Latest Vodafone Insight – Page 58
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Network & Infrastructure
Vodafone CEO open to fibre JVs in Germany
Read exploring off-balance sheet financing and infrastructure partnerships to meet FTTP demand. Retains the love for HFC, however; believes network upgrades across cable footprint will meet consumers’ broadband requirements for some time yet. Della Valle pointedly notes that mid-term capex fixed guidance does not include FTTP buildouts.
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Partnerships & Alliances
SpaceMobile lines up 2022 trials with Vodacom
Chairman Abel Avellan says six-month interconnection and testing programme will follow launch of BlueWalker 3 prototype. Lift-off of giant spacecraft may see slight slippage. US startup adds more MNO partners to go-to-market ahead of 2023 debut.
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Vendor Voice
Oracle: Cloud evolution must be business-led for digital SPs
For many years, the telecoms industry has been attempting the balancing act of managing the decline of traditional services while extracting the full value of decades of massive investment in the operational systems that enable them. The challenge of escaping this ‘technology debt’ has now been heightened by a ...
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Financial & Performance
Vodafone: DT and Orange are ‘credible’ tower merger partners
Read confirms either of Vodafone’s big European rivals could end up being an ally as noise continues to increase around an “industrial merger” for Group’s Vantage Towers business.
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Vendor Voice
Interdependence Day — taking testing out of the lab
Test and assurance specialist Spirent spoke to TelcoTitans’ Vendor Voice and highlighted how the ongoing reinvention of telecoms networks is necessarily being accompanied by a reset regarding resilience. With cloud-native services and applications becoming the new standard as next-generation networks gain prominence, Spirent is urging operators to ‘take testing ...
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Network & Infrastructure
Vantage states ‘clear interest’ in Cornerstone buyout
Vodafone’s European TowerCo eyes opportunities in Netherlands and UK as partners Liberty and Telefónica look to cash in on wireless infrastructure assets. Strategic tie-up between Vantage and another MNO TowerCo also remains a possibility.
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Partnerships & Alliances
Vodacom in talks over rural wireless alliance
Operator scoping out partners to share investment in thousands of extra sites across its sub-Saharan African footprint. Venture adds to wider technology and business model experimentation by Vodacom, to fund network expansion.
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M&A
INWIT continues to fill M&A kitty
Growing Italian TowerCo building up a €1bn platform for deal-making at end of its latest strategic cycle, in FY23. Expansion plans could give co-parent Vodafone another runner in European TowerCo race, beyond main vehicle Vantage Towers.
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M&A
Vodacom expands into Egypt with Vodafone stake switch
Vodafone to increase its stake in Vodacom to more than 65% following the transaction. Internal deal follows STC’s failed mission to buy Vodafone Egypt during 2020.
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Financial & Performance
Safaricom confident on Ethiopia despite ‘staff evacuation’
Staff safety and security a priority in Ethiopia, says Safaricom’s Peter Ndegwa, but progress remains on track despite distractions. Break-even forecasts braced for impact of conflict. Employees evacuated from Addis Ababa, according to reports.
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Partnerships & Alliances
Vodafone ‘doubles up’ in Serbia
Group’s Partner Markets federation adds Telekom Srbija to its line-up. Deal, which comes amid an attempted revamp of Partner Markets, encroaches on territory already covered by Vodafone’s long relationship with A1 Telekom Austria.
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Venturing & Investments
Vodafone veterans steer mimik to $14m funding
mimik Technology, founded and led by former Vodafone venturing executives, to use Series-A investment round to develop go-to-market strategy. T-Mobile-backed 5G OI Lab graduate picks up funding from multiple US VCs.
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Public Affairs
Phones 4u saga continues with ‘burner’ phone allegation
Former Orange exec Benoit Scheen attempted to arrange untraceable call to collude with Vodafone, according to High Court claim. Illicit text messages uncovered as part of evidence discovery.
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Strategy & Change
Vodafone Technology embeds ‘build over buy’ mentality
Vodafone Global Digital Engineering head Ahmed El Sayed updates on Netcracker-backed transformation pilot in Hungary. Software engineering “the future” for Vodafone, as Group looks internally for revamped tech stack under ‘build not buy’ vision.
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Suppliers & SCM
Vodafone Supplier Awards 2021: winners
Winners announced across nine categories for the second – and, COVID-permitting, final – digital edition. Ciena headlines as ‘Supplier of the Year’, doubles up with ‘Outstanding Technology Performance’. Ericsson and Huawei return to form after absence in 2020.
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Suppliers & SCM
Safaricom in talks with Kenya Power to install smart grid
Build, operate, and transfer deal reportedly under discussion.
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Premium
Nokia boasts optical potential for Vodafone Turkey
Vodafone Turkey’s network tuned to post 1Tbps speeds and demonstrate option for future scaling. 5G network expansion said to be a likely use-case.
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Network & Infrastructure
SIRO moves to phase two, helped by EU funding
Vodafone Ireland’s wholesale broadband JV gets €620m funding boost. Phase two envisages additional 320,000 homes and businesses passed with fibre, but no timeframes given for completion. Phase 1, at 400,000 premises passed, steadily nears 450,000 target.
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Strategy & Change
TMF’s Willetts: maintaining vendor status quo “dangerous”
Speaking to TelcoTitans, Nik Willetts, CEO of industry body TM Forum, outlined his perceptions of the state of digital transformation in the telecoms sector. Procurement-led vendor management needs to evolve towards partnership for digital acceleration. Hyperscalers can remain more friend than foe as operators seek new ways to differentiate ...
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Public Affairs
Vodafone Pass reviewed following EU judgement
ECJ goes further than expected by consumer group. VfD may be forced to provide the same terms and conditions through EU. Other European OpCos could be affected.