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Europe’s data centre demand continues to outstrip supply – DC Byte 

Simon Dux
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Europe’s data centre demand continues to outstrip supply – DC Byte 

Infrastructure investors will keep Europe’s data centre market growing but prices may not fall anytime soon

Analysts DC Byte, which track almost 7000 data centre developments globally, said EMEA’s Live Supply grew from 4.6GW in 2018 to 8.8GW in 2023 but the region’s growth has fallen behind APAC and the Americas due to the increasing challenges around power availability and the high cost or availability of land.

In its latest 2024 Global Data Centre Index, DC Byte said the EMEA region is also generally more restrictive in terms of data centre development, whereby planning permission is difficult to obtain and there are more regulations and policies in place. Overall, demand exceeds supply across EMEA, which has been a common theme for the past few years. In turn, this has had a knock-on effect on increasing colocation rental rates, which has been further exacerbated by rising build costs.

Even so, the largest established FLAP-D markets (Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam, Paris and Dublin) added an average of 450MW of Live Supply each. However, DY Byte found the secondary markets such as Belgium, Denmark, Poland, Spain, Sweden and the UAE have each recorded more than 100MW of Live Supply growth during this time period.

AI continues to drive data centre growth further and there is an emerging trend of operators and hyperscalers expanding outside of the established clusters where there is a greater offering of land and power to meet the specific needs of AI applications.

The so-called Pipeline (Under Construction + Committed) Supply measure – a proxy for tangible investment in a market on both supply and demand fronts – demonstrated how much investment is poised to hit European data centre markets.

The report found that EMEA witnessed the strongest Global Pipeline Supply Growth out of the three global regions reflecting a CAGR of 32.4% despite having the slowest historical growth in Live Supply. Much of this is driven by the appetite of hyperscalers and other enterprises needing capacity in some of the world’s most established data centre markets so that certain requirements are met, particularly from AI applications.

With this, said DC Byte, demand has grown for capacity across EMEA in the face of a lack of available power and appropriate land across the region. While the number of deals is decreasing, the sizes of these deals have increased, and larger campuses are being built to meet these requirements.

Early stage growth is solid

EMEA demonstrated strong growth of Early Stage Supply from Q2 2021 onwards. While the region observed slower growth than the less developed APAC region, growth rates exceed that of the Americas, reflecting a CAGR of 62.4%.

Supply growth is primed to continue over the next few years with significant industry players announcing data centre developments across the core EMEA data centre markets as well as in the tier two markets of Milan, Madrid, and Berlin and so on.

Further to this, the MENA region is emerging as a key destination due to experiencing fewer market challenges (land and power constraints) in these locations, combined with the fact that countries such as the UAE and Saudi Arabia occupy strategic geographic positions, have good connectivity, and have observed growing demand in recent years.

Live supply growth will be sustained

The report found that Live Supply projections highlight a growth of 13.6% CAGR in EMEA, however DC Byte believes the actual growth is anticipated to exceed the forecasted numbers and start to accelerate going forward.

This is on the basis that EMEA demonstrated the strongest growth of Pipeline Supply out of all the regions which should start to translate into Live Supply. Live Supply will play a pivotal role in supporting the growing demand for AI and continued adoption of cloud services across EMEA.

“We expect that supply growth is primed to continue over the next few years with the likes of major real estate funds and hyperscalers announcing billions worth of investment into digital infrastructure,” said the report authors.

Orange, Telekom step up efforts to tackle scope 3 targets 

Simon Dux
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Orange, Telekom step up efforts to tackle scope 3 targets 

Both operators increase initiatives for handset recycling as supply chain carbon footprints remain the biggest to overcome

Orange is targeting Net Zero Carbon emissions by 2040, which means reducing CO2eq emissions by 90% and implementing carbon sequestration programs to offset the rest. The operator has already reduced scope 1 and 2 emissions, by 37.4% in 2023, compared to 2015, but it has announced a new push to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions linked to its supply chain – the CO₂eq emissions from suppliers, service providers, and customers, also called scope 3 – because they represent more than 80% of Orange’s carbon footprint.  

