Worrying trend in Canada: consumer complaints rise 35% year‑on‑year — should service providers rethink their strategy? The Canadian Commissioner for Complaints for Telecommunications Services (CCTS) has reported a 35% increase in consumer complaints in 2012. Wireless services remained the top source of consumer dissatisfaction for the fourth consecutive year. In total, consumers and organizations filed … Read more

(Image Credit: iStockPhoto/PeopleImages) As mobile broadband usage has surged beyond expectations, communication service providers (CSPs) and network operators are struggling to maintain and guarantee a satisfying customer experience in real time. Subscribers routinely use Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, streaming services, and multiple websites simultaneously on their mobile devices, and they frequently report issues such as slow … Read more

German technology entrepreneur Hakan Koç and former telecommunications executive and private equity investor Pyrros Koussios have acquired global mobile operator Truphone. The pair purchased the assets and subsidiaries of Truphone Limited for £1 after the company completed restructuring and received National Security and Investment clearance from the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial … Read more

UK telecoms regulator Ofcom has announced proposals to increase transparency around mid-contract price rises that affect phone, broadband and pay TV customers. Ofcom has raised concerns about the widespread use of mid-contract price increases—often tied to inflation or percentage-based formulas—by major providers. The regulator believes these practices can leave consumers uncertain about future costs and … Read more

AT&T has reached roaming agreements with major Canadian carriers—Bell Canada, Rogers Communications, and Telus—to accelerate Internet of Things (IoT) deployments across North America. Under the agreements, Bell, Rogers and Telus will gain access to AT&T’s LTE-M network across the United States. In return, AT&T customers will be able to roam on the Canadian carriers’ nationwide … Read more

MWC19 Compared with technologies such as big data, artificial intelligence and the pervasive rollout of 5G, blockchain is playing a smaller role at MWC Barcelona this year. Nevertheless, a few notable stories highlight blockchain’s ongoing relevance—one in particular involves two of the telecommunications industry’s largest players. There is an element of irony in blockchain’s modest … Read more

(Image Credit: Kārlis Dambrāns) Samsung, the South Korean technology leader, continues to push the boundaries of mobile communications as companies and standards bodies work toward next-generation 5G networks. Although a unified 5G standard is still developing, several manufacturers are already exploring potential implementations and proving what the technology might deliver in real-world use. Samsung has … Read more

There has long been discussion about collaboration between network operators and over-the-top (OTT) service providers, but not everyone shares an idealized view of how that relationship should work. “Every day, every morning, every night, I’m thinking of how to compete with Fiber, Skype and WhatsApp,” said Giles Corbett, head of Libon at Orange, during a … Read more

(Image Credit: iStockPhoto/serggn) The latest “Global State of Mobile Networks” report from OpenSignal offers a detailed international comparison of mobile network performance across key metrics. The August 2016 edition highlights which countries lead in network availability and speeds, and reveals wide variation between the top and bottom performers. South Korea tops the list for both … Read more

Picture credit: Ericsson Ericsson has introduced its verified Network Functions Virtualisation (NFV) infrastructure solution, NFVi, designed to support software-defined infrastructure and serve as a foundational element for 5G and Internet of Things (IoT) deployments. The NFVi offering is positioned to accelerate operators’ transformation by delivering a tested, interoperable platform for virtualised network functions. The NFVi … Read more