Telefonica UK (O2) has secured a significant share in the latest spectrum auction, investing £448m to obtain 40Mhz of 3.6GHz and 20MHz of 700 MHz FDD.
Connected
News from the Connected World
Ofcom has announced the outcome of the principal stage of its auction to release more airwaves to improve mobile services and support 5G. The four major operators BT/EE, Three, Telefonica UK (O2), and Vodafone acquired all of the 200-megahertz available across the 700 MHz and 3.6-3.8 GHz bands.
Ofcom has confirmed how it will regulate the wholesale telecoms markets used to deliver broadband, mobile and business connections in the UK, for the next five years and beyond.
Nokia has announced that its AirScale 5G mMIMO Base Station will achieve an average power consumption reduction of 50 percent by 2023, outlining its commitment to climate change and zero emissions.
Global eSIM Store eSIM.net has launched the first local UK eSIM service in the form of the O2 UK eSIM. The new service is focused on offering UK residents lower tariffs on the O2 network and all the benefits of eSIM technology while at home in the United Kingdom.
O2 has joined a consortium, led by drone logistics operator Skyfarer, created to enhance the pathology network in the UK by potentially speeding up patient response and sample turnaround times and make drone delivery of blood for lifesaving transfusions a reality.
Huawei have launched their latest wearable, the Huawei Watch Fit Elegant Edition. The new edition comes in Frosty White and Midnight Black, together with the polished glass surface and fluoroelastomer strap
Nokia and Google Cloud are to develop new, cloud-based 5G radio solutions. The two companies will collaborate on joint solutions combining Nokia’s Radio Access Network (RAN), Open RAN, Cloud RAN (vRAN) and edge cloud technologies
Nokia is to expand its Self-Organizing Networks (SON) technology across 5G networks operated by one of the world’s leading telecommunications carriers, Orange.
Nokia and Microsoft are to develop new market-ready 4G and 5G private wireless use cases designed for enterprises. The collaboration will combine Nokia’s Cloud RAN (vRAN) technologies with Microsoft Azure cloud-based services.
Samsung has been appointed as the sole vendor to supply SaskTel with its 4G/5G Radio Access Network (RAN) and Core. Samsung will supply all hardware, software and associated expertise to ensure the successful deployment of an end-to-end 5G solution.
Omantel and Huawei are to deploy 5G capabilities in the Sultanate’s oil and gas, logistics, and transport sectors. Under a memorandum of understanding (MoU), Omantel and Huawei will develop smart solutions with Hutchison Ports Sohar
The UK’s second 5G spectrum auction is due to begin today, with Ofcom confirming that EE, O2, Three, and Vodafone are all participating. This is the first phase in the two-phase process, in which the carriers will compete for individual lots of spectrum.
CityFibre has identified 216 additional towns and villages that are to benefit from FTTP rollout, completing the list of locations in its £4 billion nationwide investment programme.
O2 is now offering two new Workplace Propositions – Device as a Service – to help business owners get the latest devices, already set up and ready to use as soon as they open the box, and O2 Voice for Microsoft Teams.
Finland’s KymiRing is set to receive a 5G private network using Nokia’s Digital Automation Cloud (DAC) technology, set to unlock a broad range of new options for broadcasting motorsport competitions.
Huawei’s latest pair of wireless earbuds, the FreeBuds 4i with active noise cancelling, are coming to the UK for just £79.99. Huawei FreeBuds 4i are the successor to the FreeBuds 3i and come with a few notable upgrades
Nokia will conduct a 5G Business-to-Business (B2B) digital platform trial for LG Uplus in Korea. Once deployed, the platform will allow LG Uplus to reduce time-to-market for launching 5G-powered services to its enterprise and business vertical customers.
The U.K. telecommunications regulator Ofcom has officially announced that its 5G spectrum auction will start on March 12. The watchdog said it will be releasing 80 megahertz of spectrum in the 700 MHz band
Vodafone is launching communities.connected, a new initiative to give private and public sector organisations an easy, fast and cost-effective way to directly provide connectivity to their most vulnerable customers.
Led by North Lanarkshire Council, BT and Interactive Immersive Classroom, the UK’s first 5G-enabled immersive classroom has arrived in Scotland.
Users across the UK are suffering from broadband issues after Virgin Media suffered a broadband outage. At around 8am this morning more than 1,400 users reported problems with broadband and mobile phone internet on the Down Detector website.
