What’s up with… SK Telecom, Eir, Docomo

• Optimising 5G base stations with AI
• AI adoption is key to SME success
• Docomo demos Open RAN in Cambodia

In today’s industry news roundup: SK Telecom partners with Samsung to advance AI-native networks; Irish telco Eir uncovers the importance of AI for SMEs; NTT Docomo trials Open RAN in Cambodia through its Orex SAI business; and much more!

South Korea operator SK Telecom (SKT) has partnered with Samsung Electronics to optimise the quality of 5G base stations using AI. The companies are developing AI technology that predicts the wireless environment using deep learning and automatically sets the optimal parameters. Base stations are affected by different wireless environments depending on the topographic factors and surrounding facilities. Using Samsung Electronics’ Network Parameter Optimization AI Model, SKT applied deep learning to analyse the differences and predict optimal parameters to improve perceived quality. SKT can already automatically adjust the output of the base station signal and plans to expand the range of parameters that can be optimised with AI, such as beamforming, and will develop real-time application functions. Read more. “AI is a key technology for innovation in various industries and plays a decisive role in the evolution of the next-generation network,” said Choi Seong-hyun, head of the advance development team of Samsung Electronics Network Division, noting that his company “will continue to take the lead in the development of intelligent and automation technology for the next generation of AI-based networks.” Ryu Tak-gi, who is in charge of infrastructure technology at SK Telecom, said it confirms that “the potential performance of individual base stations can be maximised by incorporating AI”. He added: “We will spur the evolution of an AI-native network that provides a differentiated customer experience through the convergence of communication and AI technology.”

According to figures from An Phríomh-Oifig Staidrimh, Ireland’s Central Statistics Office, the economy of the republic is massively dependent on small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Figures released at the end of January this year show that during 2021, the last year for which full statistics are available, businesses comprising a maximum of 250 personnel – of which most employed between just 10 and 49 people – accounted for 99.8% of all enterprises in the country and for 69.2% of all persons employed. Basically, SMEs drive the Irish economy. Now, a new report from the IT and telecoms services company ‘eir evo’, working in collaboration with Microsoft Ireland, points out the strong correlation between the adoption of AI by SMEs, its effect on their transformation and their enhanced business success. The study, based on input supplied by more than 400 SMEs across the country, shows that 35% of them have already adopted AI, while a further 48% intend to implement it over the next 12 months. Respondents cited the main areas where AI is expected to make a major contribution to their businesses as customer service (32%), IT (27%) and sales (14%). The research further shows that SMEs regard AI as a time-saving technology par excellence, with 32% of those surveyed reporting that AI can reduce the workload of routine administrative tasks by between three to four hours a week. What’s more, a further 23% reckon AI has the potential to cut the amount of time spent on daily admin chores by more than six hours a week, thus permitting businesses to spend more time on higher-value activities that will boost their bottom lines. It is calculated that that single AI benefit alone could boost the amount of money flowing into alternative business areas by €5.1bn per annum. The SMEs interviewed for the study said the biggest barriers to AI adoption are a lack of understanding of the technology and how to use it (26%), a lack of investment (23%), and worries about system security (20%). Indeed, cybersecurity remains an ongoing area of great concern with 17% of SMEs reporting they had suffered a cyberattack over the past 12 months. Of those whose systems were breached, 16% lost between €5,000 and €20,000 and 2% lost in excess of €20,000, a worryingly large sum for a small enterprise. Unsurprisingly then, 49% of respondents admitted to being either “somewhat” or “very” underprepared to manage cybersecurity threats, whilst a small majority of 51% reckon they are either “somewhat” or even “highly” ready to cope with an attack. Time will tell whether or not that readiness is substantive or simply misplaced optimism. The marketing director of eir evo, Martin Wells, commented that the new research “demonstrates a clear link between the adoption of advanced technologies, such as cloud-based services and AI, and improved business performance among Irish SME.” He added, “It’s encouraging to see that many businesses are embracing supportive technologies, but there are still barriers to overcome, particularly around investment and knowledge.” Jonathan Eustace, the small mid-market and corporate lead at Microsoft Ireland, said while digital transformation is terraforming industries and AI, and cloud services are now essential for SMEs to stay competitive, “almost half of organisations feel unprepared for potential cyberattacks. With the rising cyber threat landscape, prioritising cybersecurity is crucial.” Elsewhere, David Broderick, the director of Ireland’s Small Firms Association, said that while many SMEs are getting on well with new technologies, there remains an “ongoing need for digital training to ensure SMEs remain competitive and resilient in today’s fast-changing landscape.” It comes as no surprise that 52% of AI implementation in the Republic of Ireland is happening in big cities, such as Dublin, Cork and Limerick, as compared to the 35% uptake reported in smaller towns and urban areas.

NTT Docomo’s Orex SAI business has announced a trial of 4G Open RAN in Cambodia. The ‘demonstration’, as it is referred to by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, will be built at a “large commercial facility” in the kingdom. As well as verifying the availability of voice and data communications, it will test enterprise-focused AI solutions provided by NTT Data Malaysia to explore potential use cases. “By displaying the usefulness of Open RAN in Cambodia through these demonstration experiments, Orex will encourage the introduction of Orex Packages, contribute to the flexible and rapid expansion of the mobile area in Cambodia and lead to the enlargement of the global business of Orex SAI and its partners,” said Docomo in a statement. It also highlighted security and supply chain risks as factors behind the move to Open RAN. In parallel with the demonstration, a workshop on Open RAN was held today at the Cambodia Academy of Digital Technology.

