Telecom Equipment Breaking News

Vodacom increases share of African telecom market
Vodacom has increased its share of the African telecom industry by acquiring the subsidiaries of Gateway Telecommunications for US$700 million. More..

MTN posts increased revenue, subscriber base
MTN, Africa's largest mobile phone provider, has posted its half year results, recording a 35 percent increase in revenue and a 53 percent increase in subscribe base across its 21 African operations. More..

African telecoms refuse to share infrastructure
MTN and Zain Zambia have refused to share infrastructure in a quest to expand to rural areas of Zambia, claiming it would be difficult to maintain quality assurance. More..

Survey says slow iPhone 3G speeds may be due to carriers
Complaints about the iPhone 3G's networking speeds--or, more appropriately, lack thereof--have been floating around ever since the phone's release last month. We even did a little testing of our own and established that the results varied widely depending on geopgrahic location. More..

How the feds are locking down their networks
The federal government is locking down its networks through an ambitious and fast-paced effort to eliminate connections to the Internet that are vulnerable to attack. More..

Mobile virtual network operators may be allowed in India
Mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) that provide mobile phone service, but do not own radio spectrum or the infrastructure required to provide mobile telephone service, may be allowed to offer services in India soon. More..

Sprint sheds 901,000 more wireless customers
Sprint is still hemorrhaging postpaid wireless subscribers -- those who pay monthly and are most profitable -- as the company reported losing 776,000 in the second quarter in its earnings announcement today.  More..

India's 3G spectrum policy allows foreign bids
The Indian government on Friday announced its guidelines for auction of 3G (third generation) spectrum in the country, allowing foreign bidders with experience in offering 3G mobile services to participate. More..

What are critical issues with VoIP service?
A look at the VoIP industry's most pressing issues, including SIP interoperability, TDM-to-SIP transition services and VoIP security issues. More..

Mobile telephony drives France Télécom revenue
France Télécom reported revenue up 1.5 percent for the first half of the year, with growth strongest in its mobile communications division. More..

Alcatel-Lucent CEO and Chairman resign
Alcatel-Lucent's CEO Patricia Russo plans to step down before the end of the year, and Chairman Serge Tchuruk will quit on Oct. 1. Russo will stay on until the board finds a replacement, the company said Tuesday. More..

Mobile-network builder looks to Ikea for inspiration
VNL wants to turn the way mobile base stations are made and installed on its head, making it more economic to offer service in rural areas in developing countries. To do so, it looked to consumer electronics manufacturers and furniture giant Ikea for inspiration. More..

Transcorp names American as new NITEL director
The management of Transnational Corporation of Nigeria (Transcorp) announced on Monday the appointment of Kevin Caruso, an American telecommunications guru, as the new CEO and managing director of Nigerian Telecommunications (NITEL). More..

China Mobile begins 3G marketing push
China Mobile has begun the marketing push for a public beta of 3G telephony services, signaling that full deployment may be available soon after the Olympics. More..

Europe leads growth in IPTV use, study finds
Delivery of TV programming over IPTV is growing at rapid pace, with the number of subscribers more than doubling for the second year running, according to a report from industry organization The Broadband Forum. More..

Vodacom South Africa appoints CEO
Vodacom South Africa has appointed Pieter Uys as CEO. He replaces the company's founder, Alan Knott-Craig, who will retire in October after more than 15 years with the company. More..

Operator planned to hire extras to bulk up iPhone queue
Swedish operator TeliaSonera doesn't seem to have been sure that its iPhone 3G launch would attract enough people. It planned to hire 150 extras to stand in line "to create a better atmosphere and excitement", according to an e-mail message obtained by MacWorld Sweden. More..

Senate delays vote on surveillance bill until July
The U.S. Senate has delayed a vote on a controversial surveillance bill that would allow a U.S. National Security Agency spying program to continue and would likely result in the dismissal of dozens of lawsuits against telecom carriers that participated in the program. More..

Femtocell advocates look forward to 4G
The Femto Forum on Thursday announced it has joined forces with the Next Generation Mobile Networks (NGMN) Alliance, as it starts to look beyond the use of femto cells in current mobile networks. More..

Vodafone India pre-registering customers for iPhone 3G
Vodafone India has started pre-registering customers for the iPhone 3G from Apple, promising that the device will be available soon, but the company will as yet not disclose when the device will be offered to customers. More..

NTT to impose broadband upload limits
One of Japan's biggest ISPs will soon begin imposing daily upload limits on its customers in response to a portion of its user base who upload massive amounts of data. More..

Ad-funded mobile operator announces Euro plans
Mobile operator Blyk will launch its ad-supported free phone service in Germany, Spain and Belgium next year, it said Wednesday. The company offers U.K. subscribers free telephony and messaging (up to a point) in exchange for receiving ads on their phone. More..

FCC, defying Martin, cracks down on Verizon marketing
The FCC, rejecting the recommendation of its own Enforcement Bureau, has blocked Verizon Communications marketing efforts aimed at keeping customers from switching to a cable operator for their phone service. More..

Work begins on Google-backed 'Unity' undersea cable
NEC and Tyco began joint planning work Tuesday for the Unity undersea cable, a high-speed fiber optic link between the U.S. and Japan that's backed by Internet-giant Google and five telecom operators. More..

Vote on Swedish bugging bill delayed
The Swedish parliament has delayed a vote on a bill that would allow local authorities to monitor e-mail and fax messages and telephone calls. More..