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Tag: telecom

  • Nepal selects frequency to embark on 5G services

    Nepal selects frequency to embark on 5G services

    Nepal’s National Telecommunication Authority (NTA) has determined its 5G frequency as the country prepares to deploy 5G service. NTA will follow the recommendations set out by the National Frequency Management Forum, a body initiated by the NTA, the Ministry of Communications & Information Technology (MoCIT) and telecommunications operators.

    According to NTA’s spokesperson, Meen Prasad Aryal, the National Radio Frequency Policy Determination Committee has received a proposal with recommendations using 700 MHz, 900 MHz, 2300 MHz and 2600 MHz for the low-band spectrum, 3300 MHz, 3400 MHz, 3600 MHz and 4100 MHz for the mid-band spectrum, and 26 GHz for the high-band spectrum.

    Established to manage existing and new spectrums, the National Frequency Management Forum performed studies for 5G spectrums before recommending a suitable spectrum for allocation. The National Radio Frequency Policy Determination Committee must now approve NTA’s proposed frequencies before spectrums will be allocated to operators.

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  • Chinese Telcom Giants Review New York Delisting

    Chinese Telcom Giants Review New York Delisting

    In the latest on U.S. delistings of Chinese firms, the three largest mainland telecommunications firms have requested for a review of the New York Stock Exchange’s decision to remove their shares from the bourse.

    In a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange yesterday where they are also listed, China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom said that written requests have been filed with NYSE. The three telecom giants said they also asked for trading suspensions to be maintained during the review.

    The review will be scheduled at least 25 days from when the request was filed, the statement added, with no assurance for success.

    Near the end of the Trump administration, the New York bourse had already once reversed a decision to delist the stocks, deemed by the U.S. to be linked to China’s military, only to ultimately comply following an alleged phone call from U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin.

    But now, the three telecom giants will seek to push for a second reversal under a Joe Biden administration. Biden recently nominated ex-Fed chair Janet Yellen as the new incoming Treasury secretary.

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  • Trump takes one last shot at maiming Huawei before he leaves the White House this week

    Trump takes one last shot at maiming Huawei before he leaves the White House this week

    Even though President Donald Trump will be leaving the White House this coming Wednesday, he took the time to spank the Chinese phone and networking equipment manufacturer Huawei one last time. In May 2019, Trump cited security issues for his decision to put Huawei on the Entity List. This move prevented the firm from accessing its U.S. suppliers without permission from the Commerce Department. Despite this move which resulted in the loss of Google as a supplier, Huawei persevered; for a brief period of time this year, it was the top phone manufacturer on the planet in terms of shipments.

    Exactly one year to the day that it was placed on the Entity List, Huawei received another big blow from the Trump administration. Starting last September, any foundry manufacturing chips using American-sourced technology needs a license from the U.S. to ship to Huawei. The latter was the second-largest customer of the world’s largest foundry, TSMC, and was blocked from receiving cutting-edge chips that it had designed itself. The U.S. also browbeat its allies over the last few years in an attempt to prevent them from using Huawei’s networking equipment on their 5G networks.

    American lawmakers were quick to call Huawei a national security risk because of the company’s alleged tie to the Communist Chinese government. Concerns that Huawei’s phones and base stations contain backdoors used to spy on U.S. consumers and corporations have never been proven. The U.S. also banned rural carriers from using the Universal Service Fund (managed by the FCC) to purchase networking gear from Huawei and is forcing these firms to remove any Huawei equipment used in their networks.

    In the final days of the Trump administration, licenses allowing U.S. firms to sell to the Chinese manufacturer are being revoked and applications from U.S. suppliers to obtain such licenses are being rejected. Reuters has seen an email sent from the Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) that documents the Commerce Department’s recent actions. In the email, the SIA notes that the Commerce Department had released “intents to deny a significant number of license requests for exports to Huawei and a revocation of at least one previously issued license.” The SIA email stated that a broad range of products was included in the latest action and many U.S. companies have been waiting months to hear whether they would be allowed to sell to Huawei. More than 150 license requests were pending amounting to $120 billion worth of goods and technology.

    Just last week, the Trump administration blacklisted Chinese phone manufacturer Xiaomi by demanding that U.S. investors divest themselves from any investments made in the company by November 11th, 2021.

