Operators

The GSMA has elected MTN Group CEO Ralph Mupita as its deputy chair, following the appointment of Bharti Airtel vice chairman Gopal Vittal as chair.

Vodacom South Africa has instituted what it calls a community-based model to secure towers against battery theft. The community of Kamberg in the coastal province of KwaZulu-Natal has partnered with Vodacom KwaZulu-Natal region to implement additional security measures at the operator’s base station sites in the area. 

Vietnam-based operator MobiFone has officially launched its 5G mobile services, making it the third provider to commercialise 5G in the Southeast Asian country.

Tunisie Telecom and Ericsson announced on Friday that the operator has commenced offering NSA (non-standalone) 5G services that partly leverage TDD spectrum to deliver multi-gigabit speeds to customers.

Malaysian operator U Mobile has announced that it has received official approval from the country’s telecoms regulator to deploy its 5G network.

The Indian government has reportedly expanded its ownership stake in Vodafone Idea from 22.6% to 48.99% by converting around INR369.5 billion (US$4.3 billion) of the telco’s spectrum payment dues into equity shares.

Singtel subsidiary and technology services company NCS is expanding its footprint in the Asia-Pacific region by acquiring a 51% majority stake in Globe Telecom’s IT unit, Yondu.

South African operator Telkom has entered the country’s mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) market through a partnership with a mobile virtual network enabler (MVNE) platform provider.

Bharti Airtel paid INR59.85 billion ($697.5 million) to India’s Department of Telecom to fully repay a high-interest loan used for spectrum at auction last year.

Bharti Airtel has announced its role as the landing partner for the 2Africa Pearls cable in India, a subsea network connecting Africa, India, and Europe via the Middle East. 

Airtel Africa and MTN Group have partnered to share network infrastructure in Uganda and Nigeria, aiming to expand coverage and improve cost efficiencies.

Angolan operator Unitel has strengthened its 4G network in multiple locations to enhance voice and data services.

Troubled Chilean operator WOM has emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy, with CEO Chris Bannister pledging to steer the company forward.

MegaFon Tajikistan has switched on 60 new 4G base stations across the country as part of its efforts to enhance service quality.

Malaysian operator Maxis has introduced a Gen AI assistant, Mia (Maxis Intelligent Assistant), developed in collaboration with AWS for its B2B subscribers.

Veon Group has appointed Singapore-based operator StarHub’s consumer chief, Johan Buse (pictured), as the new CEO of its Banglalink unit, in a move to accelerate its digital expansion in emerging markets.

China Unicom and Huawei co-hosted an innovation summit during Mobile World Congress 2025, themed 5G-A Empowering, AI Transforming, Digital Living.

Turkcell (NYSE: TKC) (BIST: TCELL), Türkiye’s leading telecommunications and technology company, in collaboration with Huawei, has successfully implemented autonomous network functions within its IP Backbone Network. This milestone marks a significant advancement in the evolution of telecom infrastructure, enhancing the automation, efficiency, and intelligence of Turkcell’s network management systems.

Indonesian telco Telkomsel is having a busy week at Mobile World Congress 2025, following up MoUs with ZTE and Huawei on Monday with a flurry of deals with Ericsson, Pegatron and TikTok covering cloud-native edge computing, 5G factories and user verification.

Malaysian operator CelcomDigi has announced at MWC25 its new partnership with Aduna, a landmark venture between some of the world's leading telecom operators and Ericsson that began in 2024.

MWC25 has seen the unveiling of the successful launch of Wim, a groundbreaking all-digital, cloud-native mobile network operator (MNO) in Mexico.

Thai telco True Corp revealed on Friday it has removed or adjusted mobile towers in border zones under the directives of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) to help combat call centre scammers operating on Thailand's borders.

Philippines-based operator PLDT has revealed its interest in acquiring private equity firm KKR’s stake in fintech company Maya Innovations.

State-owned Vietnamese telco VNPT Group said on Thursday that its mobile arm Vinaphone has signed on 3 million active subscribers to its 5G service, and plans to triple its 5G coverage by the end of this year.

Telefónica has announced it will integrate Generative AI into its digital workplace management software to enhance operations at security firm Prosegur across the Iberian Peninsula and Latin America.

Indian billionaire and Bharti Enterprises chairperson Sunil Mittal (pictured) has sold US$976 million worth of Bharti Airtel shares as he looks to secure funds for other ventures.

State-controlled telco Telecom Egypt said it has signed several service agreements with Orange Egypt worth around EGP15 billion (US$296.2 million) to provide transmission and infrastructure services.

Etihad Salam Telecom Company, a provider of telecommunications services in Saudi Arabia, has announced a number of partnerships in recent days, including agreements with EdgeNext, a prominent leader in the global edge cloud services industry, and with call centre solutions provider Genesys.