ACES and BSNL supply connectivity for Noida International Airport with NOC-SOC from Tech Mahindra
INDIA 11:51

ACES and BSNL supply connectivity for Noida International Airport with NOC-SOC from Tech Mahindra

ACES India and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) have announced an agreement to deploy telecoms and digital connectivity infrastructure at Noida International Airport. Last month, Tech Mahindra unveiled a deal to set up and run a Network and Security Operations Centre (NOC-SOC) for Noida airport, which is expected to handle between 60 million and 120 million passengers by 2050.

Azercell offers 56 GB data package for 6 months with iPhone 17 until 31 January
AZERBAIJAN 10:32

Azercell offers 56 GB data package for 6 months with iPhone 17 until 31 January

Azeri operator Azercell Telecom is running a promotion for the latest Apple smartphone models, the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max and iPhone Air. Customers buying one of these will receive a six-month subscription to Azercell's 56 GB internet package. The offer is available to both new and existing Azercell subscribers and runs until 31 January at selected Azercell sales and service centres.

Dhiraagu supports Special Olympics Maldives scheme for children with learning disabilities
MALDIVES 10:08

Dhiraagu supports Special Olympics Maldives scheme for children with learning disabilities

Dhiraagu has announced a partnership with Special Olympics Maldives to launch a regional sports development programme for children and young people with intellectual disabilities. They will offer inclusive sport events, structured training and community engagement. The first programme will run in G.Dh. Thinadhoo for a period of six months.

Vodafone Idea confirms AGR extension deal to 2041
INDIA 07:24

Vodafone Idea confirms AGR extension deal to 2041

Vodafone Idea has confirmed an agreement with the Department of Telecom to extend the payment deadline for its outstanding regulatory fees for up to 15 years. The deal covers the outstanding levy on annual gross revenues (AGR) for the fiscal years 2006-07 to 2018-19. The longer payment schedule is expected to help the company conserve cash flow for other obligations, including investing in its network. 

Nanto City partners GigaStream Toyama on 3.1 GW data centre cluster in Japan
JAPAN 06:49

Nanto City partners GigaStream Toyama on 3.1 GW data centre cluster in Japan

Nanto City and data centre developer GigaStream Toyama have concluded an agreement to develop a large-scale data centre campus in Toyama Prefecture, positioning the area as what the parties describe as Japan's third major data centre cluster after Tokyo and Osaka. The project, known as the Nanto Campus, is planned as a phased development with total capacity of up to 3.1 GW. On 19 December, the Nanto City Council approved the sale of approximately 13.1 hectares of land for Phase 1, which is designed to suppo

NTT Docomo Business launches smart stadium operations platform in East Asia
ASIA 06:36

NTT Docomo Business launches smart stadium operations platform in East Asia

NTT Docomo Business has begun offering a cloud-based facility management platform for stadiums, arenas and large commercial venues following an exclusive distribution agreement with US-based SaaS provider 24/7 Software. Under the agreement, NTT Docomo Business will act as the exclusive reseller of 24/7 Software in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan. The platform is designed to support the digitalisation of venue operations by integrating incident management, lost-and-found handling, guest requests and facilities

SoftBank trials renewable-powered base stations and AI sleep control
JAPAN 06:33

SoftBank trials renewable-powered base stations and AI sleep control

SoftBank has announced two initiatives aimed at reducing the carbon footprint of its mobile network as part of its target to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions across its supply chain by 2050. The operator has begun a field trial of self-powered base stations using a combination of solar and wind generation in Ichihara City, Chiba Prefecture. The site is designed to supply around one third of its required electricity through on-site renewable generation, with the remainder drawn from the commercial g

True Move H completes sixth 700 MHz spectrum payment
THAILAND 06:27

True Move H completes sixth 700 MHz spectrum payment

Thai operator True Move H Universal Communication has paid the sixth instalment of its 700 MHz spectrum licence fee to Thailand's National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC), continuing its rollout of low-band spectrum to support nationwide 4G and 5G services. The payment, totalled THA 1.88 billion including VAT. The operator also submitted letters of guarantee from financial institutions to secure the remaining instalments, in line with the licence conditions set by the regulator.