In an effort to improve COVID-19 pandemic response, Ericsson, Telia, and Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Sweden are testing the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to create insight models for planning and prediction of healthcare demands and resources.
BlackBerry and Desay SV Automotive have launched a dual-screen virtual smart cabin domain controller to enable safer driving. Leveraging the QNX Hypervisor and the QNX Real-time Operating System (RTOS)
Nokia is to implement a new 450MHz LTE (4G) network for Danish operator and internet service provider (ISP) Cibicom, which will ensure that key mission-critical services throughout the country
Vodafone has launched Pro Broadband – a service with reliability, speed, security and service built in. The new packages start from £35 a month.
Virgin Media has introduced new pay-monthly mobile plans, which enable customers to upgrade to the latest devices every year – with no upfront cost.
Samsung has achieved a breakthrough in 5G data speeds using E-UTRAN New Radio Dual Connectivity (EN-DC) technology. EN-DC technology enables mobile operators to boost 5G speeds and coverage by leveraging a 4G network.
Cellhire is supporting UK mobile network operator O2 to connect more than 1,500 NHS vaccination sites in England with a range of connectivity solutions across multiple networks.
Nokia has introduced two new professional level 5G certifications. Industrial Automation Networks and Distributed Cloud Networks are part of Nokia’s program to train and certify industry professionals
Vodafone is donating 10,000 dongle devices to Business2Schools, which will distribute them to schools in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Heads can give them to children who still lack the connectivity they need
EE said today that it will upgrade 4G in more than 500 areas in 2021 as part of the Shared Rural Network (SRN) initiative to extend coverage in rural areas across the UK.
Neo is the latest product to join the ‘Designed & Connected’ by Vodafone range and is available to buy now from Vodafone.
In a German village about 100 miles north of Munich, Deutsche Telekom and Ericsson are pioneering the use of solar energy for mobile broadband sites.
Cellhire providing secure high speed data connections for vaccination sites in the UK, US and Europe
Cellhire is continuing to work around-the-clock to provide secure, high speed data connections for thousands of vaccination sites in the US, UK and Europe.
Nokia has today launched its DelOps initiative, a new and innovative approach to managing the complexity of 5G core software delivery and operations, and a new suite of CI/CD Services.
Drones are transporting key medical supplies, such as COVID-19 testing samples and kits, in the remote Argyll & Bute region of Scotland as part of a three-month trial.
Apple TV is now available on Google's Chromecast with Google TV. If you don't already subscribe to Apple's £4.99-per-month streaming plan you can sign up directly from the on-screen app.
Following the news that EE and BT customers will see a rise of 4.5% on their bills from end of March, Vodafone And Three are to follow suit with price rises of pp To 4.5%.
Eseye and TELUS have announced a strategic partnership which will see Eseye’s AnyNet Connectivity Platform power TELUS’ newly launched TELUS Global Connect.
BlackBerry has rolled out enhancements to its BlackBerry Radar H2 intelligent, data-driven asset monitoring devices with the aim of helping the world's transportation businesses reduce costs and securely improve the utilization of their trailers, containers, chassis and other remote assets.
Samsung will be hosting its Unbox & Discover 2021 event on March 2, where the company will “share its vision” for innovative products and how those products will “redefine the role of the TV” through cutting-edge technologies and beautiful design.
Wipro Limited and Telefónica Germany / O2 have signed a five-year strategic partnership where Wipro will work with Telefónica Germany / O2 and its wider ecosystem to transform its Business Support Systems
BlackBerry Jarvis a software composition analysis tool, has been recognized as “Best in Breed” by an Internal Research & Development project (IRAD). The analysis was conducted on behalf of the United States Department of Defense
Vodafone has successfully used new precision positioning technology to remotely track a vehicle to within just 10 centimetres of its location, an improvement of more than three metres compared with current standard satellite based systems.
The majority of EE and BT customers will see a rise of 4.5% on their bills from end of March. The rise is made up of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) figure for January which is 0.6% and the 3.9% BT and EE added to their contracts in September 2020.
Telecoms regulator Ofcom has fined O2 £10.5m for overcharging its customers. Ofcom’s rules require telecoms companies to provide customers with accurate bills and charges.
BlackBerry has launched QNX Hypervisor 2.2, the latest edition of the company's real-time embedded hypervisor product.
