Japan has one of the most technologically advanced mobile markets in the world. Three well-established players–NTT DOCOMO, KDDI, and Softbank–dominate the sector.
When combined, these three claimed over 170 million subscribers at the end of 2018.
Chinese equipment manufacturer Huawei Technologies has found itself in the spotlight following accusations of espionage, fraud, by-passing Iranian trade sanctions, and threats to cyber-security.
The company is now facing a backlash from a growing number of governments and telcos around the world.
U.S. telco AT&T has come under criticism from rivals for pushing its “5G Evolution” technology.
But critics might want to take a long look in the mirror, as many have been guilty of similar marketing hyperbole.
As the telecom world prepares to enter the 5G era, our GlobalComms team has been tracking major 5G auctions around the globe. Catch up on all of them here.
Today we’ll look at what’s happening in major markets in the Middle East. We'll explore what’s happening in the Arab States that border the Persian Gulf, with a focus on Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The wireless services sector in Latin America and the Caribbean has stagnated in recent years.
The region was home to 690.4 million wireless subscribers at the end of June 2018, up slightly from 687.4 million six months before, but well down from the recent peak of 714.1 million at end-2014.
As countries reach market saturation, operators are now concentrating their efforts on wringing more revenue from existing users.
The Italian government recently completed its sale of wireless spectrum, which has been earmarked as suitable for future 5G services.
The auction ran for 14 days and saw 171 rounds of bidding, raising over €6.55 billion. This was more than €4 billion higher than the government’s minimum target.
But the high prices paid for frequencies have raised eyebrows—and not just in Italy.
As the telecom world prepares to enter the 5G era, our GlobalComms team has been keeping tabs on all of the crucial information: regulatory agencies, spectrum bands, provisional auction dates, etc.
You might have caught several of our posts already. We're saving all of our 5G auction updates here. Check back for new 5G stories in the coming weeks.
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