Virgin Media is trialling Infinera’s XR Optics technology with the aim of using it to provide multi-gigabit speeds to customers. Jeanie York, Chief Technology and Information Officer at Virgin Media, said: “Our next-generation network already offers gigabit connectivity to more than seven million homes, but with data use and demand for hyperfast speeds surging, we’re … Read more

Nest Labs, the connected-home startup founded by former Apple engineers Tony Fadell and Matt Rogers, has grown rapidly since its launch—and today it was acquired by Google for $3 billion. Instead of widespread congratulations, the announcement has provoked an outcry online. Social posts range from practical responses—“I just tore mine off the wall. Thanks for … Read more

New proposals from Brussels could cut data roaming charges within the EU by more than half and give travellers greater control over which network they connect to while abroad. This week the European Commission is expected to unveil measures aimed at bringing the cost of international voice and data transfer closer to the level of … Read more

The British government has accelerated its ban on the installation of Huawei telecoms equipment by network operators. From September 2021, operators will be prohibited from installing Huawei equipment in the UK’s 5G networks, the government announced. Purchases of Huawei gear have already been banned since 31 December 2020. “Today I am setting out a clear … Read more

Telia Lietuva has announced repairs to a major subsea cable that runs between Lithuania and Sweden in the Baltic Sea. The fault was first detected on 17 November, affecting one of three critical communications links between Sweden and Lithuania. On the same day, another cable connecting Helsinki, Finland, and Rostock, Germany, was also cut. Preliminary … Read more

Deutsche Telekom and Tele2 have agreed to sell T‑Mobile Netherlands to WP/AP Telecom Holdings, a consortium jointly controlled by private equity firms Apax and Warburg Pincus. Deutsche Telekom initiated a strategic review of T‑Mobile NL in May. The transaction, which values the business at an enterprise value of €5.1 billion, concludes that review and transfers … Read more

(Image Credit: iStockPhoto/domin_domin) Last week we reported that personnel from the United States and United Kingdom intelligence agencies had allegedly infiltrated the systems of large SIM card manufacturer Gemalto in an effort to obtain encryption keys used to secure mobile communications worldwide. Gemalto has now completed an investigation and says the intrusion “probably happened,” though … Read more

Signs are mounting that China is close to its first large-scale LTE rollout, with a license expected within months. This development is welcome news for network equipment vendors facing slowing capital expenditure and intensified competition. China Mobile is well positioned to benefit from TD-LTE given its early investments in the TDD ecosystem and strong government … Read more

The latest report from Ookla shows AT&T leading Verizon in average 4G speeds, while T-Mobile dominates in 5G performance. Ookla’s 4G speed score places AT&T at the top with a score of 41.23. T-Mobile follows in second with 33.69. Sprint and Verizon trail closely behind, scoring 31.53 and 30.77 respectively. All major carriers now report … Read more

Nokia reported a profit of €574 million (£511.2m) for the quarter, up 73% compared with the same period last year, but warned that its networking business will continue to face challenges. In its Q2 2017 financial report, Nokia recorded strong year-over-year gains in Global Services and Nokia Technologies — the latter driven mainly by patent … Read more