Eurobites: Ukrainian cyberattack dents VEON's H1 earnings

Fallout from the cyberattack on Ukrainian subsidiary Kyivstar in December 2023 dented VEON's earnings for the six months ended June 30, 2024, with operating revenue in the war-torn country down 9% year-over-year and a 3% fall in subscribers in the wake of the incident. The attack had interrupted the provision of voice and data connectivity on mobile and fixed networks, international roaming and SMS services, amongst others, for Kyivstar customers in Ukraine and abroad. But other VEON territories had a successful half-year, with Pakistan and Kazakhstan showing substantial growth and group EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization) up to $846 million, compared with $800 million for the same period a year earlier. VEON's earnings statement is of course made more complicated by the backwash created by the closure of its Russian operations, which was finally completed on October 9, 2023.

A late-night statement from Nokia appeared to dismiss yesterday's Bloomberg report that it was in talks with Samsung regarding the sale of its mobile networks business group. "Nokia has nothing to announce in relation to the speculations published in an article today, and no related insider project exists," said the Finnish vendor. (See Samsung takeover of Nokia mobile would show futility of open RAN.)

Back on the fixed-line front, Nokia is to open a new R&D lab in Chennai, India to help foster innovation in fiber, Wi-Fi and fixed wireless technologies. When complete, it will be one of Nokia's largest such facilities globally, says the vendor. The development is being supported by the Tamil Nadu government.

The municipality of Flobecq in the Belgian province of Hainaut has declared itself a smart city, using technology from, among others, Proximus NXT to get with the 21^st century program. Proximus NXT, an IT services offshoot of Belgium's incumbent operator, supplied an adaptive lighting system which increases safety at pedestrian crossings through a combination of sensors, cameras and artificial intelligence: When the system detects a pedestrian, it automatically activates enhanced lighting and visual signals, making pedestrians more visible to drivers and allowing them to cross more safely. The technology also allows the Flobecq authorities to gather data from cameras, sensors and mobile phones revealing how many people visit the municipality, how many parking spaces are occupied, and how many cars, motorcycles and bicycles are on the move in the streets.