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Billionaire Slim buys into BT recovery plan with 3% stake costing £400m

Annie Turner
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Billionaire Slim buys into BT recovery plan with 3% stake costing £400m

The deal was done via financial holding company Inbursa and its subsidiaries, which are owned by Mexico’s Carlos Slim and his family

The Mexican telecoms tycoon Carlos Slim as invested #400 million in BT shares, which equates to a stake of about 3%. The transaction was carried out via a financial holding company, Inbursa, that Slim and his family own.

Slim became and remained the world’s richest man through telecoms businesses, most notably building up and controlling  América Móvil, which has headquarters in Mexico and operates across Latin America.

Other noteworthy investors include the beleaguered French tycoon Patrick Drahi, who controls the Altice Group Altice UK has held a 24.5% stake in BT since May 2023. Previously Slim acquired stakes in the Dutch telco KPN and Telekom Austria.

Deutsche Telekom is the second largest shareholder after Altice, with a stake less than half the size. The German group’s CEO, Tim Hoettges, has publicly rued not selling off the stake after BT acquired EE in 2016. EE was created by merging Orange’s UK opco and DT’s British operation. Orange gradually divested itself of the stake while DT held on.

Last year Hoettges was quoted describing the BT stake as the “biggest mistake” as in effect, his company paid £4 per share. They are now trading at about £1.33 – about a third of the effective purchase price eight years later.

Such was Hoettges’ frustration that it sparked rumours of a reverse takeover by DT of BT: DT is the only European telecoms group to have broken the ceiling of €100 billion market cap

BT’s new CEO, Allison Kirkby, appears to have inspired confidence in Slim at least. In May she set out her strategic plan for BT’s recovery which included slashing a further €3 billion from BT’s cost base over the next five years. The last £3 billion target, set by her predecessor Philip Jansen, was achieved ahead of schedule and BT Openreach is arguably past its peak investment in fibre buildout.

Fledgling satellite WAVE consortium expands board

Annie Turner
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Fledgling satellite WAVE consortium expands board

ST Engineering iDirect exec joins fellow board members from AWS, Comtech, Intelsat, Microsoft, Reticulate Micro and SES

Ivan de Baere, Vice President of Intuition Architecture at ST Engineering iDirect will sit on the board of Waveform Architecture for Virtualized Ecosystems (WAVE) Consortium. ST Engineering iDirect is a satellite communications firm.

The WAVE Consortium was set up in March 2024. According to the website, the consortium’s mission “is to transform the SATCOM industry towards a fully interoperable ecosystem by using intelligent, open, and virtualized networks and providing standardized architectures and specifications”.

Which is a long winded way of saying its among other things, its stretching every sinew to align with telecoms. With this in mind, ST Engineering iDirect recently announced Intuition. This is a virtualised, cloud-native, standards-based ground system intended to foster an open, interoperable ecosystem and help the satellite communications sector “overcome traditional growth constraints”.

An aim close to the heart of every telco too.

Other board members include representatives from AWS, Comtech, Intelsat, Microsoft, Reticulate Micro and SES.

The only other members of the consortium it seems, so far, are the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Chief Information Officer for the US Department of Defense and The Space Crowd. The latter, also from the US, is a “nonprofit research and advocacy group for the advancement of space and national defense.

As yet, no working groups have been announced.

ST Engineering iDirect states that de Baere is a good fit for the consortium, as he’s “been key in driving standards-based approaches since his work with the DVB-standards [digital video broadcasting] body”.

Sridhar Kuppanna, SVP Engineering, ST Engineering iDirect. “In our new role as a board member of the WAVE Consortium…it’s our ambition to bring this ongoing, shared vision to life, revolutionizing satellite communications to enable our customers to interoperate seamlessly, deploy effortlessly, orchestrate efficiently and scale rapidly for the future.”

e&’s acquisition of PPF Telecom at risk as EU announces probe  

Simon Dux
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e&’s acquisition of PPF Telecom at risk as EU announces probe  

The Commission has preliminary concerns that e& may have been granted foreign subsidies that could distort the EU internal market

The European Commission has opened an in-depth investigation UAE telco group e& which agreed to buy a 50% plus one share in PPF Telecom’s assets in Bulgaria, Hungary, Serbia and Slovakia last August – excluding its home market Czech business.

