Facing so many options and trade-offs, and alert to the danger of supplier lock-in, many operators have yet to be convinced about RAN virtualization.

Charter has tapped Harmonic as a 'strategic technology partner' for a virtual cable modem termination system rollout. Comcast, Vodafone and GCI are among other top ops to go with Harmonic's 'CableOS' platform.

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: BT hooks up with AWS for more cloud-assisted mobile-edge clout; MTN trials 5G SA core with Azure; Germany fears effects of Huawei ban.

Higher speed optical links between data centers, computing clusters and servers are being pushed to the limit by the demands of AI, according to Dell'Oro's Sameh Boujelbene.

The telco championing of open RAN has not been matched by support for new entrants.

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Seacom goes live on Equiano subsea cable; go higher, says Telecom Italia; Open Fiber revenue up by a quarter in 2022.

Google Cloud, Microsoft and Amazon Web Services have suddenly and loudly entered the telecom industry. But how should telecom network operators evaluate each of their cloud options?

According to sources, Dell is developing vRAN software to control 5G radios, but it's unlikely that Dell will manufacture its own physical 5G radios.

Native-owned Tribal Ready is working to provide tribes with resources to successfully participate in the $42.5 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program.

AT&T's Gordon Mansfield said the operator will make significant progress this year deploying 5G on its midband spectrum. But he expressed some reservations about standalone 5G technology.

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: European Council approves space-based connectivity program; WhatsApp promises to be more transparent; might Facebook have to suspend its service in Europe?

As public-cloud giants advance into the world of network functions, operators face some difficult choices about which hosts to use.

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Liberty Global boss unimpressed with EU's 'single European telecom market' dream; FAST forward for ad-supported linear TV; EU's cloud security plan comes under fire.

AWS, Microsoft and Google Cloud at MWC23 represents a continued evolution in how the telco industry sees itself and the future of its networks.

The show goes on, attracting its highest number of visitors since before the pandemic, but the industry is in bad shape.

The editors reflect on MWC's big takeaways including T-Mobile's 5G voice service plans, how hyperscalers are trying to differentiate themselves and investment plans for future 5G and 6G deployments.

Google Cloud does not plan to develop its own private wireless networking service to sell to enterprise customers, nor does the company plan to develop its own network functions.

The GSMA announced a new 'Open Gateway' effort, which is to release APIs that 'provide universal access to operator networks for developers.' However, we've been here before.

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Orange claims cloud-native 5G SA breakthrough; Nokia unveils first Wi-Fi 6E gateway; what has BT ever done for Britain?

Dish Network lost another 24,000 mostly Boost-branded mobile customers in its fourth quarter, and the company's wireless service revenues were down 10.6% year over year.