All articles by Joseph Purnell – Page 2
-
Weekly Briefings
Vodafonewatch Weekly: positive moves for dealmaking Group
Latest from Vodafone as the Group faces the ups and downs of dealmaking; hype turns to more grounded optimism on small cells and 5G MPN solutions; several key changes to OpCo ExCos, and some new digs for former CEOs; more across the footprint…
-
Financial & Performance
Vodafone’s Vi stake diluted further as gov strengthens grip on Vi
Struggling operator Vi takes debt-to-equity conversion deal that will see the government’s stake near 50%, and Vodafone’s drop to a reported 16%.
-
M&A
UK investor Actis picks up South African tower player
Actis joins forces with local investors to acquire Telkom’s Swiftnet tower business, with plans to expand to become a market leader.
-
People
Struggling Vodafone Germany changes Strategy & Transformation chief
Consultant Sven Müller brought in to drive turnaround effort from new position on the OpCo’s Executive Committee.
-
Weekly Briefings
BTwatch Weekly: overseas dealmaking, domestic lobbying
Latest from around BT as Orange and AT&T are reported to be in talks regarding an international asset optimisation deal; UK regulation in focus for Ofcom, Openreach, and its long tail of altnet competitors; 5G SA rolls on; and BT pairs with peers to fulfil PSTN obligations…
-
People
BT Peoplewatch: ESN team fills out; Openreach names fibre newcomers
Latest strategic and senior changes at BT and Openreach, including a new ESN operations lead; Fibre First swaps; a TOTSCo departure; and overseas changes as BT Business doubles down on the UK…
-
Network & Infrastructure
Vantage Towers hopeful on ‘massive’ European small cells potential, with UK bringing the blueprint
MWC 2025: Head of Business & Product Development Jaime Abril paints optimistic picture of European market, but calls for regulatory shift and cultural change among MNO customers.
-
Weekly Briefings
BTwatch Weekly: BT’s branding u-turn; EE leads renewed ESN charge
Latest from BT and its ecosystem, including a reversal of BT’s consumer branding strategy; new timelines for the Emergency Services Network migration; and next phase of MAUD testing lined up…
-
People
Vodafone Peoplewatch: new digs for former OpCo bosses Ametsreiter and Coimbra
Latest senior and strategic changes, including an ice cream post for Group Chair; new German sustainability lead; more Vodafone alumni appointments in Spanish fibre; and fresh titles for former Germany, Spain, and Portugal CEOs…
-
Content & TV
BT’s MAUD to target content super peaks as it scales up
Next-gen IP transmission tech delivers positive results in first live tests, teeing up trials of personalised ads for live and on-demand content.
-
Weekly Briefings
Vodafonewatch Weekly: Della Valle calls for a ‘European renaissance’
Latest from Vodafone and its ecosystem as the Mobile World Congress dust settles. A series of innovative proof of concepts and more substantial products and partnerships were announced, and the usual on-stage lobbying made plenty of headlines…
-
Suppliers & SCM
EE, IBM assemble ecosystem to rescue UK’s emergency services network
BAPCO Annual Event: Emergency Services Network contract holders EE and IBM build out programme supply chain, with calibre of partners adding confidence in the Home Office that ESN will deliver.
-
Network & Infrastructure
Freedom Fibre becomes latest UK altnet to terminate Project Gigabit contract
Operator cancels £43m subsidy deal, the fourth contract to be terminated.
-
Network & Infrastructure
ESN: UK mission-critical comms network has a new (potential) launch date
BAPCO Annual Event: Home Office programme lead lays out new, heavily-caveated Emergency Services Network milestones, with early integration testing this year building towards a late-2029 Airwave closure. Ifs and buts remain, and ‘race still needs to be run’…
-
M&A
Blackstone’s £10bn UK data centre gets green light
Blyth site set begin construction later this year, with Blackstone acquisition QTS to run and operate the ‘hyperscale’ facility. Energy a consideration in selection of former power station site. Blackstone builds up European digital infra interest with Dutch footprint, Digital Realty JV.
-
Weekly Briefings
BTwatch Weekly: AI, APIs, and the coming 5G wave
Latest from BT as the operator talks up advancements in AI adoption, secures an API collab, and readies for an incoming wave of 5G use-cases; MWC used to talk up the same; Global Fabric goes live; more…
-
Partnerships & Alliances
Orange, Eutelsat widen satellite services partnership
European pair to combine for Middle East and African satellite services, filling rural gaps and bolstering terrestrial infra.
-
Strategy & Change
‘Europe needs a DOGE’: Höttges looks to Musk for regulation blueprint
MWC 2025: Deutsche Telekom CEO Tim Höttges has led the usual calls for policy overhaul in Europe, this time offering a direct comparison between European MNOs’ challenges and T-Mobile’s ‘freedom’.
-
Network & Infrastructure
Vodafone, SpaceMobile to create European SatCo JV
Pair unveil plans to launch co-owned satellite services joint venture, with Vodafone locked in as SpaceMobile’s European partner of choice.
-
M&A
Digi, Vodafone close in on Telekom Romania mobile takeover approvals
Digi CEO Serghei Bulgac says regulators are looking at complex acquisition proposal, with feedback expected in the “coming weeks”.