Fifty-nine percent of people surveyed in seven countries, including the U.S., plan on upgrading to a generative AI-enabled smartphone within the next year, Counterpoint said Monday. Besides those from the U.S., people from Canada, the U.K., France, Germany, Poland and Japan were among the 3,535 surveyed. Counterpoint said demand for GenAI-enabled smartphones was particularly heavy in the U.S., followed by Germany and France. More than 66% of respondents indicated readiness to pay extra for AI-enabled smartphones.

Canada is narrowing its rural digital divide via "a clearly articulated and well-funded connectivity strategy," Ookla said Wednesday, with satellite broadband playing a key role in closing that digital divide. Rural Canadian Speedtest users reported a 23% increase in those with broadband speeds in the first half of 2024 over the same six months in 2023. It said 83.8% of urban and 60% of rural users meet Canada's standard for broadband service (50/10 Mbps).

Indonesian carriers XL Axiata and Smartfren agreed to merge, creating XLSmart, a company with a combined value of $6.5 billion. The deal would reduce to three the number of major providers there, down from five in 2021. XLSmart would have a mobile subscriber base of 94.5 million customers. “This merger brings together complementary capabilities to create a robust entity serving a significant portion of Indonesia’s telecommunications market,” said a Wednesday news release: “XLSmart will have the scale, financial strength, and expertise to drive investments in digital infrastructure, expand service coverage, and foster innovation for customers while contributing to a healthier and more competitive market.”

As part of Bell Canada's planned acquisition of Ziply Fiber (see 2411040056), the two are petitioning the FCC to allow foreign ownership of Ziply. In a petition for declaratory ruling posted Monday, they said the deal won't create national security or foreign policy issues. Instead, Ziply will benefit from having Bell Canada's resources and expertise, but the transaction won't affect Ziply's business plans or management and will be largely transparent to its customers, they said.

The U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority approved the combination of Vodafone and Three in the U.K., following 18 months of study, Vodafone said Wednesday. Other clearances are needed, and the deal is expected to close in the first half of next year, Vodafone said. “The new network will reach 99% of the population and benefit over 50 million customers, through significantly better quality, greater reliability and enhanced capacity for handling ever-increasing data demand,” said a news release: “This demand is set to accelerate further with more widespread adoption of new technology, such as AI.”

The U.K.’s Office of Communications on Monday released two changes to its spectrum sharing rules, designed to promote fixed-wireless access to spectrum. Ofcom removed the terminal registration requirement for all low-power users and said it would allow “easier access to Medium Power in most urban areas, with balancing measures (including an updated fee) to safeguard the efficient use of spectrum.” Ofcom approved shared access licenses in four bands in 2019, with a mix of low- and medium-power licenses. The bands are: 1.8, 2.3, 3.8-4.2 and 26 GHz. Reported ISPreview, which covers U.K. regulation: “Suffice to say that demand is only expected to grow” and “the regulator is now introducing changes to improve local spectrum availability -- especially in the busiest bands."

The U.K.-based International Cable Protection Committee (ICPC) said last week it continues to investigate cuts to two submarine cables in the Baltic Sea and urged against media speculation about the causes. The BCS East-West cable experienced a fault Nov. 17, while the C-Lion cable reported a fault a day later. “These incidents have sparked significant speculation in news and social media, in many cases with conclusory statements about deliberate damage,” the group said in a statement: “At this stage in the investigations, however, no conclusive evidence has been disclosed to support such claims. The ICPC emphasizes that it's vital for the repair to proceed in a timely fashion and for investigations regarding the cause of damage be completed in a timely and objective manner so that governments and industry might learn from the incident and enhance cable protection going forward.” Chinese ship Yi Peng 3 sailed over the cables at about the time they were severed and is suspected of being responsible, according to various media reports. At the time of the reports, the ship was anchored in the Kattegat strait between Sweden and Denmark. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said Thursday he formally asked Chinese authorities about the two cables, which run between Finland and Germany and Sweden and Lithuania, The Guardian reported. The ICPC didn't comment Friday.

The European Parliament Wednesday approved a slate of European commissioners, whose five-year terms are expected to begin Dec. 1. Among the new officials are Henna Virkkunen, former Finnish member of the European Parliament, as executive vice president-tech sovereignty, security and democracy; Stephane Sejourne, former French minister of foreign affairs, as vice president-prosperity and industrial strategy; Teresa Ribera Rodriguez, former Spanish ecological transition minister, as executive vice president for a clean, just and competitive transition; and Michael McGrath of Ireland's Republican Party as commissioner for democracy, justice and the rule of law. The new team will work across different areas "because the challenges of our times are all intertwined," said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The EC's first major initiative will be a "competitiveness compass" under which Europe will close the innovation gap with the U.S. and China, create a joint plan for decarbonization and competitiveness; and boost security, von der Leyen announced. "Without urgent, powerful and ambitious reforms from policymakers, Europe will fall even further behind its global peers," said the GSM Association. Much of 2024 has been spent debating the new Digital Networks Act, and GSMA urged the EC to make it a priority. Among other things, the measure calls for reducing regulations and updating spectrum licensing procedures.

Google subsidiary Starfish Infrastructure hopes to start commercial operations in Q3 2026 for the U.S. landing points for its proposed Bulikula submarine cable system, it said in an application posted Monday. It told the FCC the private, non-common carrier subsea cable system would connect Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and Hawaii to Fiji and French Polynesia. Bulikula is the Fijian word for a rare shell found in the Pacific Ocean, it said. Starfish intends to install and test the Bulikula system in U.S. waters in Q2 2026.

Ontario will use SpaceX's Starlink satellite broadband to provide internet access to 15,000 unserved and underserved homes and businesses, including rural and remote communities, starting in June, the province said last week as it announced its Ontario Satellite Internet program. Starlink service is part of the province's broader program to close the digital divide. It said through those efforts more than 100,000 homes and businesses have been connected to date, with 450,000 more to be connected by end of 2025.