The investigation is under the Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR) started to apply on 12 July 2023. The Regulation new set of rules enables the Commission to address distortions caused by foreign subsidies, and thereby allows the EU to ensure a level playing field for all companies operating in the internal market while remaining open to trade and investment.

The Commission has preliminary concerns that state-controlled e& may have been granted foreign subsidies that could distort the EU internal market. The preliminary investigation indicates that there are sufficient indications that e& has received foreign subsidies distorting the EU internal market.

The alleged subsidies notably take the form of an unlimited guarantee from the UAE and a loan from UAE-controlled banks directly facilitating the transaction. Such subsidies are among the most likely to distort the internal market as set out in the Foreign Subsidies Regulation. The Commission said it has concerns that such subsidies may have improved e&’s capacity to perform the acquisition as well as the competitive position of the merged entity in the EU going forward, notably by improving its capacity to finance its EU activities at preferential terms.

Last August the two telecom groups agreed that e& will pay €2.15bn upfront plus additional earn-out payments of up to €350m within three years after the closing if PPF Telecom exceeds certain financial targets. PPF Telecom Group has 18m mobile subscribers, 1.1m fixed broadband customers, and a consolidated EBITDA of €1.6bn, plus 12,700 employees.

PPF Telecom’s existing assets in the Czech Republic – including the Czech operator O2 Czech Republic and telecommunications infrastructure provider CETIN – were to be transferred outside the PPF Telecom Group and not be part of the transaction. PPF will instead retain its 100% indirect share in O2 CZ and its current indirect share in CETIN Czech.

CETIN Group N.V. will control CETIN Czech but was meant to transfer all its non-Czech subsidiaries to PPF Telecom as part of the e& deal. In March 2022, PPF Telecom Group sold 30% stake in CETIN Group to Singapore’s sovereign fund GIC, having received all regulatory approvals.

What the Commission is looking at

The Commission will assess whether the foreign subsidies lead to actual or potential negative effects on the acquisition process. In particular, if the support has altered the outcome of that process by allowing e& to deter or outbid other parties interested in the acquisition and/or by allowing e& to perform the acquisition in the first place.

It will also examine whether the foreign subsidies lead to actual or potential negative effects in the internal market with respect to the merged entity’s activities.

The transaction was notified to the Commission on 26 April 2024 and has until 15 October 2024 to decide.

“We open our first in-depth investigation into a concentration under the Foreign Subsidies Regulation – Emirates Telecommunications’ acquisition of parts of PPF Telecom,” said EC Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager.

“The FSR allows us to tackle distortive support from third countries for the acquisition of businesses in the EU. Our investigation will also assess whether e& may have received foreign subsidies that could distort fair competition in the telecom sector,” she said.

At the end of its investigation the Commission may either: accept commitments proposed by the company if they fully and effectively remedy the distortion; prohibit the concentration; or issue a no-objection decision.

e& provided Reuters with a statement: “e& continues to be in constructive discussions with the European Commission on its proposed acquisition of a majority stake in PPF Telecom Group and is working cooperatively towards a conclusion of the authority’s review.”

Telstra jumps on the Vonage network API bandwagon

Annie Turner
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Telstra jumps on the Vonage network API bandwagon

Earlier this week arch rival Nokia launched what it says is the first implementation of the GSMA Operator Platform

Telstra says it is working with the network API platform Vonage which is owned by Ericsson. The vendor says that Telstra will add its network APIs to the Vonage platform to spur growth in the operator’s enterprise sector. The APIs will expose Telstra’s network services and capabilities to businesses and developers for them to create applications for their specific needs.

Vonage and Telstra are to invest in and work on improving existing APIs. They include Silent Authentication which is a new method of providing secure authentication without users needing to input passwords or verification information.

Means of monetisation

Telstra’s Group Executive for Product and Technology, Kim Krogh Andersen (pictured above left), explained the vision was for the operator to monetise network APIs, “in the same way hyperscalers monetise compute on their cloud as a platform”.

Niklas Heuveldop, Vonage’s CEO and Head of Ericsson Business Area Global Communications Platform is seated in the middle, and Shailin Sehgal, Group Executive, Global Network and Technology, Telstra, in the right of the picture above.