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  • FCC sets record with auction of key spectrum for 5G use

    FCC sets record with auction of key spectrum for 5G use

    During 2021, U.S. carriers will take another huge step toward completing the build-out of their 5G networks. The FCC last week wrapped up an auction of mid-band spectrum in the C-band. These airwaves lie in the range of 3.7GHz-3.98GHz and heavy demand for the rare mid-band spectrum helped generate a record $80.9 billion in proceeds related to the auction. There were 57 bidders vying for a total of 5,684 licenses. Mid-band spectrum is very much in demand by U.S. carriers and T-Mobile has made these airwaves the key part of its layer-cake approach to 5G. The previous record for money generated by an FCC auction for spectrum was the $44.9 billion generated by the FCC’s 2014 AWS-3 auction.

    T-Mobile, the first U.S. carrier to launch nationwide 5G in the states, used its 600MHz low-band spectrum as the foundation for its nationwide 5G service. These signals travel great distances making them the perfect foundation for its network. But what they don’t do is deliver download data speeds much faster than 4G LTE. High-band spectrum can only travel short distances making them perfect for urban areas where the population is densely packed. While these signals do not easily penetrate buildings, they do deliver fast 5G download data speeds often hitting 1Gbps and faster.

    In between the two extremes is mid-band spectrum. Sprint’s mid-band holdings were exactly what T-Mobile was targeting when it offered $26.5 billion to buy its fellow wireless provider back in April 2018. The deal closed this past April giving T-Mobile control over Sprint’s 2.5GHz mid-band spectrum. These signals travel further than those of the high-band variety and are faster than low-band 5G. Many analysts expect T-Mobile to become the fastest 5G provider in the states thanks to its mid-band holdings once all the work is done.

    Other carriers wanted the opportunity to purchase mid-band spectrum for themselves. In November 2019, U.S. Cellular, Verizon, AT&T, Bluegrass Cellular, Pine Belt Wireless and the C-Band Alliance sent an electronic letter to the FCC requesting an auction of mid-band airwaves in the C-Band (3.7GHz-4.2GHz). At the time, U.S. Cellular President and CEO Ken Meyers says that it is “critical” for U.S. carriers to obtain as much mid-band spectrum as they can find. The executive made it clear that the FCC had to take action ASAP to make sure that there would be enough mid-band spectrum to go around.

    FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, who is leaving the regulatory agency this Wednesday afternoon when the transition to the Biden administration takes place, said, “These results represent a strong endorsement by the private sector of the service rules and transition plan put in place by the FCC to quickly make the C-band a critical part of 5G rollout in the United States. And they vindicate the hard choices the FCC made during the C-band proceeding—and that we made them. The FCC confronted a host of technical, legal, practical, and political challenges in structuring this auction. It would have been easy to delay. But we rightly pushed ahead and overcame every one of those obstacles. As a result, we significantly advanced United States leadership in 5G and have enabled America’s wireless consumers to more quickly benefit from 5G services.”

    Satellite owners who are giving up their spectrum in the auction are being transitioned to the upper 4.0-4.2 GHz range. To prevent interference from the satellite transmissions to impact the wireless providers, a 20MHz band will be used as a “guard band.”

    The next step in the process requires the auction winners to bid for licenses related to specific frequencies. The FCC will release a notice to the public containing the date and time when this assignment phase will take place.

  • Viettel profits grow despite pandemic

    Viettel profits grow despite pandemic

    Telecom giant Viettel managed to shrug off the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and achieve its revenue and profit targets in 2020.

    The military-owned firm reported revenues of VND264 trillion ($11.47 billion), up 4.4 percent from 2019, and pre-tax profit of VND39.8 trillion, up 4.1 percent.

    Viettel attributed the results to its digital transformation and switch from being a telecom services provider to a digital services provider. In 2020, the platforms it developed included digital infrastructure, solutions, content, and finance, and cybersecurity.

    Its 10 overseas markets reported a 25 percent increase in profits to VND5.6 trillion in the first nine months of 2020, while at home it remained the leader in mobile services and fixed broadband with a 54.2 percent market share.

    By manufacturing 5G equipment and trialing 5G services, the company made Vietnam one of only six countries in the world to master the technology.

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  • Viettel revamps as it eyes to enter Cuba

    Viettel revamps as it eyes to enter Cuba

    Viettel Group, Vietnam’s largest mobile network operator, which is wholly owned and operated by the Ministry of Defense, has plans to expand to sister socialist countries Cuba and North Korea, both of which are in the early stages of building up mobile phone networks. Earlier plans to expand to Venezuela have been put on hold owing to the dismal economic state of the latter nation.

