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The telco is the first company to announce domestic production of fibre products for use in the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) programme 

This week, Nokia has announced that it will partner with manufacturing firm Sanmina Corporation to produce fibre optic network equipment at the latter’s factory in Wisconsin for use in the BEAD program. 

The BEAD programme, launched in November 2021 as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, dedicates more than $42 billion to expand high-speed internet access to everyone in America, with the aim to “get everyone online”. The scheme will fund the planning and building of the infrastructure needed to increase the adoption of high-speed internet. 

The money was allocated in June on a state-by-state basis, with each state receiving a minimum of $100 million and offshore territories a $25 million minimum. Some states, such as Texas and California have secured much more, being allocated $3.3 billion and $1.86 billion, respectively. Nineteen US states are set to receive more than $1 billion. 

States must now each submit a five-year plan to the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), outlining how they will use their funding to close the digital divide in their respective regions. 

Naturally, this is a huge opportunity for fibre network equipment makers, but there is a catch: the “Build America, Buy America” Act, which requires public funding to only be spent on American-made products. The NTIA is stringent in their imposition of this, in order to maximise the economic potential of the scheme for the country. 

Thus, for Nokia to capture even a fraction of this BEAD funding, it will require manufacturing capabilities in the US itself, hence the new partnership with Sanmina. 

Products to be manufactured at that the Sanmina plant include an Optical Line Termination (OLT) card for a modular Access Node, a small form factor OLT, OLT optical modules, and an outdoor-hardened Optical Network Terminal (ONT). 

“By continuing to invest in domestic manufacturing, Nokia and Sanmina will be able to help create a sustainable future for the industry, one that drives job growth and ensures the fibre products produced embody the quality and excellence associated with American manufacturing,” added Sanmina CEO Jure Sola. 

“By bringing the manufacturing of our fibre-optic broadband access products to the US, BEAD participants will be able to work with us to bridge the digital divide. We look forward to bringing more Americans online,” said Nokia in a statement. 

Manufacturing the equipment will begin next year, and Nokia claims the project will create 200 new jobs.  

How is the US broadband market evolving? Join the operators in discussion at next year’s Connected America conference live in Dallas, Texas 

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The FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 kicked off last month and UK ISP EE (BT) reports that the three matches involving England’s squad have caused a modest, but noticeable, increase in broadband data traffic, rising by between 7-8% compared to an “average” day. Typically, matches that take place outside a traditional holiday period and during […]

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The scheme would be one of the UK’s largest investments to-date in the satellite communications industry 

The UK government is working on a scheme to fund the development of satellite communications in Britain. Named the Connectivity in Low Earth Orbit (CLEO) scheme, the programme’s aim is to provide support to researchers and businesses in the satellite communications sector, aiming to propel the development of new satellite constellations. 

Michelle Donelan, Science and Technology Secretary, said the government is exploring an initial grant of £100 million, and an additional £60 million from the Advanced Research in Telecommunications Systems (ARTES) programme from the European Space Agency (ESA). 

Low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellations are more resilient than ground-based infrastructure, and when complete, can potentially provide total global coverage. The advancement of such LEO technology is vital to bring strong connectivity to the most rural parts of the country, and achieving this will help to close the current digital divide in the UK, according to the UK government. 

The fund will aid the creation of many skilled jobs, boost the economy, and fuel the National Space Council’s aim of making the UK a ‘true space superpower.’ 

“Tackling the digital divide is at the heart of empowering our citizens wherever they live, and by investing in the vital research and development that CLEO would facilitate, we can level up our country while growing the economy through high-quality jobs,” commented Donelan.  

“Today’s announcement is a vital step towards the delivery of a key priority of the UK Space Agency – to maximise the potential of low Earth orbit and become a global leader in next generation satellite communications technologies by building our ability to service future high-volume constellations” said Harshbir Sangha, Missions and Capabilities Delivery Director at the UK Space Agency. 

The launch of the scheme will be dependent on standard approval procedures, and further information will be provided to the public in a UK Space Agency webinar on 10th August. 

