Verizon hits 1.26 Gbps upload speed with 5G mmWave

Verizon achieved an upload speed of 1.26 Gbps in lab testing of its 5G Ultra Wideband technology. The lab work and trials in the field focused on optimizing the customer experience, and used 20 MHz of LTE spectrum and 400 MHz of mmWave spectrum from the 28 GHz band. The trials used devices currently commercially available and were completed in a live network test environment.

“We have achieved remarkable speed in downloading using various combinations of spectrum in our world-class spectrum portfolio,” said Adam Koeppe, Senior Vice President of Technology Planning at Verizon. “This new achievement indicates how much additional performance we can unleash for our customers on the uplink as we aggregate different combinations of spectrum.”

Past trials have shown extraordinary download speeds with various combinations of spectrum reaching 4.3 Gbps download speeds by aggregating Verizon’s mid-band C-band spectrum with high band mmWave spectrum. 

Verizon won C-Band licenses for between 140-200 MHz in all available markets, and began in the first 46 areas deploying up to 60 MHz, quickly expanding to an additional 30 markets deploying up to 100 MHz in many of those. Over the next few years, as additional spectrum is cleared by satellite companies, Verizon will be able to deploy 5G Ultra Wideband on all available bandwidth that it has licensed, up to 200 MHz. Every piece of equipment being deployed today is capable of using the full 200 MHz of bandwidth. When the full breadth of spectrum is accessed, Verizon said customers can expect peak download speeds to reach 2.4 Gbps, up from the 900 Mbps experienced with 60 megahertz deployed.

Verizon holds a total of 2,035 MHz of spectrum – 294 MHz in Sub 6 GHz spectrum (low and mid band) and 1,741 MHz of mmWave spectrum (high band).

• Low band: Verizon’s low band spectrum (nationwide 700 MHz licenses and 850 MHz spectrum) continues to provide the best 4G LTE experience in the industry and now also supports nationwide 5G service, giving customers in over 2,700 markets access to 5G. Low band signals travel great distances and penetrate through walls and dense foliage very effectively.
• High band: Verizon’s mmWave build is a critical differentiator and the company continues to expand its mmWave footprint to deliver game changing experiences for the densest parts of the network. mmWave brings the benefits of highly predictable signal waves leading to greater efficiency and less interference for customers, and also boasts huge capacity. mmWave service is ideal to deliver 5G service in high-usage areas like cities, venues, and stadiums for years to come.
• Mid-band: Verizon’s mid-band spectrum assets include AWS, PCS, CBRS and C-band spectrum. C-band provides a valuable middle ground between capacity and coverage for 5G networks, and is enabling greater speeds than 5G on low band spectrum and greater coverage than mmWave spectrum for both mobility and home broadband solutions. The addition of C-band spectrum paves the way for Verizon to provide its differentiated service of 5G Ultra Wideband service to millions of customers, now covering more than 175 million and growing quickly.

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Dell'Oro: Data Center infrastructure spend to the $35B in 2027

Data center physical infrastructure (DCPI) revenues are forecast to grow at an 8 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from 2022 to 2027, to above $35 billion, according to a new report from Dell'Oro Group. Macroeconomic uncertainty and lingering supply chain constraints are currently short-term headwinds, however, long-term growth is forecast to remain resilient supported by sustainability-minded cloud and colocation data center expansions and on-premises enterprise modernization.

“Next generation processors and accelerators, from the likes of AMD, Intel, and NVIDIA, are rapidly changing the power and thermal management requirements for data center physical infrastructure,” said Lucas Beran, Principal Analyst at Dell’Oro Group. “The Thermal Design Power (TDP) of these semiconductor components continues to rise, with TDPs of 350W and 400W for the latest generation of CPUs, and up to 700W for GPUs. And product roadmaps show further increases from here. This is ultimately leading to higher rack power densities, with architectural changes in backup power, power distribution, and thermal management required.

“At the same time, data center sustainability has risen to the top of decision making, planning, and design criteria in the industry. This has opened the door for a significant technology transition during this forecast period – the transition from air to liquid-based thermal management.  The two primary technologies, direct liquid cooling and immersion cooling (single-phase and two-phase), are forecast to grow significantly and reach $1.7 billion, or 24 percent, of thermal management revenue by 2027,” continued Beran.

