In today's regional roundup: The French government gives le lumiere verte to the 5G license sale process; Huawei hints at European components production site; EE turns on its 5G service in six more locations (hello Sunderland!); Rohde & Schwarz's golden CATR reflector sees some action; mobile data prices in Africa; and more.

Quectel Wireless Solutions has a cellular IoT module certified for use AT&T's LTE-M and NB-IoT networks, but it's not a process that happens overnight.

Is WiFi 6 a workable alternative to 5G for the factory of the future?

Only Scott and Iain were around this week so they decided to look back on the year in telecoms over a few beers, with 5G and politics looming large.

Liberty Global has formally scuttled talks to sell off its Swiss unit to Sunrise, setting forth on a turnaround plan that the operator says is 'on track.'

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Orange agrees towers deal for rural France coverage; Ofcom proposes "locked" phones ban; Ericsson claims breakthrough with VoNR trial; Deutsche Telekom acquires chunk of gaming company.

Samir El Rashidy explains Multisourcing Service Integration (MSI) – Orange's approach to helping companies select and manage the right network services and technology suppliers.

Wilhelmsen adopts LoRa for on-ship monitoring and more.

Promotions are among changes being made to Tony Werner's team as Comcast moves to link and align the leadership of its Customer Experience and Product & Technology organizations.

Cisco buys Exablaze, a maker of Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) technology, potentially useful in 5G and edge applications, though Cisco says the primary market now is high-speed financial trading.

5G is set to gain a wide range of new features and functions, including better mixed reality support, walkie-talkie style services and more. But users probably won't see these updates anytime soon.

Based on MoffettNathanson's analysis of overlapping FTTP and DSL competition, MSOs have more subscriber runway ahead for broadband than contemplated in prior forecasts.

One of the major issues for the mobile networking industry going into 2020 is the deployment of 5G core networks and the migration to 5G standalone operation.

Investment in 5G networks has been rapid in China, and early uptake strong, but the mobile operators, like their counterparts around the world, are still looking for ways in which they can generate financial returns from their 5G efforts.

Dan Hennessy, managing director of technology, recently left the operator. Baptiest Coopmans, SVP of tech operations, will assume his role while the company seeks Hennessy's permanent replacement.

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Altice Europe sells almost half of its fiber Portugal unit to Morgan Stanley; Russian government seeks control of joint 5G venture; China stirs the Huawei pot in Germany; the Helsingor experiment.

Boingo said it would stop investing in its retail and advertising business units and eliminate 80 positions as part of a cost-cutting restructure.

Bidding doesn't show signs of cooling in the FCC's ongoing mmWave spectrum auction. However, it appears that the event isn't generating the same demand that the agency's two prior mmWave auctions did.

Each day of the antitrust trial against Sprint and T-Mobile brings new revelations, including an attempted merger between T-Mobile and Dish Network in 2015 and MVNO negotiations between Comcast and Sprint in 2017.

David Strauss of Broadband Success Partners dives into new research that explores which new verticals, such as e-gaming and hospitality, will keep cable's business services engine humming in the years to come.

Mitch Wagner brings us coverage of the Cisco Silicon One announcement from San Francisco, where the company announced a single technology platform to serve all its networking customers.

This week in our WiC roundup: Women take companies to court in droves over unfair pay; TV isn't done with tech parodies; is the glass ceiling getting lower?; and more.

The Chinese State Grid, General Motors and BMV operate three of the largest cellular IoT projects.

Google-backed startup boots up OTT-delivered video service for restaurants, retail shops and other businesses that can complement (or possibly replace) TV services from cable and satellite TV providers.

Private wireless networks in the 3.5GHz CBRS band are all the rage, but they also represent an opportunity for the likes of AT&T and Verizon to dramatically improve their coverage inside smaller buildings.

Starry Internet COO Alex Moulle-Berteaux discusses the fixed-wireless player's ambitious expansion strategy with 5G, including plans to pursue small business owners and people who work from their homes.

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Labour defeat brings relief for BT; MTS goes all holographic; Orange Belgium launches 5G hub.

India's telecom sector has witnessed a year of major developments in 5G, pricing, competition and M&A activity.

