German entertainment conglomerate RTL Group will purchase Comcast's Sky Deutschland, the two companies announced Friday. They said the deal combines Sky's sports rights with RTL's entertainment and news brands, as well as their RTL+ and WOW streaming services. The combination will give RTL a total of 11.5 million paying streaming subscribers, it said. RTL is paying $176 million cash plus a variable consideration of up to $442 million tied to its share price performance. Regulatory approvals are expected in 2026, the companies said.

ITU Council members voted Thursday to hold the 2027 World Radiocommunication Conference in Shanghai. The U.S. had also offered to host, but its bid was seen as a long shot (see 2506250005). The ITU told us that 25 out of 48 ITU Council members voted in favor of Shanghai, 17 against, with five abstentions and one invalid vote. It said the decision now requires the concurrence of a majority of ITU member states.

Deutsche Bahn, Germany’s four major carriers and other companies are partnering on a venture seeking high-speed Wi-Fi on trains, Ericsson said Thursday. Those participating in the GINT XT project are providers Deutsche Telekom, 1&1, O2 Telefonica and Vodafone; Vantage Towers; infrastructure manager Regio Infra Nord-Ost; the German Aerospace Center; and Ericsson as the 5G network technology provider.

Policymakers worldwide face a number of decisions as they address the expiration of spectrum licenses, analysts at Analysys Mason told investors this week. "One choice is whether to re-assign mobile spectrum licences [sic] that have been in the market for some time for legacy (for example, 2G/3G/4G use) through a new award mechanism,” said the U.K.-based firm. “Another option is to renew licences to existing holders (possibly with new licence conditions aimed at further investment and/or other coverage improvements that are beneficial to end users).”

The U.K.’s Office of Communications announced Tuesday a consultation about letting Starlink use the 71-76 GHz and 81-86 GHz bands for its connectivity services. Under the SpaceX proposal, the company would have authorization to use the E-band frequencies at three gateway sites in the U.K. The band is currently unavailable for gateway use in the U.K., but SpaceX is seeking to alleviate capacity constraints it faces there, Ofcom said. Granting the licenses would let Starlink increase the capacity of its services. Comments are due June 27.

Ericsson and Vodafone collaborated on "a new era of tunnel connectivity” with the deployment of multiband mobile radio antennas in the Arlinger Tunnel near Pforzheim, Germany. The deployment “marks the first operational use of Ericsson’s advanced antenna technology from Ericsson Antenna System, precisely engineered to deliver robust and stable 5G coverage in tunnel environments subject to high levels of vibration and air pressure changes,” Ericsson said Friday.

A municipal court in Prague ruled that the Czech Republic's blanket collection of its citizens' communications metadata is illegal and contravenes the EU ePrivacy directive.

Mobile data service revenue in Mexico will increase at a compound annual growth rate of 5.5% through 2028, ResearchAndMarkets.com projected Friday. That's “driven by growing demand for mobile data services, subsequent increase in mobile internet subscriptions, increasing demand for data-centric plans, growing adoption of 5G services and [an] increase in mobile data [average revenue per user] over the forecast period,” the report said. America Movil, the parent of Telcel, Telmex and Telnor, leads the mobile and fixed markets and is expected to maintain its position through 2028, it said.

The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission sought comment Monday on a series of questions as it prepares an unclassified report about China's use of spectrum. Comments are due May 19. “How does China prioritize between conflicting interests in spectrum allocation?” the commission asked. "How does China allocate spectrum bands across its primary telecommunications providers, including reallocation and clearing of in-use wavelengths?” The commission also inquired about the advantages China has through its regulatory structure. “Has China’s spectrum strategy led to more rapid deployment of technologies that rely on wireless communications and, if so, how has this created economic benefits for China?” The 12-member bipartisan commission is appointed by Congress and is part of the legislative branch of the federal government.

The U.K. Office of Communications (Ofcom) on Tuesday banned the leasing of special types of phone numbers called "Global Titles," which could jeopardize the privacy and security of mobile phone users, it said.