More customers and competition

AT&T, AWS, Deutsche Telekom and Verizon are already working with Vonage platform on ways to develop and monetise network APIs but Ericsson’s Vonage is not the only game in town.

Earlier this week Nokia announced its Network Exposure Platform which it says is the first implementation of the GSMA Operator Platform. Nokia NEP complements and can be integrated with Nokia’s Network as Code platform with developer portal. BT and Nokia signed an MoU to explore monetisation opportunities for 5G with Network as a Code with developer portal at the end of last year. DISH Network was Nokia’s launch operator for the platform last September.

Are you NIS2 compliant?

We Are CORTEX
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Are you NIS2 compliant?

Partner content: The European Union’s Network and Information Systems Directive (NIS2 Directive) comes into effect in October 2024. Are you ready?

The aim of the European Union’s (EU) Network and Information Systems Directive (NIS2 Directive) is to enhance the resilience of private and public organisations throughout the EU. It is a fundamental overhaul of the original NIS – and CSPs face more stringent regulation than under the previous directive.

With strict penalties for non-compliance, is your organisation NIS2-ready? Find out how We Are CORTEX can help CSPs achieve the automation you need for compliance by downloading our latest paper. 

On 16 January 2023, European Union (EU) Member States enacted a new version of the Network and Information Systems Directive (NIS2 Directive), which repeals and replaces the original 2016 NIS Directive. NIS 2 was brought into force following a growing number of well-documented cyberattacks throughout the EU and better defend “critical entities” against supply chain vulnerabilities, ransomware attacks and other cyber threats. 

NIS2 expands the breadth and depth of the original NIS Directive, which means that some organisations previously exempt may now need to reassess their obligations, and those already included under the original NIS may now have been given an amended classification and responsibilities, which may require a revamp of security infrastructure and/or policies. 

European overhaul

Its aim is to enhance the resilience of private and public organisations throughout the EU. As well as applying to individual States, it also creates a European cybersecurity management framework with the aim of collectively strengthening security throughout by enhancing knowledge sharing and security frameworks between Member States. 

Some of the most significant amendments outlined in NIS2 (over the original), include: 

  • The adoption of 10 core cybersecurity measures that all relevant organisations must implement.
  • Ensuring the security of ICT supply chains and supplier relationships.
  • Imposing direct obligations on “management bodies” in respect of an entity’s’ compliance with NIS2.
  • Streamlining reporting requirements.
  • Giving more power to national authorities to supervise companies, particularly in critical sectors.
  • Strengthening sanctions and penalties for non-compliance.
  • Enhancing co-operation and information sharing between EU Member States. 

NIS2 is designed to cover multiple sectors – including, of course, providers of communications networks and services, which essentially means every telco and operator in the EU.

As Ernst and Young (EY) has noted, this means action needs to be taken, now. Among 5 key things organisations covered by NIS2 need to know, according to EY, or particular interest are the increased accountability and responsibility that vests with senior management. Failure to comply may hit organisations at the very highest levels.

And, there’s the threat of significant penalties – up to 2% of annual turnover, reinforced by a stronger regulatory and reporting regime. 

All EU member states must incorporate NIS2 into their respective national laws by October 2024. Importantly, by association, non-member states such as Norway and the UK must ensure they are compliant due to strong trading links with nations within the EU. 

New NIS2 classification

One of the main changes to the NIS2 over the original regulations is that it revises how companies are classified. 

For example, CSPs and digital providers are now classed as “critical entities” – under NIS, entities were classified as either “operators of essential services” or “digital service providers” but this distinction did not reflect the importance of the entity to society and the economy. 

That’s why NIS2 distinguishes between “essential” critical entities and “important” critical entities. The obligations are the same for both, but essential entities are subject to more stringent enforcement measures and sanctions. Notably, any entity providing critical services to the EU, regardless of where they are based, are also subject to NIS2. 

CSPs fall under Digital infrastructure (essential critical entities), while providers of public electronic communications networks or services, such as social media, become included as important entities for the first time. 

