New customers taking out one of UK ISP Virgin Media’s (VMO2) 350Mbps, 500Mbps or 1Gbps broadband-only packages may be pleased to learn that the provider will now throw in one of their new TV streaming boxes – simply called ‘Stream‘ – for free (i.e. they’ve waived the usual £35 activation fee). Stream itself is available […]

NEWS

Reports suggest the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) is in discussions with Telecom Egypt to acquire 20% of their holdings in Vodafone Egypt

This week, reports suggest that the QIA has entered into discussions with state-run Telecom Egypt to acquire 20% of the latter’s 45% stake in Vodafone Egypt.

The discussions are wider investment by QIA in undisclosed assets owned by the Egyptian state, with a total combined value of around $2.5 billion.

Vodafone Egypt is the largest mobile operator in Egypt with a market share of roughly 43%. Vodafone Group owns a 55% stake in the business, with the remainder held by Telecom Egypt. Telecom Egypt, in turn, is 80% owned by the Egyptian government.

A formal offer has yet to be made, but sources suggest that an agreement could be reached by the end of the year.

Rumours that the QIA was negotiating with Telecom Egypt first began to circulate last month, but the Egyptian operator was quick to deny that discussions were taking place.

The stake sale, if it is agreed, will be the latest step in the thawing of Qatar and Egypt’s frosty relationship. Back in 2017, Egypt, alongside Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates, severed diplomatic ties with Qatar due to the latter’s alleged support of terrorist organisations.

Money talks, however, and Qatari investments have continued to trickle into Egypt in the past five years. The QIA, for example, already has various investments in Egypt, much of which is centred around the country’s vital tourist trade, which has been heavily impacted first by the pandemic and today by the war in Ukraine.

In closely related news, Vodafone Group itself currently in the process of selling its 55% stake in Vodafone Egypt to Vodacom Group, with the deal being valued at roughly $2.7 billion.

The deal’s journey through the regulatory process in South Africa, however, is taking some time. Recent reports suggest that the deal has received the green light from the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority but is still awaiting approval from the Financial Supervision Department of the Reserve Bank of South Africa.

Also in the news:
The missing 3.2 billion…
New EXA investment serves customers across the Iberian peninsula
Startup stories: Facing up to cybersecurity risks

The post Qatari sovereign wealth fund mulls taking 20% stake in Vodafone Egypt first appeared on Total Telecom.

A THOUGHTLEADERSHIP ARTICLE BY IAN COWSER, CARRIER NETWORKS APPLICATION ENGINEER, CORNING OPTICAL COMMUNICATIONS.

While the UK was once a relative laggard in FTTH compared to its European neighbours, it is now a hive of activity. Digital connectivity has become a cornerstone of the UK’s economic ambitions and the business case for laying down as much full fibre as possible, as fast as possible, grows ever stronger.

It’s a fiercely competitive space and while Openreach continues to lead the charge and build at scale, recent data from INCA indicates that UK alternative operators (altnets) have more than doubled their footprint year on year since 2019 – now reaching 5.5m premises and expected to reach 11.5m premises by the end of this year.

The race to establish a footprint brings a keen focus on the speed of deployment. Success in this modern-day gold rush hinges on the ability to build at speed and meet ambitious targets, while of course retaining the network quality and productivity that will keep local stakeholders and residents happy. With your average homeowner unlikely to see the bigger picture when faced with roadworks and digging outside their homes – the faster build teams can get in and out the better.

When it comes to the most popular network architecture choices, since the earliest days of FTTH there has been much discussion about the relative merits of passive optical network (PON) versus Point to Point and Centralised versus Distributed Split architectures. The capability to speed up deployment however is mainly influenced by the configuration of network terminals – the point at which customer drops are connected into the network – and the method by which customers are connected.

The most efficient solution for speed of deployment both from the perspective of Homes Passed and Homes Connected Homes Connected is using hardened connectors and stubbed terminals. At Corning, we developed a solution nearly 20 years ago that reduced splicing in the field and moved that work to our own factories – creating the industry’s first pre-connectorised solution for fibre to the premises. Terminals using this interface can be deployed without any fibre handling work, which means that more skilled resource can be deployed further back in the network where splicing is a necessity.