Device manufacturing makes up a major part of the sector’s environmental impact. That’s why Orange is encouraging the recycling and refurbishment of mobile devices, in particular through its “Re” program. In 2023, European countries recorded a collection rate of 25.4% of used mobiles. Orange is targeting 30% by 2025, a figure already reached in France. The operator has also made baby-steps in selling more refurbished devices – these now represent more than 5% of its sales in France, for example. 

In Germany, Deutsche Telekom senior lifecycle manager Steffen Wasmus said there is no mobile phone that is not worth returning and the operator is encouraging customers to return their old device every time they buy a new one. “According to a Bitkom study, around 210 million old mobile phones are sitting in drawers in Germany. They contain a total of three tons of gold and valuable resources such as platinum or palladium, which are not available in infinite quantities,” he said.  

Wasmus’s role is to define the sustainability requirements for Telekom’s mobile devices. “The entire catalog of requirements for manufacturers includes more than 2000 points, but there is also a whole chapter dedicated to environmental protection,” he said. “80 percent of the emissions caused by a smartphone throughout its life cycle come from production. So, a significant approach is to motivate manufacturers to improve this.” 

Telekom wants to reduce its scope 3 emissions by 55 percent by 2030 and Wasmus said that can’t happen without addressing greenhouse gas emissions from the creation of the telco’s products.  

He also has a message for handset vendors that tend to design technical obsolescence into their handsets meaning software upgrades and support runs out after a few years, making them harder to reuse. “If a device stops receiving updates after two and a half years, refurbishment is not worthwhile,” he said. “So, I intervene in such cases because second-hand products have a one-third smaller ecological footprint than new devices.” 

Telekom is still only seeing a maximum return rate of ten percent for unused smartphones so the operator recognises more needs to be done to make it more attractive for users to bring in old phones…and more effortless, including with data removal.  

Beyond handsets 

To tackle scope 3 emissions, Orange has also launched several initiatives. By 2025, all Orange products will be “eco-designed” to reduce its environmental footprint over its entire lifecycle – such as the Livebox 7, launched at the end of 2023 and certified by Bureau Veritas. Not only does it incorporate recycled materials, but it is also more energy efficient to run, according to the telco.  At the beginning of 2024, Orange also launched a circular economy initiative to help companies reduce the carbon footprint of their mobile fleet through a calculation method certified by AFNOR. 

Orange’s network equipment also follows circular economy principles. In December 2020, it launched an Oscar (Orange Sustainable & Circular Ambition for Recertification) programme to promote the refurbishment, reuse, and resale of technical equipment to extend its lifespan, with 725,000 pieces of equipment purchased or resold via this marketplace to date.  

The operator also shares its mobile networks with other operators, limiting the need to build new infrastructure. At the end of 2023, 68% of Orange radio sites were shared, both in terms of infrastructure and energy supply. 

Europe’s broadband growth begins to flat line, the MEA region grows the fastest 

Simon Dux
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Europe’s broadband growth begins to flat line, the MEA region grows the fastest 

Policymakers will be left with fewer levers to pull to stimulate the market

Declining populations and high fixed broadband penetration mean subscriber growth in Europe will flatline and the total fixed broadband subscriber figure in the emerging markets will almost match that in mature markets by the end of the decade. Western Europe will see the slowest growth, at 4.9% to 2030, despite global growth being forecast to grow by 15% to 1.6 billion in the same period, according to analysts Point Topic.

Eastern Europe will see 10.8% growth to 2030. The Western Europe growth contrasts with fixed broadband take-up in the Middle East & Africa, which will see 39.4% – the fastest growth region in the world, albeit from a much smaller base.

By the end of 2030 Western Europe will have 180 million fixed broadband subscribers leaving it a far-distant second behind Asia at 736m. Middle East and Africa will remain the smallest fixed broadband market with 95 million subscribers. However, this figure is only slightly lower than that forecast for Eastern Europe (101m), not least due to the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war.