The UK has opened its new National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC), which will eventually house 12 quantum computers, at the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus just outside Oxford. The centre hopes to be home to more than 70 staff and will support “the world’s first” dedicated quantum apprenticeship programme and 30 PhD studentships. The NQCC systems will be open to anyone in the public and private sectors with a valid use case to harness its capabilities (TelecomTV’s quantum guru, Martyn Warwick, is already polishing his application…) “With our rich national heritage in quantum computing research, the UK is well placed to lead the development of this transformative new technology, which has such huge potential across society and the economy,” said Professor Dame Ottoline Leyser, chief executive of UKRI. “The NQCC is central to this critical work, bringing together internationally leading researchers and technologists from across academia and industry,” she added. The NQCC will focus on several key areas, including energy grid optimisation, faster drug discovery, climate prediction, and advances in AI. Through its user engagement programme, SparQ, the centre is already working with industry leaders in sectors such as energy, healthcare, and financial services to explore practical applications for quantum technology. The NQCC will also champion the safe and ethical use of quantum computing, as set out in its responsible innovation strategy published earlier this summer. The centre is supported by an initial £93m investment from UKRI.

Summer ends and BT rival, Spring Fibre, falls into administration. The broadband altnet, which once proclaimed itself as a serious rival to the UK’s incumbent telco, has taken the “difficult decision” to issue a notice of intention (NoI) to appoint an administrator after its main investor withdrew its support. It was not unexpected. Fiera Infrastructure of Canada, says it “will not continue to fund its [Spring Fibre’s] network construction plan. Nor is it prepared to pay the company’s “continued operational expenditure”. Although incorporated as far back as the early autumn of 2019, Spring Fibre hid its light under a bushel for quite some time. It was not until 2021 that it came properly to the attention of the technology and financial media when it announced plans to deploy “a 10Gbit/s capable” wholesale fibre optic to the premises (FTTP) broadband ISP network that would service both commercial and domestic premises in several different areas of the country. The plan called for Spring Fibre to exploit BT Openreach’s Physical Infrastructure Access (PIA) product via which selected and approved competitors are able to gain access to parts of BT’s assets, including existing cable ducts and poles. In 2023, some parts of the proposed Spring Fibre network were built in the east of England, principally in the city of Lincoln and a couple of coastal towns, but deployment has been slow and piecemeal. Furthermore, the company has not revealed which retail ISPs would actually be using its infrastructure and it seems to be a long way short of hitting its target of passing a million premises in England “in time”. Time that it no longer has. As the Telco Titans website reveals, Spring Fibre’s primary investors are not identified in the company accounts but it is known that, in 2022, River & Mercantile (now rebranded as River Global) sunk £155m into it and then, in May this year, offloaded its interests in Spring Fibre to Fiera Infrastructure. In recent weeks, Spring Fibre has been trying to attract new investors, to little avail. Even so, the company told ISPreview that it has had a significant level of interest, including “indicative offers for the business” adding that, “we don’t today have an offer that provides the necessary liquidity in the time we have available. Unfortunately, with this in mind, we have taken the difficult decision to file a notice of intention. We continue to progress discussions with the potential purchasers, with the aim of completing a transaction which maximises value for the business.” And there we have it. Placing a company into administration affords the company time to regroup whilst remaining safe from legal action being taken by its creditors. However, it remains liable for its debts and is likely, either to be sold or wound up at almost any time. Spring Fibre’s last full accounts, which relate to the year ended 31 December 2023, show it had assets of some £10m and debts of £24m. The chances now must be that it will be acquired by one interested party or another looking to take over valuable resources for a knock-down price. It’s happened before in altnet land, and it’ll happen again.

Global infrastructure provider American Tower Corporation (ATC) and ProFuturo, a digital education programme supported by Telefónica Foundation, are expanding their alliance to Nigeria to foster digital inclusion in schools. After a successful rollout in Kenya, the scheme is expanding to continue transforming children’s education in underserved communities through the use of technology. In total, the project now reaches nearly 30,000 children from vulnerable communities in Kenya, Nigeria and parts of Latin America. It not only covers the education to be received by the students, but also the training of more than 1,000 teachers. “In Africa, closing the digital divide is crucial to ensuring that no one is left behind and our partnership with ProFuturo will strengthen our resolve to reach individuals in underserved communities with the transformative power of technology in education,” said Suzette Victor, director of sustainability at ATC Africa. “The expansion of this partnership to Nigeria will not only address immediate educational needs but will also lay the groundwork for a future where every child has the opportunity to succeed, regardless of their circumstances.” ATC’s Digital Communities are digitally connected, technology-enabled spaces that offer digital literacy and youth education, financial literacy and adult vocational training, or healthcare services. It cites the principles established by the United Nations Global Compact and the Sustainable Development Goals as the source of its collaboration with ProFuturo, whereby access to quality education in complex environments is essential to reducing poverty and inequality in the region.