    According to Viettel executives, the company is seeking to hold negotiations with the two countries in order to gain a foothold in their underdeveloped wireless markets.

    In Cuba, the company is waiting for a decision by Empresa de Telecomunicaciones de Cuba, the state-owned telecom provider and operator of the sole mobile network Cubacel whether it would grant Viettel a license.

    In North Korea, where Koryolink, a joint venture between the North Korean state and Egypt’s Orascom Investment Holdings, has reached millions of subscribers since its 2008 launch, Viettel had sought permission to build a mobile network as early as in 2010 but is still waiting for sanctions to be lifted and for the country to open its market to foreign investors.

    Viettel in its international expansion has set sights on a number of otherwise overlooked destinations. It began its global expansion by setting up a joint venture in Laos in 2008 and became the largest mobile phone operator in Cambodia after launching operations there in 2009. Since that time Viettel has expanded its operations to Burundi, Cameroon, East Timor, Haiti, Mozambique, Peru, Tanzania and eventually Myanmar.

    Between 2015 and 2017, the company invested over $2.23 billion or its foreign expansion strategy and by 2017, Viettel’s international operations covered an area of more 350 million potential subscribers. The company has invested in heavily in infrastructure in Myanmar where it is seeking to double its five million-subscriber base by the end of this year.

    The company has said that it will stop investment in the African market where the company has struggled to make a profit due to poor economic growth. According to telecommunications industry insiders, Viettel is in talks to buy stakes in existing telecommunication firms in Indonesia and Malaysia and a 20% stake in an unnamed European mobile carrier. Plans are to expand further in Bangladesh, Nepal, Belarus and Ukraine in the near future.

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  • The World’s largest wireless carrier is removed by the New York Stock Exchange

    The World’s largest wireless carrier is removed by the New York Stock Exchange

    This past Thursday, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) said that it would stop handling transactions involving the securities of China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom. The move by the securities exchange comes after U.S. President Donald Trump, back in November, banned American companies and consumers from investing in 31 outfits that Trump said are owned or controlled by the Chinese military.

    Among the three telecom firms mentioned by the NYSE last week, China Mobile is the world’s largest wireless provider. As of last October, the carrier had more than 946 million subscribers. Compare that figure with the 120 million+ subscribers that Verizon counted at the end of the last quarter; the latter is the largest mobile carrier in the states.

    As you might imagine, Chinese government officials are not pleased. The Chinese Ministry of Commerce said in a statement, “This kind of abuse of national security and state power to suppress Chinese firms does not comply with market rules and violates market logic. It not only harms the legal rights of Chinese companies but also damages the interests of investors in other countries, including the United States.” The Ministry not only said that it will take action to protect its firms, it also asked the U.S. to agree to a compromise over issues like trade and human rights. It isn’t clear exactly what actions China is considering against the U.S.

    Over the last two weeks the outgoing Administration has been even tougher on China than it has been. On January 20th at noon ET, the Biden era begins and China is hoping that the seating of the new U.S. president eases tensions between the two economic powers. Yesterday, China’s senior diplomat Wang Yi said that relations between China and the United States had reached a “new crossroads” and “a new window of hope” is on the way.

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  • Ooredoo welcomes Maldives to a new digital age with the roll out of 5G Services & 5G AirFibre

    Ooredoo welcomes Maldives to a new digital age with the roll out of 5G Services & 5G AirFibre

    Telecom giant Ooredoo announced the commercial launch of its 5G services in the Maldives, with the initial rollout covering a large percentage of the capital city of Male’, including key business hubs, hospitals, public spaces and more.

    At a special event held today to celebrate the kickstart of the 5G era for the company, Ooredoo Maldives also launched 5G AirFibre – the first 5G powered Home Broadband services in the Maldives providing speeds that are tenfold.

    The event was attended by the Minister of Communication, Science & Technology, Hon. Mohamed Maleeh Jamal who officially launched Ooredoo 5G services in the Maldives, the Minister of Economic Development, Uz. Fayyaz Ismail, Chief Executive of CAM, Ilyas Ahmed, Chief Technology Officer of Presidents Office, Mr. Hamid Shafeeu, as well as the Chairman of Ooredoo Maldives, Mr. Andrew Kvalseth, the Board of Directors and employees of Ooredoo Maldives who joined the event virtually to be part of this historic moment for the company.

