Spectrum policy featured strongly this week, with regulators and satellite operators tussling over fees, frequencies and the rules for beaming connectivity straight to handsets. South Africa’s regulator faced a formal challenge from SpaceX over proposed spectrum charges, Egypt ran an African first in the upper 6 GHz band, and the direct-to-device field kept consolidating as operators and satellite firms jostled for the airwaves they need. Elsewhere, EE brought commercial 5G network slicing to UK consumers, the 3GPP prepared to settle the shape of the 6G core, and the radio access market posted a third straight quarter of growth even as Ericsson and Nokia pulled back from China.
SpaceX has filed formal representations with South Africa’s Independent Communications Authority, ICASA, urging it to reconsider proposed changes to the country’s radio frequency spectrum fee framework. The submission responds to amendments to the Radio Frequency Spectrum Fees Regulations that ICASA published in May, and it puts the cost of satellite spectrum access firmly on the regulatory agenda in one of Africa’s largest markets. For operators watching how spectrum pricing evolves across the continent, the outcome will be worth tracking.
Egypt, meanwhile, has completed a trial of mobile services in the upper 6 GHz band, described by Telecom Egypt and national regulator NTRA as a first for both the country and Africa. The test, run with Huawei, operated a mobile base station on 6 GHz spectrum and adds to the global evidence base as regulators weigh whether the band should be handed to mobile or to Wi-Fi. That very question is playing out on a bigger stage too, with commentators arguing that the 2028 Los Angeles Games could become the moment to showcase and protect unlicensed spectrum, dubbing the event a potential “Wi-Fi Olympics” and a shop window for new services built on it.
The race to connect ordinary phones directly to satellites produced a busy week. AST SpaceMobile won temporary approval from the US Federal Communications Commission to test satellite direct-to-device in 800 MHz spectrum, a step AT&T’s Jeff McElfresh called a milestone in filling coverage gaps. The wider dealmaking continued apace, with SpaceX, Amazon and Rocket Lab all manoeuvring for the mobile satellite spectrum that makes direct-to-handset services possible, following SpaceX’s recent EchoStar spectrum purchase. Amazon’s Leo constellation now faces its own regulatory run, with its direct-to-device plans set to be tested against the approvals process.
Consolidation featured too. Lynk Global and Omnispace completed a merger to create a new direct-to-device challenger, Elveo Mobile, sharpening competition in a field that until recently looked like a two-horse race. On the operator side, NTT Docomo expanded its Starlink arrangement to bolster mobile broadband, and Airtel launched a Starlink-powered direct-to-phone service in the Democratic Republic of Congo, billed as an African first. Taken together, the week showed satellite connectivity moving steadily from novelty to a planned layer of mainstream mobile coverage.
EE has launched what it says is the UK’s first commercial 5G network slicing offer for consumers and small businesses. The Fast Lane product carves out dedicated capacity to keep users connected during periods of heavy network demand, putting EE among a growing cohort of European operators taking slicing beyond enterprise trials and into everyday tariffs. It is a notable marker for a capability that has long been promised as one of the clearest commercial payoffs of standalone 5G.
Fresh testing underlined why the standalone core matters. A trial on Verizon’s network using Ericsson radios showed roughly 2.2 times better upstream spectral efficiency on 5G standalone compared with the non-standalone mode that most carriers still rely on. The uplink gain is significant for data-heavy uses such as live video and fixed wireless access, yet it also highlighted how many operators continue to hold back from a full standalone migration despite the measurable benefits.
Attention is turning to how the next mobile generation will be built. Analysts at Omdia argue that the first 6G cores will run on 5G foundations, and that the industry’s ambition for an AI-native core from the ground up may outstrip what the supplier ecosystem can deliver by 2030 at a price operators can bear. The 3GPP is due to decide the shape of the 6G core in September, so the coming weeks will shape the trajectory for years to come.
