Month: February 2025

Project Waterworth: Meta’s New Cable Will Bring Disruption to the Wholesale Telecom Market

by Brendan Swan, posted in Network
B. Swan

Summary Bullets:

  • Meta has announced it will build a 50,000km subsea cable connecting five major continents, including the United States, Brazil, South Africa, and India.
  • Project Waterworth is likely to cause further disruption for wholesale operators as the company looks to dominate global internet connectivity.

Meta announced it will build the world’s longest and highest capacity subsea cable system spanning over 50,000km (31,000 miles), connecting Brazil, India, the US, South Africa and other regions. The new venture, dubbed Project Waterworth, is expected to enhance global connectivity and bring Meta significant opportunities in the AI space, particularly in the Indian market, along with new economic growth for the countries associated with the project. The proposed network will use 24 fiber pairs, which will boost data capacity and internet speed across connected regions and will be laid at depths of up to 7,000 meters (23,000 feet) to avoid damage from ship anchors and other hazards, while evading any high-risk geopolitical regions. This announcement from Meta could also play a role in the expansion of cloud computing, data centers, and other emerging AI-driven advancements. Project Waterworth is likely to cause further disruption for wholesale operators as the company looks to dominate global connectivity.

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Mitel Sustains Market Momentum with Inaugural Launch of Capabilities with Zoom

by Gregg Willsky, posted in Cloud Enable, Communicate
G. Willsky

Summary Bullets:

• Mitel and Zoom have launched the first capabilities stemming from a partnership formed in September 2024.

• Mitel continues to build upon the market momentum it has generated since acquiring Unify in October 2023.

Mitel and Zoom have launched the first capabilities of a hybrid unified communications (UC) solution announced in September 2024 as part of a newly established partnership that saw Mitel name Zoom as its exclusive unified communications-as-a-service (UCaaS) provider. The solution features Zoom Workplace, Zoom’s AI-infused team collaboration platform, starring as Mitel’s sole UCaaS offering within its overall UC portfolio. The solution also incorporates Zoom AI Companion, Zoom’s personal AI assistant. Mitel customers who desire a transition path to UCaaS will be able to blend on-premises capabilities with a mix of private and public cloud.

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RingCentral Begins a New Chapter with RingCentral AI Receptionist

by Gregg Willsky, posted in Cloud Enable, Communicate
G. Willsky

Summary Bullets:

  • RingCentral AI Receptionist is noteworthy because it marks RingCentral’s entry into agentic AI.
  • With RingCentral AI Receptionist, RingCentral continues its very aggressive cadence of compiling AI-infused features in its overall portfolio.

RingCentral announced RingCentral AI Receptionist (AIR), an AI phone agent that can answer customer questions and perform basic tasks for them such as scheduling an appointment. It can also transfer callers to the appropriate person or department if needed. At the heart of the offer is the capability to understand natural language. AIR is embedded into RingCentral EX, the company’s team communication and collaboration platform. RingCentral AI Receptionist has been available to select US businesses during a controlled availability phase, with a one-month, 100-minute free trial included. A broader rollout is planned for Q2 2025.

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Telefonica Tech’s Expanded AI Portfolio Helps Enterprises Deploy GenAI for Virtual Assistants

by Rena Bhattacharyya, posted in Communicate
R. Bhattacharyya

Summary Bullets:

• A key benefit of the Telefónica Tech generative AI (GenAI) platform is that it provides access to and evaluates large language models (LLMs) from multiple sources, including hyperscale cloud providers and open source models.

• Telefónica’s advantage comes from its existing customer relationships and its ability to promote a vendor-agnostic environment.

On January 28, 2025, Telefónica Tech announced its GenAI platform to help enterprise customers create virtual assistants. The platform is designed to be easy to use while at the same time allowing access to multiple LLMs. It provides tools for evaluating models based on cost, performance, and latency. Use cases include virtual assistants for customer services, enhanced data analysis, and improved efficiency in departments such as human resources and finance.

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TIM Offloads Sparkle as the Italian Government Looks to Keep Ownership in a 70% “Strategic” Stake

by Brendan Swan, posted in Network
B. Swan

Summary Bullets:

• Telecom Italia has divested Sparkle, its international infrastructure and services unit, in an EUR700 million ($733 million) deal as the carrier looks to reduce debt and focus on its core business.