Additional highlights from the Data Center Physical Infrastructure 5-Year January 2023 Forecast Report:

• DCPI revenue growth is forecast to remain resilient in 2023, growing 9 percent, supported by historically high DCPI vendor backlogs.
• Asia Pacific (Excluding China) is forecast to grow at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period, followed by EMEA and China.
• Data Center Thermal Management is forecast to grow at the fastest rate of any market segment during the forecast period, surpassing $7 billion in vendor revenues in 2027.
• The Service Providers (Top 10 Cloud, Rest-of-Cloud, Colocation, and Telco) customer segment is forecast to grow at a double-digit CAGR during the forecast period, while the Enterprise customer segment (Large Enterprise, Rest-of-Enterprise) is forecast to grow at a much lower rate.

https://www.delloro.com/news/accelerated-computing-to-push-data-center-physical-infrastructure-market-to-35-billion-in-2027/

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Dell'Oro: Service Provider router growth through 2027

The Service Provider (SP) Router and Switch market is projected to expand through 2027, with market revenues growing at a 2 percent compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) from 2022 to 2027, according to a new report from Dell'Oro Group. Global cumulative SP Router and Switch market revenues are expected to approach $77 billion by 2027. Wide adoption of 400 Gbps technology-based products will persist as the key driving force of growth. Telecommunication and Cloud SPs will continue investing in network upgrades to accommodate increasing traffic levels and to benefit from the economic efficiency of 400 Gbps technology.

"Our Forecast growth projections remain largely unchanged compared to our previous forecast," said Ivaylo Peev, Senior Analyst at Dell'Oro Group. "We anticipate continuing market uncertainty and worsening macroeconomic conditions in the first few years of the forecast period as economists are projecting a high possibility of recession in Europe and North America. However, we expect the global SP Router and Switch market to stabilize in the second half of the forecast period, as we assume that the underlying fundamentals of the SP Router market remain healthy," added Peev.

Highlights from the Service Provider Router and Switch 5-Year January 2023 Forecast Report:

• 400 Gbps-capable routers built on the newest generation of high-capacity ASICs offer the benefits of higher speeds per port with decreased energy consumption, thus reducing the total number of ports required and, in turn, the size of the chassis. The higher-speed per port also lowers the cost per bit per port. Combined with the reduced energy consumption and the smaller, rack space-saving format of the router, transitioning to 400 Gbps ports enables SPs to make more economically efficient investments and lower operating costs.
• In the SP Core Router segment, we expect revenue to increase at a 4 percent CAGR from 2022 to 2027 and growth to be largely driven by the adoption of 400 Gbps technology.
• The combined SP Edge Router and SP Aggregation Switch segment is expected to grow at a 1 percent CAGR, approaching $12 B in 2027. The dominant growth driver in the segment will remain the expansion of mobile backhaul networks to support the adoption of 5G radio access networks (RAN), followed by increasing residential broadband deployments.
• We project a decline in the IP mobile backhaul market in China, with SPs shifting their investments to Core and Metro networks, and we expect increasing demand for SP Core Router products as a result.

https://www.delloro.com/news/sustained-service-provider-router-growth-expected-through-2027/

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Estonia's Greenergy Data Centers deploys Juniper

Estonia's Greenergy Data Centers (GDC), which claims to be the largest and most energy-efficient data center company in the Baltics, has deployed Juniper’s cloud-ready data center and AI-driven enterprise solutions. 

The GDC data center is a 14,500-square-meter, 31.5-megawatt facility. The Juniper network supports the company’s integrated building and power management system, with thousands of telemetry sensors that facilitate the delivery of safe, reliable power. Hundreds of motion-activated thermal cameras connect to the network in support of GDC’s efforts to provide the highest levels of physical security.

