Madrid, 28th April 2022 – Six of the world’s leading telcos announced today, the creation of Alaian, an alliance to connect the open innovation ecosystems of these leading global telcos to reach 50 countries and 700 million customers.
The members of Alaian are: Bouygues Telecom, Cellnex, KPN, MTN, Telefónica and WINDTRE. With this alliance they seek to join forces to share best practices on innovation and generate different use cases on the latest market developments and technologies they are implementing, in their ambition to constantly innovate.
The alliance is also committed to global open calls to attract companies that are aligned with its strategic innovation priorities. In this context, they are taking the opportunity to announce a global call for startups, which opens today. Interested companies can participate via this link. Alaian will be looking for startups with 5G-based use cases in Communications & infrastructure, Industry, manufacturing & logistics, Mobility, Utilities & Energy, Metaverse & Web3, Media, Entertainment & Gaming and Retail.
The selected companies will be able to access the best 5G connectivity and edge computing resources of the alliance’s member telcos, as well as carry out tests in the 5G LABs with the intention of integrating them into the solutions of the different telcos. Also, exchange knowledge with specialists and network teams with whom to co-develop and solve problems together, taking advantage of the technical, commercial and product support of the alliance members’ network of experts, mentors and trainers.
In addition, startups selected by the alliance will be able to benefit from the resources available to the telecoms such as knowledge of the markets they are in, access to their network of contacts, design and build pilots with customers around the world. Apart from this, there is the opportunity to help startups additionally with fundraising, training for entrepreneurs, visibility and exposure at the alliance partners’ headquarters, flagship shops, demo centres, labs and Hubs to showcase their product to the network of customers and partners. In addition, equity investment will be possible from any of Alaian’s member investment vehicles, as well as exposure to its global network of venture capital firms.
“We are very proud to participate in the Alaian program. For a long time, we have decided to get closer to those who have the ideas, those who innovate and create. With Startups and Open Innovation, we can invent the future together. This new alliance gives us the chance to meet new startups from different backgrounds, to discover and share opportunities with companies that share the same challenges as us (5G development, customer experience, sustainable development, metaverse…)”, Stéphane Allaire, Chief Innovation Officer of Bouygues Telecom.
“It’s an honour to participate and contribute our expertise in this powerful initiative with these partners which will bring the best of both worlds, corporate and startup, to drive Open Innovation around the most relevant topics for the telcos nowadays”, Jose A. Aranda, Global Innovation director of Cellnex.
Jacob Groote, Innovation and Partnership manager at KPN: “Strong cooperation in opening our doors and resources for startups with these global telco’s, will increase all our innovation capacities and add value in terms of potential market reach, funding etc for startups. We highly value this initiative. KPN is a strong believer of Open Innovation, as is also shown in winning the Open Innovation Challenger by the International Chamber of Commerce for the 4th year in a row. So let’s make impact together”.
Chika Ekeji, Group Chief Strategy and Transformation Officer of MTN Group said, “We are proud to form part of the Alaian alliance which will give us an opportunity to work with and share best practices with globally competitive telcos. Innovative digital solutions are a huge part of our strategy and our involvement in the alliance will further expose us to partnering with start-ups that are a strong fit with our Ambition 2025 strategy of leading digital solutions to Africa’s progress”.
«We are proud to bring together Alaian the synergies of six of the world’s most prestigious telcos to collaborate and drive open innovation at Telefónica, and to enrich entrepreneurial ecosystems in the countries where we are present. Irene Gómez, Open Innovation Director of Telefónica.
“We are excited to join Alaian together with other global telco leaders that are all facing a common challenge: expanding beyond the core business, creating and capturing value through new processes, products, services and business models. We are confident that this alliance will help us drive our overall innovation agenda and generate an optimal combination of core business development whilst also pursuing new solutions”. Luca Monti, WINDTRE 5G & IoT Project Director.
More information in the following video.
About Bouygues Telecom:
As a global communications operator, Bouygues Telecom stands out by bringing the best of technology to its 26 million customers in France every day. The excellence of its 4G and 5G networks, its fixed-line and cloud services enable them to enjoy their personal and professional digital lives simply and fully, wherever they are. Through its Business Division, Bouygues Telecom is supporting a community of professionals and businesses in the widespread adoption of fixed and mobile broadband and new uses such as unified communications and enterprise mobility services. #WeAreMeantToBeTogether
About Cellnex Telecom:
The ef f icient deployment of next-generation connectivity is essential to drive technological innovation and accelerate inclusive economic growth. Cellnex Telecom is the independent wireless telecommunications and broadcasting infrastructures operator that enables operators to access Europe’s most extensive network of advanced telecommunications infrastructures on a shared-use basis, helping to reduce access barriers for new operators and to improve services in the most remote areas.
Cellnex manages a portfolio of more than 130,000 sites – including forecast roll-outs up to 2030 -in Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, France, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Portugal, Austria, Denmark, Sweden and Poland. Cellnex’s business is structured in four major areas: telecommunications
inf rastructure services; audiovisual broadcasting networks, mission critical and private networks and solutions for smart urban infrastructure and services management (Smart cities and the Internet of Things [ Io T] ).
The company is listed on the continuous market of the Spanish stock exchange and is part of the selective IBEX 35 and EuroStoxx 100 indices. It is also on the main sustainability indices, such as CDP (Carbon Disclosure Project), Sustainalytics, FTSE4Good, MSCI and Standard Ethics.
About KPN:
KPN has been the leading provider of telecommunications and IT services in the Netherlands for almost 140 years. Everyone in the Netherlands uses the KPN network on a daily basis, either directly or indirectly, from the high-speed fiber networks in the ground to payment card machines in shops, or the matrix boards above the motorways. Via the network of the Netherlands, in which KPN continuously invests by rolling out fiber and the introduction of new technologies such as the 5G mobile network, KPN serves consumers and business customers with services for telephony, data, television, internet-of- things, cloud, workplaces and security. KPN has an open network on which other providers also offer services. More information is available at www.kpn.com
About the MTN Group
Launched in 1994, the MTN Group is a leading emerging market operator with a clear vision to lead the delivery of a bold new digital world to our customers. We are inspired by our belief that everyone deserves the benefits of a modern connected life. The MTN Group is listed on the JSE Securities Exchange in South Africa under the share code ‘MTN’. Our strategy is Ambition 2025: Leading digital solutions for Africa’s progress. For more information, please contact: MTN Group Press Office | MTNGro up [email protected]
About Telefónica:
Telefónica es uno de los principales proveedores de servicios de telecomunicaciones del mundo. La compañía ofrece servicios de conectividad fija y móvil, así como una amplia gama de servicios digitales paraparticularesyempresas. EstápresenteenEuropayLatinoamérica,dondecuentaconmásde365 millones de clientes. Telefónica es una empresa totalmente privada cuyas acciones cotizan en el mercado continuo de las bolsas españolas y en las bolsas de Nueva York y Lima.
About WINDTRE:
WINDTRE is the number one mobile operator in Italy and among the main alternative carriers in the fixed- line market. The company is part of the CK Hutchison Holdings Limited Group.
WINDTRE’s new mobile network provides excellent coverage with a state-of-the-art infrastructure. Moreover, the company is committed to the deployment of ultra-broadband connectivity services based on optical fiber and FWA throughout the Country.
More information available at: www.windtregroup.it.
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