Some mature markets will actually shrink according to Point Topic. “We predict a slight decline in fixed broadband subscribers in China by the end of the decade (-3.9%), given that the country’s fixed broadband market is already highly saturated. Moreover, 5G subscribers there are also approaching 1.5 billion,” said Point Topic. “Finland, another country with high fixed broadband penetration and high 5G availability, will also see negative growth.

Several countries in the Point Topic’s emerging category – which will see 36.8% growth – have been expanding fixed broadband infrastructure, especially focusing on fibre. “The demand for ultrafast broadband has been increasing at healthy rates in these generally large and growing populations and economies, with Indonesia and The Philippines just a couple of examples. [So-called] youthful countries will see the second highest growth rate at 11.8%,” said the analysts.

“Here fixed broadband take-up has already grown at high speed and so they will see growth rates slow down. To date, the growth curve of youthful markets has been the steepest, with the likes of China having invested heavily in their broadband infrastructure over the last decade.”

Compared to its previous forecast, the analyst’s current forecast of global fixed broadband take-up figures by end-2030 is 1.5% higher. This reflects higher than Point Topic previously expected growth in broadband take-up and addressable audiences in several countries. The higher forecast growth in such large markets as India (+26%), Morocco (+21%), and Malaysia (+20%), among others, has boosted the analyst’s global fixed broadband subscriber forecast for this decade.

Point Topic’s forecasts are based on its quarterly fixed broadband subscriber data up to Q2 2023 and include both residential and business connections.

Magenta Telekom wins big in Austrian 5G auctions 

Simon Dux
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Magenta Telekom wins big in Austrian 5G auctions 

Regulator Rundfunk und Telekom Regels (RTR) awards 14 packages in the 3600MHz and 26GHz frequency ranges

Austria’s Telekom Control Commission concluded the third auction of 5G frequencies covering the 26GHz (7 blocks) and 3600MHz (7 blocks) ranges and raising almost €25m. The auction proceeds for the 26GHz range amounted to €16.2 million, while the awarded frequency packages in the 3600MHz range reached around €8.5 million.

Magenta Telekom is paying over 10 million euros to acquire mobile frequencies. “We are very satisfied with the result, so we continue to secure our national pioneering role in the best network and invest in Austria as a location,” said Magenta Telekom CTIO Volker Libovsky.

He added: “The acquired national frequencies ensure the best network for future generations. With the additional regional frequencies for Vienna and Carinthia, we are increasing the quality and performance of our 5G networks. Our customers benefit directly from this commitment.”

A total of 7 blocks of 200MHz each were allocated from the 26GHz range. The minimum bid per block was €1.9m. The frequencies can be used until 31 December 2046. The successful bidders were A1 Telekom, T-Mobile and Hutchison. A1 acquired 2 blocks for a total of around €4.6m; T-Mobile acquired 2 blocks for a total of around €4.6m; and Hutchison acquired 3 blocks for around €6.9m.

For the first time, in connection with coverage requirements, the regulatory authority is allowing these frequencies to be switched off between midnight and 05:00am, provided there is no reduction in performance compared to daytime operation.

The frequencies in the 3600MHz range are remaining frequencies from the 5G pioneer band allocation from 2019, which were not allocated in some regions due to a lack of demand from regional providers. The regulator said they serve to connect end customers quickly and easily to the network infrastructure.

There were 7 blocks up for grabs, each with different frequency configurations for 7 different regions. The minimum bids for the 7 blocks totalled €2,330,500. The successful bidders were A1 Telekom and T-Mobile. A1 Telekom acquired frequencies in 4 regions for a total of around €2.6m. T-Mobile acquired frequencies in 3 regions for a total of around €5.9m. The frequencies can be used until 31 December 2039.

From a certain point in time, each frequency allocation holder is obliged to operate a certain number of locations using the frequency spectrum allocated to them in this procedure or to fulfil the coverage obligations associated with the allocation. The coverage obligations serve to ensure efficient use of the frequencies. RTR said failure to comply may result in penalties. The frequency allocation usually takes place within one month of the regulatory authority publishing the auction results.

