Eurobites: Vodafone, Nokia set course for marine-focused 5G in Plymouth

KKR, the investment firm which submitted a non-binding takeover bid for Telecom Italia (TIM) in November, is maintaining that it wants to access TIM's data for a due diligence analysis before the proposed deal can go any further, according to a Reuters report. (See TIM starts formal talks with KKR.)

Ghana's government has extended the deadline for SIM card re-registration by four months, to July 31, after a number of challenges thrown up by the exercise, not least the large number of citizens who have to yet to obtain the necessary biometric ID card. According to a statement from the Ministry of Communications and Digitalisation, more than 14 million SIM cards had been successfully linked to ID cards as of March 17. The whole re-registration exercise, intended to counter fraud, mirrors one conducted by the Nigerian government, which saw at least seven deadlines come and go before the process was completed.

Google is to allow Spotify, the Swedish-owned audio streaming service, to use its own in-app payment platform on Android devices as part of a trial aiming at pacifying developers miffed at what they perceive as Google's anticompetitive behavior. As Reuters reports, people downloading Spotify from the Google Play Store will be offered a choice to pay with either Spotify's payment system or with Google's equivalent in certain countries over the next few months.

UK altnet CityFibre has awarded a £21 million (US$27.7 million) fiber rollout contract in the English city of Lincoln to Trust Utility Management, creating around 80 local jobs.

Sweden's NENT says it plans to add live sport to its content lineup when it brings its Viaplay streaming service to the UK later this year, according to a Reuters report. Ice hockey, skating and handball will be among the sports covered.

— Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading