What’s up with… M&A in Ukraine, Vonage & SAP, DT & T-Mobile US

• Xavier Niel completes telco M&A deals in Ukraine
• Ericsson’s Vonage teams with SAP on APIs, GenAI 
• Deutsche Telekom and T-Mobile US seek network API innovators

In today’s industry news roundup: Iliad Group owner Xavier Niel has completed the acquisition of mobile and fixed network operators in Ukraine and will now merge the companies; Vonage is collaborating with German software giant SAP on GenAI-enabled APIs; Deutsche Telekom and T-Mobile US have launched a competition to find and reward innovative network API developers; and more!

A consortium led by NJJ Holding, an investment vehicle controlled by Iliad Group founder and owner Xavier Niel (pictured above), has completed the acquisition of Ukraine mobile operator Lifecell and Datagroup-Volia, the war-torn country’s main fixed line telecom and pay-TV service provider. The consortium, which includes US private equity firm Horizon Capital, will merge the two operators to create “a converged telecom platform for expansion, growth and investment,” noted Horizon Capital in this announcement. “This historic transaction is the first major investment by a new market entrant and major strategic investor since the full-fledged invasion, further supporting the growth and modernisation of Ukraine’s telecom infrastructure,” it added. The merged operator is in line to get $435m in loan funding from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) for the “launch of a significant investment programme, including investments in network, licences, equipment and expansion of fixed and mobile infrastructure in Ukraine.” The combined operator will provide mobile services to 10 million customers and pass 4 million premises with its fixed line infrastructure. Niel commented: “I am pleased to announce the completion of this landmark French investment in Ukraine’s telecom sector, which we believe will provide significant and tangible benefits to customers, the market, and to the country. The closing of this landmark transaction will serve as a signal to others that Ukraine offers compelling opportunities, and that the time to invest is now. We welcome CEO Mykhaylo Shelemba to our team of esteemed CEOs leading NJJ’s telecom ventures around the globe. We are pleased to deepen our cooperation with Horizon Capital in their capacity as our minority partner in Ukraine, and to our long-term financial partnership with institutions EBRD and IFC.” NJJ Holding announced the plan to acquire Datagroup-Volia in April, while the deal to acquire Lifecell from Turkcell was agreed in January this year and confirmed later that month. Turkcell confirmed on 9 September that it had received $524.3m from NJJ Holding to complete the transaction.  

Vonage, Ericsson’s cloud-based communications platform-as-a-service (CPaaS) and network API unit, is teaming up with German software giant SAP to “explore generative AI and next-generation technology use cases using Vonage’s application programming interface (API) platform and SAP business AI,” the companies have announced. Vonage will provide SAP with access to network APIs from its CPaaS platform, including quality-on-demand (QoD), device location and number verification. According to Vonage, “the QoD API enables businesses to deliver exceptional real-time experiences, from extended reality to autonomous vehicle support and enhanced broadcast experiences – providing a platform for elevated user satisfaction. Through the use of Vonage APIs, SAP can use device location together with number verification APIs to provide an authentication experience for its customers to help mitigate the risk of fraud. Device location APIs, along with IoT, can help to enhance asset tracking, track and trace, and fleet management by using network-based location data,” it added. Michael Ameling, executive VP and chief product officer at SAP Business Technology Platform, stated: “This collaboration opens a world of possibilities for developers and businesses, empowering them to innovate and succeed like never before. Our partnership is not just about cutting-edge generative AI innovation, but about redefining the future, with network API integration and transformation.”

Deutsche Telekom, T-Mobile US (which is majority owned by DT) and hubraum, Deutsche Telekom’s tech incubator, have joined forces to launch a global API competition for developers in the US and European Union. “Developers and innovators from around the world are invited to create exciting new business opportunities and solutions for customers leveraging APIs,” stated T-Mobile US in this announcement. Participants are tasked with developing APIs that can “bring innovation to five key [markets in which] APIs could have an immediate impact in telecoms”. Those markets are: Automotive, for use cases like connected cars or autonomous vehicles. Broadcasting, where APIs could improve streaming efficiencies for production teams. Government, as “public institutions rely on secure and compliant data sharing to automate processes to deliver more efficient, transparent, and responsive services to citizens,” noted T-Mobile US. Healthcare, to “create more connected, secure, and responsive healthcare ecosystems that better meet the needs of patients, providers, and other stakeholders”. And industrial, as “manufacturing companies require reliable and consistent connectivity to transform their production processes” and “energy providers operating increasingly smart grids need to leverage real-time data, automate processes, and integrate advanced technologies.” For further details about the competition, see this announcement. 

Test and measurement vendor Viavi Solutions has unveiled a 1.6 Tbit/s Ethernet test tool, the ONE-1600, designed to deal with the requirements of AI workloads. “Emerging applications like AI, ML [machine learning], high-performance computing (HPC) and quantum computing are driving bandwidth and scale at an accelerating rate, creating increasingly difficult challenges for manufacturers of chips, pluggables and network equipment,” noted Viavi in this press release. “Architects and developers need modern, sophisticated instrumentation to test at these higher speeds while maintaining accuracy, deployment and testing efficiency, and overall cost effectiveness,” it added. 

– The staff, TelecomTV