What’s up with… Network APIs, Telefónica, Verizon

• AT&T, T-Mo, Verizon prep network API launches with Aduna 
• Telefónica shrinks its capex, boasts enhanced automation
• Verizon achieves uplink speed breakthrough with Ericsson and Qualcomm

In today’s industry news roundup: The three major mobile operators in the US are to jointly launch two network APIs this year via joint venture Aduna; Telefónica is shrinking its capex again and making progress with its automation efforts; Verizon is ramping up the capabilities of its 5G uplinks; and much more!

AT&T, T-Mobile US and Verizon are to deliver the first advanced network application programming interfaces (APIs) for Number Verification and SIM Swap in the US this year via Aduna, the telco API joint venture announced last September by Ericsson and 12 major telco investors (with KDDI having since signed up as the 13th telco investor). “This collaboration marks a significant milestone for the mobile ecosystem, uniting industry leaders to empower enterprises and developers with carrier-grade, standardised network API capabilities to build advanced applications and value-added services for enterprises,” noted Ericsson in this announcement. “For the first time, three of America’s leading telecom operators are working together to support standardised, open network APIs, including by driving interoperability, fostering industry-wide innovation and reshaping the global digital landscape. This provides an unprecedented opportunity for developers and enterprises in the US, offering a trusted, carrier-grade solution for secure authentication, reducing fraud risks and reliance on costly, fragmented verification methods,” it added. “Aduna is thrilled to be able to provide developers with access to aggregated Camara network APIs from AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon – the three major operators in the US – through our developer platform providers,” noted Anthony Bartolo, who was named as Aduna CEO earlier this year. “This pivotal moment for the mobile ecosystem demonstrates not only the importance of collaboration but also the reality of global coverage capabilities. Our strategy of redefining connectivity is unlocking faster, carrier-backed authentication at scale,” he added. Yigal Elbaz, senior vice president, technology and network CTO at AT&T, noted: “Operating in the modern era requires robust security and also widespread connectivity. This collaboration makes our network, along with all participating networks, into a platform that offers advanced capabilities, adding significant value for customers across the developer ecosystem. We believe in the power of connectivity and look forward to witnessing the innovations this collaboration will enable.” Dan Thygesen, senior vice president of T-Mobile product, partnerships and growth and head of wholesale and innovation, added: “Network APIs such as Number Verification can unlock new features and capabilities that benefit the user experience and protect sensitive data. We are looking forward to giving our partners and application developers the ability to implement the future of passwordless, device-based authentication and protect their information and assets.” Srini Kalapala, senior vice president of technology and product development at Verizon, stated: “Verizon’s advanced 5G network is the backbone of innovation, connecting enterprises, developers and consumers with cutting-edge solutions that drive growth and transformation. By leveraging these network APIs, we are unlocking new opportunities for businesses to enhance application capabilities, improve customer experiences and maximise the value of real-time connectivity. This is the future of enterprise innovation.” Expect to hear a lot more about network API advances during MWC25, which takes place in Barcelona next week. 

Still with Aduna… the joint venture has announced a strategic partnership with Canada’s EnStream LP, a move that significantly expands its network API ecosystem in the country. “The collaboration will enable seamless access to telecom network APIs from Bell [Canada], Rogers, and Telus – Canada’s three leading nationwide operators – empowering developers and enterprises worldwide to build and scale next-generation digital services with greater security and efficiency,” Ericsson noted in this announcement. 

Vendors hoping that telco purses might be a bit fatter this year should look away now… With cost control as one of its key priorities, Telefónica has set out a plan to reduce its full year capex budget ratio to less than 12.5% of revenues in 2025, down from an already below-average 12.9% in 2024, when its capex spend was €5.3bn. The news came as the giant Spanish telco reported full year revenues for 2024 of €41.3bn, up by 1.6% compared with 2023, and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of €13.28bn, up 1.2%. Free cash flow of €2.63bn was up by 14.1%. The operator expects “organic growth” in revenues and EBITDA this year, though its free cash flow is likely to remain flat. The telco, which recently appointed a new CEO, noted in its earnings report that it made significant progress in its Autonomous Network Journey (ANJ) programme “towards hyper-automation” during 2024, adding that it implemented “systems that adapt and optimise its performance in real time through AI-driven analysis of traffic patterns and user behaviour.” It explained that by 2025, “the goal is to reach an advanced level of autonomy (Level 4 according to TM Forum) across multiple network domains, developing sophisticated self-management capabilities that can make complex decisions independently, often without human intervention, which will represent a significant leap forward in operational intelligence and network efficiency.” As you would expect, traditional and generative AI (GenAI) systems were at the heart of those automation advances. Telefónica, which has operations in multiple markets in Europe and Latin America, ended 2024 with 390 million customers, up by 1% year on year. Its high-speed broadband networks pass 181.5 million premises, of which 84.6 million are fibre access lines. With regards to its 5G coverage, Telefónica reaches 91% of the population in Spain, 97% in Germany, 61% in Brazil and 75% in the UK (where it owns 50% of Virgin Media O2). The telco, though, is looking to pare back its operations in Latin America – it has just sold its business in Argentina and is reportedly seeking deals for its operations in Mexico. 

Verizon claims to have achieved a US record-breaking mobile uplink speed of 480 Mbit/s in collaboration with Ericsson and Qualcomm, using “two TDD [time division duplex] carrier component aggregation with C-band spectrum and uplink MIMO (multiple input, multiple output) technology.” Srini Kalapala, senior VP of technology and product development at Verizon, noted: “Emerging applications, such as smart surveillance, industrial automation, augmented reality devices and generative AI models, require massive amounts of data to be continuously uploaded for analysis, decision-making and model training. Faster uplink speeds, in combination with the other advancements we’ve been introducing into our network, ensure that AI-driven systems can process real-time video feeds, sensor data and user interactions without lag, improving responsiveness and accuracy. The work we are doing to drive uplink speeds is a key variable that will allow our customers to take advantage of these AI applications on our network.” Read more. 

Meta has described as “pure speculation” a report from The Information (subscription required) that it is planning to invest $200bn in an AI datacentre campus in the US. The big tech firm denied the existence of such a major investment plan and highlighted that it had already announced its 2025 investment plan, which involves increasing its spending to $60bn-$65bn, as previously reported. The speculation comes hot on the heels of Apple’s announcement that it plans to spend $500bn in the US over the next four years and the unveiling last month of the $500bn AI infrastructure Stargate Project. Meanwhile, at TelecomTV towers, we’re fretting over whether £3.35 is too much to splash out on a flat white…. 

– The staff, TelecomTV