In this week's roundup, we looked at the top news stories from the B2B tech & telecoms industry. The stories cover topics including: innovative tech, cryptocurrency, Ukraine crisis, market anaysis, data centres, smartphones and satellites.
Here are our highlights:
Kenya Airways and its subsidiary had signed a deal with Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer to bring “flying taxis” to Kenya’s capital of Nairobi. Kenyan travellers will be able to enjoy much shorter and much more scenic trips to and from the airport aboard Embraer’s eVTOL vehicles from the year 2025.
Read the full story here: https://bit.ly/35aoYsj
Cryptocurrency analysts say at least $13.7m has so far been donated to the Ukrainian war effort through anonymous Bitcoin donations. More than 4,000 donations have been made so far, with one unknown donor gifting Bitcoin worth $3m to an NGO.
Read the full story here: https://bbc.in/3IuNd2G
Google has disabled live traffic data from being displayed on its Maps app in Ukraine. The app displays this information by collecting anonymous data from Android smartphones, which shows how busy roads and different places are. But it has now been switched off in the region temporarily to protect users.
Read the full story here: https://bbc.in/3stStOy
Ookla has released its market analysis for South Africa, ranking the country’s fastest mobile internet operators:
1. MTN 2. Vodacom 3. Telkom 4. Cell C
Consistently ranked as the best mobile internet operator in South Africa, MTN also has the most consistent mobile internet and third least latency.
Read the full story here: https://bit.ly/3hsLFKH
Globe Telecom Inc. and Ayala Corp, have formed a $350 million joint venture with ST Telemedia Global Data Centres to build data centers in the Southeast Asian country.
Read the full story here: https://on.mktw.net/35lTfEs
Kao Data is to build a second data centre at its Harlow campus, just north of London. The new centre will have 10MW of power and will add to the company’s existing Harlow facility, plus one with 16MW in Slough, that Kao Data announced in February, and another in Northolt.
Read the full story here: https://bit.ly/3C8vBqM
Driven by 4G phones as well as high pent-up demand in the fourth quarter of the year, Vietnam’s smartphone shipments grew by 11.9% to 15.9 million units in 2021. According to the report, continued migration from 2G/3G to 4G/5G mobile phones, resulting in Vietnam having the highest growth in the smartphone market amongst the ASEAN countries in 2022 as smartphone adoption picks pace.
Read the full story here: https://bit.ly/35uDRFL
A lorry full of Starlink dishes has arrived in Ukraine. The dishes are plugged in and automatically connect to the nearest Starlink satellite in the sky, of which there are more than 2,000. It is not clear where they are heading - but it is likely that they will be used by the government itself.
Read the full story here: https://bbc.in/3MjSLPH
UK-funded satellite company OneWeb was left in a mess this morning when it abruptly cancelled all future launches from Baikonur.
Read the full story here: https://bit.ly/34b6Nlw
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has sparked outcry and sanctions as social media platforms are being used for information warfare and software companies defending customers from state-sponsored cyber attacks. The invasion has highlighted how critical technology companies are in times of conflict.
Read the full story here: https://bit.ly/3hARWDY