NTT tests IOWN APN-based remote production for school rugby broadcast
JAPAN 06:26

NTT tests IOWN APN-based remote production for school rugby broadcast

NTT West has completed a technical trial of a remote broadcast production environment using its IOWN All-Photonics Network (APN) during coverage of the 105th National High School Rugby Football Tournament. The trial was conducted in collaboration with broadcaster Mainichi Broadcasting System (MBS). The demonstration involved centralising advanced production functions, including AI-generated super slow-motion video and on-screen caption production, within a data centre rather than deploying them in an outsid

Samsung SDS agrees plan for 60 MW AI data centre in Gumi
KOREA, REPUBLIC OF 06:24

Samsung SDS agrees plan for 60 MW AI data centre in Gumi

Samsung SDS has signed an MoU with Gyeongsangbuk-do Province and the city of Gumi to build a large-scale AI data centre in South Korea. Under the agreement, Samsung SDS plans to construct a 60 MW AI data centre in Gumi on the site of the former Samsung Electronics Gumi 1 complex, which the company acquired in December 2024. The facility is scheduled to begin operations in March 2029 and is intended to support growing demand for AI- and GPU-focused services.

Viu launches short-form vertical video offering on mobile app
ASIA 06:22

Viu launches short-form vertical video offering on mobile app

Viu, the video streaming service operated by PCCW, has launched a new short-form video section called Viu Shorts, expanding its content catalogue with vertically formatted micro-dramas designed for mobile viewing. Viu Shorts is available within the Viu mobile app and features episodic content typically running between one and three minutes per episode. The new section sits alongside Viu's existing long-form television series and films and is aimed at viewers seeking shorter viewing sessions on mobile device

Dialog Axiata and UnionPay sign digital payments partnership in Sri Lanka
SRI LANKA 06:19

Dialog Axiata and UnionPay sign digital payments partnership in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka operator Dialog Axiata PLC has entered into a strategic partnership with UnionPay International aimed at expanding digital payment services in Sri Lanka. The agreement involves Dialog Finance, the group's financial services arm, and focuses on enabling payment products that can be used across sectors including e-commerce, transport, travel, retail and micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.

HONG KONG 06:13

HKT loyalty platform The Club launches 'Reward Your Moments' promotion

Hong Kong Telecommunications (HKT) has launched a new promotional campaign for its loyalty platform The Club, offering reward points and partner benefits with a total stated value of more than HKD 20 million. The campaign, titled "Reward Your Moments", centres on a series of time-limited offers for The Club members, including reward points, discounts and prizes, and runs until 15 February 2026. 

JAPAN 06:11

Shinmei Group to adopt NTT's AI-based produce allocation automation service

Shinmei Group has decided to introduce an AI-driven automation service for produce allocation operations across its group companies, following successful trials conducted by NTT AI-CIX. The service automates allocation tasks at wholesale produce markets, where incoming goods are divided and assigned to buyers such as supermarkets and retailers. The system uses AI to learn from sales staff knowledge, order requirements and product characteristics to automatically generate allocation plans.

HONG KONG 8 JAN

Hong Kong passes 32 mln mobile lines in September, over 1 mln M2M connections

Hong Kong passed 32.3 million mobile lines in September, an increase of around 870,000 lines from the previous month, according to the latest figures from the Office of the Communications Authority (OFCA). Most of the growth was in the prepaid market, which counted 21.8 million Sims in September. 4G was still the dominant technology, with 22.7 million users, while the 5G base increased slightly to almost 9.6 million. 

MALDIVES 8 JAN

Ooredoo Maldives launches 'Text a Coffee' service

Ooredoo Maldives has introduced the 'Text a Coffee' service via the My Ooredoo App and web portal. Once a gift is sent, the recipient receives a confirmation SMS with a unique transaction code, which they can present at the selected cafe or restaurant to redeem their free coffee. Gifts can be sent to customers across all local networks. Text a Coffee works at thirteen partner outlets.

KOREA, REPUBLIC OF 8 JAN

SKT sees customer satisfaction with post-incident compensation measures

A survey conducted by SK Telecom (SKT) has highlighted customer responses to compensation initiatives introduced following last year's cyber security incident, with discounts on mobile bills and additional data allowances receiving the highest satisfaction ratings. The survey, carried out between 2 and 5 January 2026 among 4,978 customers, found that 68.7 percent of respondents identified the one-month 50 percent discount on August 2025 mobile bills as the most impactful measure.