Volkswagen Group's software company Car.Software Organisation are to collaborate with Microsoft to build a cloud-based Automated Driving Platform (ADP) on Microsoft Azure.
Nokia is teaming up with Brazil’s Telecommunications CPQD to jointly develop applications and solutions based on the Open RAN (O-RAN) compliant near-real-time RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC).
Ericsson and T-Systems are offering fully integrated campus network solutions to partners worldwide. Based on Ericsson's Campus Network infrastructure and T-Systems' Edge Computing capabilities.
Nokia and Mobily have extended their managed services partnership by signing a three-year agreement under which Nokia will manage and maintain the radio and transport network in Riyadh and other regions.
The first phase of the new Shared Rural Network could boost rural business turnover by £187.7 million, with the lion’s share of revenue gains going to businesses in rural Scotland and the struggling hospitality sector.
Vodafone UK has selected Digitalk’s mobile service platform to support its growth in the MVNO sector. Digitalk is a global mobile virtual network enabler (MVNE) service provider, offering cloud-based real-time communications platforms.
BlackBerry's QNX Black Channel Communications Technology will be used in Motional's next-generation driverless vehicles. Launched in April 2020, Motional will be BlackBerry's first customer to use QNX Black Channel Communications for driverless systems.
Leonardo’s Edinburgh-based Innovation and Technology Incubator Centre will partner with O2 to investigate several innovative applications of private 5G technology in the defence and security industry.
The deployment and testing of the Dunant submarine cable system has been completed and the system is ready for service. Dunant is the first long-haul subsea cable to feature a 12 fibre pair space-division multiplexing (SDM) design.
Vodafone and Nokia have demonstrated a prototype 100Gbps (gigabits per second) broadband connection that is 100 times faster than today’s full fibre home broadband connections.
Following an Ofcom rule change in 2015, customers switching between providers such as BT, Sky and TalkTalk on Openreach’s copper network can already follow a process where their new provider manages the switch. But others are still left facing extra hassle to switch.
BT has unveiled BT Halo 3+, the latest innovation in BT’s convergence story, offering what BT says is the UK’s only unbreakable wi-fi connection for the home backed up by the EE mobile network.
Nokia and Vodafone have successfully trialled a new Passive Optical Network (PON) technology capable of delivering speeds up to 100 gigabits per second (Gb/s) on a single wavelength 10 times faster than the most advanced networks available today.
Six months after launching Singapore’s first non-standalone 5G services for consumers and enterprises, longstanding partners, StarHub and Nokia have teamed up again to deploy a new cloud-native 5G core network.
Google and Ford have signed a six year deal under which Android will be installed in most of the US carmaker’s vehicles in the latest sign of technology companies’ interest in the automotive sector.
O2 and NEC have successfully completed an Open RAN trial on O2’s network with NEC and its ecosystem of partners that includes virtualised RAN software from Altiostar and hardware from GigaTera Communications and Supermicro among others.
Square has launched its latest hardware offering, Square Register, a fully integrated countertop point-of-sale (POS) solution, designed to give UK businesses with complex needs the versatility they need to manage sophisticated operations.
O2, Three and Vodafone are teaming up to build and share 222 new mobile masts to boost rural coverage across the United Kingdom and deliver the first stage of the Shared Rural Network (SRN).
Apple has rolled out watchOS 7.3 bringing ECG to more countries and a new Unity watch face. Among the new features included in watchOS 7.3 is Time to Walk - an audio experience found in the workout app that lets Apple Fitness+ subscribers listen to stories as they walk.
Samsung's Health Monitor app – which helps you monitor your health – will be available in the UK from February 22nd 2021. Galaxy Watch3 and Galaxy Watch Active2 users can utilise blood pressure and electrocardiogram tracking benefits via the Samsung Health Monitor app.
BlackBerry and Chinese Internet search provider Baidu have expanded their strategic partnership, with Baidu's high-definition maps to run on the QNX Neutrino Real-time Operating System (RTOS).
Virgin Media’s mobile customers can now take advantage of 5G in 100 locations across the UK thanks to the company’s partnership with Vodafone UK. Any Virgin Media mobile customer who upgrades to 5G will receive all of their mobile connectivity from Vodafone’s UK network.
Samsung's 5G RAN solutions have received a Common Criteria (CC) certification against the Network Device collaborative Protection Profile (NDcPP), an internationally recognized IT security standards.