For both sets of entities, Article 21 of NIS2 directs member states to ensure that entities manage risk by implementing robust systems, policies and best practices covering a number of cybersecurity measures and disciplines, as outlined below: 

  • Risk handling, analysis and information system security.
  • Incident handling and reporting.
  • Business continuity, such as backup management and disaster recovery.
  • Crisis management.
  • Supply chain security.
  • Systems acquisition, development, and maintenance security.
  • Basic cyber hygiene practices (a common baseline set of practices to provide a proactive framework of preparedness) and cybersecurity training.
  • Encryption technologies.
  • Human resources security, access control policies and asset management.
  • Zero Trust access (multifactor authentication, continuous authentication).
  • Importantly, (unlike under NIS) NIS2 security requirements apply to the entire supply chain, including sub-contractors and CSPs supporting them. 

Under NIS2, critical entities also have stricter obligations to report incidents, and must now: 

  • Provide initial notification of a significant security incident within 24 hours of detection.
  • Deliver an initial assessment of the incident within 72 hours of detection.
  • File a detailed final report within a month of detection. 

Penalties for non-compliance

The importance of non-compliance cannot be understated. Member States can apply fines of up to €10 million or 2% of annual revenue for non-compliance, or certain breaches. In addition, critical entity management bodies (i.e., C-level executives can be held personally liable for failure to meet their obligations. 

It means that organisations must prepare for NIS 2 compliance in a holistic manner that also considers other legislation and regulations, such as GDPR – for example, a GDPR-compliant incident response may not be sufficient to meet NIS 2 requirements. And time is of the essence. 

So, how can CSPs meet these new, much stricter, requirements, while ensuring that they continue to meet other relevant laws? 

While Article 21 of NIS2 provides a comprehensive outline of different responsibilities, from an operational point of view, it will require significant automation of both processes and infrastructure, particularly given the additional complexities of cooperating, and monitoring and sharing data, across borders throughout the EU. Manual processes will simply not be fit-for-purpose. 

Operational & network automation

For example, a consultation by the European Commission between February and May 2023 explicitly states the vital role that automation will play. “Promoting cross-sectoral cooperation is critical, for stakeholders, because connectivity, cloud, and automation are key drivers for many vertical industries”, it says. 

This is critical – automation is fundamental to ensuring compliance with NIS2. For example, automation can help: 

  • Reduce and restrict human access to critical systems and information
  • Validate compliance alignment and reporting
  • Audit systems, data and users to ensure correct operation

So, to meet the challenge of NIS2, you need to think now about your automation development and implementation plans – and the landscape you need to automate. 

That’s where we come in. We Are CORTEX can help you manage compliance with NIS2, and importantly help to provide the significant additional benefits that automation brings – digital transformation, operational efficiency, competitive differentiation, cost savings, elimination of human error, and more. 

Automation is a journey, and We Are CORTEX has years of experience in helping organisations of all sizes to implement automation technologies and platforms that enable compliance, as well as business success.

 Put simply, automation has become a key imperative for all CSPs, particularly in the light of NIS2. As well as the internal benefits that real-time autonomous operations deliver, automation is essential for meeting the challenge of new regulations and ensuring compliance. 

We Are CORTEX offers proven, network-hardened solutions that enable CSPs to navigate their automation journeys and ensure compliance with all relevant regulations.  To find out more, download our in-depth paper Automation – A Business Compliance Imperative

Adding Sparkle to Namibia’s national digitalisation ambitions

Annie Turner
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Adding Sparkle to Namibia’s national digitalisation ambitions

A new agreement means Telecom Namibia can use the Equiano subsea cable, a diversified, low-latency route between Africa and Europe

Telecom Namibia, the government-owned, national telco, has signed an agreement with Sparkle, Telecom Italia’s international infrastructure unit, to use capacity on the Equiano subsea cable. The cable connects Portugal to South Africa. The operator’s strategic objective is to hasten Namibia’s digitalisation and convert it to a knowledge-based economy.

Telecom Namibia runs the largest telecoms network in the country, serving more than 619,000 customers with services including voice, text, data and video solutions.

Under the exclusive agreement, Sparkle will provide Telecom Namibia with capacity services on the Equiano submarine cable, offering a diversified, low latency route between Africa and Europe, supporting Namibia’s digital development and the growing demand for data from neighbouring countries.

Redundancy

In the event of outages, uninterrupted service will be through the SAT-3 and WACS cables. Concluding the agreement, Telecom Namibia’s CEO, Dr Stanley Shanapinda said, “The Equiano cable’s high-speed, low-latency connection will serve as a catalyst for innovation and economic growth across the nation.”

