Telecompaper Headlines

(Telecompaper) Comcast, the largest ISP in the US, said its peak internet traffic has increased 32 percent since the start of March, but the usage remains within the overall capacity its network. The increase in people working at home has shifted the downstream peak to earlier in the evening, while upload traffic is growing during the day in most cities. The company also announced new offers of free educational TV content for its cable subscribers and two months free internet access for college students. 

(Telecompaper) Ericsson has not seen any major impact on its business yet from the Covid-19 pandemic. CEO Boris Ekholm told shareholders at the company's annual meeting that the "top priority at the moment is the health and safety of our employees, customers, and other stakeholders. So far, we have not seen any material impact on our business, but we are closely following the developments in society."

(Telecompaper) Xiaomi reported revenues for the fourth quarter of 2019 up 27.1 percent year-on-year to CNY 56.5 billion. Net profit for the period fell to CNY 2.4 billion from CNY 3.4 billion a year earlier, after a sharp rise in marketing and promotional spend to boost sales outside China. 

(Telecompaper) A growing number of countries are delaying 5G spectrum auctions, as restrictions related to the Covid-19 pandemic make it difficult to maintain planning. The EU's deadline of June for the release of the 700 MHz band for 5G will be missed by several states as a result, including Spain and Austria. The Netherlands and Poland said they still aim to go ahead with auctions in the coming months. 

(Telecompaper) Huawei reported revenues of CNY 858.8 billion (USD 123 billion) for 2019, up 19.1 percent. Net profit rose a slower 5.6 percent to CNY 62.7 billion, and operating cash flow increased 22.4 percent to CNY 91.4 billion. 

(Telecompaper) Belgian operator Proximus has unveiled its new strategic plan #inspire2022 at its Capital Markets Day. The new CEO Guillaume Boutin plans to focus on increased capital investment in order to accelerate growth. The company is launching 5G services using existing spectrum, plans to add up to 1 million more fibre premises passed to its targets and is seeking a greater presence in the wholesale and business markets. The extra investment will result in a lower dividend in the year to come, while the aim is to return the company to profitable revenue and EBITDA growth in its domestic operations by 2022.

(Telecompaper) Spain's Ministry of Economic Affairs has notified the European Commission that it will be unable to hold its auction of 5G-ready spectrum in the 700MHz band before the scheduled EU deadline of 30 June 2020, confirming earlier reports. In a statement, the ministry said the current "State of Alarm" caused by the coronavirus pandemic has led to the decision to suspend the country's digital dividend plan to free up the 700 MHz band for 5G mobile services with a view to ensuring that digital terrestrial television (DTT) reception is not affected by the need to retune antennas.

(Telecompaper) Nkom said that Ceragon Networks, Funn, GlobalConnect, Ice Communications Norway, Telenor Norway and Telia Norway have qualified to take part in the auction of radio frequency resources starting on 06 May. The deadline for applications was 12 March. This concerns spectrum in the 10 GHz, 13 GHz, 18 GHz, 23 GHz, 28 GHz, 32 GHz and 38 GHz bands.

(Telecompaper) Apple has released a Covid-19 app together with the White House Coronavirus Task Force and the US's Federal Emergency Management Agency, to make it easier for people across the country to access reliable information and guidance. The app and website give information about risk factors, recent exposure and symptoms, and explain when a person should contact a medical provider. They also direct users to other information resources. 

(Telecompaper) Finnish network equipment specialist Teleste said it is withdrawing its financial guidance for 2020 issued on 13 February, because of the potential impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and economic uncertainty. Teleste had predicted that net sales would not deviate materially from the EUR 235.5 million achieved for the 2019 full year, and predicted an adjusted operating profit of EUR 6-10 million compared with EUR 7.7 million in 2019.

(Telecompaper) South Korean operator SK Telecom has reached 2.22 million 5G subscribers and 44.7 percent 5G market share, according to a report from the Korean Ministry of Science and ICT released in January. SK Telecom commercially launched its 5G service on 3 April 2019. SK Telecom also reports it has created around 70 5G Clusters in key commercial districts and densely populated areas throughout the nation. To date, around 1 million customers visited SK Telecom's 5G Clusters to test 5G services such as 'Jump AR Zoo' and '5G LoL Park.'

(Telecompaper) London-based satellite communications company OneWeb has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US as it looks to complete a sale of the business.

(Telecompaper) Xiaomi has officially added more products to its Mi portfolio, including the Mi 10 Lite, along the further expansion of its Mi 10 and Mi 10 Pro smarpthones, plus five more products, including a few routers, an air purifier and earphones. The Mi 10 and Mi 10 Pro were earlier unveiled, and launched in China last month. They will now become available, along with the other devices, in more global markets, Xiaomi said, without giving further specifications.

(Telecompaper) Hooq Digital, 76.5 percent owned by Singapore operator Singtel, said it has filed for liquidation, the Singapore Business Times reported. Sony Pictures and Warner Bros Entertainment also have stakes in the joint venture, which failed to take off after launching five years ago. Hooq said the OTT video market has undergone significant structural changes since then.

(Telecompaper) Facebook seeks to acquire a multibillion-dollar stake in Reliance Jio. The Indian operator's mobile internet service has attracted nearly 370 million Indian customers in just three years, The Financial Times reports, citing two unnamed sources with knowledge of the discussions. According to one of these sources, Facebook nearly signed a preliminary deal for a 10 percent share in Jio, but the deal timetable was negatively impacted by the global lockdowns caused by the coronavirus outbreak.

(Telecompaper) The coronavirus (Covid-19) pushes all the regular telecom and media news into the background - and for good reason. The impact, also on these sectors, is enormous. Here is a rundown of the international news, classified by sub-topic.

(Telecompaper) Swedish mobile messaging service provider Sinch said it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Brazilian messaging company Wavy for BRL 355 million in cash and 1.53 million new shares issued to owner Movile, and expects to complete the deal in the second half of 2020. Merger synergies are expected to reach BRL 15-20 million over the coming 24 months. Sinch has increased its credit facility by SEK 600 million for future acquisition opportunities, too.

(Telecompaper) The impact of coronavirus on the international travel industry could result in network operators losing over USD 25 billion in revenues over the next 9 months, according to a report from Juniper Research. Under the more likely high impact scenario, over 650 million passenger trips will be cancelled due to the pandemic before the end of the year, affecting over half of all roaming revenue for the period.

(Telecompaper) Magyar Telekom, Telenor Hungary and Vodafone Hungary paid a total of HUF 128.5 billion (EUR 363 million) for 15 years of usage rights for the 700 MHz, 2,100 MHz and 3,600 MHz bands in telecom authority NMHH's latest auction. Due to the epidemic situation, the 5G auction took place under special circumstances.

(Telecompaper) Huawei has unveiled its new P40 flagship smartphone range. The P40 Lite, P40 and P40 Pro models will be available from 07 April starting at respectively EUR 299, EUR 799 and EUR 999, and the P40 Pro+ with five cameras will follow in June for EUR 1,399.