Investment Asian Development Bank to fund network upgrade for Tcell Tajikistan A major financing deal, announced this week, aims to fund an upgrade that will see the Tcell mobile network in Tajikistan enhanced in both...
Regulation Court case looms over Bangladesh's plans for 700-MHz auction The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) is reportedly set to auction off 700-MHz spectrum at the start of next year,...
Vendors Ericsson aiming to boost local manufacturing in India Ericsson has pledged to manufacture all telecoms equipment sold in India domestically, in line with the government’s ‘Make in India’...
Operators CCP approves PTCL acquisition of Telenor Pakistan The Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) has finally cleared Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited’s (PTCL) acquisition of rival Telenor...
Optical & Fixed Networks Taliban escalates internet blackout in Afghanistan The Taliban has intensified its internet crackdown, triggering a nationwide connectivity blackout across Afghanistan.
Vendors Qvantel acquires Optiva to scale up AI-enabled BSS portfolio Finland-based business support systems (BSS) provider Qvantel announced it is acquiring rival Optiva, in a move aimed at expanding its scale and...
Satellite Networks Project Kuiper satellite internet is coming to Kazakhstan A new agreement announced this week between Amazon's Project Kuiper low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite broadband network and Kazakhtelecom, the...
Operators Mobiuz and ZTE complete initial network upgrades in Uzbekistan ZTE announced on Tuesday that it has completed the first phase a network modernisation project for telecoms provider Mobiuz in the autonomous...
Regulation DoT presses Airtel, Vodafone Idea for $1.1B in additional dues Vodafone Idea is pushing back against a fresh demand from India’s Department of Telecommunications (DoT), which is seeking INR94.5 billion...
Consumer Ecosystems Ufone 4G and Oladoc aim to boost healthcare access in Pakistan Pakistani telco Ufone 4G says it has partnered with domestic digital healthcare platform Oladoc to bring affordable and accessible healthcare to...
Wireless Networks Has the industry Open RAN away from the ecosystem? Open RAN (O-RAN) has long been touted as a disruptive technology in mobile infrastructure with the concept of splitting the RAN into three...
Optical & Fixed Networks Red Sea cable breaks disrupt internet in Middle East, South Asia Internet services in multiple countries in the Middle East and South Asia have been disrupted since Saturday by yet another series of subsea...
Regulation Edotco scores neutral infrastructure services licence in Sri Lanka Axiata’s telecoms infrastructure company Edotco announced on Wednesday that its Sri Lankan subsidiary, Edotco Services Lanka, has received the...
Enterprise Ecosystems Reliance, Meta launch $100m AI JV for enterprises in India Jio Platforms parent company Reliance Industries (RIL) has announced a joint venture with Meta to build agentic AI enterprise platforms and tools...
Wireless Networks Robi and Grameenphone first off the post with 5G in Bangladesh 5G finally arrived in Bangladesh on Monday after telcos Robi Axiata and Grameenphone reportedly launched 5G services within a few hours of each...
Operators Vodafone Idea unit seeks $570m debt raise to fund 5G rollout Vodafone Idea’s infrastructure subsidiary is reportedly seeking loans worth INR50 billion (US$570 million) to finance network expansion.
Vendors Apple expands iPhone production in India Apple is reportedly ramping up iPhone production at five factories in India as part of its ongoing strategy to reduce reliance on...
Operators Vodafone Idea expands 5G to Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram Vodafone Idea has continued its rapid 5G rollout in India, with Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram the latest cities to go live.
Wireless Networks Zong 4G deploys ZTE’s 8T8R UBR and DIA to save tower space ZTE announced on Thursday that China Mobile Pakistan (CMPak), which operates under the brand Zong 4G, is the first operator to commercially...
Mobile Finance Alipay+ follows QR payment deal in Armenia with new agreement in Kazakhstan Alipay+, a global wallet gateway, and Kaspi.kz, the leading super app in Kazakhstan, say they have enabled international cross-border QR payment...
Operators Kyrgyz govt steps in to buy Veon’s stake in Beeline Kyrgyzstan Global digital operator Veon said on Wednesday it has completed the sale of its 50.1% indirect stake in Kyrgyzstan mobile operator Sky Mobile...
Optical & Fixed Networks Uztelecom shifts fixed broadband strategy to focus on GPON, FTTx Uzbektelecom (a.k.a. Uztelecom ) announced on Saturday that it will focus on deploying high-speed GPON and FTTx solutions across Uzbekistan...
Optical & Fixed Networks Kazakhtelecom and AzerTelecom start work on Trans-Caspian cable Kazakhtelecom and AzerTelecom have entered the active phase of deploying the long-planned Trans-Caspian Submarine Cable System that will cross...
Satellite Networks Shanghai SpaceSail tests LEO satellite network in Kazakhstan Chinese LEO satellite operator Shanghai SpaceSail Technologies has reportedly tested its satellite broadband network in the Almaty region of...