    Speaking at the event, the Minister of Communication, Science & Technology, Hon. Mohamed Maleeh Jamal said: “5G technologies have the potential for extraordinary breakthroughs across industries, which is now being witnessed worldwide. As the role of internet connectivity continues to become more and more crucial for the country’s social and economic growth, the roll-out of 5G technologies in the Maldives creates a strong digital infrastructure on which creative new solutions can be built on for the betterment of our communities. I would like to thank the management and staff of Ooredoo Maldives for their strong commitment towards a Digital Maldives, by continuing to invest in creating a stronger and more capable network which can power new technologies and innovations, at a time when it is needed more than ever.”

    Najib Khan, Managing Director and CEO, Ooredoo Maldives said: “Over the past year, we have seen a huge shift towards digital across industries, from healthcare, education, communication, governance, e-commerce and more. Despite the challenges faced by the pandemic, our team has prioritized the roll-out of 5G services, understanding its unparalleled capabilities to unlock the full power of a connected society – something that is of pivotal importance in the new normal. We are equally proud to launch the first 5G broadband services in the Maldives, which overcomes the challenges faced in installation of fibre optic cables in congested areas such as Male’. A flexible alternative which offers comparable internet speeds to fiber broadband, 5G AirFibre services will accelerate fiberisation through airwaves of Ooredoo 5G. Today, we welcome a new digital age in the Maldives, enabling endless possibilities and innovative new digital services for people and businesses. We reaffirm our commitment to the people of Maldives, ensuring our support in transforming their digital lifestyles to achieve the full benefits of the digital world.”

    5G technology not only promises a fundamental boost in speed, but offers significantly lower latencies, increased capacities and is much more reliable. Paired with IoT Technologies, this unlocks a wave of advances such as intelligent homes, smart cars, drone deliveries and much more than can transform life as we know it and power healthcare services, education and even entertainment such as sporting events & gaming.

    Available for both prepaid and postpaid customers, Ooredoo 5G covers a large percentage of the capital city, on certified handsets. With the official launch of 5G, we are working with global operators to certify the network on additional handsets as soon as possible. The coverage map for Ooredoo 5G is available on Ooredoo Maldives website.

    In addition to 5G mobile services, customers in the capital city can also experience the superfast speeds of 5G via 5G AirFibre Home Broadband. The enhanced connectivity with 5G AirFibre will provide incredibly high speeds which is extremely positive news for local communities and businesses; especially for small and medium business working remotely or working from homes. Customers in Male’ can now check the eligibility of their area and pre-book their 5G AirFibre devices via Ooredoo Maldives website.

    Ooredoo Maldives also announced 5G Experience zones, for customers who are curious to test out 5G and 5G AirFibre services. This includes the first 5G powered VR Café’ in the Maldives and Ooredoo Club Premier Lounge.

    Ooredoo was the first operator in the world to have launched a live commercial 5G network in Qatar in early 2018 which marked a major technological breakthrough for Ooredoo and the global telecommunications industry. Following its vision to create communities powered by digital services, the company continuously made investments in North Africa, the Arabian Gulf to Southeast Asia to enhance customers’ digital experiences. Ooredoo Maldives will continue to enhance its network across the nation in order to connect customers to the best technologies and services that the digital world has to offer.

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  • Huawei, Qualcomm, and Oppo are arguably the three most innovative firms in wireless technology

    Huawei, Qualcomm, and Oppo are arguably the three most innovative firms in wireless technology

    This might not come as a surprise to some people living in China, or to those who make a living by following the goings on of the wireless world, but there is a good case for calling Huawei the most innovative outfit in this realm. The company’s Mate series phones are traditionally one of the top technologically based smartphones in the world each year. However, the powerful 5nm chips it designed for this year’s Mate 40 line can no longer be shipped to the company because of a new U.S. export rule. The rule bans foundries like TSMC from shipping cutting-edge chips to Huawei without a license if said chips were produced using American technology.

    An industry report cited by the South China Morning Post states that from the beginning of this year through the end of October, Huawei filed 8,607 patent applications related to wireless technology. That put the firm at the top of the pack, well ahead of San Diego, California based chip designer Qualcomm; the latter sought 5,807 patents during the same January to October time period. Chinese smartphone manufacturer Oppo was third with 5,353 patent applications. Database provider incoPat, headquartered in Beijing, is responsible for the data used to compile the list.