Enrico Bagnasco, CEO of Sparkle, added, “We are also proud to see how our infrastructure on Equiano is proving crucial for the evolution of the telecommunications sector in the African continent”.

Sparkle describes itself as “the leading global Tier-1 operator in Africa thanks to its Seabone IP backbone, boasting extensive coverage in the continent, a wide network of Points of Presence (PoPs) across North Africa, Nigeria, South Africa, and Djibouti, as well as fiber capacity on the Equiano subsea cable.”

Viasat Energy Services launches hybrid network service for energy industry 

Annie Turner
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Viasat Energy Services launches hybrid network service for energy industry 

The managed service via LEO is intended to improve operational efficiency for remote oil and gas customers, and the safety of their crew

Viasat, a satellite communications firm, announced its Energy Services division has launched a managed communications service for remote oil and gas customers. The division says the service expands the capacity and capabilities of its existing, enterprise-grade connectivity service.     

The solution incorporates low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite capacity into Viasat Energy Services’ multi-orbit and terrestrial capacity. It is designed to deliver flexible capabilities that meet energy customers’ needs through a single managed service which is scheduled to go live in Q3 2024. 

It is expected to appeal to oil and gas operators, drilling contractors and service companies by powering various applications. They include cloud-based computing and applications to improve operational efficiency, safety, crews’ welfare. Cybersecurity, and of course, AI, are built in, provided by Viasat’s machine learning platform, Intelie.

Lee Ahlstrom, President of Viasat Energy Services, said, “Serving customers exceptionally well is our North Star – no matter the underlying technology to get there. Our energy customers are looking to solve complex challenges and operate more safely, efficiently and sustainably. Our services are designed to make that happen.

“This enhanced hybrid network service offering will allow customers to improve operational efficiency and support their most advanced digital transformation efforts in the future.” 

Turbulent times

Overall the parent company is experiencing some turbulence. It completed the acquisition of Inmarsat at the end of May 2023 and beat its sales and earnings forecast for the financial year that that closed at the end of March. Revenues rose 73% on the back of that acquisition but it continues to lose money and its share price plunged in Q4.

Over the last year, its stocks hit a high of $46.33 on 13 June 2023 and a low of $13.80 on 23 May this year. According to Invest Chronicle earlier this month, its market cap stands at $1.86 billion and it has a workforce of 7,500.

Fiscal 2025 is expected to have flat revenues as the multi-year transition phase of assimilating Inmarsat continues.

Netia chooses Palo Alto Networks to bolster managed security services  

Simon Dux
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Netia chooses Palo Alto Networks to bolster managed security services  

Poland has just committed PLN 3 billion (€692 million) to build a Cyber Shield as cyber-attacks escalate on the country

Polish operator Netia and Palo Alto Networks have established a collaboration aimed at providing what they claim will be the highest level of cybersecurity to companies and institutions operating in Poland. The first solution in the offering of advanced ICT solutions under the NetiaNext brand, which the operator offers in cooperation with Palo Alto Networks, is the Netia Managed Next Generation Firewall. 

Netia is enhancing its competencies and solution offerings in cybersecurity with technologies from Palo Alto Networks, including AI, which it says will help protect the digital assets of even more companies and institutions in Poland. 

The move comes as Poland faces increased cyber-attacks. Earlier this month, the government announced it will spend more than PLN 3 billion ($760 million) to boost cybersecurity, after state news agency PAP was hit by what authorities say was likely a Russian cyberattack. Reuters reported that the digitalisation minister Krzysztof Gawkowski said Poland is on the frontline of the cyber fight against Russia and has the most attacks. He added that Poland had blocked several cyber-attacks on critical infrastructure. 

Netia CEO and president Andrzej Abramczuk (above, right) agreed Polish enterprises and institutions are among the most frequently attacked in the global cyberspace. “It can be expected that the intensifying hybrid warfare will exacerbate this phenomenon,” he said. “Netia, as one of the leading telecommunications operators and providers of advanced ICT solutions for the B2B sector, has been effectively responding to these challenges for many years.” 

He added: “I am very pleased that our cybersecurity portfolio is expanding with solutions from Palo Alto Networks, another technological powerhouse with whom we have the honor of collaborating to benefit our customers.”  

