Central and Eastern Europe

Regulation

Veon confirms green light for VimpelCom sale

Veon has confirmed that the sale of its Russian unit VimpelCom has been approved by Russian regulators.

Operators

Telemach not for sale, but its towers and base stations are

United Group, the parent company of Croatian operator Telemach, denied it is putting the unit up for sale but rather its passive infrastructure to pay off debts, as part of wider plans for all of its units in Eastern Europe.

Operators

Vimpelcom sale cleared following amendments

A Russian government commission has reportedly cleared Veon’s sale of its Russian unit Vimpelcom to the operator’s senior managers.

Operators

4iG completes buy of Vodafone Hungary

Hungarian operator 4iG and the government sealed the acquisition of Vodafone Hungary, a major move in a series of acquisitions to mount a challenge against market leader and Deutsche Telekom–owned, Maygar Telekom.

Operators

Poland fines broadband provider for illegal price hike

Polish broadband provider Vectra was slapped with a PLN22 million (US$5m) fine for illegally raising subscription fees by Poland's consumer watchdog, which stated the company had taken advantage of consumers.

Regulation

Croatian regulator signals start of spectrum auction process

HAKOM, the Croatian telecommunications regulator, has announced the start of the latest competitive frequency allocation process in the country.

Wireless Networks

T-Mobile Poland confirms April 3G shutdown and dismisses tower sale

T-Mobile Poland is accelerating its timeline for shutting down its 3G network and now expects to meet this target by April 2023.

Operators

4iG agrees full takeover of Vodafone Hungary

Hungary’s 4iG has signed a binding sale and purchase agreement that will see it take a 100% stake in Vodafone Hungary.

Regulation

Crnogorski Telekom, MTEL and One win in Montenegro’s 5G auctions

Montenegro’s major operators Crnogorski Telekom (CT), MTEL and One Montenegro have all acquired 5G-ready spectrum in the 700MHz and 3.6GHz bands.

Vendors

Russia announces $1.4bn boost to domestic gear manufacturing

The Russian government revealed four operators have signed contracts to buy over RUB100 billion (US$1.4 billion) worth of domestic telecoms equipment, after Nordic vendors Nokia and Ericsson outlined plans to exit Russia.

Operators

Vodafone Hungary taps Netcracker for cloud upgrade

Vodafone Hungary tapped Netcracker for a cloud solution that supports fixed-mobile convergence for the operator’s consumer and SME enterprise customers.

Vendors

Ericsson continues Russia departure

Ericsson has sold its local support business in Russia as it continues its departure from the country due to the invasion of Ukraine, stressing the sale does not hand over any hardware or software services to operators in Russia.

Regulation

Polish operator faces daily €10k fine

Polish cable operator Vectra is facing fines of up to €10,000 per day for failing to meet regulatory conditions for its acquisition of rival Multimedia Polska.

Energy & Sustainability

Sustainability initiatives under way in APAC and Armenia

Sustainability is in the news again with initiatives in the Asia-Pacific region and Armenia garnering headlines in recent days.

Operators

Veon sells Vimpelcom to its Russian bosses for $2.2B

Amsterdam-headquartered Veon has agreed to sell its Russian business Vimpelcom for 130 billion roubles (US$2.2 billion).

Enterprise Ecosystems

Magyar Telekom taps Mavenir for converged packet core in Hungary

Hungary’s Magyar Telekom - a subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom - has selected Mavenir to deploy its cloud-native containerised Converged Packet Core.

Regulation

Estonian incumbents bag 700MHz licences at near reserve price

Estonia has wrapped its 700MHz spectrum auction, with its three incumbents all securing concessions.

Regulation

ANCOM underwhelmed by Romanian 5G auctions

Romania’s multi-band 5G spectrum auctions have come to a close, with the three participants pledging a total of EUR432.6 million (US$448.3 million).

Enterprise Ecosystems

Montenegro’s One taps Elisa Polystar solutions for 5G transformation

Montenegrin operator One Crna Gora – formerly Telenor Montenegro, and now part of Hungary’s 4iG – is implementing Elisa Polystar’s KALIX and OSIX service assurance solutions.

Operators

Is Veon looking for a way out of Russia?

Veon has indicated that is planning to leave the Russian market in which it operates under the name Beeline, although it has made it clear that it does not have a buyer yet.

Regulation

Romania confirms 5G auction bidders while Montenegro opens applications

Romania’s National Authority for Management & Regulation in Communications (ANCOM) confirmed that three operators have applied to bid in its upcoming multi-band spectrum auction.

Regulation

Poland urged to resume 3.5GHz licensing process

The Digital Poland Association (Cyfrowa Polska) has called on the country’s government to license 3.5GHz C-band spectrum for 5G use “as soon as possible.”

Vendors

Nokia addresses network enhancement in Indonesia and Azerbaijan

Two recent Nokia deals, in Indonesia and Azerbaijan, emphasise network enhancement and improved customer experience but also, the vendor says, offer the potential for cost savings for operators.

Operators

Telia Lithuania loses another court battle

Telia saw its complaint thrown out by Lithuania’s Supreme Administrative Court, ruling rival Bite was not gaining an unfair advantage from acquiring state-owned broadband provider MEZON’s spectrum, CommsUpdate reported.

Satellite Networks

4iG gains approval for satellite buy

Hungarian telecoms operator group 4iG has agreed conditions to acquire a minority stake in Israeli company Spacecom, as part of a move for the company to launch Hungary’s first commercial satellite to expand coverage and services.