Juniper said GDC is using Mist AI for visibility into its wireless network and an easier way to build and configure the network, resulting in less cost, increased productivity, improved efficiency and reduced errors. Juniper Access Points and Juniper EX Switches deliver faster, more reliable connectivity in Greenergy’s network operations center, day-use client offices, assembly rooms and warehouse. Juniper cloud services, driven by Mist AI, streamline and automate most network operations.

GDC uses Juniper QFX Series Switches for its core network, the Juniper vSRX Virtual Firewall for next-generation, virtualized firewall services, and the Juniper vMX Universal Routing Platform for carrier-grade, virtualized routing.

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Kyndryl posts revenue of $4.3 billion, raises guidance

Kyndryl reported revenues of $4.3 billion for the quarter ended December 31, 2022, a year-over-year decline of 6% and a 3% increase in constant currency. The company reported a pretax loss of $138 million and a net loss of $106 million, or $0.47 per diluted share, in the quarter, compared to a net loss of $731 million in the prior-year period. Adjusted EBITDA of $580 million compares to $679 million of pro forma adjusted EBITDA in the prior-year period, primarily driven by unfavorable currency movements of approximately $125 million. In the nine months ended December 31, cash flow from operations was $769 million, and adjusted free cash flow was $407 million.

“We’re encouraged by the stronger sequential margins and significant cash flow we delivered in the quarter. Our three-A initiatives are positively impacting both our current bottom line and the future earnings associated with our signings,” said Kyndryl Chief Financial Officer David Wyshner. “We have the right strategy in place and are executing against it to power future growth and enhanced profitability.”

Kyndryl is raising its revenue outlook for its fiscal year beginning April 1, 2022 and ending March 31, 2023 to reflect higher constant-currency revenue growth and currency effects, and is reaffirming its outlook for adjusted EBITDA and adjusted pretax margins. 

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Cisco's unified SASE now integrates with its Viptela SD-WAN

Cisco’s unified SASE solution, Cisco+ Secure Connect, now supports integration into Cisco SD-WAN fabrics using Viptela technology. The unified solution converges networking and security to provide customers with a single platform and a streamlined operational model that simplifies and scales the visibility, management and control over a hybrid work environment. Cisco says its converged operating model also provides IT teams with enhanced visibility and control over the network, making the experience easy for them to manage.

Two additional news items from this week's Cisco Live event in Amsterdam:

• Cisco introduced new cloud services in IoT Operations Dashboard to increase industrial asset visibility, securely manage assets from anywhere and provide Industrial Internet of Things (IoT) customers with a seamless path to cloud automation for Operational Technology (OT) teams.
• Cisco ThousandEyes introduced support for OpenTelemetry, unlocking internet and cloud intelligence across a wide range of monitoring and IT platforms for expanded visibility, correlated insights and optimized digital experiences.

https://newsroom.cisco.com/c/r/newsroom/en/us/a/y2023/m02/cisco-connects-and-protects-with-new-cloud-tools-across-networking-security-and-operations-to-provide-greater-visibility-and-control-over-networks.html

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A10 reports record sales of $77.6 million, up 9.9%

A10 Networks reported record revenue of $77.6 million for its fourth quarter ended December 31, 2022, up 9.9% year-over-year. GAAP gross margin was 79.7%. GAAP net income was $18.0 million, or $0.24 per diluted share, compared with GAAP net income of $10.7 million, or $0.13 per diluted share in the fourth quarter of 2021.

“Strong demand for our proprietary security-led solutions drove record revenues for the quarter and the full-year, with continued broad-based growth across both enterprises and service providers and in each key geographic region, on a constant-currency basis,” said Dhrupad Trivedi, President and Chief Executive Officer of A10 Networks. “Increasingly, A10 is positioned as a diversified, differentiated security solutions provider, structured to mitigate fluctuations from any single customer or region. While we are not immune from recessionary impacts, our industry leadership makes our offerings a priority over discretionary investments. We remain well-positioned for continued success with both enterprise and service provider customers.”

“In 2022 we successfully navigated supply chain constraints, maintained robust gross margins and effectively managed our operating expenses, which drove profitability and free cash flow,” added Trivedi. “With revenue growth that outpaced operating expenses, we were able to grow our bottom line faster than our top line. 