    According to incoPat, both China and the U.S. led the way with each making up 32% of the patents filed from January through October. Japan was next with 15% followed by the 7% submitted by South Korea. IncoPat says that the information it uses comes from patent filings available to the public in the field of wireless communications. This includes patents filed to protect inventions related to 5G technology. The report issued by incoPat notes “As a key area of modern communications, wireless communication network technology has always been a very important part in the 5G research and development process. With the new technological competition and new globalisation situation, wireless communication network technology is becoming an important strategic choice for enterprises to face international competition.”

    5G is the next generation of wireless connectivity and the countries that control 5G will have an advantage economically. That is why, seeing how innovative Huawei is and not wanting to be left behind, back in June the U.S. Commerce Department amended the entity list ruling that prevents Huawei from working and doing business with U.S. based firms. Now, American tech companies are allowed to work alongside Huawei to help create global 5G standards. The U.S. feared that being left out of the meetings attended by Huawei would hold the U.S. back in terms of the development of 5G.

    Huawei is also the leader in helping the 3GPP develop standards for 5G. 3GPP (the 3rd Generation Partnership Project) is a term that covers standards organizations that help create protocols for mobile telecom. After Huawei, Ericsson and Qualcomm provide the most contributions to 3GPP for 5G standards. According to SCMP, this year 3GPP completed its next set of standards for 5G which include possible applications for 5G such as autonomous driving, smart factories, and remote surgery.

    Earlier this month, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said that the country has built nearly 700,000 base stations in 2020 topping its original target of 500,000 for the whole year. As the world’s leading provider of networking equipment, Huawei is also an important supplier of 5G base stations. In fact, published reports indicate that Huawei will replace Ericsson this year to become number one in 5G base stations. Ericsson is expected to see its market share decline from 30% last year to 26.5% in 2020. Huawei, on the other hand, should see its 5G base station share rise from 27.5% last year to a leading 28.5% in 2020. That is, along as it can find enough 5nm Kirin 9000 chipsets to power these base stations. As we mentioned earlier in this article, the U.S. is preventing Huawei from receiving cutting-edge chips from TSMC.

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  • Vietnamese startup acquires US mobile testing platform

    Vietnamese startup acquires US mobile testing platform

    Vietnamese tech startup Kobiton has acquired U.S.-based mobile testing platform Mobile Labs Inc after raising $14 million for the purpose. Kobiton, which provides a platform for app developers to test their products, said in a statement that the acquisition would help customers deliver apps of higher quality faster by utilizing artificial intelligence.

    The acquisition was funded by U.S.-based investment funds BIP Capital and Fulcrum Equity Partners.

    Ha Ngoc Vinh Du, director of Kobiton in Vietnam, said that the acquisition was also positive news for the Vietnam tech industry as it confirms the talent of Vietnamese tech engineers among the global tech community.

    Jim Douglass, the partner at Fulcrum Equity Partners, said that companies are increasingly reliant on their mobile channels to improve revenues, and they need new ways to test their apps on real devices without sacrificing quality.

    Kobiton, with offices in Ho Chi Minh City and Atlanta, U.S., was founded by Vietnam-based KMS Technology in 2016. It has over 50 IT engineers and developers in its employ. Its platform is used by over 60,000 developers worldwide.

  • Vietnam to close 2G services by 2022

    Vietnam to close 2G services by 2022

    Vietnam plans to bring the number of 2G subscribers to under 5 percent by 2022 so that it can stop this service and push the development of higher-technology cellular networks.

    There are 24 million 2G subscribers in the country or 18.5 percent of the total, and the Ministry of Information and Communications aims to bring the figure down to 5-7 million, or around 5 percent by early 2022 towards stopping the 2G service by then.

    Closing 2G will leave more bandwidth for 3G, 4G, and the upcoming 5G network and help accelerate the establishment of a digital economy, the ministry said.

    It is working to boost the sales of low-cost smartphones so more people will be familiar with 3G and higher networks, it added.

    Among 24 million 2G subscribers, 12.4 million are using feature phones. Hoang Minh Cuong, head of the telecommunications department under the ministry, said these are the users that telecom operators need to help transition to smartphones.

    The number of 2G subscribers has dropped by 6 million since last year, showing that the goal to bring the ratio to under 5 percent is possible, he added.

    The telecommunications department plans to lower the rates of regular phone calls, which will reduce their revenues to telecom operators and urge them to rely more on data calls.

