicon Valley-based multimodal AI startup Reka AI to accelerate the development of AI that understand the 700+ languages spoken in Indonesia.

Indian telco Bharti Airtel is reportedly planning to shut down its Wynk Music streaming service in favour of a partnership with Apple Music as part of a broader exclusive content deal involving Apple TV+.

iColo, which designs, builds, and operates state of- the-art carrier-neutral data centres in Kenya and Mozambique, has announced a significant expansion of its renewable energy initiatives with the installation of solar panels at its facilities in Kenya.

BDx Indonesia has announced the launch of the first phase of its interconnected internet exchange (IX) ecosystem in Indonesia.

Abu Dhabi-based Marlan Space, a new space company affiliated with International Holding Company (IHC), a global diversified conglomerate, also based in Abu Dhabi, has established a joint venture with US-headquartered space infrastructure company Loft Orbital to form Orbitworks, the Middle East’s first private space infrastructure company.

Chile may soon become the first country in the Americas to implement an initiative mandating a universal charger for electronic devices.

Operator Claro Argentina and vendor Nokia have signed what is described as a comprehensive 5G deal through which Nokia will deploy 5G infrastructure across the country for Claro.

Indonesian telco Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison says it has completed a large core network consolidation project in Jakarta that saw its packet-switched core network transformed to a cloud-native core.

Kenyan telco Safaricom has reportedly written a letter to the Communications Authority of Kenya complaining that LEO satellite operator Starlink is a threat to the telecoms market and should be required to partner with local operators rather than compete with them.

India’s Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has reportedly rejected demands by telcos to regulate OTT players like WhatsApp and Telegram under the same rules as telecoms companies, although they could still be regulated under other laws.

Ericsson has announced a new partnership with operator e& Egypt that marks what is described as a ‘significant milestone in advancing ICT infrastructure in Egypt and the wider region’.

After a number of delays, the Colombian government’s plans to connect schools in isolated areas via Wi-Fi is apparently resuming.

There’s a new MVNO about to enter the market in Brazil after Unifique received authorisation from regulator Anatel to launch in most of the country.

Nokia has announced that it is further strengthening its partnership with 4G and 5G network-as-a-service (NaaS) operator Next-Gen InfraCo (NGIC) by building a 5G mobile core network.

PLDT’s wireless arm Smart Communications says it is banking on affordable 5G devices as a key part of its strategy to drive growth in its 5G business in the Philippines as it plans on stronger rollout of its 4G and 5G networks for the rest of 2024.

Airtel Nigeria says it has successfully set up a satellite dish in Lagos for Eutelsat OneWeb’s LEO satellite broadband service, which it says will be used to bring high-speed internet to remote areas.

Malaysian 5G wholesale operator in Digital Nasional Bhd (DNB) said on Friday that Telekom Malaysia’s share subscription agreement (SSA) to buy a stake in DNB has been terminated after it failed to meet the deadline to finalise the SSA.