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EU advances DETERMINISTIC6G project

Ericsson and KTH are coordinating a new project called DETERMINISTIC6G that aims to develop the technology enablers that are essential for time-sensitive technology needed for 6G.

Central to the project is the concept of deterministic communication, being the property of guaranteeing communication latency and reliability. In total, the consortium consists of ten partners that combine mobile network leadership (Ericsson, Orange) with visionary applications and vertical ecosystem insights (B&R, IUVO, and SSSA), paired with leading research institutes (KTH, University of Stuttgart, and Silicon Austria Labs) and two highly innovative SMEs (Cumucore, Montimage).  

A central focus of the project will be on the interplay between future 6G networks with highly time-synchronized networks called Time Sensitive Networking (TSN). The challenge in these settings is that wireless systems like 6G can be subject to strong random variations, which is incompatible with technologies like TSN. How to overcome these challenges is an open research problem. DETERMINISTIC6G will tackle this problem by a combination of new wireless transmission design and advanced machine learning algorithms, leading to 6G wireless transmission with deterministic latency behavior.  

In addition to this, the project will also consider consequences and novel approaches for time synchronization, network security as well as the integration of computational nodes into 6G systems. A final point on the research agenda is how to make future networks aware of subsequent, upcoming changes that are important for the running of applications. Networks like 6G will have additional means to acquire fine-grained information about such changes in comparison to the networks of today.  

Magnus Frodigh, Vice president and head of research of Ericsson Research, says: “I have high expectations on DETERMINISTIC6G, a 6G technology enabler project focused on deterministic communication. With a unique consortium combining expertise from both the wired and wireless domains, DETERMINISTIC6G has the potential to shape the foundations of 6G systems with respect to time-critical applications.”  

James Gross, a professor with the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science School at KTH and the project’s technical manager, adds: “This project can shape the technological foundations of future 6G systems.”  

The project has received EU funding from the Smart Networks and Services Joint Undertaking.

https://www.deterministic6g.eu

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Keysight participates in four European 6G projects

Keysight Technologies is participating in four projects that are a part of the 6G Smart Networks and Services Joint Undertaking (SNS-JU), a research and innovation program co-funded by the European Union (EU):

• 6G-SANDBOX, which will combine digital and physical nodes to deliver fully configurable, manageable, and controllable end-to-end networks for validating new technologies and research advancements for 6G.
• CENTRIC, which will enable sustainable user-centric 6G networks based on air-interfaces that use artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
• Imagine-B5G, which will implement an advanced, easily accessible, secure, and programmable end-to-end beyond 5G platform leveraging best-of-breed network functions and cloud native principles.
• 6G SHINE, which will pioneer the main technology components for short range extreme communications in entities, replacing some of today’s wired connections.

Giampaolo Tardioli, Vice President, 6G and Next Generation Technology at Keysight, said: “Keysight is committed to actively participating in four exciting projects resulting from the first 6G SNS call, The projects will benefit from our advanced solution expertise, enabling cross-industry stakeholders to spark meaningful and sustainable innovation. The establishment of a reference testbed early in the innovation cycle enables the industry to confidently make sound technical standards choices. Keysight’s contributions to 6G SNS will advance several important technologies expected to be used to realize the industry’s 6G vision, including short-range communications and AI-enabled programmable networks.”

Stream B - Research for revolutionary technology advancement towards 6G - SNS JU (europa.eu)

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Nokia expands its microwave radio portfolio for extending 5G

Nokia announced the availability of the UBT-m XP, a new E-Band high-powered Ultra-Broadband Transceiver for its Wavence product family for extending coverage in both dense urban and rural environments.

Nokia’s newest E-Band radio is a high-capacity outdoor unit with a small, light form factor and the highest transmit power available on the market.

Another addition to the portfolio is Nokia SteadEband, a stabilized three-foot antenna that combats common E-Band issues, which include tower vibrations and movements due to thermal effects. 

Nokia said it has achieved a 12-kilometer-long link using the Nokia UBT-m XP and the SteadEband antenna.

