Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Italy gives ChatGPT an ultimatum; Blik expands; Cellnex goes with Synamedia; TIM's new incubator.

Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe

April 13, 2023

2 Min Read
Eurobites: European Commission casts doubt on Broadcom-VMware deal

Also in today's EMEA regional roundup: Italy gives ChatGPT an ultimatum; Blik expands; Cellnex goes with Synamedia; TIM's new incubator.

  • The European Commission has formally told Broadcom, a US-based chipmaker, that its proposed acquisition of server virtualization specialist VMware may restrict competition in the market for certain components which can interoperate with VMware's software. The Commission began its investigation into the $61 billion deal in December 2022, concerned that it could skew the market for the supply of network interface cards, Fibre Channel host-bus adapters and storage adapters, among other worries. The Commission now has until June 21 to make up its mind on the deal. (See Broadcom makes massive $61B bid for VMware.) Figure 1: (Source: Andrey Kuzmin/Alamy Stock Photo) (Source: Andrey Kuzmin/Alamy Stock Photo)

    • Italy's data protection authority has given OpenAI, the Microsoft-backed creator of ChatGPT, until the end of the month to address its concerns about the AI wunderkind. As Reuters reports, OpenAI took ChatGPT offline in Italy after Garante, the authority, suspended ChatGPT's processing of personal data and launched an investigation into a possible breach of privacy rules. (See Be afraid – ChatGPT has caught the eye of telecom and ChatGPT prompts excitement and fear about the AI future.)

    • Polish mobile-payments service Blik is to begin operations in Romania and Slovakia, Bloomberg reports (paywall applies). In Poland, the Blik app – which has 13 million monthly users – is more popular than rival offerings from Apple and Google, claims Bloomberg.

    • Spanish towers company Cellnex is to deploy Synamedia's virtual Digital Content Manager (vDCM) to support the Spanish public broadcaster RTVE. For the first time, Cellnex says it will move to a software-only environment with vDCM running on-premises as it goes live across all regions of Spain through Q2 2023.

    • Telecom Italia (TIM) has launched a new startup incubator focusing on midsized industrial innovators. Interested companies can apply to be part of the TIM Growth Platform program here.

    • Nokia is targeting the "industrial edge" with the unveiling of four new third-party applications which it says help enterprises collect and analyze data from operational technology assets on a "robust and secure on-premises edge."

    • UK altnet CityFibre is hoping to convert fiber skeptics to its cause with the launch of a "full fiber tour bus," which begins its nationwide propaganda journey in the south-coast city of Portsmouth. Locals lured across the threshold can take part in a range of immersive games and challenges that CityFibre hopes will remove any lingering doubts about taking the plunge into full-fiber living.

      — Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading

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About the Author(s)

Paul Rainford

Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading

Paul is based on the Isle of Wight, a rocky outcrop off the English coast that is home only to a colony of technology journalists and several thousand puffins.

He has worked as a writer and copy editor since the age of William Caxton, covering the design industry, D-list celebs, tourism and much, much more.

During the noughties Paul took time out from his page proofs and marker pens to run a small hotel with his other half in the wilds of Exmoor. There he developed a range of skills including carrying cooked breakfasts, lying to unwanted guests and stopping leaks with old towels.

Now back, slightly befuddled, in the world of online journalism, Paul is thoroughly engaged with the modern world, regularly firing up his VHS video recorder and accidentally sending text messages to strangers using a chipped Nokia feature phone.

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