Poland set to pause mmWave band auctions until 2026 

Simon Dux
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Poland set to pause mmWave band auctions until 2026 

Operators tell regulator UKE the market isn’t ready for 26GHz band and other mmWave bands

The Polish regulatory authority, The Office of Electronic Communications (UKE), has been told by operators that it is too early to allocate the 26GHz band and should instead push this out to 2026 and beyond due to a lack of network infrastructure that can support it and a lack of devices that can use it.  

The regulator published submissions to its latest consultation into the 26GHz (24.25-27.5GHz) and 42GHz (40.5-43.5GHz) – which it originally kicked off in 2020. Even then, the analysis of the positions presented at that time showed, first of all, significant limitations in the availability of the required systems and equipment for the commercial launch of services and therefore the “impossibility of ensuring the principle of competitiveness”.  

Operators called for the UKE to ask in in 2023 and basically, they have given the same answer in their submissions. While operators like the potential uses cases of network densification and industrial automation, they have signalled the market is not yet ready, with some suggested the regulator look at more pressing spectrum like 700MHz.  

In its submission, T-Mobile proposes to allocate 26 GHz no earlier than after 2027. Orange Polska said its priority is not only to maximise the benefits related to the resources retained as a result of the C-band auction, but also meet the obligations arising from the reservation decision. Achieving this, it said, if it could also utilise 700MHz.  

The operator said mmWave solutions were not widely available which was a “manifestation of the slower than expected development of the 5G technology ecosystem”. It added that in European markets there were no smartphones available to support this band. Orange says mmWave allocations should occur no earlier than 2026.  

The operator suggested mmWave deployments will only occur in clusters or single base stations. It reiterated that each operator should be able to secure 800MHz but concedes that to do so, UKE will need to transfer some fixed services to other bands. Orange also warns the regulator that if it follows a similar pricing model to mid-band spectrum, mmWave will be unprofitable without a significant reduction in fees.  

Play wants it moved further 

In its submission Play (P4) wants to push the mmWave allocation out to 2027-2028 (or later). It said that currently, the development of user needs does not go beyond solutions that can be addressed within the 5G capacity available in the C band (i.e. 3.4-3.8GHz). The operator suggests that due to mmWave’s high capacity and low latency it will be deployed mainly “in cities that introduce intelligent solutions to support their functioning and in workplaces that decide to automate production, logistics or transport processes.”  

Play requests the allocation of a minimum of 200MHz in one block, with the indication that the target configuration should provide for the use of a single block or several blocks with a maximum planned width of 400MHz for a single operator. 

Like Orange Play is looking more at getting mid-band sorted. “The priority remains the allocation of a single block in the 800 MHz band and the 700 MHz band – which, thanks to their propagation properties, will allow the 5G signal to cover most of the territory of the Republic of Poland, fulfilling the EU assumptions regarding the coverage of cities and main routes by 2025 and meeting the obligations arising from reservation decisions in the band. 3400-3800MHz. The next band that should be made available for wireless communication are the n75 and n76 bands, i.e. the range from 1427 MHz to 1517 MHz, i.e. the so-called SDL,” it stated in its submission. 

Ericsson cuts 1200 jobs in Sweden 

Simon Dux
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Ericsson cuts 1200 jobs in Sweden 

The vendor adds detail to the statements it made in January about 5G market conditions

Ericsson announced it intends to cut around 1200 jobs in its home market Sweden as the challenging market conditions, particularly in North America, pervade in 2024. The vendor said it was already seeing “further volume contraction as customers remain cautious.” In January Ericsson warned it expected further declines in 5G gear demand from mobile operators this year including in its key growth market of India.  

After a few years of high demand for 5G equipment, buying by telecom providers slowed last year, prompting firms such as Ericsson and Nokia to lay off thousands of employees to save costs. Ericsson already said it was looking at further cost cuts this year and that would potentially include layoffs, chief financial officer Carl Mellander told CNBC. 

Analysts Dell’Oro, recently forecast worldwide RAN revenues to decline at a 1 per cent CAGR over the next five years. Market conditions are expected to remain challenging in 2024 as the Indian RAN market pulls back, though the pace of the global decline this year and for the remainder of the forecast period should be more moderate. New growth areas like private 5G and FWA are too small to change the overall trajectory, they said.  