Interested in keeping up with the conversation around the UK’s satellite communications? Join us at this years’ Connected Britain event 

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Alternative network operator and UK ISP Grain has revealed that they intend to deploy their new gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband network across “more than” 10,000 homes in the Cheshire (England) town of Warrington, which reflects about one tenth of the town’s c.98,000 residential properties. The announcement doesn’t clarify when the rollout will start or how […]

The wholesale division of broadband ISP TalkTalk has this week announced that they’ve signed a new agreement with business provider Gamma Communications, which will extend their existing “25-year partnership” to run for another three years until at least April 2026. The announcement, which also states that the pair have “worked together since 2002” (wouldn’t that […]

The administrators for troubled UK network operator Broadway Partners (Broadway Broadband), which had been building fixed wireless and full fibre (FTTP) ISP networks across rural parts of Scotland and Wales, have published their first report and revealed that several interested parties have bid for the business. Just to recap. Broadway – supported by a major […]

A few years ago we reported that Openreach (BT) had moved to accelerate and expand their rollout of Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband ISP technology into more challenging rural areas by installing “Subtended Headends” (SHE). The technology has now saved them £10m in build costs in the last year alone (Fiscal Year 22/23). The term Subtended Head […]

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The agreement is a huge knock for Telefonica Deutschland, which generates 40% of its free cash flow from its relationship with 1&1, according to analysts 

This week, Germany’s newest mobile operator 1&1 has signed an exclusive deal with Vodafone Germany, allowing it to provide 5G services to its customers using Vodafone’s network. 

The operator currently has a similar long-term deal with Telefonica Deutschland to provide 4G services, which will last until June 2025. 

1&1 was originally a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) using Telefónica Deutschland’s network to deliver services. In 2019, however, 1&1 purchased €1.07 billion-worth of spectrum at auction, aiming to build its own 5G network. 

Whilst its own network is being built, 1&1 will need to provide services via other operators. It will be able to use Vodafone’s mobile networks wherever it does not yet operate its own sites (starting from 1st October 2024). The agreement is long term, up to 18 years, and will also provide coverage to areas not covered by 1&1’s new network. 

Since the news, Telefonica Deutschland’s share prices have dropped by 16%, the most on record. Shares of parent company Telefónica also fell by 7%. On the contrary, shares in 1&1 rose by 15%, the biggest one-day gain since 2008. 

There have not been any disclosed financial details, although 1&1 will pay a set price based on the percentage of Vodafone’s network used by its customers. 

“Both sides will benefit from this mobile communications partnership in the long term. 1&1 also gets access to 5G. And the attractive conditions of this partnership help us as Vodafone to make even better use of our networks and to further improve them for our customers,” said Phillip Rogge, Vodafone Germany CEO. 

The deal marks a change in the tone of the relationship between the two firms. In February 2021, 1&1 filed a complaint to the German Federal Cartel Office, noting that it was facing ‘ongoing obstacles to the rollout of its 5G network resulting from actions by Vodafone’. 1&1 alleged that Vodafone’s tower unit, Vantage Towers, failed to provide access to its sites as per their contractual agreement. 

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e& looks to Europe with €2.15bn stake in PPF Telecom Group
UK government unveils £40m funding for 5G innovation  

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The move would be the latest step in e&’s global expansion goals 

UAE-based telco e& has put forward an offer to increase its stake in Vodafone to 20%, according to CEO Hatem Dowidar. 

The offer is subject to regulatory approval, but Dowidar says the firm is “hopeful [that it will] get these approvals in the next 3 or 4 months”. 

e&, which has 165 million global subscribers, first bought a 9.8% stake in the British telecoms company Vodafone for $4.4 billion in May last year. Since then, it has been gradually increasing its stake, which stood at 14.61% in April.  

That the company is continuing to increase its stake should not come as much of a surprise, with e& saying in May that it was considering increasing its stake up to 25%, saying that it sought to become a “significant minority investor with enough influence”.  

At the time, Dowidar himself had just been made a non-executive director on Vodafone’s board, following the previous stake increase. 

In recent months, the Vodafone has reported a relatively weak performance in key markets like German and Spain, leaving its share price somewhat depressed and opening the door for opportunistic investment. Indeed, e&’s stake now makes it the company’s largest shareholder, but it is not the only new investor. Back in February, Liberty Global snapped up a 4.92% stake in the firm, and Atlas Investissement, owned by French billionaire Xavier Niel, purchased a 2.5% stake in September last year.  

New CEO Margherita Della Vella has been challenged with steadying the ship, having described the company’s recent earnings as “not good enough”. 

For e&, meanwhile, the stake is also closely related to its new strategy of global expansion, with Dowidar saying earlier this year that the company has the “capacity and wallet” for international expansion.  Since then, the company has been exploring new opportunities in a number of markets in Europe, Africa, and Asia. 

Just this week e& has purchased the controlling stake in PPF Telecom Groups’ assets in Bulgaria, Hungary, Serbia and Slovakia for €2.15 billion. The deal is of subject to regulatory approval but is expected to close early next year. 

e& has also shown notable interest in Ethiopia, with reports last month suggesting the company could take a significant stake in the country’s national telco, Ethio Telecom. 

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