For communications professionals in the southern Asian region SOUTHERN ASIAN WIRELESSCOMMUNICATIONS Q1 2021 Volume 14 Number 1 l Satellite: a thing of the past or a thing of the future? l The growing importance of FWA and Wi-Fi on the move l Southern Asian mobile fraud, according to Evina Experts in RF over Fiber SASIA 21Q1 p1 (Cover).indd 1 01/04/2021 17:12 NEWS 4 SOUTHERN AFRICAN WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS January/February 2019 SASIA 19Q4 p4 (Rajant).indd 4 01/04/2021 13:03 SOUTHERN ASIAN CONTENTS COMMUNICATIONSWIRELESS Q1 2021 5 NEWS 5 NEWS u Volume 14 Cambodia’s NIG going ahead u Globe sees traffic spike Number 1 u Nokia chosen for 5G rollout u NBTC considers payment for 5G licences u SES supplies broadband to villages u Etisalat launches 4G LTE service u Wireless Logic expands global footprint 18 FEATURE I u Thaicom searches for LEO partner u Bangladeshi players fork out ViaLite designs and manufactures u Pakistan’s internet disrupted RF over fiber links and systems for a u Maldives to Sri Lanka subsea cable goes live range of applications including Satcom, 13 WIRELESS BUSINESS LEO and MEO; transporting satellite Vyke and x-Mobility sign two new deals for signals between antennas and control APAC expansion rooms. The links are also used in Mil- 25 FEATURE II 18 FEATURE Aero, Defence, Broadcast, Cellular and Shaping the future of satcoms Network Timing etc. ViaLite’s links 22 INDUSTRY VIEW include: L-Band HTS, VSAT, C-Band Evina’s David Lofti explains how mobile (covering 500 MHz-7.5 GHz), Hyper- carriers can stop the financial havoc Wide Dynamic Range, Ultra-Wideband, 25 FEATURE UHF/VHF, Satellite IF, SIGINT, GPS & 28 WIRELESS SOLUTIONS Fixed wireless access and Wi-Fi on the move more. Solutions include Long Distance DWDM Link Systems covering up to 600 28 WIRELESS SOLUTIONS Teltronic presents the new MCBS km and the Rain Fade Diversity System for Ka-Band. ViaLite also offers a range 31 WORLD NEWS u Phoenix Tower and Monaco Telecom partner of supporting products such as: SNMP u ‘Most African operators lack a strategy’ for monitoring and control, the System u SpaceX’s Starlink arriving in Lebanon in 2022 Designer Tool (for designing DWDM u Nokia to supply Cibicom with LTE network u Greece’s OTE Telecom targets growth systems) and outdoor enclosures. u Potraz boss criticises telecoms vandals ViaLite products include a long 5-year u Zambia issues new spectrum invitation warranty as standard. 35 Q&A 30 WORLD NEWS Catching up with Malcolm Chan from BICS Experts in RF over Fiber SUBSCRIPTIONS: [email protected] Southern Asian Wireless Communications is a controlled circulation quarterly magazine. Register now for your free subscription at www.kadiumpublishing.com www.vialite.com Readers who do not qualify under the terms of control can purchase an annual subscription at the cost of £110. For more information and general enquiries please contact Suzanne Thomas at [email protected] or call +44 (0) 1932 886 537. EDITORIAL: ADVERTISEMENT SALES: Editor: Robert Shepherd Sales: Kathy Moynihan Designer: Sean McNamara [email protected] Sub editor: Gerry Moynihan +44 (0) 1932 481731 Contributors: Martin Jarrold, Fernando Bortman, Song Lee Meng, David Production & circulation: Suzanne Thomas Lofti, Kamal Mokrani, Malcom Chan, [email protected] Mladen Vratonjic Tel: +44 (0) 1932 481728 Editorial enquiries: Publishing director: Kathy Moynihan [email protected] [email protected] Tel: +44 (0) 1932 481729 +44 (0) 1932 481730 ISSN No: 2052-739X © 2019 Kadium Limited. All rights reserved. The content of this publication may not be reproduced in part or in whole, including photocopying, scanning and/or recording, or transmitted in any other form by any means including electronic, digital or mechanical, or stored in any form of data storage, archival or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the publisher and copyright holders. All enquiries should be sent to Kadium Limited, IC 113, Image Court, 328-334 Molesey Road, Hersham, KT12 3LT, UNITED KINGDOM. The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those shared by the publisher or the editor. E&OE. Printed in England by The Magazine Printing Company SASIA 21Q1 p3 (Contents).indd 3 01/04/2021 17:12 NEWS 4 SOUTHERN AFRICAN WIRELESS COMMUNICATIONS January/February 2019 SASIA 19Q4 p4 (Rajant).indd 4 01/04/2021 13:07 NEWS Cambodia’s NIG going Nokia chosen for 5G rollout ahead in face of criticism Nokia has been selected by Globe Telecom in a three-year deal to Cambodia is to press ahead with upgrade its existing 4G network heavily-criticised plans to establish and expand the geographical reach a National Internet Gateway (NIG) of its 5G network at over 1,000 to direct, manage and facilitate all sites in the Philippines. of the country’s internet traffic.. The deployment will cover the According to a report in the Phnom second and third largest islands of Penh Post, the country’s prime Mindanao and Visayas and will begin minister Hun Sen signed a sub- in Q2 2021 with