In response to today’s network challenges, we’ve taken this approach even further with Evolv™ Terminals and Drops with Pushlok™ Technology, our newest hardened connectorised terminal and drop solution. The terminals are less than half the size of previous solutions and the “Stick&Click” one handed mating makes the connection process quick and easy.

This also helps to solve another principal challenge for our UK altnets – securing permissions (known as wayleave agreements) which can significantly stall even the best laid build plans. The INCA data referenced earlier also found that for 57% of respondents, their average wait time in securing wayleaves is 6 to 12 months.

Securing permissions is particularly difficult in historical areas. The local authorities, building owners and landlords, quite rightly, have a responsibility to ensure that the character and appearance of these areas is preserved, and conspicuous networking equipment is rarely welcomed. By minimising the size of the terminal in multiple planes, the product can be installed on buildings discretely and with an overall aesthetic look.

There’s also a variety of ways that money can be saved in the placement of these terminals and their connection to the device, which helps build the business case. In particular, smaller terminals can be installed on congested poles and chambers where conventional terminals won’t fit which can significantly reduce the need for expensive network adjustment upgrades.

While there will be winners and losers in the fibre gold rush, the main beneficiaries will ultimately be you and me. Ubiquitous full fibre coverage, from a choice of ISPs, will lay a critical foundation for all manner of public services, boost productivity, enable next-generation entertainment and services, and support an increasingly hybrid workforce. For the altnets themselves, maintaining a keen focus on the speed and scalability of their builds will be the key to success. https://www.corning.com/emea/altnets

 

About Ian Cowser:

Ian Cowser is an application engineer, advising and supporting on optical fibre networks to leading operators and builders for Corning Optical Communications. He has nearly 30 years’ experience working within the Fibre to the Home industry, with extensive experience in FTTH deployments throughout Europe.

During 29 years within Corning, Ian has held a variety of roles, including Technical & System Manager, Sales Manager and Sales Executive as well as the Chair of the Corning European Employee Committee. He has consistently promoted FTTH with major operators in EMEA. Ian is a highly structured mechanical engineer with a degree from the University of Central Lancashire in Lancashire, UK.

 

The post The FTTH Gold Rush – How to Get Ahead in the Rollout Race first appeared on Total Telecom.

Founded in 1978 and acquired by ETC Group in 2020, Comtec is one of the UK’s largest value-added distributors of telecom and IP equipment to both the carrier and enterprise markets. With offices in the UK, Far East and Middle East, it operate two divisions. A product distribution solution offering the same or next day delivery service to installation contractors and a specialist supply chain management solution for telecommunications operators and large systems integrators.

At our recent #ConnectedBritain event, we caught up with Bruno Poisson, Group Managing Director – Europe for ETC where he explained how Comtec is contributing to accelerating fibre rollouts in the UK.

Watch the interview here:

Get in touch to find out how Comtec can help with your requirements and alleviate any potential stock issues you may be facing.

See their full range here www.comtecdirect.co.uk
Speak to the Comtec team – 01480 405414
Email at fttxsales@comtec-comms.com

 

The post Comtec (Part of ETC Group) helping to resolve supply issues with huge stockholdings in the UK first appeared on Total Telecom.

Technology development group ETSI, which is a European Standards Organization (ESO), has this week released a new e-SIM related specification that will enable multiple accounts and identities to exist inside the same Smartphone (mobile) handset without needing any physical SIMs to be within the device. Just to recap. The GSMA’s eSIM standard is an alternative […]

NEWS

The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA)’s burgeoning GM One Network will provide improved connectivity to numerous public sector organisations within the city-region, including local government and emergency services

Back in early 2020, before the coronavirus pandemic the GMCA launched a Digital Blueprint, setting out a three-year strategy focussed on improving the city-region’s digital infrastructure and engagement.

Perhaps one of the most significant goals laid out in this framework was to significantly upgrade and improve the public sector infrastructure and networks, much of which had been left unchanged for over a decade.

As part of this process, the £23.8M Local Full Fibre Networks (LFFN) Programme, coupled with local investment, was agreed in March 2020, appointing Virgin Media Business to connect over 1,500 public sites across the region.