To deal with this, Ericsson said it will implement other cost saving initiatives covering various areas such as “reduction of consultants, streamlining of processes, and reduced facilities.” Initiatives to increase operational efficiency will continue during 2024 but will not be announced separately.   

The vendor did argue it will keep focusing on achieving a higher growth trajectory to reach its long-term margin targets, particularly in mobile but increasingly in enterprise as well. However, at its annual analyst and press briefing ahead of MWC, Ericsson’s speaker backtracked after suggesting that enterprise revenues could be three times those from consumers by 2030. 

Differentiated connectivity backed by SLAs, slicing, the combination of hardware and software and the perhaps most of all, the critical importance of APIs were the recurring themes at the briefing but the vendor did concede that service orchestration, or lack of it, has hampered market development. 

APIs are also going to be a difficult market to maintain margins for either operators or the vendors, particularly as this market plays into the companies carrying all of the workload i.e. the hyperscalers. Ericsson did announce it is to develop a global platform to expose network APIs to developers with Amazon Web Services (AWS) but the overall market direction for APIs remains unclear. 

The company had almost 100,000 employees at the end of last year, according to its annual report. 

PIMCO raising €750m European data centre fund – report 

Simon Dux
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PIMCO raising €750m European data centre fund – report 

Sources suggest interest in the fund could reach, or exceed, €1 billion

Real estate investor PIMCO has currently raised around €300m for its first dedicated data centre fund which will build hyperscale data centres in secondary markets across Europe, according to an exclusive report by Private Equity Real Estate (PERE) (registration required).  

The company – which set up data centre operator Apto last September, stuffed with seasoned executives, to operate its facilities – is targeting €750m for the European Data Centre Opportunity Fund but PERE has discovered that investor interest could see that reach €1bn before closing in the coming months.  

The report lists PIMCO’s German insurance company owner Allianz Group as a seed investor and suggests other investors originate mostly from Europe, with others from the Middle East, Asia and the US. According to a sustainability disclosure document dated December 2023, new data centre developments will comprise at least 70 percent of the fund’s total invested capital once deployed. In this filing, it also suggests Apto’s data centres will target a power usage effectiveness score below 1.35. 

“We at PIMCO see data centres as a secular growth theme globally and therefore making both debt and equity investments both in the US and Europe. In Europe, we see the opportunity set as more attractive compared to the US as the market is more under-supplied and lagging US by approximately five years as it relates to the installed data centre capacity in the largest European data centre markets like Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam and Paris,” said PIMCO EVP and portfolio manager Kirill Zavodov (above) when the company launched Apto.  

“With tier two and tier three markets even further behind. And this is where we see and expect most of the growth opportunity to play out over the coming years,” he said.  

“I think if you look at many of the major markets are now power constrained, we’re seeing an increase in deployment of low latency applications that need capacity in more geographies and GDPR, data sovereignty is driving increased demand across Europe,” said Apto CEO Russell Poole, previously the long-serving UK managing director at Equinix.  

Zavodov added: “That’s why we see the opportunity in tier two and tier three markets as the most interesting at the moment as these markets represent a considerable whitespace for developing new data centre capacity… we have been using our on the ground sourcing capabilities to assemble a pipeline of development opportunities in the data centre space of about €4 billion of all-in cost. In fact, we have already acquired our first asset and have started the development works on site.” 

According to PERE, that site is Madrid. Other markets in PIMCO’s sights include Madrid, these include Milan, Berlin, Zurich, Warsaw, Athens and several cities in Scandinavia. 

European catch-up time 

Morgan Stanley’s European telecom team head Emmet Kelly echoed Zavadov’s comments, suggesting that people are under-estimating the size and scope of the potential data centre growth in Europe. He suggested three factors will drive it.  

“The primary driver of data centre demand today is cloud and digitalisation,” he said. “Cloud represents the lion’s share of data centre growth in Europe on our numbers. Roughly 60% of growth by 2035. The second driver is AI. What’s interesting is training AI models needs to be done within a single data centre and that’s driving demand for large data centre campuses across the globe.” 

