Trends

Mar 15, 2017

Tele2: International Operations Still Playing Their Part

Sweden-based mobile, broadband, and fixed-line group Tele2 has slimmed down its international operations in recent years, but it still has its eyes on growth.

Feb 21, 2017

Virgin Expands Its Reach, MVNO Makes Its Mark in Latin America

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) recently announced that they are set to launch the latest Virgin Mobile MVNO operation.

Feb 13, 2017

BT Fed to Lions After Accounting Scandal

The UK-based BT Group has been hit hard by an accounting scandal at its Italian business services subsidiary BT Italia.

Jan 17, 2017

2G is Fading Away, But it Might Outlive 3G in Europe

The announcement by AT&T that it switched off its GSM network on January 1, 2017, means it is the latest in a line of operators who have moved away from 2G services.

But don’t wave goodbye just yet – there are a few 2G holdouts in the mix.

Jan 13, 2017

Cellular Slowdown: User Numbers Reaching a Plateau

The mobile industry’s days of dizzying subscriber growth appear to be long gone. Double-digit growth was last seen in 2011; global user numbers are leveling off.

Dec 15, 2016

Jio Whizz: India’s Newest Cellco Hits the Ground Running

It is unlikely that any operator has made a bigger splash following its launch than Reliance Jio Infocomm in India.

The cellco issued a press release earlier this month claiming to have signed up 52 million customers in 83 days. That’s an average of over 626,000 net additions every 24 hours – or more than seven new users a second.

Nov 21, 2016

Rise of the Machines: Narrowband Internet of Things Takes Off

The last few weeks have seen a flurry of announcements regarding trials and proposed commercial rollouts of Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) technology.

So what can we expect to see from NB-IoT and which operators are looking to deploy it?

Nov 14, 2016

To Buy or Not to Buy: That is the 700MHz Question

A planned auction of spectrum in the 694MHz-790MHz (700MHz) band in Sweden has been postponed, while the recent sale of frequencies in the same band in India attracted no bidders.

Oct 17, 2016

Mobile Services No Longer a Cash Cow

Over the past few years, mobile operators across several markets have seen declining service revenues and falling levels of average revenue per user (ARPU).

It’s possible that mobile services are no longer the big moneymaker they were in the early 2000s. Here’s why.

Oct 12, 2016

Sultanate of Swing: Oman’s Mobile Users Shifting to MVNOs

Oman’s wireless market is shifting thanks to the growing popularity of MVNO services.

The Sultanate is home to two established network operators – Omantel and Ooredoo – as well as a pair of low-cost, pre-paid resellers in the shape of FRiENDi Mobile and Majan Telecommunication, which trades under the name Renna Mobile.