Nokia also announced the launch of the Outdoor Channel Aggregator (OCA) to support mobile operators looking to expand the reach and capacity of their networks for rural broadband applications. The OCA aggregates multiple UBT-T XP radios, Nokia’s high-capacity, high-power, outdoor dual-band radio, for N+0 operations and allows for increased throughput with improved system gain of up to 10 dB compared with traditional aggregation methods. This is important in increasing the link distance or to optimize OPEX/CAPEX by removing the requirement for larger antenna or repeater systems.

Finally, Nokia is also introducing the Carrier Aggregation High Density (CAHD) card, which adds ‘single pipe’ capacity to the backhaul to support the link distance. The innovative CAHD module enables 10 Gbps backhaul capacity over multiple channels and supports seamless migration from existing low-capacity backhaul to high capacity hence preserving an operator’s investment.

Giuseppe Targia, Vice President, Microwave Radio Links at Nokia, said: “We are further strengthening our industry-leading Wavence portfolio with the addition of these next-generation products. The winning combination of the UBX-m XP and the SteadEband offers our customers a high-performance transport solution with leading capacity and coverage for both urban and rural environments. Microwave links are cost-efficient and fast to deploy, representing a robust alternative to fiber backhaul.” 

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The Foreign Adversary Communications Transparency Act

A proposed “Foreign Adversary Communications Transparency Act” or FACT Act would require the FCC to publish a list of every entity that both holds an FCC license or authorization and has sufficient ties back into authoritarian regimes, including the Chinese Communist Party.

The bill was introduced last week by Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (R-NY), and Congressman Ro Khanna (D-CA) and Congressman Mike Gallagher (R-WI) introduced the “Foreign Adversary Communications Transparency Act” or FACT Act. 

FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr issued the following statement in support of the legislation:

“I applaud Congresswoman Stefanik’s, Congressman Khanna, and Congressman Gallagher’s strong leadership and thoughtful work to counter the malign influence of the Chinese Communist Party and other authoritarian state actors. This bipartisan legislation would strengthen American’s national security, and I encourage Congress to move quickly in passing this common sense bill."

“It is vital that we provide a full and transparent accounting of every entity with ties back into the CCP—and the governments of other authoritarian regimes—that are operating inside America’s tech and telecom markets, yet there has never been a public disclosure when it comes to those networks of relationships. This only makes it more difficult for the public and private sector alike to assess the likelihood that those connections can be leveraged to harm America’s national security interests. We know that the CCP is engaged in a widespread and coordinated campaign to surveil Americans, and they are willing to use every tool at their disposal to advance their malign goals."

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Oracle expands its cloud data centers in Saudi Arabia

Oracle announced a $1.5 billion plan to open a new public cloud region in Riyadh and expand its existing public region in Jeddah.

The Oracle Cloud Riyadh Region will join the existing Oracle Cloud Jeddah Region and the planned Oracle Cloud Region to be located in the futuristic city of NEOM.

This investment is included in an MoU that Oracle has signed with the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) to help Saudi Arabian businesses take advantage of the latest innovations in the cloud.

https://www.oracle.com/news/announcement/oracle-to-invest-us-1-point-5-billion-to-meet-cloud-computing-demand-in-saudi-arabia-2023-02-06/ 

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Comcast targets fiber rollouts in Indiana

Comcast signed contracts with Indiana’s Office of Community & Rural Affairs (OCRA) to bring gigabit-capable broadband service to unserved parts of Indiana.

The projects will deploy 1,200 miles of fiber to unserved rural portions of Indiana. Under this latest phase of Next Level Connections grants, Comcast is investing $36 million in conjunction with the state’s $13.6 million to expand its network.

The initial finalized agreements will enable Comcast to build to rural, unserved portions of Allen, Bartholomew, Carroll, Cass, Delaware, Fayette, Hendricks, Jennings, Johnson, Hamilton, Huntington, La Porte, Madison, Marshall, Montgomery, Morgan, Porter, Starke and Wayne counties.

