Starman: Musk’s Should-Learn Mozambique Maneuvers

Our most learn story of 2023 was revealed in June, when the Elon Musk-backed Starlink satellite tv for pc broadband service went reside in Mozambique.  

On the time of its launch, Starlink famous that Mozambique didn’t but have a floor station for web fallback and was relying solely on inter-satellite hyperlinks, which might end in intervals of intermittent service and excessive latency. The corporate was beforehand awarded an working license in Mozambique in Might 2022.

The omnipresent Starlink has confirmed to be enduringly fashionable with readers this 12 months, with the corporate’s headlines accounting for 5 of our prime ten most considered CommsUpdate articles! Different places of curiosity have been Trinidad & Tobago, El Salvador, and Zambia. 

Starlink’s mother or father firm SpaceX presently has round 4,000 satellites in Low Earth Orbit, with plans to launch 42,000 in complete.

Starlink’s mother or father firm SpaceX presently has round 4,000 satellites in Low Earth Orbit, with plans to launch 42,000 in complete. So far, greater than 60 nations are identified to have approved Starlink to supply fastened broadband connectivity.

Shaw Factor: Canadian Telecom Panorama Reconfigured as Rogers and Shaw Merge and Videotron Buys Freedom Cell

The Canadian telecom panorama was reconfigured earlier this 12 months, with a CAD26 billion ($19.3 billion) mega-merger.

April noticed the conclusion of the long-anticipated merger between Canadian telcos Rogers Communications and Shaw Communications. The deal—which first reached settlement in March 2021—mixed Rogers’ nationwide cell community with each operators’ coast-to-coast fastened networks.

The ensuing nationwide cable, media, and cell working firm affords fiber-powered cable web to just about 70% of Canadian households.

Rogers’ CAD26 billion buy of Shaw—together with CAD6 billion debt—went forward following remaining federal approval for the requisite switch of Shaw’s cell subsidiary, Freedom Cell, to Videotron. On account of the merger, the Shaw household has grow to be one of many largest shareholders of Rogers.

Operating in parallel, Videotron’s mother or father Quebecor and Shaw individually introduced that the acquisition of Freedom Cell by Videotron was now full. Freedom Cell had an enterprise worth of CAD2.85 billion.

Fortunate 13: MTN Nigeria Expands Its 5G Footprint

For our third hottest story of the 12 months, we make a journey to Nigeria, for a Might 2023 report on the enlargement of MTN Nigeria’s 5G community.

The community, which was launched on a business foundation in September 2022, reached a complete of 13 cities throughout the nation in Might. CTO Mohammed Rufai famous that greater than 700 5G websites had been rolled out in Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Kano, Owerri, Ibadan, Maiduguri, Abeokuta, Warri, Enugu, Ifo, Benin Metropolis, and Shagamu. 

The cell market chief is aiming to extend 5G protection to 10% of the inhabitants by the top of the 12 months and 40% by 2025. Rufai added that MTN presently has no plans to close down its current 2G and 3G networks: “The truth that we’re going to 5G doesn’t imply we must always not cater to the wants of the subscribers on the opposite expertise.”

MTN competes within the 5G section with long-term rival Airtel Nigeria and Mafab Communications, which emerged as one in all two winners of the three.5GHz spectrum public sale held by the Nigerian Communications Fee in December 2021.

You’ve Received a Smartfren in Me: Indonesian Cell Gamers Poised to Hook Up

In September 2023, Indonesia’s Ministry of Communication and Informatics (identified domestically as KemKominfo) piqued readers’ curiosity when it confirmed that two of the nation’s main telecom operators—XL Axiata and Sinar Mas Group-backed Sensible Telecom (Smartfren)—had entered into discussions a few doable merger.

Malaysia-based Axiata Group and Indonesian conglomerate Sinar Mas started exploring the potential of a merger again in October 2021, however any amalgamation of XL and Smartfren was anticipated to show difficult given the latter’s excessive degree of debt.

Any debt-related considerations have did not derail the deal, nonetheless, with the proposed merger understood to be approaching the end line.

Any debt-related considerations have did not derail the deal, nonetheless, with the proposed merger understood to be approaching the end line.

XL Axiata, the nation’s third-largest cell operator by subscriptions, is predicted to imagine the place as senior companion. The enlarged entity is more likely to have an enterprise worth within the area of IDR116.7 trillion ($7.5 billion).  

The Remaining Countdown: Ghana’s SIM Card Saga Attracts to a Shut

To conclude our listing of 2023 massive hitters, readers have been on the sting of their seats awaiting the result of Ghana’s long-running SIM registration saga, which commenced on October 1, 2021.

The marketing campaign was initially attributable to finish on March 31, 2022. Nonetheless, the deadline was later prolonged to July 31, 2022, as a big a part of the inhabitants had not but obtained the required nationwide biometric id card.

Additional extensions to September 30 and November 30 adopted. Lastly, clients got till Might 31, 2023 to reactivate their accounts by finishing the biometric seize course of.

In an replace following the Might 31 deadline, the Ministry of Communications revealed that, of the 42.416 million SIMs firstly of the re-registration train in October 2021, 28.948 million had been absolutely registered, 7.996 million have been unregistered and had been blocked, and an extra 4.473 million delinked and faraway from the Nationwide Communications Authority (NCA) database, whereas 225,411 blocked SIMs have been within the technique of being reactivated.

Virtually 1,000,000 re-registration exemptions had been granted to SIM house owners in varied classes, the biggest being residents overseas (332,524) and cell cash brokers/retailers (666,816).

Ghanaians are not any strangers to SIM registration packages; the NCA has staged a number of registration schemes courting again to 2010.

A Notice About CommsUpdate

In 2024, CommsUpdate content material will transfer behind our analysis paywall. This implies it will likely be obtainable solely to TeleGeography clients. 

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