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

Huawei’s upcoming chip may break China’s 7nm barrier

Chinese tech giant Huawei continues to defy expectations, steadily reclaiming its position in the global smartphone market despite weathering over five years of stringent US sanctions. Showcasing remarkable resilience and innovation, the company's recent chip development and smartphone sales advances paint a picture that transcends mere corporate resilience.

Huawei's journey through the sanctions storm began in 2019 when the Trump administration, citing national security concerns,...

7 August 2024 | China Mobile

Ofcom tightens rules to combat foreign scam calls

Ofcom, the UK's communications regulator, has introduced new measures to protect consumers from scam calls originating overseas. The strengthened industry guidance, announced today, requires phone companies to block calls from abroad that falsely display UK landline numbers.

This move aims to tackle a common tactic used by fraudsters who 'spoof' trusted phone numbers to deceive victims. By imitating numbers from reputable organisations or government departments, scammers increase...

30 July 2024 | 5G

Vivo leads, Apple falls: The changing face of China’s smartphone industry

China's smartphone market has dramatically transformed, with domestic brands now reigning supreme in the world's largest mobile market. For the first time in recent times, Apple has been edged out of mainland China's top five vendors list.

According to the latest market research firm Canalys report, local Chinese manufacturers have achieved an unprecedented feat, securing all five top positions in the second quarter of 2024.

The Chinese smartphone market...

30 July 2024 | Telecoms

Samsung ditches its stock Messages app to boost RCS adoption

To accelerate the adoption of Rich Communication Services (RCS), Samsung has decided to drop its stock messaging app in favour of Google Messages on some of its latest devices. This change was first noticed on phones running One UI 6.1.1 out of the box, which didn't come with Samsung Messages pre-installed in certain countries.

Responding to inquiries about this shift, Samsung provided clarity on its decision.

In a statement to Android Authority, the tech giant...

24 July 2024 | Telecoms

Ofcom cracks down on unpredictable telecom price hikes

Ofcom, the UK’s communications regulator, will require telecoms providers to clearly state any price increases in pounds and pence upfront, giving customers more certainty about their monthly outgoings.

The new regulations are set to take effect from 17 January 2025 and come in response to the growing trend of major UK phone, broadband, and pay TV companies including inflation-linked price rises in their contracts. Ofcom found that this practice left customers without sufficient...

19 July 2024 | 5G

AT&T data breach affects 109 million US customers

Data breach at AT&T affects 109 million U.S. customer accounts

AT&T has disclosed a significant cybersecurity incident that has sent ripples through the security and tech communities.

The breach, which occurred in April, resulted in the unauthorised access and download of data from approximately 109 million customer accounts, primarily consisting of call and text records from 2022.

Scope and nature of the breach

According to Reuters, the scale of this breach is particularly alarming, affecting nearly all of AT&T's...

16 July 2024 | AT&T

Apple issues spyware warnings to iPhone users across 98 countries

Apple issues new spyware warnings to iPhone users across 98 countries

So far, Apple has issued a new round of threat notifications to iPhone users in 98 countries, informing them that mercenary Pegasus spyware may be used on their phones.

This is the second such notification campaign from the tech giant this year, following a similar effort in April that reached users in 92 countries.

As per a support document on Apple's website, the company has been regularly issuing these notifications since 2021, and they have resonated with users in...

15 July 2024 | Security

Bridging the digital divide: How a coalition is tackling smartphone affordability

The digital divide, a chasm that has long separated billions from the opportunities of the internet age, may soon begin to narrow.

This week, the GSM Association (GSMA) announced the formation of the "Handset Affordability Coalition," a pioneering alliance of mobile operators, device manufacturers, international organisations, and financial institutions. This global initiative aims to revolutionise access to affordable smartphones worldwide for low- and middle-income populations,...

12 July 2024 | 5G