London Internet Exchange (LINX), one of the world’s largest internet exchange points (IXPs) and Saudi Arabian operator STC have announced the expansion of interconnection services to new internet exchange points in Riyadh and Dammam.

Philippines' Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) has unveiled a PHP 50-billion (USD 960 million) spending plan for the next three years, with a focus on improving the country’s digital infrastructure.

Vi (formerly Vodafone Idea) and L&T Smart World & Communication (SWC) have created a use case for a private 5G enterprise network in India.

Netcracker and NEC Corporation announced that e& (formerly Etisalat Group) has deployed Netcracker edge orchestration to innovate with 5G and new edge services in vertical markets.

Indian operator Bharti Airtel has bought from the UK’s Vodafone Group a 4.7% stake in Indus Towers, paying Rs2,388 crore for the stake – that’s about US$315.8 million. Airtel now owns 46.43% of Indus. Vodafone’s stake is now 21%, though it reportedly plans to sell this too.

The high-speed and low-latency PEACE cable system, designed to connect Asia, Africa and Europe, is back in the news.

EASSy, the 10,000-kilometre submarine cable system traversing Africa’s east and south coasts, is leveraging Ciena's GeoMesh Extreme to increase capacity and performance in sub-Saharan Africa.

Japanese telecommunications giant NTT and QD.TEK, one of the leading ICT distributors in Vietnam, have announced plans to establish a joint venture to develop a new data centre in Ho Chi Minh City, a major centre of the Vietnamese economy and home to many multinational companies.

Panama’s competition regulator has given the green light for the proposed merger between Liberty Latin America’s unit Cable & Wireless and local rival Claro Panama.

Liquid Intelligent Technologies has acquired a fibre pair on the Equiano subsea cable, allowing the firm to transport traffic up to 12 Terabits.

Expect Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) recommendations around pricing of 5G airwaves sometime in early April. TRAI secretary V Raghunandan has apparently told local press that the huge task will take another week or ten days.

The owners of the Russian telecommunications company Mobile TeleSystems (MTS) transferred about 1% of their shares to the president & CEO of the company, Vyacheslav Nikolaev, said an official statement.

Brazilian regional operator Copel Telecom has changed its name and is now called Ligga.

South African multinational mobile telecommunications company MTN said it will spend over ZAR 620 million (USD 42.25 million) in the largest province in the country Northern Cape and the country's judicial capital Free State on network expansion and 5G drive.

Yondr Group, a, developer, owner operator and service provider of data centres, has announced its entry into the Malaysian market with a planned 200MW hyperscale campus.

Telecom Egypt has penned an agreement with the European Investment Bank (EIB) to secure a loan of €150 million (US$164m) to expand its broadband network, the largest loan from the bank for a mobile network upgrade in Africa.

Could mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) finally be coming to Nigeria? It seems likely given the recent publication by the country’s telecommunications regulator, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), of what it calls a License Framework For the Establishment Of Mobile Virtual Network Operators in Nigeria.

Vodafone Oman and Ericsson have announced the deployment of a 5G indoor system at the Vodafone Experience Hub in Muscat’s Mall of Oman as well as the Vodafone Oman headquarter offices.

With the 31 March deadline for the switch-off of analogue TV (ATV) fast approaching in South Africa, public broadcaster the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) has highlighted its concerns about the potential impact of the switch-off on the public.

Philippines-based operator Globe Telecom has ramped up its sustainability plans by committing to cut its carbon emissions by 50% in 2030, as part of its overall goal of being a net-zero operator by 2050.

Bosnia-Herzegovina’s BH Telecom is upgrading its core network with Ericsson Nikola Tesla.

Satellite operator Thaicom has penned an agreement with satellite and solutions provider Globalstar, to deploy commercial low earth orbit (LEO) and provide commercial services to boost Thailand’s tourism and maritime industries.

Vietnam has highlighted several hurdles to spreading the popularity of mobile money among mobile phone users, but operators still back it for major growth.  

The total mobile communications services revenue in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region is expected to grow at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.4% from US$320.9bn in 2021 to US$398.4bn in 2026, said a study.

Big buildings in India will soon have digital connectivity ratings on the lines of green rating. The new rating will be based on the quality of telephone and internet services offered in the buildings.

Malaysia's smartphone market closed in 2021 with over 12 million units representing a growth of 10.6% driven by a government subsidy programme plus relatively uninterrupted logistics compared to neighbouring ASEAN markets, says a study.

Orange is planning to use satellites to plug coverage gaps in one of its African markets, with a successful trial resulting potentially in a full rollout of the technology across its footprint.

Singapore Telecom has monetised its 1.6% stake in Airtel Africa through a market placement, as part of a capital recycling strategy to focus on new growth areas.

Helios Towers has closed its acquisition of Airtel Africa’s towers in Malawi for a total of US$54.7 million.

Chile’s WOM has launched commercial 5G services across several regions of the country.

Following a joint statement earlier this week from four Malaysian operators – Celcom Axiata, Digi, Maxis and U Mobile – that they welcomed the government’s planned single wholesale network and the opportunity to invest in the state 5G agency Digital Nasional Berhad, the four firms have said they are now planning to explore the government's offer of an equity stake in DNB.