He said the third factor is data sovereignty. “Essentially, consumers want their data to be stored at home, and they want this to be subject to local law,” he said. “A common parallel I’ve received is: would you want your bank account to be stored in a different country? The answer is probably no. And therefore, we believe that data will be increasingly near-shored across Europe.”  

Kelly also suggests that the various infrastructure constraints like power in some of the so-called FLAP-D markets – Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam, Paris, and Dublin which represent most of the overall European DC market – will mean secondary markets will see growth that will outstrip larger capitals.  

His team’s data centre market report in February suggests over the next decade the European data centre market will expand fivefold to around 20,000MW which is larger than US growth in that period, albeit a more mature market. Will FLAP-D markets will still be 60% of growth in the next decade the bank suggests secondary markets like Milan, Madrid, Warsaw and Scandinavia will see 22% growth versus 16% in FLAP-D. 

Automation and agility are key to 5G’s commercial success

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Automation and agility are key to 5G’s commercial success

Partner content: It is imperative that service providers can rapidly instantiate and orchestrate the dynamic provision of network slices

For service providers both will unlock potentially new B2B customers and new revenue streams. However, the ability to rapidly instantiate and orchestrate the dynamic provision of network slices is imperative. How can CSPs achieve this?

The ability to offer dynamically orchestrated network services and slices will be imperative to the success of communications service providers (CSPs) in the 5G Standalone (CSP) era. Importantly, network slicing will allow service providers to attract new, more lucrative B2B customers through the provision of innovative, differentiated services delivered over slices with customised configurations.

The provision of network slicing not only offers competitive advantage to CSPs in an increasingly complex and crowded market, but it also proves to their own potential enterprise customers that they can offer them agility and flexibility, and a partner for the future evolution of 5G services.

5G SA – opportunity and complexity

But, while 5G SA and network slicing offer both consumer and enterprise opportunities for service providers, they also bring technological and operational challenges. 5G uses concepts such as Software Defined Networking (SDN), Virtual Network Functions (VNF), and Mobile Edge Compute (MEC), alongside modern infrastructure components with machine interfaces.

At the same time, 5G embraces a diversified, standardised, and open multi-vendor ecosystem – each component must work with multiple components from other vendors, and service and content providers. It is significantly more complex than any other previous network generation.

In addition, network slicing (which is already available at scale in 5G SA networks) traverses multiple segments, including radio, access, core, and edge, which may in turn include both virtual and physical network functions, as well as SDN.

To make the challenge for CSPs even greater, enterprise customers will demand dynamically orchestrated slices of the network that provides guaranteed capacity, QoE, security, and agility that allows them to respond to the changing demands of their own operations, or their own customers.

Automation and agility are therefore imperative.

Automation is essential for handling –  accurately and at speed and scale – both the complex, multi-vendor, distributed nature of a 5G network and the complex network configurations required for each customer service and slice (which will extend to private networks, whether associated with a public network or as an independent offer).

Agility, meanwhile, reduces time to market and enables competitive differentiation and advantage. However, realising these benefits and opportunities requires dynamic service control and orchestration to meet rapidly changing demands and requirements. In addition, the network and service architecture remains fluid as the network and network services evolve. Agility flows from automation.

Needs of vertical use cases

The importance of providing tailored parameters for each slice – which may be dedicated to a specific application, enterprise, or a shared vertical use case – is highlighted when considering the needs of different vertical use cases.

On a simplistic level, an enterprise that operates a smart port, for example, might require multiple slices, each optimised for different applications. For example, one slice might require tighter security for transferring data about shipping goods, while another slice might require very low latency and reliability for centimetre-level control of automated machinery. Connected devices might also need to move between different slices, as required by the different applications that they support.

Alternatively, slices might be multi-tenant, whereby a service provider offers a slice dedicated to a specific use case for multiple organisations in the same vertical. Take railways, for example. It’s easy to imagine multiple train operators using a single slice focused on providing functions that ensure safety, punctuality, capacity, efficiency, and communications.