“Ensuring all Hoosiers have access to reliable, high-speed internet has been a top priority for Comcast,” said Joni Hart, vice president of Government Affairs for Comcast in Indiana. “As the world we live in becomes increasingly digital, we remain focused on not only bringing our broadband network to more Indiana homes and business, but also meeting the ever-increasing appetite for education, business, telemedicine, entertainment and more.”

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Singtel builds data center in Thailand

Singtel, in partnership with Gulf and AIS, began construction of a new data centre near to Bangkok, Thailand. 

The new 20 MW facility is expected to enter service in 2025 and will be operated by their joint venture company GSA Data Center Company Limited (GSA).

In addition to the data centre in Thailand, Singtel is developing a data centre with a capacity of 51 MW in Indonesia together with partners Telkom and Medco Power, when fully completed. It is also adding capacity in Singapore with a new build in Tuas. The Indonesian and Singapore data centres are expected to begin operations by 2025.

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Liquid selects Nokia for African optical transport backbone

South Africa-based Liquid Intelligent Technologies selected Nokia to deploy a next-generation optical transport network connecting Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Zambia, Zimbabwe and South Africa. The first-of-its-kind terrestrial network connecting submarine landing stations in Kenya, South Africa and DRC.  

Nokia is deploying 145 nodes of 1830 Photonic Service Switch (PSS) in the seven countries with a total design capacity up to 12 Terabits per second. Once launched, the new, advanced optical transport backbone will enable Liquid lntelligent Technologies to address the growing demand for capacity and deliver submarine traffic to landlocked countries at an affordable cost.

Liquid lntelligent Technologies’ new optical backbone covers the sites with a colourless and flexgrid ROADM network for improved agility and flexibility. The Generalized Multi-Protocol Label Switching (GMPLS) feature of the new optical transport network will help reduce network disruptions by enabling automatic rerouting to alternate paths as needed.

Shahzad Manzoor Khan, Group Chief Technology Officer at Liquid Intelligent Technologies, said: “Internet giants, established cloud service providers and other mega-organisations are demanding hyperscale data centres that can support high levels of performance, spikes in demand, and redundancy while enabling massive availability. Our new terrestrial fiber corridor is the first of its kind in Africa in terms of distance and capacity. We are thrilled to partner with Nokia on this prestigious project which will transform Africa’s digital infrastructure and propel the region’s economy.”

Rajiv Aggarwal, Head of Central East and West Africa (CEWA) Market Unit at Nokia, said: “Nokia’s next-generation optical network will enable Liquid Intelligent Technologies to maintain its leadership position and emerge as a preferred partner of organizations requiring massive capacity. We are delighted that our technology and expertise will help Liquid Intelligent Technologies provide the best-in-class digital infrastructure to Africa’s enterprises and will play a role in strengthening the digital infrastructure of the continent.”

https://www.nokia.com/about-us/news/releases/2023/02/02/nokia-builds-multi-terabit-pan-africa-optical-backbone-for-liquid-intelligent-technologies/

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DigitalBridge buys AMP Capital’s global infrastructure fund

DigitalBridge Group completed its acquisition of AMP Capital’s global infrastructure equity investment management business in a transaction valued at $316 million, plus potential contingent payments based on certain future performance thresholds. The acquired business, which is based in London,  has been rebranded as InfraBridge. 

InfraBridge, comprises four investment funds with $5.6 billion in fee-earning assets under management, including the $3.4 billion Global Infrastructure Fund II (“GIF II”) and $1.4 billion Global Infrastructure Fund I (“GIF I”). InfraBridge will operate as a new, autonomous business unit within the DigitalBridge investment management platform, with its operations and strategy supported by DigitalBridge’s team of digital infrastructure professionals.

Damian Stanley, previously Global Co-Head, Value-Added Infrastructure Equity at AMP Capital, will serve as Managing Partner of InfraBridge. Mr. Stanley has been an instrumental and respected leader since joining AMP Capital in 2015 and has led numerous key transactions across the GIF platform. In addition, Bernardo Vargas Gibsone, who joined DigitalBridge’s leadership team in September 2022 after serving as CEO of ISA Group, has been appointed Non-Executive Chair of InfraBridge.

