Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Orange buys into desktop virtualization; BT outage hits banks; Tele2 records loss in Q2.

Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe

July 21, 2016

3 Min Read
Eurobites: Hands Off Our Data, France Tells Microsoft

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Orange buys into desktop virtualization; BT outage hits banks; Tele2 records loss in Q2.

  • CNIL, the French data protection authority, has told Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq: MSFT) to stop tracking the web browsing of Windows 10 users within three months, reports Reuters. The data watchdog believes Microsoft is collecting way more data than it needs to, and wants it to stop serving its users with personalized ads without their consent, based on that data. In February, CNIL pursued a similar action against Facebook .

    • Orange Business Services has bought its way into the desktop virtualization game with the acquisition of the strangely apostrophed Log'in Consultants. Consisting of three units located in the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium, Log'in Consultants offers VDI (virtual desktop infrastructure) consultancy and infrastructure management services. With an Internet connection, users can access their virtualized desktop from any comms device. The financial details of the deal were not disclosed.

    • Meanwhile, over in Poland, Orange (NYSE: FTE) and Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) are claiming a world first with the optical transmission of 250 Gbit/s per wavelength over 870km through Orange Poland's existing infrastructure. The trial used a six-carrier 1.5 Tbit/s superchannel transmitted between the cities of Warsaw and Wroclaw over standard single mode fiber. (See Orange Poland Tests 1.5 Tbit/s Link Over 870km With Nokia.)

    • BT Group plc (NYSE: BT; London: BTA) suffered a three-hour outage on Wednesday that affected residential broadband users in various parts of the UK and scuppered the online services of several banks, reports the BBC. According to the report, the fault lay with an Equinix Inc. (Nasdaq: EQIX)-owned data center in London.

    • Investment in the Netherlands hit Tele2 AB (Nasdaq: TLTO)'s second-quarter numbers, as the Sweden-based operator recorded a net loss of 60 million Swedish kronor (US$6.98 million) in the quarter, compared with a profit of SEK309 million ($35.9 million) in the year-earlier period. Revenue inched up 1% year-on-year, to SEK6.66 billion ($774 million).

    • Vodafone UK is boasting that it can now offer its customers 4G roaming in 101 countries -- more, it claims, than any other UK network provider. Recent additions to the list include Argentina, Bahamas, India and Jamaica.

    • Ericsson AB (Nasdaq: ERIC) has had its broadcast services contract with British broadcaster UKTV extended. The vendor will continue to deliver playout services for UKTV's ten channels, which include Dave, the comedy repeats repository, and Yesterday, a purveyor of historical documentaries.

    • EE , the UK mobile operator this is now part of the BT empire, has completed the "onshoring" of its customer service department for postpaid customers, meaning that all customer service calls will now be handled by sales advisors in the UK and Ireland. The next phase of the project will see prepaid customers getting the same treatment, with the creation of 550 customer service roles before the end of the year.

    • Norway's Telenor Group (Nasdaq: TELN) has chosen Ranplan , a UK company, to meet its small cell and HetNet planning needs. Armed with its iBuildNet product, Ranplan has been working with the Telenor wireless network team based in Belgrade.

      — Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading

Read more about:

Europe

About the Author(s)

Paul Rainford

Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading

Paul is based on the Isle of Wight, a rocky outcrop off the English coast that is home only to a colony of technology journalists and several thousand puffins.

He has worked as a writer and copy editor since the age of William Caxton, covering the design industry, D-list celebs, tourism and much, much more.

During the noughties Paul took time out from his page proofs and marker pens to run a small hotel with his other half in the wilds of Exmoor. There he developed a range of skills including carrying cooked breakfasts, lying to unwanted guests and stopping leaks with old towels.

Now back, slightly befuddled, in the world of online journalism, Paul is thoroughly engaged with the modern world, regularly firing up his VHS video recorder and accidentally sending text messages to strangers using a chipped Nokia feature phone.

Subscribe and receive the latest news from the industry.
Join 62,000+ members. Yes it's completely free.

You May Also Like