The Australian government is mandating universal outdoor mobile coverage for voice and SMS texting across the nation, with direct-to-device satellite connectivity to be a huge part of the coverage. Announcing the goal this week, Australia set an implementation deadline of late 2027. Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said the country's universal outdoor mobile obligation "will improve public safety, increase resilience during natural disasters, and provide an extra layer of coverage in areas previously thought too difficult or costly to reach. The experience will be different to land mobile networks, but the benefits transformative, particularly for a large continent such as ours."

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on Thursday rejected Hikvision’s request that the court order the FCC to begin processing the Chinese company’s authorization requests for gear it wants to sell in the U.S. (see 2502240045). The FCC had asked the court not to take that step (see 2502110040). Hikvision said many of the products it sells can’t be connected to the internet. The court issued a brief order saying the motion was denied. Hikvision and Dahua won a partial victory last year (see 2404020068) when the D.C. Circuit found that the FCC’s definition of critical infrastructure in a 2022 order was “overly broad.”

Bell Canada is working with Nokia on moving to a cloud-based, and eventually open, radio access network. The companies were already working together but agreed to an expanded partnership, said a Tuesday news release. “By leveraging Nokia’s cutting-edge Cloud RAN technology, we’re not only significantly enhancing our network capabilities today, but also building a robust foundation for the future adoption of Open RAN,” said Mark McDonald, Bell's senior vice president-networks. “This approach ensures network agility, scalability, and vendor diversity, ultimately delivering an exceptional experience for our customers and positioning Bell as a leader in 5G innovation.”

Hikvision laid out its case for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to order the FCC to start processing the Chinese company’s authorization requests for gear it wants to sell in the U.S. The FCC last month asked the court not to take that step (see 2502110040). Hikvision and Dahua won a partial victory last year (see 2404020068) when the D.C. Circuit found that the FCC’s definition of critical infrastructure in a 2022 order was “overly broad.”

Mobile core network revenue ended 2024 with a negative 4% growth rate year over year, driven by a 15% decline in China in Q4, Dell’Oro said Tuesday. “The market has struggled to gain traction in the last three years, with three of the four quarters having flat or negative [year-over-year] growth rates,” said Dave Bolan, Dell’Oro research director. “On a regional basis, China’s growth rate was negative, and to a lesser extent, the worldwide market (excluding China) was also negative. However, both market areas are projected to return to positive growth in 2025.” One reason for optimism is the expected growth in 5G stand-alone networks this year, he said.

Ericsson announced Wednesday an expansion of its product portfolio with seven “energy-efficient and high-performing Massive MIMO [multiple input, multiple output] and Remote radios, Indoor 5G solutions, and new open fronthaul products called RAN Connect.” Ericsson plans to offer 130 radio products this year that support open and programmable networks, a news release said. “We are reducing costs and maximizing efficiency for our customers as they evolve their architectures to deliver high-performing programmable networks,” said Marten Lerner, Ericsson head-product area networks. “Sustainability is also central to every solution, leveraging energy-efficient designs, recyclable materials, and passive cooling to meet Net Zero targets.”

The FCC asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit not to impose a mandate on the regulator to start the process of authorizing gear by China’s Hikvision. Hikvision and Dahua won a partial victory last year (see 2404020068) when the D.C. Circuit held that the FCC’s definition of critical infrastructure in a 2022 order was “overly broad.” Judges also rejected arguments that video cameras and video-surveillance equipment manufactured by the companies shouldn’t have been placed on the agency’s “covered list” of unsecure gear.

In a surprise move, Nokia announced Monday that President and CEO Pekka Lundmark will leave March 31 and will be replaced by Justin Hotard, currently the leader of Intel’s Data Center and AI Group. Lundmark has led the Finnish company for five years and will stay on as an adviser through the end of 2025. “When I returned to the company in 2020, I called it a homecoming, and it really has felt like one,” Lundmark said on LinkedIn Monday. “I’m proud of the work our brilliant team has done in re-establishing our competitiveness and technology leadership, and in positioning the company for growth in data centers, private wireless and industrial edge, and defense.” Sari Baldauf, chair of Nokia’s board, noted Lundmark joined the company at a difficult time. “Under his tenure, Nokia has re-established its technology leadership in 5G radio networks and built a strong position in cloud-native core networks,” she said. “Network Infrastructure has delivered growth and significant profit improvement, and Nokia has secured the longevity of its patent licensing business.”

Deutsche Telekom is working with a consortium of companies to recycle electronic components from smartphones and other devices and reuse them to build other gear. The first prototype device is the NeoCircuit DSL router, unveiled last week. “Together with our partners, we are not relying solely on traditional electronics recycling, where large parts are still simply incinerated,” said Henning Never, manager of the project: “Instead, we focus on reusing functional components such as processors, memory and transistors.” The other members of the consortium are Citronics, Evonik, Fairphone, Infineon, MaxLinear, Sagemcom and INC Innovation Center.

The Computer & Communications Industry Association raised concerns Friday about reports that the U.K. government has ordered Apple to create a backdoor in its devices, giving security services access to users’ encrypted Apple files worldwide. The order was apparently issued under the U.K.’s Investigatory Powers Act, CCIA said. “As the recent Salt Typhoon breach makes clear, end-to-end encryption may be the only safeguard standing between Americans' sensitive personal and business data and foreign adversaries,” said CCIA President and CEO Matt Schruers: “Decisions about Americans' privacy and security should be made in America, in an open and transparent fashion, not through secret orders from abroad requiring keys be left under doormats.” Apple didn't comment.