Since then, however, it has become increasingly apparent that greater collaboration is needed between the GMCA, Greater Manchester’s local authorities, Fire & Rescue Services, and Transport for Greater Manchester with regards to infrastructure usage. By the middle of 2021, the resulting discussions have led to the concept of the GM One Network, aiming to create a single active network infrastructure across these key public sector organisations, enabling network services across the region to be provided more efficiently, securely, and flexibly.

If successful, the GM One Network can later be expanded to further public sector organisations, including additional emergency services and health organisations.

Today, the GMCA has announced a new strategi partnership with telecoms equipment provider Cisco to help build this network, which will support the latest technologies including 5G, WiFi6, and Open Roaming.

Cisco will also work with the various local authorities within Greater Manchester to provide digital skills training via the Cisco Networking Academy, the vendor’s global IT and cybersecurity education program. Much of this will take place at the facilities of Cisco’s accredited training partner, UCEN Manchester, which opened up a new campus in Manchester back in September.

“Greater Manchester’s bold ambitions to build a fairer, more sustainable, and prosperous community align very closely with Cisco’s vision for a more digitally inclusive nation,” said Adele Every, Head of Public Sector for Cisco UK & Ireland. “By widening access to digital skills and advancing technology, our partnership will enable the GMCA to revolutionise citizen services, while driving economic growth opportunities from which everyone can benefit and helping to realise the region’s ambition of becoming a world-leading digital innovation hub.”

Cisco will not be alone in helping to support the GM One Network. Engage ESM has also been announced as a supplier for the GM One Network, with additional partners expected to be announced in the near future.

The value of this improved connectivity for the public sector cannot be understated. Recent research from the Centre for Economics and Business Research, commissioned by Cisco, suggests that improved connectivity, faster internet speeds and wider technology adoption could add £4.8 billion in productivity gains to the Greater Manchester economy, by 2030.

“This is a huge achievement for Greater Manchester’s public sector and really demonstrates the value of collaboration,” explained Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester. “Through transforming our public services, we are boosting our towns and cities, cementing our position as a world leading digital-city region. Ensuring our services are more efficient supports our ambition that everyone in Greater Manchester, whatever their age, location or situation, can benefit from the opportunities digital brings.”

Is the public sector in the North of the UK moving fast enough when it comes to deploying high quality infrastructure and developing the digital skills within their communities?

Join local authority representatives in direct discussion with the telecoms sector at this upcoming Connected North conference, live in Manchester

Also in the news:
The missing 3.2 billion…
New EXA investment serves customers across the Iberian peninsula
Startup stories: Facing up to cybersecurity risks

The post Greater Manchester Combined Authority partners Cisco for GM One Network first appeared on Total Telecom.

Fern Trading-backed UK broadband ISP Giganet (Cuckoo), which is currently investing £250m to build a new gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband across parts of Southern England, has this week unveiled a new batch of five locations in Hampshire to benefit from their ongoing deployment. The operator’s current plan is to cover a total of 300,000 premises […]

PARTNER CONTENT 

[Netherlands, Amsterdam, October 19, 2022] At the award ceremony of Broadband World Forum (BBWF) 2022, Huawei’s SingleFAN Pro solution won the “Outstanding FTTH Solution” award.

With its unique innovation capabilities in the 50G PON field, Huawei takes the lead in implementing the next-generation PON defined by ITU-T and completed live-network verification. This is the fourth consecutive time that Huawei won this award since 2019, proving the industry’s high recognition of Huawei’s continuous innovation in the optical access field, especially its contribution to the next-generation PON evolution.

Huawei’s Intelligent Distributed Access Network solution won the “Outstanding FTTH Solution” Award at BBWF

Currently, operators are upgrading broadband networks to 10G PON so that more users can enjoy gigabit ultra-broadband experience. In addition, to meet ever higher bandwidth requirements from users and new services, the next-generation high-speed PON is also put on the agenda. In September 2021, ITU-T officially released the 50G PON standard as the only standard for next-generation PON after 10G PON. The 50G PON standard lays a foundation for the evolution of broadband services from gigabit to 10G.

