Advanced Television

spectrum

Fitch: GES acquisition Neutral for SES rating

SES’s (BBB/Stable) planned acquisition of DRS Global Enterprise Solutions (GES), provider of commercial satellite communications to the US government, will have no impact on SES’s ratings, Fitch Ratings says. SES announced March 21st that it had entered into an agreement with Leonardo DRS, a US subsidiary of Leonardo S.p.A. (BBB-/Stable), to acquire GES for $450 […]

March 24, 2022

Avid, Arab Telemedia agree multi-year subscription agreement

Avid has announced the end-to-end upgrade of Arab Telemedia Group (ATG), an Emmy Award-winning independent commercial media enterprise specialising in telenovela series productions aired throughout the Arab world. This longstanding Avid customer, based in Amman, Jordan, has modernized its content workflows through a new subscription agreement that ensures its editorial teams will always have the […]

March 23, 2022

Belgium: 5 bidders admissible for radio spectrum auction

The BIPT has assessed the eligibility of the candidates for the auction of the future radio spectrum. Five mobile operators had submitted their candidacies for the upcoming auction and have been deemed admissible following an assessment by the BIPT. The auction regards the assignment of the new 5G and the existing 2G and 3G radio […]

March 22, 2022

Ofcom consults on space spectrum strategy

Supporting the growing use of cutting-edge satellite technology to offer innovative services for people and businesses, is at the heart of UK comms regulator Ofcom’s new proposed space spectrum strategy. The space sector is expanding rapidly, with the number of space launches increasing by almost 60 per cent between 2017 and 2021. Companies such as […]

March 15, 2022By Colin Mann

South Africa spectrum auction tops expectations

South Africa’s ongoing cellular spectrum auction has already raised more cash than was expected. The session on March 11th ended with bids of more than 8 billion Rand (about €484m). “ICASA is pleased to announce that the auction is proceeding very well and can confirm that we have gradually passed estimated R8-billion in proceeds. The […]

March 14, 2022By Chris Forrester

ICASA gets financial boost

South Africa’s government has allocated an additional Rand 300 million (about €17.5 million) in its annual budget for regulator ICASA for 2022-2023. The cash means an increase in ICASA’s budget of more than 50 per cent and comes ahead of its March planned spectrum auction. “[The] additional funding of R300-million in 2022/2023 is earmarked for […]

February 25, 2022By Chris Forrester

South Africa: 6 bidders for spectrum

South Africa’s communications regulator ICASA has approved six bidders for next month’s capacity auction. They are Vodacom, MTN, Telkom, Cell C, Liquid Intelligent Technologies and Rain. The invitations to apply and to submit for the auction was issued back in December 2021 with a requirement to firm up their applications by January 31st. However, telco […]

February 23, 2022By Chris Forrester

Ofcom shares spectrum future thinking

UK comms regulator Ofcom has set out its initial thinking on how mobile markets might develop and how networks may need to evolve to meet future demand. Ofcom has also set out how it might adapt its approach accordingly. Future approach to mobile markets Demand for mobile services has grown rapidly over the last decade. […]

February 9, 2022By Colin Mann

Six register for South Africa spectrum auction

Six telcos have formally applied for to take part in the upcoming spectrum being auctioned by South Africa’s government. The timetable closed on January 31st and six players had entered the auction line-up. They are: · Cell C · Liquid Intelligent Technologies · MTN · Rain · Telkom · Vodacom Telkom is still involved in […]

February 2, 2022By Chris Forrester

Report calls for spectrum sharing policy priority

The industry-led sounding board to UK Government and comms regulator Ofcom, UK Spectrum Policy Forum (UK SPF), has released research in collaboration with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) on how current shared spectrum access is creating the conditions for new players to provide innovative 5G services. The report, SPF Cluster 3 […]

January 27, 2022By Colin Mann