“We are pleased to welcome to DigitalBridge an experienced, high-caliber investment team that shares our focus on generating attractive, long-term, risk-adjusted returns for our investors,” said Marc Ganzi, Chief Executive Officer of DigitalBridge. “InfraBridge complements our “full-stack” investment platform, positioning DigitalBridge to capitalize on high-return mid-market investment opportunities. Further, the acquisition immediately contributes significant earnings and further advances DigitalBridge’s strategic roadmap towards an asset-light, high-growth asset manager serving secular growth markets.”

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Telecom Italia hit by Internet outage

Telecom Italia's IP backbone suffered a multi-hour outage on Sunday, 05-Feb-2023, with traffic levels dropping by over 70%.

A spokesman from TIM cited an international interconnection problem, according to Reuters.

Also on Sunday, Italy's National Cybersecurity Agency (ACN) warned of wide-scale cyber attacks on servers running VMWare ESXi.

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SK Telecom inspects cell towers using drones + image analysis AI

SK Telecom is using drone and image analysis AI to perform safety checks of its mobile towers.

Developed by SKT’s in-house experts, the image analysis AI model is capable of determining the status of bolts and nuts by analyzing images taken by drones.

SKT hopes to prevent accidents due to aging cell towers, while ensuring the safety of these personnel by minimizing the need to go up the cell towers.  

Moreover, the company can drive up work productivity through the application of an AI model that automatically identifies defects by analyzing images taken by drones. Previously, safety inspectors had to study around 100 images to complete safety inspection of one cell tower. With the adoption of this AI analysis model, SKT was able to reduce the time required for the process by 95%, while increasing the reliability and consistency of the analysis results.

“By building an intelligent safety inspection system that can complement the existing visual inspection, we have secured greater safety for workers,” said Park Myung-soon, SKT’s Vice President and Head of Infra DT Office. “We will continue to make efforts to achieve AI transformation of our telecommunication networks, while focusing on developing our field workers into experts who can develop and operate AI.” 

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NTT Ltd adds Palo Alto Networks' SASE to its menu

NTT Ltd. added Palo Alto Networks Prisma SASE to its Managed Campus Networks portfolio. 

The new offering is a managed Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) solution that includes SD-WAN, cloud-delivered security, and enhanced automation and reporting. The end-to-end solution is designed to help enterprises meet current digital transformation challenges and enable more flexible ways of working.

“We are excited to partner with Palo Alto Networks to provide this end-to-end managed SASE offering that helps customers address the challenges that confront today’s enterprise operational environment,” said Sunil Kishore, Senior EVP Managed Network and Collaboration Services Division at NTT Ltd. “The breadth of our combined technical resources and service capabilities, coupled with NTT’s global presence, will enable us to design, deliver and manage solutions for even the most complex enterprise requirements.”

“NTT’s world-class service, support, and comprehensive set of SLAs provide a strong managed service foundation for our single vendor SASE solution,” added Anand Oswal, Senior Vice President of Products, Network Security at Palo Alto Networks. “NTT Managed Campus Networks with Palo Alto Networks Prisma SASE will play an integral role in enabling organizations to secure their digital transformation journeys through enhanced operational efficiency, agility and effective management of cloud environments, providing a true zero trust solution to safeguard today’s distributed workforce.”

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Deutsche Telekom sells majority stake of its towers business

Deutsche Telekom completed the previously-announced, partial sale of its tower business in Germany and Austria, which is combined in the GD Towers unit, to DigitalBridge and Brookfield for more than 10 billion euros. 

GD Towers operates more than 40,000 mobile sites in Germany and Austria with around 800 employees. The company generated pro forma revenues of 1.1 billion euros in 2021. Adjusted pro forma EBITDA AL amounted to 640 million euros in 2021. The management team led by CEO Bruno Jacobfeuerborn and Chairman Thorsten Langheim will continue to manage the business. 

Deutsche Telekom retains 49 percent of the shares with significant minority rights and thus retains a stake in future value growth in the attractive infrastructure business. Telekom Deutschland and Magenta Austria will continue to have unrestricted access to GD Towers' passive infrastructure via long-term lease agreements. 

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