Samsung has announced its latest 5G advancement with the recent rollout of the company’s vRAN 2.0 solutions, the first fully virtualized commercial 5G RAN delivered end-to-end from a single vendor.
Nokia and China Mobile have successfully completed live trials of an AI-powered radio access network (RAN) over CMCC’s network. Utilizing CMCC’s 4G and 5G networks, the companies completed an AI-based real-time user equipment (UE) traffic bandwidth forecast trial in Shanghai as well as a network anomaly detection trial in Taiyuan,
Asda is working with Dell to provide 7,000 laptops to schools across the UK to help those children who are at risk of falling behind in their education because they do not have the technology to take part in online lessons during lockdown.
Nokia has launched 5G services with mobile operator, Optus at the Optus Stadium in Perth, Australia. The move provides visitors attending sporting or music events with access to incredibly fast indoor and outdoor 5G coverage with speeds over 1Gbps
Nokia has successfully piloted 4G and 5G fixed wireless access (FWA) network slicing with Saudi Arabian telecommunications services provider, Mobily on their live commercial network – the first sliced FWA deployment in the world.
Telstra, in collaboration with Ericsson and Qualcomm, have successfully completed a new 5G maximum download speed record on a commercial network of 5Gbps for a single user. The 5G NR data call was performed at the 5G Innovation Centre on the Gold Coast using the commercial production network.
Cruise and General Motors have entered a long-term strategic relationship with Microsoft (MSFT) to accelerate the commercialization of self-driving vehicles. The companies say that they will will bring together their software and hardware engineering excellence, cloud computing capabilities, manufacturing know-how and partner ecosystem to transform transportation to create a safer, cleaner and more accessible world for everyone.
EE has switched on 5G in thirteen new UK locations, taking the number of towns and cities with access to the operator’s 5G network to 125.
Nokia and M1 have signed a partnership agreement to deploy Nokia’s cloud-native Core software in order to drive Singapore’s 5G standalone network launch in 2021.
BT is increasing its effort to enable school kids to better connect with teachers and online learning, while schools remain closed, with the launch of its ‘Lockdown Learning’ support scheme.
To support the UK’s small businesses as they continue to get through the COVID-19 pandemic, Vodafone is making business broadband free for 2021. The offer follows new research by Vodafone partner Enterprise Nation
Ooredoo Group and Ericsson have signed a global frame agreement for the supply of 5G radio, core and transport products and solutions, as well as related implementation and integration services.
Samsung's HDR10+ Adaptive feature will be supported in Samsung TVs, which improves the HDR10+ viewing experience in customers’ homes regardless of the lighting conditions.
Huawei has unveiled its first LiDAR designed for use in automotive self-driving systems at the T10 ICV CTO summit held by China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM).
Huawei has launched a smart in-car display, which is the first aftermarket-installed product powered by HUAWEI HiCar, the company's self-owned solution for auto smart connectivity.
Samsung TV Plus, Samsung’s free Smart TV video service, which delivers instant access to news, sports, entertainment and more, has now expanded to 12 countries and 742 channels worldwide, bringing access to over 60 million Samsung Smart TVs.
Google is to shut down Android Things, a stripped-down version of Android designed for smart home devices.
New Ofcom research has revealed the challenges and tough choices many telecoms customers are facing this year, with more action needed from industry to support customers in financial difficulty.
Nokia has today launched 5G services with Polkomtel, operator of the Plus network, in the capital city of Warsaw as well as other major cities in the eastern part of the country.
Samsung and Intel have achieved a 5G SA Core data processing capacity of 305Gbps (Gigabits per second) per server and...
Apple Watch users can now view their cardio fitness level in the Health app on iPhone, and receive a notification on Apple Watch if it falls within the low range.
Huawei has launched its cloud-based Content Delivery Network (CDN) solution in India, enabling businesses to serve users across industries such as Media & OTT, Banking & Financial Institutions; Education; E-Commerce; Online Travel & Hospitality; Healthcare; Online Gaming; Digital Marketing; and Government.
Samsung and TikTok are bringing TikTok’s trending content exclusively to Samsung Smart TVs in Europe, launching first for UK customers today.
Vodafone has launched a new portfolio of cybersecurity products to protect UK enterprises, public sector organisations, and critical national infrastructure providers from cybercrime.
EE has partnered with the Scottish Government and the Home Office to bring 4G to some of Scotland’s most rural locations for the first time. Strathconon, Blairmore and Reawick have been connected to 4G, with a further 32 locations across rural Scotland to follow.
