Technology 16 September 2025 - 2 October 2025

Australia’s Optus suffered a nine-hour outage blocking 000 emergency calls for about 4,500 customers; the government launched an inquiry. Malaysia began 5G Broadcast trials, while India’s BSNL deployed a domestic 4G stack covering 22 million people. Nigeria revoked a 5% telecom tax and approved spectrum leasing for MTN. Vodafone and Digi Romania agreed to split Telekom Romania Mobile’s assets.

Global 5G subscriptions reached 2.6 billion by mid-2025, up 37% year-on-year, with mobile data traffic rising 15% in Q2. Private 5G and IoT markets are expanding rapidly, while Verizon and partners launched a “6G Innovation Forum.” Satellite internet advances include Starlink’s approval in India and Amazon’s Project Kuiper expansion. A SIM card sabotage plot was foiled in New York during the UN assembly.

Openreach passed 20 million UK homes with full-fiber broadband, but only 38% have switched from copper. Senegal plans nationwide satellite internet by 2025, while India approved Starlink but capped users at 2 million. Amazon launched 27 more Kuiper satellites, topping 100 in orbit. An Optus outage in Australia disrupted emergency calls for 13 hours and is linked to four deaths.

UAE telecom operator du launched “5G+” service, doubling mobile speeds and cutting latency nationwide. Vodafone and Digi agreed to split Telekom Romania Mobile in a €70 million deal, with OTE Group selling its Romanian unit. Germany’s Deutsche Bahn and Nokia activated the world’s first 5G-based railway communication system on a Saxony test route. Oman Towers Company finalized a majority stake sale to Brookfield Asset Management.