Or ‘blue-light’ organisations that need secure communications, and access to traffic reports and facial recognition, for example, during large-scale incidents. Similarly, 5G broadcasting is becoming popular for remote events, such as downhill skiing.

All of these scenarios require the dynamic orchestration of network slices in real-time. Only automation can provide this capability. But, why are automated slices essential for B2B success?

One answer is:  ‘Time’. Enterprise customers require dedicated capacity, or assured security, or low latency, as required, according to their requirements – but they want it fast. They do not want to wait months for services to be brought to life – and operators don’t want to wait months to capture the revenues.

For example, a one-off large-scale event might want scalable bandwidth, while another might require scalable bandwidth with assured security, and the ability to offer specialised or differentiated services to their users. All of these demands must be met quickly, so that operators can achieve both rapid time to market and reduce time to revenue.

Building blocks of automated slicing

But automation per se is not the only requirement. Automation that can auto-select pre-configured or pre-built functional components allows CSPs to rapidly and automatically bring service chains or functions together as and when needed.

At We Are CORTEX we term these components process fragments, which are built from discrete, atomic components we call function blocks”. Whenever a service, or slice, is requested, it requires the possibly complex orchestration of a chain of these process fragments and associated function blocks across its lifecycle. Each process consists of a series of tasks that need to be connected to create an automated flow.

Rather than building such an orchestration process from scratch, which would defeat the object of rapid service instantiation, these process fragments can be used together as and when needed to combine known functionalities in a rapid, risk-free configuration.

Separate process fragments might, for example, enable each of the following:

  • Configuring a RAN solution from a given vendor.
  • Configuring an NF required for UE authentication.
  • Scaling a UPF when more data processing capacity is required
  • Processing alarms from the RAN modules.
  • Billing to meet the agreed cycle and consumption parameters, capacity requirements, number of devices, checking with revenue collection.

These process fragments can then be composed them into a complete chain that provides end-to-end automation for any service. The process fragments used for one service (or slice) can also be used with others to build automations for other services, as each can be broken down into micro steps.

Agility requires the ability to stitch these process fragments together to create automated end-to-end provisioning, orchestration, assurance, billing, and other business operations. CSPs and their automation providers can over time develop their own process fragment library, using the base function blocks, to enable their own automation processes to more services and procedures.

Guiding your automation journey

The We Are CORTEX platform comes with over 200 pre-built function blocks and a graphical process definition environment, enabling process authors to drag and drop them onto a workspace, and connect them up as necessary to meet the automation requirements. It means that CSPs can rapidly build and deploy their own processes for managing 5G B2B networks in a governed, version-managed environment. It’s that easy.

Automated network slicing and B2B service automation, and the agility that offers, is a rapidly evolving landscape. Fortunately, We Are CORTEX can guide you through the automation journey.

Our platform provides the reusable tools and capabilities to automate anything – from orchestration to process management. Furthermore, we offer you the platform and the ability to create your own automated functions.

As a partner we provide knowledge sharing and transfer across your teams, giving you the freedom to create automated services and slices as required.

DOWNLOAD THE FULL WHITEPAPER TO DISCOVER MORE

We Are CORTEX are global leaders in advanced automation and orchestration. Established in 1999, and focused exclusively on the telecommunications sector, the experience, and unrivalled, purpose built capabilities make CORTEX the choice for some of the worlds largest operators. CORTEX help CSPs automate at scale, achieving strategic automation objectives, providing a commercial edge in a highly competitive world. 

Orange Spain and MásMóvil merger will become MásOrange 

Annie Turner
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Orange Spain and MásMóvil merger will become MásOrange 

Spanish newspaper El Economista predicts brand will be introduced after Easter

The company formed by the 50:50 merger of Orange España and MásMóvil Group is to be known as MásOrange, according to the Spanish business newspaper, El Economista. A formal announcement about the new brand is expected after Easter.