    It also plans to require all smartphones produced or imported into Vietnam to support 3G network or higher.

    There are 630,000 2G subscribers age 70 or more, and some say this group of people lack the tech-savvy needed to use smartphones.

    However, Cuong said Vietnamese companies were capable of making 4G feature phones for around VND600,000, and these would serve this user group.

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  • Huawei welcomes a thorough examination of its 5G technology to prove it’s not a security threat

    Huawei welcomes a thorough examination of its 5G technology to prove it’s not a security threat

    Since 2012, Chinese phone and networking equipment manufacturer Huawei has been considered a national security threat. Perceived ties with the Communist Chinese government have the current administration concerned that Huawei collects personal and corporate data using back doors placed inside the company’s handsets and networking gear. Even though this has never been proven and has been denied by the company, President Donald Trump cited “security” for placing Huawei on the Entity List last year preventing the firm from accessing its U.S. supply chain.

    Being placed on the Entity List forced Huawei to scramble to find replacement suppliers for some of the key parts it needs to build phones and networking gear. Losing the ability to license the Google Mobile Services version of Android also meant that Google’s Android apps like Search, Maps, YouTube, Gmail, Drive, and others could not be installed on Huawei phones. In China, where Google’s apps are banned anyway, the absence of these apps wouldn’t affect sales of the manufacturer’s phones. But outside of the firm’s home country, sales of the International Models were reportedly impacted by Huawei’s inability to license Google’s Android ecosystem.

    On the first anniversary of its placement on the Entity List, the U.S. tightened the screws a little more by changing certain export rules. Now, a foundry anywhere in the world must obtain a license before shipping chips made with U.S. technology to Huawei. That includes new cutting-edge 5nm Kirin 9000 semiconductors that are supposed to power Huawei’s most technologically advanced phones this year, the Mate 40 series. These chips are also vital to the production of two-way radios and other gear required for the firm’s 5G networking equipment. The number one provider of such equipment worldwide, the U.S. had asked its allies last year not to use Huawei gear for their 5G networks. Some countries followed the U.S. request while others, like Britain, did not. But now Britain is feeling buyer’s remorse and is thinking about stripping Huawei’s parts out of its new networks.

    According to Reuters, the head of Huawei’s Italian unit, President Luigi De Vecchis, said that the company is ready and willing to have its facilities examined with a fine-tooth comb to prove that its technology does not create a security risk to those countries that use Huawei’s gear in their 5G networks. In Rome on Wednesday, De Vecchis spoke at the opening of the company’s new cyber-security center and stated, “We will open our insides, we are available to be vivisected to respond to all of this political pressure. I am speechless that a country the size of the United States attacks another country through the demolition, via groundless accusations, of a company of that country.”

    Coincidentally, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrived in Italy to begin a two-day visit to the country at the same time that Huawei was opening its cyber-security center. De Vecchis added that the company will not leave the Italian market and in fact is looking to create products for the country in different fields including the energy industry. The Huawei executive said, “It’s extremely unlikely Huawei will leave the market because of the current situation.”

    The U.S. continues to put pressure on Chinese tech firms. U.S. companies now need a license to export certain materials to SMIC, China’s largest foundry (SMIC). And the Trump administration is thinking about adding SMIC to the Entity List as well. Of course, we’ve been closely following what is going on between the White House, short-form video app TikTok, and the latter’s parent ByteDance. Once again it comes down to the same fear over the safety of personal data belonging to American consumers and corporations. And yet, there has been no smoking gun to date.

  • MobiFone offers customers free data, calls to make up for disruption

    MobiFone offers customers free data, calls to make up for disruption

    Telecom operator MobiFone has promised free data, calling, and text credit to customers affected by a network error lasting hours on Tuesday. It will offer 7.5 gigabytes of data for free to subscribers using smartphones and 1,000 minutes of calls in case of feature phones.

    On Tuesday many subscribers complained they were unable to make phone calls, send text messages or access the Internet from around 4.30 p.m. The issue was fixed the same evening. A spokesperson for the state-owned company said Wednesday it was still trying to determine how many subscribers were affected by the issue.

    Many people have expressed indignation that the problem occurred and the fact the operator was slow in notifying them about it. They were unable to contact the operator either during the disruption. In 2005, 2010, 2011, and 2016 too similar problems occurred.

    On December 6, 2018, many MobiFone subscribers in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City were unable to connect to the Internet. MobiFone is the third-largest network operator in Vietnam behind Viettel and VNPT.

