News
A summary of all the essential financial news in the telecoms world this week
Vodafone Ukraine releases half-year results
In the release of its half year report, the firm saw revenue reach UAH 10.4 billion ($283.3 million), a 5% year-on-year increase.
The company increased its capital investments by 75%, spending over UAH 2 billion ($54.2 million) on repairs and winter preparations, caused by the ongoing war.
Net profit jumped 242% to UAH 2.266 billion ($61 million)) as a result of less currency effects than the year earlier
The subscriber base in Q2 compared with Q1 remained stable at 15.2 million customers. This is an 8% decrease year-on-year due to millions of customers being displaced by the war, resulting in fewer active mobile users .
The firm also recently announced the acquisition of ISP Freenet, a provider of fixed broadband services. Vodafone Ukraine acquired a 90.1% stake in the firm for UAH 746 million ($20.1 million).
Ciena reports sales increase
In their third fiscal quarter, Ciena reported revenue of $1.07 billion, a 23% increase on Q3 last year, when revenue reached $868 million.
The firm reported better than expected financial results, which they claim is due to the growing demand for their hardware from cloud computing providers.
“We delivered excellent results for the fiscal third quarter with strength across all regions,” said Gary Smith, president and CEO of Ciena. “We are encouraged by increased customer activity that, when combined with our elevated backlog, market leadership and expanding addressable market, we believe will drive growth and market share gains going forward.”
“It is a catch-up quarter from the supply-chain constraints of the previous year,” he continued. Because of this, however, the firm noted that revenue will not continue to grow at this pace continuously.
On Thursday trading, shares were priced at $49.33, up 14%.
5G network slicing value to hit $19 billion
A new study from ABI research has estimated the 5G network slicing market to be worth $19.5 billion by 2028, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 106%.
Current 5G slicing revenue stands at $309 million (as of 2022).
The report found that a combination of complexities and issues with cloud-native tooling adoption will result in continued market growth though at a slower pace.
“5G Slicing continues to promise new value creation in the industry,” said ABI Research senior analyst Don Alusha. “However, as reflected in multiple ABI Research market intelligence reports, a solid software and cloud-native foundation must be in place for that promise to materialise. That, in turn, is a prerequisite for a wider diffusion of 5G core adoption, an architecture that provides native support for 5G slicing.”
Telec Networks enters into administration
UK based telecoms infrastructure company Telec Networks has entered into administration.
The firm, formed in 2022, is headquartered in Grimsby with operations in Ipswich and Norfolk.
During the year until March 2022, the firm turned over more than £24 million, but cash flow was impacted by the postponement of a major contract and changes in customer payment terms.
Within the same year, its fixed assets were valued at £1.8 million and current assets over £11 million, while net assets amounted to nearly £5 million.
“It is unfortunate that Telec Networks has been forced to cease trading and enter Administration, due to a combination of challenging circumstances that reflect the difficult trading climate for many businesses in a number of sectors, where delays in starting contracts and late payment by clients inevitably lead to a squeeze on cash, which may be terminal if not addressed,” said managing director Andrew Watling.
Intel to invest $1.2 billion in chip production
Intel has announced future investments of $1.2 billion in chip production in Costa Rica over the next two years.
In 2021, Intel began assembly and test operations at its Costa Rica plant, which employs over 2,000 people. The new funds will be used to upgrade these facilities to meet the demands of producing future semiconductor products.
“The objective is for our operations to maintain the highest corporate standards and for us to continue being a key player in the growing global demand for semiconductors,” said Ileana Rojas of Intel Costa Rica in a statement.
Last month, the US State Department partnered with the Costa Rican Government to grow the country’s semiconductor ecosystem, a move funded by the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022.
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Also in the news:
Ericsson and TDC NET launch Denmark’s first 5G Standalone network
Vodafone to begin UK’s largest Open RAN rollout
Vodacom and Eskom sign virtual power wheeling deal