More on EMEA Telco Leaders – Page 6
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Public AffairsVodafone avoids court in no-admission settlement with UK franchisee claimant group
Vodafone has drawn a discreet line under a high profile dispute with dozens of UK franchise partners, reaching an out-of-court settlement that should minimise further reputational broadsides over allegations of unscrupulous pandemic-era behaviour.
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M&ATelefónica said to reboot sale of subsea cable interest Telxius
Operator and investor partner Pontegadea reportedly kick off talks to divest Telxius at a €1.2bn valuation. Move aligns with Telefónica Group’s recent reconfiguration of infra assets under Transform & Grow strategy, and follows rumours of previous, unsuccessful sale talks…
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Network & InfraDT keeps lead role in EU quantum networks build
Group appointed coordinator-in-chief of Europe’s PETRUS2 scheme, with goal of aligning business and government on quantum networks rollout. New project comes as EU kicks off “next steps” in wider EuroQCI initiative…
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M&AEC cedes oversight of SFR takeover to French authorities
Iliad’s SFR transaction was a potential sticking point, but the EC has agreed to refer it to France, with discussions already underway with Bouygues Telecom and Orange.
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Partnerships & AlliancesBezos trumps Musk on home turf as Amazon Leo signs South African satellite deal
Amazon Leo has secured a breakthrough route into South Africa, partnering with Vodacom-linked Herotel to launch satellite broadband services while rival Starlink remains constrained by local licensing requirements.
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Products & ServicesVodafone Business advances Greek ‘SD-everything vision’ with Fortinet
Vodafone Business goes live with fresh SASE and SD-WAN solutions in Greece, following joint development with long-running technology partner Fortinet in Europe and beyond.
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Public AffairsTowerco-telco tensions: Italy’s INWIT trades blows with reluctant anchor tenants
Fastweb and TIM claim early victories in the INWIT dispute as they attempt to terminate contracts, but the challenged towerco insists the core issues remain unresolved. The battle could have significant implications for tower economics, tenant relationships, and Vodafone-backed Vantage Towers.
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PeoplewatchOrange Peoplewatch: Group reconfigures AI and cloud leadership
July 2026 edition: 25+ recent senior and strategic leadership changes at Orange, including the Group switching out its AI chief, a series of moves to fill out the newly created Unified Cloud Platform division, and an Executive Committee overhaul at Orange Jordan.
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InnovationSpain’s MásOrange puts rapid RoI at top of its AI priority list
The Spanish operator puts quick, tangible financial return at forefront of AI push, saying it is better to focus on developments with clear, direct P&L impact, and build momentum, than to ‘overthink’ and over-complicate.
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OperationsTelefónica fibre partner Atelco said to file for bankruptcy after Spanish contract loss
Telefónica fibre services subcontractor reportedly files for insolvency after losing critical ‘local loop’ contract, with union talks over future of workforce underway. Telefónica said to have aimed to simplify operations with the renewal, as part of wider cost-cutting measures that include renegotiating supplier deals…
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Public AffairsGermany’s O2 lines up job cuts as turnaround plan moves up a gear
Operator confirms it is in talks with employee representative bodies over plan that could axe around 1,400 employees from its workforce. Move comes as O2’s new management seeks to accelerate turnaround effort to fill in the void left by 1&1 contract loss and counter German competitive and economic pressure…
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Network & InfraVodafone taps Nokia for AI-powered network slicing
Telco-vendor duo have combined 5G network slicing with agentic AI, showcasing the potential for enterprise-grade, mission-critical 5G SA services, and putting Vodafone Albania on the Group’s innovation map.
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M&AFrom bitter critic to anchor investor: Xavier Niel replaces e& as Vodafone’s largest shareholder
In-depth: Audacious French telecoms tycoon snaps up e&’s stake in a €5bn transaction. Niel expresses confidence in strategic direction and ‘value creation potential’, just two years after expensively venting frustration at ‘mismanagement’…
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OperationsVodafone Turkey spins up Data & AI hothouse
OpCo combines multiple teams to create a new Data & AI division, as well as AI Board to speed up evaluation and execution of AI initiatives. Decision comes as operator continues to serve as a key AI testbed as part of Vodafone Group’s wider strategy for the technology…
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Network & InfraVodacom says more work needed on satco-telco compatibility
DTW Ignite: Jayesh Hargovan warns that while LEO satcoms is reaching maturity, integration challenges remain a major blocker to development of telco–satellite relationships, delaying time to revenue for both CSPs and satcos.
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PeoplewatchOpenreach commercial exec joins nexfibre as CCO
Ex-Openreach commercial and wholesale leader Ses Indy recruited as Chief Commercial Officer at nexfibre. The altnet views the exec’s experience as valuable as it seeks to become a ‘scaled’ challenger to Openreach, and as it moves forward with proposed Substantial Group acquisition…
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Public AffairsVirgin Media O2 hit with £28m fine over contract cancellation failings
UK watchdog issues “largest ever fine” under consumer protection rules after finding that VM O2’s ‘two-tier’ agents system and tactics served to delay or prevent customer switching. Fine comes after operator has invested in significant user experience improvements, following separate pushback over consumer practices…
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Products & ServicesGermany’s O2 ties with Crout on IoT backup
Operator provides business customers with additional IoT backup through tie-up with Crout, enabling systems to automatically switch between different networks, depending on availability. Service comes following other moves from O2 and Telefónica Group to deliver resilient enterprise connectivity…
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Network & InfraP3 builds a RAN digital twin for Germany, using DT’s T Cloud
German consultancy is developing a sovereign RF digital twin that it says could help MNOs slash network optimisation costs and gain better visibility into increasingly complex mobile networks. Platform will combine crowdsourced network performance data with operator OSS and configuration data to predict the impact of network changes.
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Products & ServicesUK telcos eye 2026 for latest number verification API launch
BT and Virgin Media O2 set to launch Number Verification 2.0 API during 2026, with Vodafone — having already deployed the technology in the UK — moving to roll out the technology in other European markets. Operators highlight new capabilities unlocked with the latest version, and success of close collaboration on wider API rollout…