As a leader in the optical access field, Huawei completed the verification of innovative 50G PON on a commercial OLT platform on the live network this year. Huawei can provide leading features to promote operators to upgrade their networks to 10G, including:

Up to 32dB optical power budget

By using innovative structures and materials in optical modules, Huawei improves the transmit capability of optical components by 4.5 times. The photon absorption capability at the receive end is improved from 70% to nearly 100%, and the maximum optical power budget can reach 32dB, meeting the requirements of the live ODN networks. The ODN does not need to be reconstructed during service upgrade, protecting the investment for operators to upgrade their FTTH networks.

Built-in Combo compatible with XG(S) PON

To upgrade traditional OLTs, operators need to deploy new racks and subracks, and introduce multiplexers. This not only occupies the equipment room area, but also slows down the upgrade and prolongs the service interruption time. Huawei’s innovative Combo solution supports both XG(S) PON and 50G PON services on the same port, achieving optimal deployment and flexible upgrade.

Symmetrical 50Gbps capability in the upstream and downstream directions

Future services require more powerful and flexible upstream transmission capabilities. Huawei implements 50G upstream transmission capabilities in 50G PON innovation to support high-bandwidth services. In addition, operators can flexibly select ONUs with different upstream rates (12.5Gbps, 25Gbps, and 50Gbps) based on terminal user types, improving capabilities with optimal costs.

Huawei has cooperated with more than 20 leading operators around the world on 50G PON as the next-generation PON, fully verifying the feasibility and maturity of 50G PON in different live network conditions. In the future, Huawei will work with industry partners to quickly promote the industrialization and commercial use of 50G PON, continuously build ubiquitous optical connections, and accelerate the construction of a fully connected, intelligent world.

The post Huawei Won the “Outstanding FTTH Solution” Award at BBWF 2022 with Leading 50G PON Innovation first appeared on Total Telecom.

Contributed Article

In a rapidly changing world, new technologies are transforming the way we live and work. Much has been said about the importance of rural connectivity in delivering these changes, but what about our towns and cities? Paul Stonadge, Sales and Commercial Director at Cellnex UK, discusses the need to address the digital divide in urban areas in order to tackle exclusion.

In a post-pandemic world, we have become even more dependent on reliable, high-speed connections for our work, education, and access to healthcare. But as the world has become even more digital dependent, the digital divide across towns and cities has grown and must be addressed urgently if we are to grow socially and economically.

The work done to bridge the digital divide in the UK has traditionally focused on improving access in rural areas. This has been done through the vehicle of the Shared Rural Network, which has successfully improved internet access in the most remote areas of the UK. However, 5 in every 6 people live in urban areas in the UK, and the number is increasing.

Across urban areas of the UK, only 24.7% of the South West and 42.2% of the North West of England have access to gigabit broadband. Yet it is recognised that these areas have the potential to be two key technology hubs across the UK. Although most people might picture these places as hyper-connected, the fact is huge numbers of people in towns and cities still struggle with internet access. With the right collaboration, investment and infrastructure, urban areas could play a vital part in supporting the UK economy and growing digital skills.

Levelling Up

Urban areas make up 84% of the UK’s population, yet they are massively impacted by the ‘urban digital divide’, with less than 50% of urban areas in the UK having access to gigabit-capable networks, For businesses, this can have a significant effect on productivity, and the subsequent economic impact is huge.

Recent research conducted by Three UK, YouGov, and Development Economics found that professional services firms – legal, accounting, and media businesses – lost an average of £5.3 billion in revenue per year due to poor connectivity, accounting for an annual output loss of £2.8 billion to the British economy.

The ‘Levelling Up’ agenda is a welcome focus that can help support regional productivity, but addressing the need to level up cellular coverage in dense urban areas should be an industry and policy priority in the fight against digital exclusion.

With the Government recently going through a significant period of change, it is more important than ever that the new Prime Minister continues to ensure levelling-up remains a key parliamentary aim. If we hope to truly address regional disparities, creating opportunities for businesses to thrive by investing in urban connectivity to tackle low productivity and skills shortages is essential.

Policy to remove barriers

Effectively bridging the digital divide requires swift, cost-effective solutions in high-density populations. A combination of more investment and streamlined planning processes for deployments is beneficial, but the simple solution lies in collaboration between industry leaders and Government decision-makers.