Acquisition costs for new OTT-delivered pay-TV service, which runs on an Android TV box, are expected to be half of AT&T's legacy satellite TV product.

Cisco's audacious new "Internet for the Future" strategy, which comprises completely new silicon, operating system software and a new business model, is either going to drive Cisco's domination of Internet infrastructure for a generation to come -- or flop spectacularly. With a strategy as ambitious as Cisco's, there's no middle ground, says Light Reading's Mitch Wagner.

Cisco claims it can help service providers break the trap of increasing bandwidth demands and declining revenue per user. Cisco's solution: a new networking architecture spanning silicon to software and services.

An AT&T executive hinted that forthcoming speed tests will find that AT&T's '5G E' branded connections are faster than T-Mobile's recently launched 5G service in its 600MHz spectrum.

Cable op taps startup's P2P-assisted CDN platform to manage bandwidth and optimize OTT video quality amid streaming surges and unpredictable events that cause demands on the network to rise.

Ciena stock rocketed as it reported year-over-year sales growth of more than 15% and predicted further market share gains and sales hikes.

Ray Mota, CEO and principal analyst for ACG Research, dives into Cisco's 'Internet for the Future' strategy, noting that the key focus is on helping service providers boost capacity as they roll out 5G and other new services while keeping costs in line. That's important because customers are using more bandwidth but aren't paying more for it, notes Mota.

The arrival of new technologies and growing interest in WiFi have spurred activity in the fixed broadband market, says the Finnish vendor's technology chief.

Some of Europe's biggest operators are distinguishing between the core and the RAN as they build their 5G networks, but the region's biggest 5G vendor says the boundary is disappearing.

Midband LTE will start to arrive at the end of 2019, for private networks and more.

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Keymile lands FTTB deal with Wobcom; BT Sport offers OTT monthly pass; KPN sells consulting arm; Deutsche Telekom nurtures 5G startups.

Jonathan Davidson, SVP and general manager of Cisco's Service Provider Business, outlines the key takeaways from the company's major new networking portfolio announcements, including the Silicon One chip launch, new router platforms, enhanced operating software and optical plans.

Finnish vendor lands a role with Germany's railway operator to begin testing a 5G standard designed specifically for trains.

Charter Spectrum Enterprise's Satya Parimi discusses the cableco's rollout of SD-WAN and virtualized security services, the lessons learned and the challenges still ahead.

Cable operator is first to integrate a streaming TV app for specialized VR glasses outfitted with electronic magnification tech that enhances an individual's 'usable vision.'

The first few days of the trial to block the proposed Sprint/T-Mobile merger delivered more courtroom twists and turns than most Law & Order episodes.

Ahead of ramp-up, Altice USA is working on enhancements and new features for its recently launched mobile product as company keeps initial marketing and other operating costs in check, Dexter Goei says.

Cisco unveiled new silicon, optics and network operating system software that it says will carry the Internet through the next decade – with its products forming the backbone.

Senior executives gathered in the Austrian capital for the latest Light Reading 2020 Vision Executive Summit to discuss what's right, what's wrong and what's next for the telecom sector.

From a very brown room in Vienna, the podders take time out from some top-drawer telco schmoozing at Light Reading's 2020 Vision event to talk mobile edge and more. Contains adult themes.

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: KPN invests in smart alarms; Telefonica vows to go carbon-neutral by 2050; Amazon bags Champion League rights in Germany.

Taiwan's manufacturing giant has big plans for 5G, and they don't appear to include the traditional 5G players.

German operator will also use Finland's Nokia to build its 5G network and has cut dividends to help fund the project.

'Everything is on the table,' AT&T exec John Stankey says, with former Clearwire CEO Bill Morrow hired as the hatchet man to lead its cost-cutting efforts.

T-Mobile's management team is in NYC, talking lawsuits and 5G at a UBS event.

The FCC's third mmWave spectrum auction started today, and it's likely that AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile are driving a significant amount of bidding.

Stressing that the streaming battle is 'not a zero-sum game,' exec says new HBO Max service will appeal across families and across various family-based wireless plans.