Operators

Russia loses race to lead ITU

Member states of the International Telecommunication Union elected US representative Doreen Bogdan-Martin as its next secretary-general, beating Russia’s Rashid Ismailov.

Wireless Networks

Tele2 switches on 5G in Lithuania’s capital

Tele2 Lithuania has launched a 5G service in Vilnius using its recently obtained 700MHz and 3.5GHz spectrum.

Vendors

Ericsson denies selling gear for military in Russia

Ericsson stated it is providing only software and technical support to clients in Russia, not selling gear to operators as Swedish media claimed, reported Reuters.

Regulation

Hungary sees 50,000 2G/3G phone trade-ins

Hungary’s National Media and Communications Authority (NMHH) revealed that 50,000 outdated mobile phones were traded in its replacement programme in the last seven months, an initiative in preparation for the shutdown of 3G networks.

Vendors

Samsung undecided on resuming Russia shipments

Samsung did not rule out resuming stock shipments to Russia after the Korean company suspended orders in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine, reported Reuters.

Vendors

Intracom Telecom sells Russian unit to complete market exit

Intracom Telecom has announced its complete exit from the Russian market in the framework of the European Union sanctions on Russia imposed on February 25th 2022.

What will happen when Ericsson and Nokia depart Russaia?

Operators

What will happen when Ericsson and Nokia depart Russia?

The invasion of Ukraine will forever go down as one of the most infamous moments of this era. It is a conflict that caught the world off guard as all nations began recovering from the pandemic.

Regulation

Estonia opens applications for 700MHz auction

Estonian regulator TTJA (Tarbijakaitse ja Tehnilise Jarelevalve Amet / Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority) has commenced its latest round of 5G spectrum auctions, with six lots in the 700MHz band available.

Regulation

Telia Lietuva biggest spender as Lithuania’s 700MHz auction wraps

Lithuania’s Communications Regulatory Authority (RRT) has concluded the 700MHz spectrum auction that commenced in May.

Energy & Sustainability

Ammonia-based power solution trialled on Romanian tower

The search for clean, safe and cost-effective power-supplies for mobile networks continues with a fascinating new off-grid power solution being trialled in Romania.

Vendors

Ericsson, Nokia aim for Russia exit in 2022

Infrastructure vendor Nokia said it will exit Russia before the end of this year, while rival Ericsson is in the process of winding down its operations, moves that were spurred in the wake of the war in Ukraine.

Data Centres & Networks

Poland plans ambitious national data centre project

The government of Poland plans to build what it calls a National Data Centre – or, more accurately, it has published a draft bill on what it hopes will be achieved by embarking on this ambitious project.

Operators

Vodafone agrees $1.8bn sale of Hungarian unit

Vodafone Group agreed on the sale of its Hungarian unit to local operator 4iG and government holding company Corvinus for HUF715 billion (US$1.8bn), a continuation of the group’s divestment strategy to focus on core markets and cut debt.

Regulation

All permits sold in Lithuania’s 3.5GHz auction

Lithuania’s three main operators have all procured spectrum holdings following the conclusion of the regulator’s auction of 5G-ready 3.5GHz airwaves.

Wireless Networks

Azercell plans major network expansion and modernisation

Azerbaijan operator Azercell, the leading operator in the market, says it has launched a large-scale project to expand coverage and increase the capacity of its 4G LTE network across the country.

Regulation

Estonia’s 3.5GHz 5G auctions end quietly

The third part of Estonia’s 3.5GHz 5G auctions appears to be over, but with much less excitement than the other two; operator Tele2 had no opposition to its bid on the first or second day.

Operators

Tele2 launches 5G in Estonia despite auction progress

Tele2 Estonia launched commercial 5G services in parts of the capital city Tallinn despite ongoing 5G auctions in the country.

Regulation

Montenegro orders price cuts

The Montenegrin telecoms regulator EKIP made reforms to pricing by demanding operators cut prices, in a move to spur the country’s telecoms industry.

Regulation

Romania’s ANCOM lays out 5G auction proposals

Romanian regulator ANCOM (National Authority for Management and Regulation in Communications) has begun a consultation on its upcoming 5G spectrum auctions.

Regulation

Lithuania commences 3.5GHz bidding despite ongoing 700MHz auction

Lithuania’s Communications Regulatory Authority (RRT / Rysiu Reguliavimo Tarnyba) has invited bids for the next available lot of 5G mobile spectrum.

Regulation

Hungary extends 2G/3G device replacement subsidies into 2023

Hungary’s National Media and Communications Authority (NMHH) has announced that it is extending its device replacement subsidy scheme until 31st March 2023.

Regulation

Russia to reallocate mmWave for 5G as MTS signs up to JV

Russia’s State Commission for Radio Frequencies (SCRF) has agreed to repurpose millimetre wave (mmWave) frequencies for 5G access networks.

Operators

Elisa Estonia hits out at “unfair” Tele2 spectrum allocation

Elisa Estonia has lodged a complaint with the country’s Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority (TTJA) over the distribution of 5G licences, arguing that its rival Tele2 has obtained additional 2300MHz bandwidth without having to participate in the ongoing auctions.

Optical & Fixed Networks

Cisco joins exodus of Russia

IT and networks solutions provider Cisco followed other western firms in exiting Russia and Belarus in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine.

Devices & Platforms

Apple spare parts drying up in Russia

Approved Apple repair centres in Russia are reportedly struggling to find legit parts to carry out repairs for devices after the nation was sanctioned by a raft of nations after beginning the invasion of Ukraine.