Ericsson has been selected by KDDI to deploy cloud-native dual-mode 5G Core in its 5G Standalone network in Japan, paving the way to ramp-up 5G use case development and realization.
Vodafone has launched a pilot of ‘Connected Education’ – a suite of digital services for teachers and pupils – at Bridge of Allan Primary School in Stirling, Scotland. Connected Education incorporates tablets for teachers and children, mobile Wi-Fi connectivity, advanced-grade security and specialist training to help teachers gain digital skills.
Samsung SmartThings has teamed up with Google to bring the company’s portfolio of Nest products into SmartThings, one of the largest IoT ecosystems. Through the integration, Google Nest devices, including thermostats, cameras and doorbells, will be “Works With SmartThings” (WWST) certified.
Nokia’s cloud-native, 5G Core software has been selected by SoftBank to enable the launch of SoftBank’s standalone 5G services. Nokia will help support new consumer and enterprise use cases, such as immersive experiences (VR/AR/MR), fixed wireless access, video surveillance and analytics, cloud robotics and connected vehicles with a standalone 5G Core in global markets.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is to open a second infrastructure region in Australia in the second half of 2022. The new AWS Asia Pacific (Melbourne) Region, which will consist of three Availability Zones (AZs) at launch, will join the existing 25 Availability Zones in eight AWS Regions across Asia Pacific in Australia, China, India, Japan, Korea, and Singapore.
AWS and the BMW Group are teaming up on a comprehensive strategic collaboration to further accelerate the automaker’s pace of innovation by placing data and analytics at the centre of its decision-making.
Apple Music is rolling out to Google Assistant-enabled devices like Nest Audio, Nest Hub Max, Nest Mini, and more.
Nokia is to to lead the EU’s 6G project Hexa-X, the European Commission’s 6G flagship initiative for research that will drive the overall 6G vision. The project goals include creating unique 6G use cases and scenarios, developing fundamental 6G technologies and defining a new architecture for an intelligent fabric that integrates key 6G technology enablers.
Vodafone Business and RingCentral are to create a new co-branded, cloud-based service that will be the lead Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS) solution for Vodafone Business.
Vodafone and Disney have unveiled the Neo, a smartwatch for kids that gives them independence as they take their first steps into the digital world, but which also helps parents stay connected.
Earlier this week, AWS and BlackBerry revealed they were joining forces to develop BlackBerry IVY, a scalable, cloud-connected software platform that will allow automakers to create personalized driver and passenger experiences.
AWS has launched new virtual computing instances for software developers that run Apple’s MacOS OS, bringing macOS in the cloud for the first time.
AWS and BlackBerry are joining forces to develop BlackBerry IVY, a scalable, cloud-connected software platform that will allow automakers to create personalized driver and passenger experiences and improve operations of connected vehicles with new BlackBerry QNX and AWS technology.
Three UK continues the rollout of its 5G network with the launch of its first Ericsson 5G sites which are now live for customers in Manchester, Glasgow and Reading.
Nokia has extended its agreement with AT&T to support global enterprise customers with IoT connectivity using its WING solution and IoT ecosystem.
AWS continues to be Zoom’s preferred cloud provider, with both company's signing a new multi-year agreement, extending the longstanding relationship between the two companies.
CNH Industrial has signed a five-year agreement to collaborate with Microsoft and Accenture to develop a system of digital services for its operations.
UK Telecoms providers will be banned from installing Huawei equipment in the UK’s 5G networks from next September, the government has said.
Transatel and BT Wholesale have extended their MVNO agreement to enable 5G for MVNOs in the UK. Transatel is a technical sub-contractor that tends to sit in the middle between primary MNOs and virtual (MVNO) operators
Nokia has been selected by China Mobile IoT (CMIoT), to ensure delivery of IoT connectivity and services to CMIoT’s customers across China and globally.
Samsung and SK Telecom (SKT) have successfully developed and trialled the next-generation 5G core network.
Google Assistant has joined the suite of voice assistants currently available on 2020 Samsung Smart TVs, providing viewers with enhanced control and discovery abilities.
Google Assistant's Scheduled Actions feature allows now users to conveniently schedule a smart home command to trigger at a later time.
UK ISP Zen Internet is set to become the third consumer ISP to launch full-fibre services to its customers over CityFibre’s national open access network, following in the steps of Vodafone and TalkTalk.