“The goal of our collaboration is to provide effective cybersecurity solutions that meet the challenges faced by Polish companies,” said Palo Alto Networks VP and MD Eastern Europe Wojciech Gołębiowski (above, left). “The support we offer stands out with advanced threat prevention mechanisms that can identify and neutralize even the most complex and hard-to-detect attacks in real-time. Our system integrates intrusion prevention, application control, and malware protection functions, allowing entrepreneurs to significantly increase the security of their networks and corporate devices.” 

He added: “I am convinced that thanks to our cooperation, Netia’s customers will be able to more effectively protect their data and resources from modern cyberattacks.” 

Managed firewall 

The first joint solution from Palo Alto Networks offered by Netia to its customers is the Netia Managed Next Generation Firewall (Netia Managed NGFW). This service provides multi-layered protection of the client’s LAN resources and its users from internet threats. Protection is carried out through managed and monitored devices that Netia provides in a service model, installing them at the client’s site at the LAN network interface along with the provided internet access link. 

The wide range of offered functions allows the protection scope to be adapted to any type of business activity. Among these, some of the variants include: Firewall, VPN, Application Control, IPS (Intrusion Prevention System), AntiVirus, AntiMalware, DNS/WWW Traffic Control, and SSL Inspection. The protection scope and security policy can be individually tailored to the needs of a given enterprise. 

As part of the service subscription fee, Netia also provides management and constant proactive monitoring of the client’s security status, 24/7 technical support, and configuration tailored to individual requirements. Netia is also one of the larger cloud solution providers in Poland and owns five data centres located in Krakow, Warsaw, and nearby areas. It also offers a full range of cybersecurity solutions, including a Security Operation Centre. 

Apple seeks to up the ante with AI announcements

Annie Turner
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Apple seeks to up the ante with AI announcements

Tim Cook updates the faithful at its annual bash for developers – what does it mean for telecoms? Is Apple really running behind the bus?

The launch of the iPhone had a profound effect on the telecoms industry. The combo of Apple’s devices and AI has generated huge amount of anticipation, criticism and speculation.

Apple is perceived to be playing catch up on AI, hence the CEO’s address at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2024 was much anticipated and somewhat unexpected. So the big news is a new, personalised AI system to be known as Apple Intelligence which is intended to make it easier for users to navigate Apple’s devices.

Apple’s own generative AI (GenAI) models – built and trained by Apple – got star billing under the umbrella of Apple Intelligence but new versions of the iPhone and Mac’s operating systems* will allow access to ChatGPT through an agreement with its developer OpenAI, acting as a gatekeeper, for when more smarts than Apple can offer is needed. Although, obviously, Apple didn’t put it quite like that.

So ChatGPT can be added to other tools too, such as for text and content generation which no doubt will make for ever more intrusive illiterate and biased suggestions. Expect the test version in autumn.

What does it mean to me?

The telecoms lobby lost no time in figuring out what the announcements mean for the sector – in short, a lot more traffic and processing power.

Jurgen Hatheier, International CTO at Ciena commented, “We have seen millions of users gravitating to ChatGPT since its release but only approximately 14% are using it regularly. Providing easy access to AI assistants is a vital step in creating broader adoption. Google recently replaced its traditional assistant on its phones with Google Gemini, while Apple has taken a different approach by bringing ChatGPT to its handsets. 

“This move will also bring massive demand to communication service provider networks and AI inference sites, be it on device, on-premise, at the network edge or in a metro data centre. As a result, service providers are investing to upgrade and fortify their networks and connect the data centre sites that process all of this data, to ensure users can experience a reliable and positive AI experience.”

Cool reception

CEO Tim Cook, promised that Apple Intelligence will raise products “to new heights” as he opened proceedings at WWDC at HQ in Cupertino, California. Irritated shareholders who have seen Apple overtaken by overtaken by arch-rival Microsoft then chipmaker NVIDIA as the world’s most valuable company earlier this year weren’t impressed. Apple’s share price fell almost 2% on Monday.

[UPDATE: Right after publication of this post, Apple’s shares hit a record high and push the company’s market cap up past $3 trillion again]

Clearly Apple’s premise that the first wave of GenAI was all about navigating the wider world, but it is perfectly placed to use GenAI to understand individuals – aka Apple users in an unprecedented way – is not gaining traction.

