Speaking at the CeBIT conference in Hanover, Germany this week, British Prime Minister David Cameron announced a collaboration with Germany to drive research on so-called “5G” technology and the “Internet of things.” Cameron also called on improving the European telecommunications single market.
Cameron told the U.K’s “German friends” that “We want to work with you to pool ideas, share data, innovate, to lead on the next big ideas.”
Universities in the United Kingdom And Germany are set to collaborate on the research. The move is one of many in Europe towards developing more advanced wireless technologies. In December, the European Commission announced a 5G public-private partnership. According to the Financial Times, Europe has allocated more than $4.15 billion in funding for 5G research.
French consolidation
Following reports of a bidding war for Vivendi’s telecom unit, SFR, both the telecom carrier Bouygues and the holding company Altice submitted bids this week each valued at approximately $20 billion. To avoid regulatory issues, Bouygues, whose purchase of SFR would reduce the number of carriers in France from four to three, said it would sell spectrum and some of its network to competitor Iliad ― provided its bid for SFR is successful.
More telecom news from Europe
Huawei, Vodafone announced major network improvements in Europe and Africa: A new five-year agreement between the two companies will expand Vodafone’s “Project Spring.” As part of the project, Huawei will enhance networks in 15 countries including the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Spain, Romania, the Czech Republic and Hungary, among others.
The United Kingdom is best in Europe for “super-fast” broadband: Of the five largest economies in Europe, the United Kingdom has the highest take-up and coverage of “super-fast” broadband, according to the European Broadband Scorecard, which is published by U.K. telecom regulator Ofcom. The availability of super-fast broadband increased in the United Kingdom from around 60% at the end of 2011 to 73% at the end of 2013, putting the country ahead of Germany, France, Spain and Italy.
Telecom Italia reports $933.4 million in losses for 2013: Italy’s largest telecom carrier announced consolidated net loss of $933.4 million for last year.
Vodafone ups bid for Spain’s Ono: Vodafone’s initial offer for the Spanish cable company was too low as the U.K.-based telecom has reportedly come back with an offer of $9.7 billion. Ono Shareholders are scheduled to meet on March 13, and some say they are expected to approve an initial public offering, which would shut out any takeover bid from the U.K.-based carrier.