KOREA, REPUBLIC OF 8 JAN

Naver completes 4,000-GPU Blackwell cluster for AI model training

Naver has completed construction of what it says is South Korea's largest AI computing cluster based on Nvidia's Blackwell B200 GPUs, deploying 4,000 processors to support large-scale model training and AI service development. The new cluster consolidates cooling, power and networking optimised for large-scale parallel processing and high-speed interconnects. Naver said the system was designed and built in-house, drawing on experience gained since 2019 operating large GPU clusters, including early commercia

JAPAN 8 JAN

KDDI partners KPMG on intellectual property and intangible asset strategy

KPMG Consulting has supported KDDI its development of an intellectual property and intangible asset strategy aligned with the Japanese operator's wider business and sustainability objectives. The work forms part of KDDI's efforts to strengthen its management foundations under its mid-term business plan running to March 2026 and its longer-term "KDDI Vision 2030". As part of this, KDDI is seeking to enhance both financial and non-financial value by integrating intellectual property, know-how and brand assets

JAPAN 8 JAN

NTT Docomo grows subs as overall mobile market expands

NTT Docomo grew its subscriber base in the second quarter (September 2025) to 91.9 million, up from 91.6 million in the June quarter, according to Telecommunications Carriers Association (TCA) figures. Over the same period SoftBank recorded 56.4 million in Q2, up from 55.7 million. KDDI expanded its subscribers to 71.5 million in Q2, up from 70.7 million. Overall, the mobile market grew to 229.1 million in Q2, up from 226.9 million. Rakuten Mobile also increased to 9.33 million in Q2, up from 8.97 million.

SRI LANKA 8 JAN

Dialog secures ICC cricket rights for Sri Lanka

Sri Lankan pay TV operator Dialog Television has secured the exclusive media rights in Sri Lanka for all International Cricket Council (ICC) events from 2026 to 2028, alongside a free-to-air broadcast collaboration with TV Supreme. This agreement positions Dialog Television as the official Pay-TV broadcaster of ICC events in Sri Lanka, covering all major tournaments across Men's, Women's, and Under-19 formats. The rights include the ICC Cricket World Cups and T20 World Cups for both Men and Women, the ICC W

JAPAN 8 JAN

NTT Docomo-backed gacco expands cybersecurity awareness training

NTT Docomo group's digital learning platform gacco has expanded the availability of cybersecurity awareness training in Japan through a partnership with Saya University, making the Saya Cybersecurity Awareness programme available at enterprise scale via its corporate learning service. The Saya training is now offered as an official course within "Gacco for Biz", gacco's learning environment for enterprises. This allows organisations to deploy the programme across their workforce using gacco's learning manag

ASIA 8 JAN

8x8 acquires Maven Lab to expand CPaaS and messaging capabilities

Unified communications company 8x8 has acquired Singapore-based enterprise messaging and mobile marketing provider Maven Lab as part of its strategy to build end-to-end customer engagement capabilities across the Asia-Pacific region. The deal brings Maven Lab's APAC-native messaging, automation and customer engagement assets into 8x8's communications platform, strengthening its CPaaS offering for enterprises and public-sector organisations that require large-scale, secure and locally compliant messaging. Fi

JAPAN 8 JAN

NTT Docomo Ventures to host 10th Ventures Day for startups

NTT Docomo Ventures (NDV) will hold the 10th edition of its annual collaboration event, NTT Docomo Ventures Day 2026, on 19 February in Tokyo, bringing together startups and companies from across the NTT Group. The event is intended to facilitate partnerships between domestic and international startups and NTT Group businesses, with a focus on co-creation and new business development. First launched in 2014, the 2026 edition marks the tenth time the event has been held.

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Background

5 JAN 00:52

The week in telecom: Finnish security check, M&A completions and telco job cuts

23 DEC 2025 10:32

Netherlands TV-video market grows 2.6% in Q3 to EUR 759 mln

22 DEC 2025 00:25

The week in telecoms: YouTube, Instagram take on TV market and WBD rejects Paramount

15 DEC 2025 01:04

The week in telecom: Wi-Fi bolt-ons take off to boost broadband growth, video market works on consolidation