Technicolor has been tapped for the 'XB7,' a new, speedier DOCSIS 3.1 gateway with 802.11ax (WiFi 6), MoCA 2.0 and IoT radios that's a big leap over the current-gen XB6 D3.1 gateway.

2019 will be remembered in telecom as the year when 5G arrived and industry hype went into overdrive.

New Silver Peak automation tools are designed to help enterprises – and the service providers working on their behalf – deploy networks to hundreds of thousands of locations worldwide.

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Telecom Italia beefs up TV sports offer; Bearing Point/Beyond scores at Altibox; Ericsson's crystal balls; Boris bites back at the BBC.

Comcast Business's Christian Nascimento details how this fast-growing unit of the company has adapted Comcast's cloud-based video platform to service the commercial market, including restaurants, hotels and other hospitality venues.

Verizon expects DSS to offer wider 5G services in 2020.

The NTIA is teaming up with the Department of Defense to oppose a proposal from Ligado to release L-Band spectrum for 5G. That could come as a disappointment to the likes of Verizon and T-Mobile.

NBCU's premium streaming service, which will support both advertising and subscription models, is expected to turn profitable in year five, CFO says.

A new report indicates Magic Leap sold just 6,000 of its AR glasses, well below expectations. That may not bode well for the wider 5G industry.

Cable operator may not need to own spectrum to achieve its goals in mobile and wireless, Charter's Tom Rutledge says.

One of the world's biggest energy companies is prioritizing 4G and public networks over 5G and private ones.

As programmers and studios launch their own streaming services, password sharing is becoming a bigger concern.

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: KPN outlines FTTH plans for Amsterdam; Amazon's NHS data deal comes under scrutiny; IoT and blockchain combine for green energy.

Given the relative loss of value in the telecom industry, the recent edge deals involving AWS are risky moves for the operators involved.

The details of Ericsson's corruption scandal, as documented by US authorities, raise awkward questions for the Swedish vendor.

Presidential candidate claims wide-ranging plan will expand access, reduce pricing, eliminate data caps, codify net neutrality and move to 'break up Internet service provider and cable monopolies.'

Companies release pay-as-you-go plans on T-Mobile's 5G network.

India's youngest and most aggressive operator could be the main beneficiary of an increase in prices.

Light Reading's Alan Breznick and Jeff Baumgartner look at the future and past of cable business services.

Telecom operators have an opportunity with 5G to build diversity in their workforce.

Google is going 'All in on a Gig' and exclusively selling uncapped, symmetrical 1Gbit/s service starting at $70 a month, the same price as it's been since 2012.

This week in our WiC roundup: Harlem Capital raises cash for minority founders; female speakers claim their worth; more women will join tech in the new year; and more.

What's the real opportunity for carriers selling 5G to enterprises? Ovum's enterprise services research director helps us sift through the areas where carriers can expect new revenue, and not just replace existing services.

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: BT Ireland trials 1.2Tbit/s transmission with Huawei; TIM and Open Fiber are daggers drawn; Deutsche Telekom enables 'holographic annotation' for field service engineers.

Once upon a time, T-Mobile promised that 5G would be 10x faster than 4G. Today, the operator is promising a 20% speed boost.

After capturing 495,000 mobile subs in Q3, pushing their cumulative total to 2.6 million, US cable has 'already reached a level of clear relevance in wireless,' analyst Craig Moffett concludes in a new report.

Russia's Rostelecom and Orange Poland tap Juniper gear and software for network upgrades, in a busy week for the networking vendor.

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: InterDigital files Huawei patents suit in UK; ADVA leads optical research program; 2Gbit/s 5G in Helsinki; Ericsson reassures on corruption costs.

Q3 spending on cable network tech improved but it's still well below historic levels, Dell'Oro says.

Starry, which provides fixed wireless broadband over millimeter wave spectrum, is exploring services for business customers to complement its core residential offerings.

CityFibre's Group CTO David Tomalin discusses how an infrastructure provider, making long-term bets, is planning to enable service providers to reshape the UK tech landscape.

Cisco's collaboration boss Amy Chang sits down with Light Reading's Mitch Wagner to share stories about videoconferencing facepalm moments and discuss Cisco's collaboration vision in this mini-episode of the Light Reading podcast.