• Italy’s Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) will have majority control of the business with 70% of the company, with the remaining 30% share owned by Retelit, a subsidiary of Spanish infrastructure fund Asterion.

Telecom Italia has finally offloaded its international infrastructure and services unit Sparkle to the Italian MEF in an EUR700 million ($733 million) partnership deal with Retelit, a fiber-optic operator controlled by Spanish Infrastructure fund Asterion. Sparkle operates more than 600,000 km of cables that connect countries across Europe and the Americas. Telecom Italia’s board unanimously approved the deal, which was first put forward as a non-binding offer in October 2024 but was rejected by the board. The sale is expected to be completed within Q1 2026, subject to regulatory approvals.

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e& Carrier & Wholesale Expands Reach with Strategic Hubs

by Brendan Swan, posted in Big Data, Cloud Enable, Internet of Things
B. Swan

Summary Bullets:

  • e& Carrier and Wholesale (C&WS) will expand global reach by establishing two new hubs in Miami, Florida (US) and Johannesburg (South Africa), while strengthening existing operations in London (England) and Singapore.
  • The expansion will enable e& C&WS to support international partners while forging new alliances and unlocking new opportunities across the Americas and Africa.

E& C&WS, the international wholesale arm of e&, has cemented its position as a major global connectivity provider and will expand its international presence as part of its global expansion strategy. The carrier will establish two new strategic hubs in Miami and Johannesburg while strengthening its existing European and Asia-Pacific hubs located in London and Singapore. The carrier looking to expand its presence across high-growth regions within the Americas and Africa. While this is a bold move by e&, can it be successful in an already crowded and hyper-competitive global market?

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The AI Act: Landmark Regulation Comes into Force

by Beatriz Valle, posted in Big Data, IT Leader

Summary Bullets:

B. Valle

• On February 4, 2025, the European Commission published the Guidelines on prohibited AI practices, as defined by the AI Act, which came into force on August 1, 2024.

• The AI Action Summit took place in Paris (France) on February 10/11, 2025, with heads of state and government, leaders of international organizations, and CEOs in attendance.

It has been a busy few weeks for observers of AI in the European continent: firstly, the issuance of new guidance around the AI Act, the most comprehensive regulatory framework for AI to date; secondly, the AI Action Summit, hosted by France and co-chaired by India. The stakes were high, with almost 100 countries and over 1,000 private sector and civil society representatives in attendance, and the ensuing debate delivered in spades. With the summit following the latest issuance of the AI Act by a matter of days, part of the event concentrated on issues around regulation vs innovation.

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Sale of BT’s Irish Business Unit Underlines End of 20th Century Telco Global Domination Aspirations

by Rob Pritchard, posted in Cloud Enable, Communicate, IT Leader
R. Pritchard

Summary Bullets:

  • BT is selling Irish wholesale and enterprise operations, including about 3,400 km of managed fiber, 400 customers, and revenues of EUR57.6 million to challenger Speed Fibre Group.
  • BT’s move typifies many telcos as they scale back and restructure their global ambitions to refocus on fewer markets, presenting opportunities for challenger service providers.

BT has entered an agreement with Speed Fibre Group for the sale of its wholesale and enterprise business unit in Ireland. BT states it will “retain a strong presence to deliver connectivity, cloud, and security services to MNCs and large organizations.” The transaction is expected to be completed in 2025.

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New IBM Research Puts a Fine Point on How Complexity Impedes Effective Cybersecurity

by Amy Larsen DeCarlo, posted in Secure
Amy Larsen DeCarlo – Principal Analyst, Security and Data Center Services

Summary Bullets:

• IT security teams contend with managing dozens of individual security solutions, often with less than stellar results.

• In a recent study conducted by IBM and Palo Alto Networks, 52% of the surveyed executives call out complexity as being the biggest obstacle to effective security.

Cybersecurity has never been a simple exercise. As enterprises have evolved to become distributed and virtual, the perimeter has faded, and IT has had to find new ways to protect enterprise assets. The move to hybrid and remote operations in recent years has only complicated this further. Add budget pressure and limited internal security expertise, and the pressure becomes that much more intense.

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