Beijing pushes major Chinese telcos to raise dividends

Beijing pushes China Telecom, China Mobile to raise dividends

Three major Chinese telcos are dramatically changing their financial strategies and shifting from reducing capital costs to offering higher dividend yields.

As reported by Nikkei Asia, this shift is linked to the increasing interest from the Chinese government in the performance of the stock market and its directive to accord more importance to shareholder returns within state-owned enterprises.

China Telecom followed this logic but took it a step further, as interim...

22 August 2024 | 5G

Bharti Enterprises to acquire majority stake in BT

Bharti Enterprises has announced plans to acquire a majority stake in BT, the UK’s largest broadband and mobile provider.

Bharti will purchase approximately 24.5% of BT Group from its current top shareholder, Altice. The acquisition will be executed through Bharti Global, the international investment arm of Bharti Enterprises.

Sunil Bharti Mittal, Founder and Chairman of Bharti Enterprises, commented on the historical significance of this move: "Bharti and BT have an...

12 August 2024 | 5G

SoftBank reports strong Q1 results amid 5G and AI expansions

SoftBank has announced its consolidated financial results for the first quarter of the fiscal year, showcasing robust performance and strategic initiatives aimed at long-term growth. The report highlights significant year-on-year improvements across key financial metrics.

For the three months ended June 30, 2024, SoftBank reported:

Revenue: ¥1,535,722 million, a 7.4% increase from the previous year. Operating income: ¥303,927 million, up 23.4%. Profit before income...

6 August 2024 | 5G

The dawn of OpenRAN: Revolutionising mobile networks

Born from the need for greater flexibility and cost-efficiency in mobile networks, OpenRAN (Open Radio Access Networks) emerged in the mid-2010s as a radical reimagining of cellular infrastructure. The concept gained momentum in 2016 when the xRAN Forum was established, later merging with the C-RAN Alliance to form the O-RAN Alliance in 2018. This collaborative effort aimed to break the stranglehold of proprietary, integrated systems that had long dominated the...

25 July 2024 | 5G

T-Mobile and KKR to broaden US fibre network with Metronet acquisition

T-Mobile and KKR announce strategic acquisition of Metronet to broaden U.S. fibre network

T-Mobile has entered into a joint venture (JV) with KKR to acquire Metronet in a move that will significantly expand T-Mobile's fibre footprint. Metronet, it's worth noting, is currently the fastest-growing pure-play fibre company in the US.

"This is a unique opportunity and a smart, capital-efficient deal that enables T-Mobile to profitably build on our success in broadband and provide fast, affordable, and reliable connectivity options to millions more customers nationwide as a...

25 July 2024 | Broadband

Berlin’s 5G shift: Germany to phase out Huawei and ZTE components

In the wake of mounting global concerns over national security, Germany has become the latest nation to join the ranks of countries restricting Chinese technology in critical infrastructure. Following in the footsteps of the US, Britain, Sweden, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada, Europe's largest economy has announced plans to bar components from Chinese tech giants Huawei and ZTE in core parts of its 5G networks.

This decision marks a significant shift for...

19 July 2024 | 5G

Germany prolongs banning Chinese 5G equipment

Germany has announced plans to ban critical components made by Chinese firms like Huawei and ZTE from its 5G networks, citing security concerns. The decision – revealed by Interior Minister Nancy Faeser on Thursday – will be implemented in two phases starting in 2026, with a longer timeline than initially expected.

Under the new agreement, critical components from Huawei and ZTE will be barred from 5G core networks by the end of 2026, a year later than previously envisaged....

11 July 2024 | 5G

Vodafone tackles urban 5G challenges with Ericsson’s compact antennas

Vodafone has begun deploying Ericsson's innovative Interleaved AIR 3218 antennas to boost 5G network performance, capacity, and coverage without increasing the footprint of existing antenna installations.

The scarcity of suitable rooftop locations for additional 5G antennas has been a major hurdle in Germany's urban areas. Many available rooftop sites fail to meet the static requirements of network planners, while current LTE mast locations often lack space for extra 5G...

10 July 2024 | 5G

The 5G journey in Malaysia: Progress and future prospects

The 5G journey for Malaysia: Progress and future prospects

Significant progress has been made on the ground in Malaysia, where populated areas reported coverage of 81.7%—an impressive figure considering that Korea and Singapore had barely reached those levels by September and October.

Malaysia achieved 80 per cent coverage in populated areas (CoPA) by late 2023, building on historic progress.

Deputy communications minister Teo Nie Ching recently informed the Dewan Rakyat that a total of 7,114 sites have been deployed across...

9 July 2024 | 5G

Vodafone and Meta collaborate on European network optimisation

Vodafone and Meta have joined forces to tackle network congestion and improve mobile user experience across Europe. The collaboration, which began in June, has already been implemented in eleven European markets.

The initiative aims to free up network capacity for all mobile customers, with a particular focus on enhancing the viewing experience of high-quality short videos. This development comes at a time when video content consumption on mobile devices continues to surge,...

9 July 2024 | 5G