The Chinese vendor says that the FCC has no experience with national security matters, and highlights its relationship with small rural US carriers.

UK leader Boris Johnson links the use of Huawei to security concerns, raising the prospect of a partial or full ban on the Chinese vendor.

A new FCC report found that Verizon, T-Mobile and U.S. Cellular provided inaccurate coverage maps, wildly overstating coverage, about 40% of the time. But the agency wants to dole out $9 billion to carriers for rural 5G anyway.

The midband technology is expected to be initially used by mobile operators for traffic offhaul and fixed wireless operators.

Bikash Koley, currently finishing his last few weeks as CTO of Juniper, will be responsible for everything networking at Google, from inter-cluster communications to campus to WAN to intercontinental subsea cables.

A group of state attorneys general is suing to block the proposed merger between Sprint and T-Mobile, and the trial is scheduled to start Monday.

The Chinese operator has teamed up with a credit card firm and other agencies to run a new blockchain network.

The UK service provider has cut hundreds of jobs in operations, with more to go as it rolls out more automated 5G networks.

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: OBS connects Mars employees; broadcasting at the edge; Vodafone tunes into AWS Wavelength; more ETNO grumbling.

Developed by a startup linked to the Comcast/NBCU Lift Labs incubator, an app running on a verrsion of X1 tailored for bars and restaurants enables patrons to play an interactive game based on making sports predictions.

The French operator has prioritized growth in enterprise, Africa and financial services under its latest five-year plan.

It's a homecoming for Bikash Koley, who joined Juniper in 2017 from Google. Ex-Googler Raj Yavatkar will join Juniper as CTO, taking Koley's job.

Amazon announced its new AWS Wavelength 5G edge computing platform, with Verizon, Vodafone, SK Telecom and KDDI promising to support it. However, details on a US rollout remain foggy.

Intel has hired a financial advisor to sell a unit that makes chips for gateways, cable modems and smart home equipment, according to Bloomberg.

AT&T said it now counts a whopping 1 million connections, just three years after scoring the FirstNet contract. And it's taking to the air with blimps to deliver connectivity.

Baldauf will succeed Risto Siilasmaa as Nokia's Board Chair at the company's annual meeting in April.

'Select' TiVo-powered devices distributed by cable operators can now integrate the Amazon Prime Video app.

But cable ops are making progress with bigger, enterprise-sized deals and pursuing new types of commercial-class services to open up fresh revenue streams and inflict more pain on the telcos.

Cub reporter Jamie is joined by two LR elder statesmen (it says here) to talk private networks, systems integrators and Huawei litigation.

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Trump threatens cheese war with France over tech titans tax; Sky plans major new TV studio; Nokia lands smart grid gig in Finland.

The GSMA said it will create a new standards-setting process for eSIM technology, pushed by a Department of Justice antitrust investigation. The effort could have eSIM implications for everyone from Google to Charter.

Leak detection specialist Gutermann is starting an NB-IoT trial with Vodafone in the UK.

The mainly Russian operator has quit Ukraine and is targeting a bigger share of revenues from outside the telecom sector in its home market.

T-Mobile says it will cover more than 200 million people in the US with its 5G network

South Korea's new ICT minister has urged the country's operators to do more on 5G development.

With a new Intel deal, Corning continues to bulk up its in-building wireless business, but analysts warn it's facing pressure from the likes of Solid Technologies and JMA Wireless.

What does the financial chief of the world's biggest equipment maker do in Vancouver when international travel is no longer an option?

Live sports remains the glue holding together the pay-TV bundle, but rising costs for sports programming is poised to apply even more pressure on both traditional and OTT-delivered pay-TV services.

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Orange Poland goes with Juniper; the incredible shrinking KPN; BT ends performance-related pay for top execs; Ericsson shares on spectrum sharing.

China Mobile boffin says public networks are more efficient than private.

Huawei's payments to Australian telecom contractors will dry up in the next couple of years unless the government reverses its 5G ban, says the Chinese equipment giant.

At the 'Private Networks in a 5G World' event in London, Catherine Gull, head of Business Development at Three Private Networks, explains how the competitive UK operator landed deals with flagship customers such as Heathrow Airport and the Port of Felixstowe.