Top 10 Telecom Stories of 2021
As another action-packed year in the telecom world draws to a close, it’s time for me to reveal my selection of the top stories of the past 12 months. You can read my review of 2020 here.
In 2021, the pandemic continued to highlight the crucial role of connectivity, and this coincided with some operators refocussing their strategies on network quality and digital inclusion. We also saw momentum forOpen RAN, partnerships with investors from outside the telecom sector, more mergers and acquisitions, and growing emphasis on the environment. So, take a look and tell me if you agree or disagree with my choices.
AT&T combines WarnerMedia business with pay-TV provider Discovery. This is my biggest story of 2021 because it represented a massive change of tack for AT&T. Just three years earlier, the carrier splurged more than $80 billion to buy Time Warner. The Discovery deal also came just a few months after AT&T spun off its linear TV business, DirecTV, which cost it a mere $50 billion. As for other telecom players, Verizon finally offloaded its AOL and Yahoo brands and BT considered options for BT Sport as operators began to retrenchfrom their adventurous forays of the past back to their connectivity roots.
Dish Network goes all in with Amazon Web Services. It’s appropriate that Dish Network is launching its first 5G service in the US capital of gambling, Las Vegas. In April, the aspiring greenfield network operator said that it was entrusting AWS to handle most of its Open RAN-based 5G network in the cloud. A huge endorsement for AWS, this is a big bet from Dish Network, one that it hopes will help set its network apart byachieving a high degree of flexibility, automation and cost-saving.
Sky starts selling its own TVs in the UK. Sky Glass streams content over a home broadband connection,meaning customers no longer need a set-top box or satellite dish. The move is a response to two leading threats to Sky’s established satellite TV business: the changing ways in which people access and interact withcontent, and the proliferation of streaming providers. For our detailed analysis see Insight Report: Sky GlassSeeks to Fend Off Threat from Streaming Rivals.
WeChat: GSA Express
© GSA 2022
Top 10 Telecom Stories of 2021