Much has been done to break down the barriers to delivering robust connectivity throughout the UK. Whether it’s via industry rallying together through campaigns like Speed Up Britain to call for improved, streamlined processes in the Electronic Communications Code; or appealing against aspects of policy that disrupt the efficient rollout of infrastructure – the commitment to building a digitally connected world is being heard.

For example, as we collaborate and rollout 5G connectivity, the recent Supreme Court ruling on the Code’s reform is a milestone development as now new site applications can be streamlined, enabling towers to be installed more quickly. The Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Bill is also currently passing through parliament and seeks to encourage faster and more collaborative negotiations of tower installation on private land. The effort to create a digitally connected ‘Gigabit Britain’ is beginning to take shape.

While the telecommunications industry is rising to the challenge and making good progress, there is still much work to be done in meeting the Government’s ambitions to ensure all urban areas have access to the opportunities, knowledge, services, and goods that come through effective digital connectivity. Collaboration with policymakers is pivotal in the rollout of 5G connectivity and must be at the forefront of industry ambitions and future levelling up plans if we hope to successfully close the urban, and indeed, UK-wide digital divide and successfully grow the UK economy.

When it comes to the levelling up connectivity, the North-South divide in the UK remains a huge challenge. Join operators, local authorities, and the wider connectivity ecosystem in discussion about the biggest issues in UK telecoms at the upcoming Connected North conference

Also in the news:
The missing 3.2 billion…
New EXA investment serves customers across the Iberian peninsula
Startup stories: Facing up to cybersecurity risks

The post The digital divide is no urban myth first appeared on Total Telecom.

PARTNER CONTENT

China Unicom Qinghai, China Unicom Research Institute, and Huawei have jointly completed the world’s first trial commercial use of 800G OTN technology on live networks to fully upgrade all-optical networks.

This technology helps build a green ultra-broadband network. As data center services ramp up, there are urgent demands for higher bandwidth to transmit massive data. Such demands come from migrating hundreds of terabit-level enterprise service systems to cloud platforms, cloud rendering, and other use cases. 800G OTN provides bandwidth 4–8 times higher than mainstream single-wavelength 100G/200G networks, at less than half the per-bit power consumption. Using 800G OTN, China Unicom Qinghai builds a green ultra-broadband all-optical network capable of massive DC data transmission, fulfilling its goal of green and low-carbon development in the communications industry. In addition, 800G OTN uses Flexrate technology to program 400G, 600G, and 800G rates as required by growing traffic.

This technology also promotes intelligent upgrade. As all-optical network access is more and more ubiquitous, services and network O&M are increasingly complex, and intelligence is an important trend for optical network technology innovation. With this trend, China Unicom Qinghai, China Unicom Research Institute, and Huawei jointly apply the optical digital label technology to all-optical networks to make them more intelligent. This technology transmits embedded label information, without needing hardware, to detect network performance in real time. It is able to:

Automatically discover and verify optical fiber connections, improving site delivery efficiency and simplifying online network O&M.
Accurately identify signal optical power, improving network fault rectification and simplifying large-scale network recovery.
Support visualization and control of wavelength routes, similarly to the navigation function of autonomous driving. Such visualization plans driving routes while control corrects them in real time.

As core components of the all-optical autonomous driving network, the optical digital label technology and iMaster NCE empower users with four capabilities: self-configuration for transmission provisioning, self-optimization of transmission quality, self-healing from transmission faults, and transmission monetization. These capabilities further improve network O&M efficiency.

Wang Guangquan, Chief Engineer of China Unicom Research Institute, said that the first trial commercial use of the 800G OTN + optical digital label technology in China Unicom Qinghai made two key breakthroughs and upgraded the quality of all-optical networks.

Zhu Changbo, General Manager of China Unicom Qinghai, said that better quality better serves digital economy construction in Qinghai Province and promotes the development of various projects such as digital government, smart city, smart healthcare, smart transportation, and smart salt lakes.

According to Omdia’s latest report, 100G+ Coherent Optical Equipment Ports-2Q22, Huawei 400G port ranked as No. 1 in global shipments for two quarters in 2022, and remains No.1 in the global WDM market for 14 consecutive years.

 

The post China Unicom Qinghai Trials 800G OTN to Upgrade All-Optical Networks first appeared on Total Telecom.