Apple airlifted US$2 billion worth of iPhones from India to the United States last month, in a strategic move to shield against the impact of rising US import tariffs.

Sri Lankan telco Dialog Axiata announced on Friday it has brought Voice over New Radio (VoNR) out of the lab and into the real world after conducting what it claims is the country’s first successful VoNR trial on a live standalone 5G network.

Inflight connectivity tech firm SkyFive says it has signed a MoU with Kazakh telecoms operator Freedom Telecom to provide inflight connectivity to airlines and other aircraft operators using SkyFive’s air-to-ground (A2G) solution.

Global satellite operator SES announced on Tuesday it has landed a deal to provide inflight connectivity (IFC) services to Uzbekistan Airways, whilst also expanding an existing IFC deal with Thai Airways, which in turn launched a separate IFC service with Intelsat.

Bharti Airtel paid INR59.85 billion ($697.5 million) to India’s Department of Telecom to fully repay a high-interest loan used for spectrum at auction last year.

Bharti Airtel has announced its role as the landing partner for the 2Africa Pearls cable in India, a subsea network connecting Africa, India, and Europe via the Middle East. 

State-owned Bangladesh Submarine Cables PLC (BSCPLC) has reportedly decided to slash its wholesale bandwidth prices by 10% in a bit to make internet access in Bangladesh more affordable.

MegaFon Tajikistan has switched on 60 new 4G base stations across the country as part of its efforts to enhance service quality.

India’s Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has reportedly dropped a plan to waive adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues of telcos, which is especially bad news for financially struggling telco Vodafone Idea.

Vodafone Idea (Vi) has launched 5G services in Mumbai.

Veon Group has appointed Singapore-based operator StarHub’s consumer chief, Johan Buse (pictured), as the new CEO of its Banglalink unit, in a move to accelerate its digital expansion in emerging markets.

Bangladesh Satellite Company Limited (BSCL), the country’s sole satellite company, reportedly met with Starlink officials on Sunday to discuss partnership options for fast-tracking the LEO satellite operator’s entry into the market in the next couple of months.

A new company called VSData has announced plans to build a spring water-cooled data centre outside Yerevan, the capital of Armenia. It is expected to be a 2MW, 125-rack facility.

Kacific Broadband Satellites Group announced on Tuesday it is partnering with satellite operator Paksat International and Pakistan’s national space agency, the Space & Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO), to expand high-speed, affordable satellite internet across the country.

The Bangladesh government is reportedly planning a major overhaul to the country’s telecoms policy to speed up its transition to a digital economy and improve service quality.

Sri Lankan telco Dialog Axiata said on Friday it has wrapped up a successful trial with Meta to integrate AI into its network to enhance network optimisation and quality of experience (QoE) for its customers.

Qvantel is back in the MWC25 news headlines. The BSS specialist has announced a significant milestone in its partnership with Uzbek mobile operator Perfectum and tech giant Nokia.

Pakistani telco Jazz – owned by global digital operator Veon – announced at Mobile World Congress 2025 on Wednesday it is collaborating with Huawei to deploy solar power tech at 1,000 of its mobile base station sites across Pakistan.

Indian media have reported that SpaceX’s Starlink will imminently receive clearance from the country’s authorities to launch satellite broadband services.

Indian billionaire and Bharti Enterprises chairperson Sunil Mittal (pictured) has sold US$976 million worth of Bharti Airtel shares as he looks to secure funds for other ventures.

The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) has reportedly limited bandwidth imports from India to 50% of Bangladesh’s total international capacity, and plans to lower that percentage even further in favour of subsea cables and satellite.

Apple has launched its latest AI-powered smartphone, the iPhone 16e, in a bid to gain market share in emerging markets such as India, where it has been ramping up its focus.

Nokia has announced that CEO Pekka Lundmark (pictured) will depart this year to make way for Intel executive Justin Hotard, in a move seemingly aimed at sharpening its expertise in AI and data centres.

The Indian smartphone market grew by 4% to 151 million units in 2024 and became Apple’s fourth largest market as rival Samsung recorded decline. 

The GSMA and the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) have launched a fund to equip enterprises in developing markets with the means to harness emerging technologies, including AI.

Sri Lankan telco SLT-Mobitel announced on Tuesday it has successfully conducted what it claims is the first trial of 5G-Advanced in the country, even as the mobile sector awaits news of a possible 5G spectrum auction in the near future.

Ericsson says it has signed a strategic IT transformation deal with Bangladesh telco Grameenphone to upgrade its backend with what the vendor says is one of the largest catalog-driven charging and mediation deployments in the world, with added AI.

Armenia’s Ucom has tapped Cerillion to provide its pre-integrated BSS/OSS suite to boost the operator’s quadruple-play services portfolio.

Apple entered the top five highest-shipping smartphone vendors in India, as the overall market recorded a 5% shipment increase in 2024, despite ending Q4 with a decline.

Local media reported that India-based Adani Group is planning to release the 5G spectrum it acquired in 2022 as India’s telecoms regulator pushes the company to fulfill its coverage obligations.