That work is happening against a shifting industry map. Ericsson and Nokia are continuing to shed staff in China, with around 8,500 job cuts since 2021 and more expected, a retreat that several observers read as a further step towards a fragmented 6G world split along geopolitical lines. Nokia reiterated that it is adjusting its footprint in China to reflect a steady decline in that business, playing down reports of a wholesale closure. In India, the Cellular Operators Association set out its view of the road to 6G alongside the country’s AI ambitions and the upcoming India Mobile Congress, a reminder that the next-generation conversation is now genuinely global.
The radio access network market grew modestly year on year in the second quarter, according to Dell’Oro Group, marking a third consecutive quarter of growth after more than two years of contraction and reinforcing a sense of stabilisation. Omdia struck a similar note, pointing to growth outside China as the main driver even while the global picture stays subdued. ZTE, for its part, reported first-half growth as its computing business helped offset weaker carrier spending, with the vendor citing demand tied to the build-out of intelligent computing resource pools.
Suppliers of test and measurement kit are feeling the pull of artificial intelligence. Keysight reported fiscal third-quarter revenue of 1.85 billion dollars, up 36 per cent year on year, with orders rising even faster as AI infrastructure lifts demand for testing. Analysts at ABI Research, meanwhile, made the case that passive antenna sites are becoming strategic infrastructure for 5G-Advanced, as operators juggle capacity, uplink demand, energy costs and site constraints while preparing their physical networks for AI-assisted operation.
Enterprise and industrial uses continued to mature. LG Electronics pressed home its lead in connected vehicles, supplying European car makers with telematics based on the latest 3GPP specifications. In Asia, Jieyuan Energy set out plans for smart applications at geothermal power plants built on private 5G and AI, drawing on trials run with Taiwan Mobile. LG Uplus, working with academic partners, detailed the handoff challenges of so-called physical AI as it connected a robotics-oriented network to 5G. The through-line is familiar but strengthening: 5G is increasingly sold on what it does inside factories, vehicles and energy sites rather than on raw consumer speed.
The United Arab Emirates and Qatar topped Kearney’s Global Telecom Health Index 2026, ranking first and second in a 34-country benchmark and outscoring several European markets, a result that reflects heavy investment in fibre and 5G across the Gulf. In Africa, Vodacom Tanzania used its tenth annual general meeting to report 27.7 million customers and a sharp rise in network investment, with service revenue up almost 22 per cent, while national figures showing 117 million telecom subscriptions prompted a wider debate about turning raw connectivity into genuine economic productivity. On the industry politics front, the GSMA warned operators against outsourcing their AI future to hyperscalers, cautioning that ceding too much ground could leave telcos as commodity pipes in the next technology cycle.
Why the first AI-native 6G cores will run on 5G foundations
A clear-eyed look at whether the industry can deliver an AI-native 6G core in time and at a price operators can afford, ahead of the 3GPP’s September decision.
https://www.lightreading.com/6g/why-the-first-ai-native-6g-cores-will-run-on-5g-foundations
SpaceX urges South Africa’s ICASA to reconsider proposed satellite spectrum fees
A live test of how African regulators price satellite spectrum, with implications well beyond South Africa’s borders.
https://news.broadcastmediaafrica.com/2026/08/21/spacex-urges-south-africas-icasa-to-reconsider-proposed-satellite-spectrum-fees/
EE joins Europe’s growing 5G slicing cohort with consumer offer
A useful marker for how network slicing is finally reaching mainstream consumer tariffs rather than staying in enterprise trials.
https://www.lightreading.com/5g/ee-joins-europe-s-growing-5g-slicing-cohort-with-consumer-offer
Satellite D2D dealmaking: SpaceX, Amazon, Rocket Lab and the spectrum they’re after
A helpful map of the spectrum manoeuvres driving the direct-to-device land grab among the biggest space and mobile players.
https://www.lightreading.com/satellite/satellite-d2d-dealmaking-spacex-amazon-rocket-lab-and-the-spectrum-they-re-after
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