completion expect- decree on in February outlining the ed in 2023. Under the terms of the gateway’s proposed role in routing deal, Nokia will provide equipment local and international internet and services from its comprehensive traffic, enabling “effective and 5G AirScale portfolio to build out efficient” revenue collection and the Radio Access Network (RAN), management, and safeguarding including base stations and other national security and social order. radio access products. The NIG will incorporate and Globe will also use Nokia’s high- oversee both the Domestic Internet capacity AirScale massive MIMO Exchange (DIX) and the Interna- Adaptive Antenna solution, which tional Internet Gateway (IIG). It utilises the latest 64TR radios to is understood that these will be boost coverage and performance. situated in the capital Phnom Penh, Utilising the new 3.5GHz Sihanoukville, Poipet, Bavet and oth- spectrum band for dense urban er locations based on demand. They The operator must “manage and facilitate connections and the use of coverage, Globe will be able to will also be subject to approval from infrastructure, network and internet services at all instances of the NIG, as provide end-users with high peak the Ministry of Posts and Telecom- well as terrestrial cross-border network infrastructure speeds typical on 5G network. munications Cambodia (MPTC). Furthermore, the deal will also see Cambodia’s decision to create NIG licence from the Telecommunication network connections or peering the expansion of the existing FDD/ was first proposed in July 2020, but Regulator of Cambodia (TRC). facilities for NIG and operators of TDD LTE network infrastructure. was criticised by the Asia Internet According to the authorities, international gateways”. These solutions will enable Globe Coalition (AIC), which claimed that the operator must “manage and It must “take immediate action to to roll out 5G services across gateway could be used to restrict facilitate connections and the block or disconnect any network con- the two major islands of the internet access for civilians, posing use of infrastructure, network nection that affects national revenue, Philippines and offer customers a threat to businesses and internet and internet services at all security [or] social order” in collabo- superior speeds, capacity and lower platforms as well as freedom of instances of the NIG, as well as ration with the country’s authorities latencies while reducing complexity. expression and user privacy. terrestrial cross-border network including the MPTC and TRC. Finnish gear-maker Nokia will Reports also claimed the infrastructure. It will have to install Meanwhile, the MPTC again called provide its NetAct solution for government has not appointed an and configure the routers, switches for the kingdom’s operators to network management and seamless operator for the NIG, with interested and other network equipment to improve the quality of mobile and daily network operations as well parties invited to apply to for a ensure the quality and security of internet services available to users. as deliver digital design and deployment and optimization and technical support services. Nokia is an existing partner Pakistan’s internet disrupted after of Globe Telecom and provides a wide range of solutions including undersea cable develops fault wireless, IP, optical, and fixed network products and services. Internet services were hampered developed at SEA-ME-WE 5 (South It is understood that the TWA “It’s exciting to be part of this in Pakistan in mid-February as East Asia-Middle East-Western systems cater to about 40% of project to deliver 5G services to the country’s telecom watchdog Europe 5), which is operated by the internet traffic in Pakistan and the citizens across the Philippines and said one of its six international Trans World Associates (TWA). company executive acknowledged see our industry-leading 5G RAN undersea cables developed a fault. The TWA and the Pakistan that the internet users across the solutions underpin the network,” said The Pakistan Telecommunication Telecommunication Company Ltd country will experience downgraded Tommi Uitto, president of mobile Authority (PTA) said the (PTCL) are the two licence holders speeds until the users are shifted. networks, Nokia. “The expanded and international submarine cable for international landing stations The fault has occurred in the upgraded 5G network will deliver system near Abu Talat, Egypt, of submarine cables. While the cable system coming from France exciting new solutions to even more developed the glitch February 17. TWA operates SEA-ME-WE 5 and and the TWA executive said ISPs people and businesses and our It also acknowledged lower and TW-1 (Transworld), the PTCL were in the process of shifting the technology will play a fundamental internet speeds and frequent submarine cable network comprises load to other submarine systems role in delivering these compelling outages and said the fault SMW-3, SMW-4, I-ME-WE and AAE-1.