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  • Samsung to manufacture Qualcomm’s upcoming 5G chipset for premium phones

    Samsung to manufacture Qualcomm’s upcoming 5G chipset for premium phones

    Samsung is the sole manufacturer of Qualcomm’s upcoming Qualcomm Snapdragon 875 chipset, South Korean media reports. Apparently, the South Korean giant is about to ink a deal with the US chipset maker for the manufacture of the premium chipsets that will power flagships launching in 2021 and beyond.

    The deal worth about $1 billion elevates Samsung from a relatively large chipset supplier for the smartphone market to a major position. Reports claim Samsung’s offer was slightly better than TSMC’s, but no numbers were revealed in the report.

    Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 875 chipset (tentative name) is manufactured using a 5-nanometer process and it’s aimed at premium smartphones. The new chipset is expected to be unveiled in December, but the first devices powered by Snapdragon 875 won’t be ready until next year.

    Samsung Galaxy S21 and other flagships from Xiaomi and Oppo will be among the first to pack Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 875 processor, which also includes 5G support. Samsung Electronics has already started the mass production of the new chipset at its foundry line in South Korea.

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  • Huawei says that it will release a HarmonyOS phone next year

    Huawei says that it will release a HarmonyOS phone next year

    Last year, after the U.S. Commerce Department banned Huawei from its U.S. supply chain, the Chinese phone and networking equipment manufacturer scrambled to find new sources. The one stateside supplier that it missed the most was Google since the ban prevented the latter from delivering the Google Mobile Services version of Android to Huawei. While it didn’t matter in China where most of Google’s Android apps are banned, not being able to equip its international models with the Google ecosystem might have cost the manufacturer some sales.

    In August of 2019, Huawei announced that it had developed a new operating system called Harmony. Many assumed that this new operating system would be immediately used by Huawei to replace Android. This turned out not to be the case. Richard Yu, CEO of Huawei’s consumer group, pointed out that Harmony is based on a microkernel allowing it to be used on a wide range of devices such as smart speakers, tablets, smartwatches, computers, autos, and smartphones. Huawei also noted that HarmonyOS will work on devices equipped with a small amount of RAM and those requiring hundreds of gigabytes of memory. Thus far, Harmony OS has been available for consumers only on television sets.

    Mr. Yu said today that in 2021, Huawei will ship its first handset powered by HarmonyOS. What set off this announcement by the long-time Huawei executive was the word that the company plans on introducing a second version of Harmony OS this coming Thursday, September 10th, during the 2020 HDC Developers Conference. Several new devices powered by the operating system will soon be announced and this year Huawei says that its new smartwatches will be driven by HarmonyOS.

    Yu did admit that Huawei has been sitting on a phone running HarmonyOS, but the company has had to wait because of an agreement it has with Google. But that doesn’t mean that the company doesn’t have high hopes for the platform in the future. The executive says that HarmonyOS will eventually become a worldwide platform.

    In a previous speech, Yu said that the upcoming Huawei Mate 40 series will be powered by a new series of 5nm Kirin chips, the Kirin 9000. Not only will these components be produced using the new 5nm process, but they will also have more powerful 5G and AI capabilities, CPUs, and GPUs. But a new export rule put into place by the U.S. prevents foundries from shipping chips to Huawei that were made using U.S. technology. Yu notes, “Unfortunately, under the sanctions of the United States, TSMC only accepted orders before September 15th. By September 15th, it will not be able to produce chips for Huawei. So Kirin 9000 may be our last generation of Huawei Kirin high-end chips.”

    Huawei was TSMC’s second-largest customer after Apple last year but the world’s largest individual foundry will not be allowed to ship to the Chinese manufacturer after September 14th. Until that date, TSMC is reportedly running its assembly line 24 hours a day to produce as many as chips that it can until it isn’t allowed to ship to Huawei. China’s largest foundry, SMIC, is not a viable replacement since it is several process nodes behind TSMC. Chip designer Mediatek has reportedly been seeking permission to develop cutting-edge chips for Huawei. It would seem unlikely for the company to get that permission from the U.S., especially considering that Mediatek relies on TSMC to produce its chips. Additionally, administration officials in the U.S. have complained about Huawei’s ability to skirt the Entity List ban.

    Assuming that Huawei has been able to stock up on 5nm chips, the company has a little time-not much mind you-to find a new source of 5nm SoCs.

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