Advanced Television

MNO

Ofcom confirms 5G spectrum auction plans

UK comms regulator Ofcom has confirmed plans to auction spectrum to help improve mobile broadband and support the rollout of 5G, with bidding set to start in January 2021. According to Ofcom, the auction will increase the total amount of spectrum available for mobile in the UK by nearly a fifth (18 per cent) – bringing […]

August 4, 2020By Colin Mann

Research: Connectivity problems under lockdown

Eight and a half million UK households suffered work, schooling or entertainment disruption, or were cut off from their families, thanks to Internet connection problems during the Covid-19 lockdown, a survey commissioned by customer experience specialist Quadient has revealed. This disruption comes as the lockdown has made connectivity more important than ever – more than […]

July 30, 2020

Forecast: 5G infrastructure spend to double

Worldwide 5G network infrastructure market revenue will almost double in 2020 to reach $8.1 billion (€6.9bn), according to the latest forecast by research and advisory company Gartner. Total wireless infrastructure revenue is expected to decline 4.4 per cent to $38.1 billion in 2020. Investment by communications service providers (CSPs) in 5G network infrastructure accounted for […]

July 28, 2020

Report: Top 10 MNOs have 85% market share in cellular IoT

A report from the IoT market research firm Berg Insight says that the global number of cellular IoT subscribers increased by 40 per cent during 2019 to reach 1.56 billion. Growth was driven by strong uptake across the main markets for IoT solutions comprising China, North America and Western Europe. Due to the global Covid-19 […]

July 24, 2020

Ofcom sets out vulnerable customer guidance

People suffering financial, health or emotional problems should be treated fairly and given the right support by phone, broadband and pay-TV providers, under best practice industry guidance issued by UK comms regulator Ofcom. The coronavirus pandemic has increased the potential for customers’ circumstances to change suddenly and providers are already offering additional support to people […]

July 23, 2020By Colin Mann

Research: Bills should be effective comms tools

Research from telecoms analyst firm Omnisperience and digital bill communications and analytics specialist Soft-ex has found that 84 per cent of communications service providers (CSPs) are planning to invest in more effective customer communications in the next 24 months. Throughout the Covid-19 crisis, CSPs played a vital role in keeping both enterprises and households connected, […]

July 15, 2020

UK MNOs: ‘We need 5 years to strip out Huawei’

BT and Vodafone have told an MPs committee they want at least five years to remove Huawei from 4G and 5G nets, or there will be blackouts. The government is expected to announce new curbs on the use of the Chinese firm’s kit within the next two weeks. Huawei is urging them to take their […]

July 9, 2020

Analyst: Smartphones to boost SVoD growth

The SVoD sector is growing rapidly, notes analyst firm Digital TV Research. There will be 1.161 billion SVoD subscriptions by 2025, up from 642 million at end-2019, according to its SVoD Forecasts by Vendor report. However, global players cannot

July 6, 2020

DISH closes Boost Mobile deal

US pay-TV operator and wireless carrier DISH has completed its $1.4 billion (€1.24bn) acquisition of cellco Sprint’s prepaid brand Boost Mobile, officially entering the retail wireless market, serving more than nine million customers and advancing the build of what it says will be the nation’s first standalone 5G network. “Today, we are proud to welcome […]

July 2, 2020

Analyst: Cellcos to generate 170m SVoD subs

Smartphone gross SVoD subscriptions for 138 countries will double between 2019 and 2025 to 170 million, according to the Smartphone SVoD Forecasts report from analyst firm Digital TV Research. The total will climb by 25 million in 2020 alone. The net smartphone SVoD subscriber count will

June 29, 2020