Operators Nepal's Ncell launches outbound VoLTE roaming, starting with India Nepalese telco Ncell says it has become the first mobile operator in the country to expand its Voice over Long-Term Evolution (VoLTE)...
Operators Dialog Axiata expands 5G roaming, launches low-cost 5G smartphone Sri Lanka-based operator Dialog Axiata has expanded its 5G roaming footprint to 40 countries through partnerships with more than 150 operators...
Regulation Kyrgyzstan government takes over internet access Kyrgyzstan has decided to nationalise access to international internet traffic for a year. A presidential decree earlier this week said the...
Operators Reliance reportedly eyes 5% Jio Platforms IPO in India Reliance Industries, the parent company of Jio Platforms, is reportedly considering listing a 5% stake in its mobile unit in India, which could...
Business Presight signs AI-focused MoU with Tajikistan ministry Presight, a global AI and big data analytics company, with Abu Dhabi-based technology group G42 as its majority shareholder, has signed a...
Devices & Platforms India’s smartphone market rebounds in Q2 India’s smartphone market rebounded in Q2 2025, with shipments rising 7% year-on-year to reach 39 million units, following a sluggish first...
Operators Beeline Uzbekistan boosts connectivity across five key regions Veon-owned Beeline Uzbekistan claims it has significantly enhanced network quality across five key regions, as demand for digital connectivity...
Devices & Platforms Global smartphone market sees slight dip in Q2 The global smartphone market declined by 1% year-on-year in Q2 2025, marking the first quarterly drop in six quarters, according to analyst firm...
Regulation Banglalink’s bid for 2,100MHz spectrum rejected by Bangladesh regulator Bangladesh’s telecoms regulator has rejected an appeal by Banglalink to acquire 5MHz of spectrum in the 2,100MHz band outside of the ongoing...
Operators Telenor: No plan B for Pakistan, exit now Telenor’s planned exit from Pakistan is currently being held up by the country’s competition authority – a delay the Nordic group argues is...
Energy & Sustainability Edotco Bangladesh teams with Tiger New Energy for green power Telecoms infrastructure provider Edotco Bangladesh said on Monday it has signed an MoU with clean mobility and energy firm Tiger New Energy to...
Satellite Networks Kacific adds Pak Datacom to its Pakistan satellite ecosystem Kacific Broadband Satellites Group continued its blitz of deals to provide satellite broadband services to rural Pakistan last week via an MoU...
Regulation 5G auction delay in Pakistan tied to PTCL–Telenor deal stalemate Pakistan’s long-awaited 5G spectrum auction is facing delays due to Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL), which is allegedly...
Operators Vodafone Idea to expand 5G to 23 more Indian cities Vodafone Idea has announced it will deploy its 5G network in 23 additional cities across India, as the operator continues to compete with rivals...
Satellite Networks Kacific pushes on in Pakistan with PTCL partnership Kacific Broadband Satellites Group announced on Tuesday it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Pakistan Telecommunication Company...
Cloud & Virtualisation Axentec launches first local Tier-IV cloud service in Bangladesh Robi Axiata’s digital services subsidiary Axentec announced on Tuesday it has launched what it says is the first Tier-IV cloud platform fully...
Data Centres & Networks Major new AI factory on the way for Armenia Firebird, an AI cloud company, has announced a strategic collaboration with the government of Armenia and tech giant Nvidia for building advanced...
Satellite Networks Starlink clear to launch commercial services in Kazakhstan in Q3 SpaceX’s LEO satellite broadband operator Starlink is set to officially launch services in Kazakhstan later this year after it signed a...
Investment Uzbekistan begins privatisation process for Mobiuz The State Assets Management Agency of Uzbekistan has officially launched the privatisation process of operator Universal Mobile Systems (UMS),...
Satellite Networks Starlink bags approval to close in on Indian launch India’s Ministry of Home Affairs has approved Starlink’s bid for a crucial licence that will allow the SpaceX unit to provide satellite services...
Consumer Ecosystems Veon puts LLMs at the heart of its AI strategy At a recent roundtable discussion, Veon’s Lasha Tabidze described how the group is positioning itself as a service delivery company with LLMs at...
Data Centres & Networks PTCL to modernise data centres with Dell storage platforms Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) announced on Tuesday it has formed a partnership with technology solutions provider DWP...
Satellite Networks Kacific taps Supernet as satellite broadband reseller in rural Pakistan Kacific Broadband Satellites Group announced it has signed a strategic partnership deal with telecoms and data network service provider Supernet...
Service Management Qvantel opens two managed services centres in Pakistan Digital BSS firm Qvantel has opened two new operations, services and support centres in the Pakistani cities of Islamabad and Lahore.
Devices & Platforms Samsung execs challenge $81m penalty in Indian tax dispute Samsung executives appeared in an Indian court seeking to overturn US$81 million in penalties, part of a larger US$601 million tax...
Operators Veon and Engro cleared to combine telecoms assets in Pakistan Veon announced on Friday it has secured all regulatory approvals for its deal with Pakistan's largest conglomerate Engro to pool and manage their...