After the merger, which has been approved by regulators in Spain and the European Union, MásOrange will be the country’s largest telecoms operator, overtaking incumbent Telefonica. Its enterprise value is €18.6 billion after the deal, with about 38 million subscribers (more than 30 million of which will be mobile) and combined annual revenues of €7.677 billion as of the end of 2023.

Apparently the MásOrange Internet domain name was registered on the day the companies confirmed they were in merger talks, almost two years ago, according to the newspaper report.

The new entity will maintain each partner’s trademarks and sub-brands, which in MásMóvil Group’s case include Yoigo, Pepephone, MásMóvil, Lebara, Lycamobile, Llamaya and Virgin, as well as the regional brands Euskaltel, R, Telecable, Embou and Guuk.

Reykjavik Fibre Network chooses Nokia for fibre network upgrade 

Simon Dux
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Reykjavik Fibre Network chooses Nokia for fibre network upgrade 

But the telco is slowing down fibre infrastructure capex as it seeks new investment

Reykjavik Fibre Network (Ljósleiðarinn) has deployed Nokia’s Lightspan fibre solution and Altiplano access controller which will give it the ability to upgrade to 25Gbps services in the future using software defined networking. 

However, the telco announced it intends to reduce investments until a result is obtained in the planned share capital increase, which has been significantly delayed. Earlier this month, the Orkuveitun subsidiary reported a loss of ISK 570 million in 2023, compared to a loss of ISK 87 million in 2022. This was despite revenue increasing by 13% year-on-year and amounted to ISK 4.3 billion last year.  

All of the country’s largest service providers use Reykjavik Fibre Network’s backbone network and last year the telco also completed the purchase of Sýnar’s core network after approval of the transaction by the Competition Authority. 

As a result, the optical fibre is now entirely owned by Orkuveitinn, but the authorisation to increase the share capital and sell it is valid until the end of the current year. Over the past few months, Reykjavik Fibre Network’s managers have had briefings with domestic and foreign investors in the market. 

Commenting on the delay to the plans to increase the share capital Reykjavik Fibre Network chief executive Einar Þórarinsson said: “The purchase of Sýnar’s core network was important for the development of Ljósleiðar, strengthened competition and increased electronic communications security in the country. The share capital increase was clearly designed to strengthen the finances in connection with this investment and other profitable developments for the future.” 

He added: “We are looking forward to having a conversation with the new co-owners of Orkuveitunna about the company’s continued development, as the need for a reliable telecommunications infrastructure is only growing.” 

Big delays  

According to local media reports, further fibre investment will hinge on the much-delayed share capital increase. The telco has stated that it will use part of the proceeds of the capital increase to pay off debts. It first announced the capital increase back in 2022 and the plan was to complete the capital increase by the end of the first quarter of 2023. 

However, the final approval of the owners of Orkuveitun – including the City of Reykjavík – was not received until the beginning of May. Last September, the board’s updated proposal for the share capital increase was approved which meant the new share capital can amount to a maximum of 33.3% of the total share capital of the telco post-injection. The aim is for distributed ownership among prospective shareholders. 

Software-defined fibre network  

Nokia’s Lightspan FX solution supports multiple generations of PON technologies and point-to-point applications simultaneously, so Reykjavik Fibre Network can better utilise its network and quickly add capacity whenever or wherever it’s needed. 

Nokia’s Altiplano Access Controller is a software-defined and network function virtualisation system used to drive greater automation and virtualisation. The network is managed with an open API to automate and program it. Additionally, enhanced automation tools and network insight capabilities help improve the management, scalability and reliability of Reykjavik Fibre Network’s network. 

“For residential and business services as well as cell-site backhaul. Nokia’s solution not only facilitates this but also lays the foundation for a future-proof network infrastructure, aligning seamlessly with our vision of a network controlled by software infrastructure, accessible to our wholesale customers through our existing APIs and OSS systems,” said Reykjavik Fibre Network CTO Jon Ingi Ingimundarson.  

“Our fibre technology provides the perfect solution for operators that want to quickly increase capacity and flexibly migrate to next-generation fibre technologies like 25G PON,” added Nokia GM of broadband networks Geert Heyninck.  

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