Meanwhile Elon Musk has threatened to ban iPhones from his companies over data security concerns, claiming that Apple would have no control over what happens to users’ data once it passed into OpenAI’s hands.

Power is nothing without control

Apple prides itself on protecting its customers’ privacy (and its ecosystem) and was at pains to stress that some processing that involves Apple Intelligence will be done on the device itself. Bigger tasks, requiring more processing power, will be carried out in the cloud on servers owned and controlled by Apple. Furthermore, no data will be stored there.

Also, before any of that off-device processing happens involving ChatGPT, Siri will prompt the user first, not move to the cloud automatically.

Interestingly, the global face of GenAI and CEO of OpenAI, Sam Altman, was present at the announcement but he wasn’t invited to do a double-hander on stage with Tim. Apple was emphasised that OpenAI will just be one of several AI firms that Apple will partner.

How long Apple can maintain the level of control that it is promising now on third-party GenAI remains to be seen. Whether its perceived failure to develop and train its own sufficiently good models does long term, serious damage remains to be seen.

It has survived one near death experience and if you want proof a tech giant can reinvent itself, Microsoft, the former PC software firm that almost missed the internet, is a stunning example.

*Oh yes, I almost forgot. ChatGPT will be integral to new versions of Apple’s operating system – iOS 18 for iPhones and iPads, and macOS Sequoia. Only more powerful devices will be able to run the features, such as the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max that have the A17 Pro chip. Only laptops and tablets that run on the M series of chips will be able to use Apple Intelligence.

Nokia’s platform aims to expand and simplify network API exposure

Annie Turner
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0
Nokia’s platform aims to expand and simplify network API exposure

Vendor says the Network Exposure Platform (NEP) represents the “first implementation of GSMA Operator Platform”

Nokia’s Network Exposure Platform is claimed to be the first implementation of the GSMA Operator Platform, The GSMA’s blueprint defines a common platform for exposing operators’ services and capabilities to customers and developers. The ethos is “connect once, connect to many models”.

The first phase of the platform focuses on edge. Future phases will cover capabilities like connectivity, slicing and internet protocol communications (IPComms).

Nokia’s NEP is designed for deployment with service providers’ networks and will support Linux Foundation’s CAMARA APIs, TM Forum’s Open APIs, edge-based and other APIs to connect networks securely to the digital, B2B ecosystem. Operators can use the platform to create new APIs and add to existing ones.  

Nokia NEP complements and can be integrated with Nokia’s Network as Code platform with developer portal. This, it says, aligns with the GSMA Open Gateway aggregator concept, providing a cloud-based platform to connect and monetise service providers’ networks with application developers around the world.

The NEP expands and is designed to work closely with Nokia’s Network Exposure Function (NEF), another solution related to API exposure which is based on 3GPP specifications. NEF provides a process for interfacing with well-defined functions in the core network.

It also enables API mashups, that is, combine multiple APIs from different core functions into new simplified APIs, which are easier to integrate with partners’ and customers’ channels.

Existing NEF customers can upgrade to a combined NEF and NEP solution to simplify their API ecosystem.

More federated approach

Amy Cameron, Research Director at STL Partners, said,“Standardisation of APIs and aggregation across telcos will be crucial to scaling the network API opportunity”. She added that as well as developing their own direct models to monetise APIs, telcos must work towards a more federated approach with their peers and technology partners/aggregators as this stance will “drive initial developer engagement and adoption of network APIs.

Cameron continued, “Nokia NEP can help telcos achieve this with tools to organise, control, and secure the way their networks integrate to developer ecosystems and platforms, ensuring choice and flexibility for customers in creating new network exposure use cases.”

Shkumbin Hamiti, Head of Network Monetization Platform, Cloud and Network Services at Nokia, said,“Exposing and simplifying access to 5G and 4G network capabilities for channels connecting developers requires a sustained and collaborative effort by all industry players on a variety of technical fronts.

“Nokia NEP is another meaningful part in that work of enabling operators to organize, control, and secure the way their networks integrate into developer ecosystems and platforms; and driving choice and flexibility for creating new use cases and value for the end customers.”

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