Indonesian telco XL Axiata says it continues to be plagued with theft of its broadband routers by scammers, with the latest case occurring in Medan and Binjai on the island of Sumatra.

Energy company Santos is to partner with Papau New Guinea operator Telikom PNG in developing what is described as “an evolving telecommunications landscape in the liquid natural gas (LNG) and Santos project facilities and communities” through a ten-year partnership.

MTN Nigeria plans to hold an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) with its shareholders on how to manage the capital loss it suffered in 2023.

South Africa's Blue Label Telecoms has received approval from the country's Competition Commission (CompCom) to take control, via a subsidiary, of operator Cell C.

SpaceX, which designs, manufactures and launches advanced rockets and spacecraft, has applied to Indonesia's government for an internet service provider (ISP) permit for its Starlink satellite unit, according to a statement from the country’s communications ministry late this week.

India’s Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has reportedly pushed back its next spectrum auction from May 20 to June 6 so that it can take place after the country’s general elections.

Bangladesh operator Banglalink has partnered with mobile financial service provider bKash and City Bank to finance 4G smartphone purchases for customers to make the devices more affordable and in turn boost 4G adoption.

China Mobile has launched what it claims is the world’s first commercial 5G-Advanced network ahead of the standard’s expected completion later this year, and is collaborating with Ericsson to develop use cases for it.

Telecom Namibia (TN) the state-owned telecommunications operator, has taken what it describes as a proactive step to align with regulatory requirements by deactivating 191,598 unregistered prepaid subscriber identity module (SIM) cards.

UAE-headquartered technology group operator e&, in partnership with communications and advertising agency Saatchi & Saatchi ME, has launched the mobile version of its Wider Web Extension tailored for autistic individuals.

Huawei reported net profit more than doubled in its 2023 financial year to CNY87 billion (US$13.4 billion) as it saw revenue growth across its multiple arms.

Malaysia’s communications watchdog opened a public consultation to review its licensing process and refocus how payment for licences will be made. 

There’s been a boost for efforts by Indian operator Vodafone Idea (aka Vi) to raise more funds after an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) on Tuesday, the results of which were announced today.

Thuraya, the mobile satellite communication arm of UAE satellite player Yahsat, announced on Tuesday that it has expanded its partnership with Algérie Télécom Satellite to become the authorised distributor of Thuraya’s new direct-to-device (D2D) satellite smartphone in Algeria.

Malaysian broadband operator Time dotCom announed on Tuesday that it has started upgrading its existing Time Fibre Home customers with a permanent speed boost of at least 200 Mbps that it says will deliver a better online experience.

PLDT’s wireless subsidiary Smart Communications revealed on Tuesday it has deployed an AI-powered 'green radio' network solution in all its base station sites that has enabled it to reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions as well as opex costs.

The Saudi Arabian market is to welcome a new player in the cybersecurity solutions field through a venture established by a Public Investment Fund-owned company alongside Korean security solutions business AhnLab. 

Vodacom Mozambique is widely reported to be investing US$25 million in a new data centre in the country.

YouScribe, described as the largest digital reading library on the African continent with over one million subscribers, has announced the launch of its services in Ghana in partnership with mobile payment specialist Digital Virgo and operator MTN.

Chilean operator WOM filed for bankruptcy after it failed to refinance its US$348 million debt pile in November, due to challenging macroeconomic conditions. 

Telkom Indonesia announced on Monday it is collaborating with IT firm Scala Japan to develop digital innovations and utilise Telkom’s digital agriculture platform to strengthen Indonesia’s agricultural ecosystem and food sustainability.

Thai operator True Corp announced on Monday it has partnered with the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) to launch a campaign that it hopes will not only boost Thailand’s tourism sector, but also showcase its 5G chops and boost its prepaid SIM and roaming business.

Saudi Arabian telco stc Group says it has partnered with Huawei Technologies to complete what they claim is the first long-haul 800G-per-channel trial on a live network in the MENA region.

Digicel’s operators in Fiji and Samoa have followed up their announced plans to roll out 5G with safety assurances to customers in an apparent move to assuage worries over various Internet rumours and conspiracy theories about 5G health risks.

Following yesterday's news that companies in Zambia and Cote d’Ivoire are being enabled to digitally boost their businesses, there’s news of another business-focused digital offering in Africa – this time in Morocco.

Global smartphone shipments are expected to rebound 3% to 1.2 billion units year-on-year in 2024, with emerging markets driving this growth according to analyst company Counterpoint Research. 

Thai operator True Corp said it expects no impact to its operations or merger with Dtac, as the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) faces an order to review a lawsuit in regards to its approval to the merger. 

Zegtel, a new Nigerian mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), has announced plans to invest about US$21.8 million over the next five years to expand mobile connectivity across the country.

The GSMA has announced that China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom have commercially launched an open API from the GSMA Open Gateway initiative to help reduce mobile fraud, while CITIC Telecom, Huawei and ZTE have joined the initiative.

Nokia announced on Wednesday that Pakistan Tier-1 carrier Transworld Associates (TWA) will use its optical transport solution to build a new optical network connecting Pakistan, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Oman.

Eviden, a leading name in digital, cloud, big data and security, has announce the opening of its new Security Operations Centre (SOC) in Monterrey, Mexico, to enable advanced cybersecurity services to organisations across North and South America.

Digital support for Africa’s MSMEs is again making headlines thanks to news stories about companies in Zambia and Cote d’Ivoire being enabled to digitally boost their businesses.