Author: Brendan Swan

Brendan is a Senior Analyst with GlobalData. With approx. 20 years' experience in working in the telecommunications industry providing market and competitive insights with focus on the global enterprise market.

Aussie Broadband Unveils ‘Look to 28’ Strategy, Eyeing Growth in the SMB and Enterprise Market

by Brendan Swan, posted in Cloud Enable, Communicate
B. Swan

Summary Bullets:

  • Aussie Broadband has set itself a very ambitious growth target in a market that continues to be hypercompetitive and has further consolidation ahead.
  • Changes in technological advancements, the rise of cloud, and commoditization of connectivity has contributed to Australian enterprise segment consolidation over recent years.

Australia’s Aussie Broadband has unveiled its ‘Look to 28’ strategy at its investor day, outlining its bold vision for the company’s growth and diversification over the next three years. Aussie’s strategy is focused on improving its operational efficiency, growth, strategic investments, and disciplined capital management. It is underpinned by a six-pillar technology plan, emphasizing security, transformation, and innovation. The company has set an ambitious growth target, which will see it strive to see revenue growth of 35% through 2028 to AUD1.6 billion ($1 billion). While this announcement from Aussie Broadband is ambitious, the company should be ready to expect to experience some headwinds as the Australian telecommunications market continues to be competitive and with further consolidation on the horizon in the business, enterprise, and government segments in the near-term.

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Zayo Eyes AI Growth with Crown Castles Fiber Business Acquisition

by Brendan Swan, posted in Cloud Enable
B. Swan

Summary Bullets:

  • Zayo has snapped up Crown Castles fiber business for $4.25 billion. The company will add 90,000 of fiber miles to its network, increasing its reach to more than 70,000 on-net locations.
  • The acquisition boosts Zayo fiber infrastructure capabilities to support its growth in artificial intelligence (AI), while allowing Crown Castles to focus on its tower business.

Zayo Group, backed by two capital investment firms, DigitalBridge and EQT, has struck a deal with Crown Castle to acquire the company’s fiber solutions business for $4.25 billion. The acquisition will bolster Zayo’s capabilities in wavelength services, helping the company execute its strategic focus on investing in the critical fiber infrastructure to support the growth of AI data traffic across the US. The Crown Castle metro-focused assets will significantly improve Zayo’s long-haul network coverage, adding 44,000 on-net buildings, 40,000 towers, and 1,100 data centers, points of presence (PoPs), and central offices. This acquisition will strengthen Zayo’s ability to deliver reliable, low-latency, high-capacity fiber solutions to businesses and service providers as the demand for cloud and AI-driven connectivity continues to rise. With the US fiber market being hypercompetitive, network connectivity providers must review their fiber network infrastructure to ensure they can support the increased demand for bandwidth and capacity to compete in an AI-driven market.

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MWC 2025: Orange Wholesale to Enable Mobile Operators with 5G Core NaaS

by Brendan Swan, posted in Communicate, Internet of Things, IT Leader
B. Swan

Summary Bullets:

  • Orange Wholesale launched a 5G core network-as-a-service (CNaaS) solution. The service enables mobile operators to deploy 5G standalone from cloud infrastructure, redefining mobile connectivity.
  • Orange Wholesale provides operators with end-to-end support, including network and infrastructure management as well as software developments taking care of all the updates, security, and compliance issues.

Orange Wholesale launches its 5G CNaaS solution as the carrier looks to redefine next-generation mobile connectivity. The new 5G core solution is fully hosted and managed, allowing mobile operators the ability to deploy their own 5G standalone infrastructure within minutes using a cloud-based architecture without the need to invest in or maintain their own core network infrastructure. Orange Wholesale has also added a range of in-built features that include IPX connectivity, secure roaming, real-time SS7/LTE/5G standalone (5G SA) signaling, traffic visibility, and big data analytics for network optimization. Aligning with industry trends toward digitalization, Orange has integrated the solution into its digital service platform, Orange Click, making it easier for wholesale customers to order, monitor, and manage their connectivity solutions. While 5G standalone is in its infancy and has yet to bring many of these benefits, carriers should adopt this “as-a-service” model to capitalize on their 5G investment.

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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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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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Telcos vs. Hyperscalers: Should Telecom Operators Take a Stand or is Collaboration the Key to the Future?

by Brendan Swan, posted in IT Leader
B. Swan

Summary Bullets:

  • The digital landscape is changing, bringing new technologies. Hyperscalers are having a more influential role in shaping the future direction of telecommunications.
  • Telcos and hyperscalers should work together to co-create new initiatives including cross-selling, joint go-to-market strategies, and co-developing innovation and product.

The relationship between telcos and hyperscalers such as AWS, Microsoft, Google, and Meta, has always been multi-faceted. With the digital landscape continuing to evolve with the emergence of 5G, artificial intelligence (AI), and cloud-native technologies, hyperscalers are becoming more influential in shaping the future direction of telecommunications. This can both create benefits for telcos (e.g., agility through digitization) but it can also erode telco business opportunities (e.g., connectivity from telco infrastructure to cloud infrastructure). Should telcos take a stand against hyperscalers moving into their territory? Or should they look to collaborate and coexist together?

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Is Lunchtime Over? Is it Time for Telcos to Give Content Providers the Bill?

by Brendan Swan, posted in Big Data
B. Swan

Summary Bullets:

  • Telecommunications companies want webscale providers to contribute toward their data-intensive services delivered via their network for further infrastructure investment. Content providers argue about net neutrality.
  • While there is no silver bullet to fix this global issue, content providers could look to store their content locally and strategically partner with a telco.

The time has come for telecommunications companies and webscale providers like Amazon, Netflix, YouTube, and Meta to settle the bill, but are they going to split the bill, or will telcos be made to pay the bill yet again? Telcos have been dissatisfied that they are paying for big techs’ lunch. Should big tech get their hands out of their pockets and look to contribute toward their data-hungry internet services? As the data traffic continues to surge and telco revenues continue to slide, telecom executives are applying pressure on the regulators to force these big techs to pay for their share of the network infrastructure.

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Colt Technology Services Expands Network Reach in Sydney but it Needs to Tell a Better Story

by Brendan Swan, posted in Network

B. Swan

Summary Bullets:

• Colt will expand its network in Sydney connecting approximately 250 commercial buildings and over 20 data centers with services to commence in March 2025.

• Colt must continue to highlight its network capabilities and global reach to rival other global carriers and NaaS providers.

Colt Technology Services announced that it plans to expand its optical network in Sydney, Australia with direct access to approximately 250 commercial buildings and more than 20 data centers as the carrier looks to promote services from early December with services to commence in March 2025. This announcement from Colt is part of the company’s push in Asia-Pacific and will complement its Asian expansion strategy as the company looks to capture the strong B2B network services market growth in the region., Colt anticipates that by 2028 it will extend services to approximately 300 local and global companies with offices in Sydney. While this announcement points to another international player choosing to focus on the Australian market for growth, Colt is not gaining much differentiation from this announcement.

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