The European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) has released the first three technical specifications to launch a new security platform, Smart Secure Platform (SSP), which it hopes will address IoT, 5G and related sectors. According to ETSI, the new system supports several authentication methods, as well as features defined for a UICC, the current security platform used for SIM cards. For those taking notes, the three specifications are ETSI TS 103 666-1, ETSI TS 103 666 2 and ETSI TS 103 713.

Lutz Schueler, the CEO of UK cable operator Virgin Media, has been telling the Sunday Telegraph how unimpressed he is with the opposition Labour Party's plans to nationalize Britain's broadband market and make it free to customers at the point of delivery, which caused a stir when they were announced late Thursday. The current, competitive broadband market is "good for the customer and this is good for the country," said Schueler, adding that if "competition is dead then clearly the role of Virgin Media has to be reconsidered, that's for sure." (See Labour Lobs Broadband Bomb Into UK Telecoms Market.)

BT has been showing how 5G can help power robotic technology in healthcare, laying on a demonstration at a medical devices testing center in Birmingham, UK, that introduced the concept of the 5G-connected ambulance. The onboard technology allows clinicians, wearing a VR headset, to visualize exactly what the paramedic sees in the ambulance and then remotely direct the paramedic in real time to perform any necessary scans and get close-up footage of wounds and injuries.

South Africa's Telkom has confirmed that is in discussions with mobile operator Cell C regarding a potential takeover. In an announcement on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange News Service, Telkom said it had "substantially concluded its due diligence" but cautioned that discussions were "at a preliminary stage." For more details, see this story on our sister site, Connecting Africa.

— Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading