• Alianza saves Metaswitch from its Microsoft ordeal 
• Digi finally launches nationwide services in Belgium
• Spending on broadband network equipment is on the rise

In today’s industry news roundup: Alianza rescues Metaswitch from the Azure for Operators graveyard; Digi Belgium launches with low-cost mobile and broadband service offers; telcos are finally increasing their broadband network investments, according to Dell’Oro; and much more!

Metaswitch is a name synonymous with quality voice (circuit-switched and IP) communications technology in the telecom sector, so there will be plenty of network operators rejoicing today that the company has been acquired from Microsoft by cloud communications platform specialist Alianza for an undisclosed sum. Microsoft bought Metaswitch in 2020 when it was hell bent on developing a portfolio of technologies and skills that would enable it to deepen its relationships with telcos via its Azure for Operators unit: Microsoft also acquired cloud-based mobile core platform developer Affirmed Networks as part of the strategy. But telecoms and public cloud didn’t converge in the way the big tech firm envisaged and, as a result, Azure for Operators imploded this year, leaving it with a much-reduced operation and team that supports key customers, such as AT&T. Now Alianza, which is still pitching itself to network operators as a Metaswitch replacement, is picking up some of the prize pieces – including mobile core, session border controller, media gateway and other products – with the deal set to be completed during the first quarter of 2025. “The acquisition of Metaswitch is about resetting the playing field and enabling service providers to reassert their market leadership,” noted Alianza CEO Brian Beutler. “The Alianza cloud communications platform empowers operators to monetise network investments through improved customer experiences and the delivery of modern, high-margin communications service offerings.” It also makes Alianza, which raised $61m last year to bolster its telecom ambitions, a key vendor partner to hundreds of communications service providers around the world that still rely on Metaswitch technology to support their voice services. The Pleasant Grove, Utah-based company noted the acquisition will “give it a combined customer base of more than 1,000 communications service providers [CSPs], including 19 of the top 20 global operators, as well as a comprehensive portfolio of services that will streamline the path to a cloud-orchestrated, AI-powered communications future.” According to the Alianza website, it currently supports more than 200 CSPs, so the deal will give it much greater scale in the telecom sector. At least one industry analyst believes this is a positive move for all involved. “Today, global operators face increasing competitive threats from OTT communications companies, whose services are gradually eroding their long-held position as market leader in the delivery of voice and collaboration services,” noted Rohit Mehra, IDC’s group VP for worldwide network and telecommunications. “The combination of the Metaswitch business with Alianza brings together a deep portfolio of services and expertise with proven cloud technology and product innovation to deliver end-to-end capabilities for service providers to modernise at their own pace,” he added. As for Microsoft, the VP with responsibility for what is left of Azure for Operators, Yousef Khalidi, stated: “The telecommunications industry remains a priority for Microsoft, and we will continue to empower telecom operators to modernise, monetise, and innovate through our secure AI platform.” 

Digi Communications, which already has operations in Romania, Spain, Italy and, as of November, in Portugal, has finally launched commercial services in Belgium, where it has been prepping its launch for a couple of years. In August 2023, Digi Belgium (previously known as Citymesh Mobile), the Belgian 5G newcomer that is 51% owned by Citymesh (part of IT services group Cegeka) and 49% by Digi unit RCS & RDS, secured a national roaming agreement with Proximus, Belgium’s national operator. The agreement guarantees a five-year access right to Proximus’ national mobile network. Now Digi Belgium has entered the Belgian market as the fourth national operator with some very low-cost deals – €5 per month for 15 Gbytes of mobile data and, on the fixed side, just €10 per month for a 500 Mbit/s fibre connection. “We are on a mission to make telecom affordable for all Belgians,” stated Jeroen Degadt, general manager of Digi Belgium. “By designing, testing and building our own networks, we ensure maximum efficiency and pass those savings on to our customers. This launch is a first step in delivering top-quality services at a fair price.” Valentin Popoviciu, executive director at Digi Communications, added: “Today, we are thrilled to inaugurate Digi in Belgium, the fifth country in which the Digi Group is present. By leveraging our international scale and expertise, we are committed to developing a cutting-edge fibre and mobile network in Belgium and investing in the country for the long term.” The launch will undoubtedly put pressure on existing service providers Proximus, Orange and Telenet.

Good news for the fixed broadband equipment vendor sector after a tough year or so – spending is back on the rise, according to research house Dell’Oro Group. Investment in all manner of broadband equipment increased by 5% year on year to $4.6bn during the third quarter of this year, fuelled by the purchase of fixed wireless access (FWA) customer premises equipment (CPE) units. “Fixed wireless providers in select markets continue to take the lion’s share of new broadband customers, with a wider range of pricing tiers designed to appeal to not only their mobile customers but also to existing cable, DSL, and fibre subscribers,” noted Jeff Heynen, an analyst and VP at Dell’Oro Group. “As a result, fixed wireless CPE unit shipments posted their fifth consecutive quarter of year-on-year growth, increasing by 19%,” added Heynen. Spending on passive optical network (PON) equipment for fibre broadband access networks was also up (by 6% year on year), as were investments in the DOCSIS equipment used for cable broadband networks (up by 26% year on year). 

Deutsche Telekom has launched a commercial version of what it calls a “Made in Germany” generative AI (GenAI) language model based on the open-source Teuken-7B model developed in recent months by a German consortium. “Authorities and businesses can now access a powerful, trustworthy, and open-source alternative to mainstream AI models, marking a significant step toward Germany’s digital sovereignty,” noted the telco.  Dr. Ferri Abolhassan, CEO of T-Systems, DT’s enterprise services division, stated: “If not now, when does Europe need more sovereign solutions? Only through joint European efforts can we create competitive alternatives to major international providers.” For further details about Teuken-7B, which has been designed to be multilingual, and the Deutsche Telekom offer, see this announcement. 

Nscale, the AI hyperscale datacentre newcomer that has just raised $155m, is to deploy Nokia’s IP networking equipment at its new facility in Stavanger, Norway. Nscale’s CTO, David Power, stated in this press release: “Our mission is to redefine the boundaries of AI and high-performance computing through innovative, sustainable solutions. Nokia’s datacentre fabric enables us to scale our GPU clusters while maintaining the reliability and performance needed to serve our customers with cutting-edge AI services. The flexibility of Nokia’s solution ensures we can bring advanced AI capabilities to market faster.” Nokia has its eyes on a bigger slice of the datacentre networking equipment pie once it completes its planned acquisition of Infinera. 

– The staff, TelecomTV