Ericsson announced the completion of its acquisition of BelAir Networks, a North American carrier-grade Wi-Fi company. This acquisition gives Ericsson a strong carrier-grade Wi-Fi portfolio, technological expertise, IPR, and established customer contracts and relationships.

The closing follows the announcement on February 21, 2012 that Ericsson had entered into an agreement to acquire 100 per cent of the shares in BelAir Networks.

"We are gaining BelAir Networks’ leading position in carrier-grade Wi-Fi equipment both in terms of installed base and product portfolio. By integrating BelAir Networks’ talented people and these new assets into Ericsson’s mobile infrastructure leadership, we will accelerate the integration of Wi-Fi and cellular technologies and strengthen our heterogeneous network (hetnet) offering," said Johan Wibergh, executive VP and head of business unit Networks, Ericsson.

"We welcome BelAir Networks’ 120 employees to Ericsson. Together we can deliver the industry’s first integrated Wi-Fi cellular offering to Ericsson’s global customer base in 180 countries, to enhance consumers’ mobile broadband experience," continued Wibergh.

The former BelAir Networks’ staff will be integrated into the Ericsson group in business unit Networks over the coming months and will work under the Ericsson brand effective April 2. Ericsson is committed to ongoing evolution of BelAir Networks’ former customer networks and the assurance of a seamless business transition.

Algeria plans to award 3G licences, once it has settled an agreement over the ownership of the country’s largest mobile network, Djezzy with its current owner, VimpelCom/Orascom Telecom.

Algeria’s minister of communications, Moussa Benhamadi told the state radio service that the government expects to secure a deal to buy a 51 per cent stake in Djezzy within the next few weeks.

Once the sale is completed, the ministry will work on allocating 3G licences to the country’s three mobile networks.

Benhamadi also confirmed that there are no plans to award a fourth mobile operator licence, saying that the three networks are adequate. The appetite for a fourth licenced is muted in any respect.

Bharti Airtel announced the launch of its operation in Rwanda, expanding its footprint on the African continent to 17 countries. Airtel has already said that it will invest over US$100 million in its operations in the country over the next three years.

Airtel has partnered with IBM in a move that will enable the cellco to offer superior customer experience in Rwanda. The partnership will see IBM deploy and manage the IT infrastructure and applications to further support Airtel’s goal of providing innovative mobile services.

Ericsson was selected to manage the network from end-to-end, including OSS/BSS solutions and managed services.

The inaugural call was placed on the system on March 7. It took just 83 days to build this network from the start – the fastest greenfield launch in history in sub-Saharan Africa.

Rwanda is among the fastest growing telecom markets in Africa and, according to the National Statistics Institute of Rwanda, mobile penetration in the country was at 38.4 per cent as of July 2011.

Airtel was awarded the licence by the Rwanda Utilities Regulatory Agency (RURA) last year to operate 2G and 3G mobile services.

Airtel Rwanda becomes the third cellco in Rwanda behind MTN and Tigo.

Thorsten Heins, president and CEO of Research In Motion (RIM), said the company is “undertaking a comprehensive review of strategic opportunities including partnerships and joint ventures, licensing, and other ways to leverage RIM’s assets and maximise value for our stakeholders,” following the release of another set of poor quarterly results.

The company said that it expects the current year (its fiscal 2013) to see “continued pressure on revenue and earnings.” Noting a desire to focus on “long term value creation,” it will no longer provide specific guidance for its coming quarters.

Heins also said that the company had identified “a level of complexity that is not conductive to the efficient operation of our business” in its management. As part of a restructure, heading for the door are David Yach, CTO Software, and Jim Rowan, COO Global Operations, who departs “after an open dialogue on the future of global operations.”

And former co-CEO, Jim Balsillie, has now resigned as a director of the company’s board.

For the year ended March 3, 2012, RIM reported a profit of US$1.2 billion, down from US$3.4 billion in the prior-year period, on revenue of US$18.4 billion, down from US$19.9 billion

In the fourth quarter, the company saw a net loss of US$125 million, compared with a prior-year profit of US$934 million, on revenue of US$4.2 billion, down from US$5.6 billion. The revenue breakdown for the quarter was 68 per cent hardware, 27 per cent service, and five per cent software and other.

Some 11.1 million BlackBerry smartphones were shipped during the three months, down 21 per cent from the previous sequential quarter. The company also shifted “over 500,000” PlayBook tablets.

In terms of its current portfolio, Heins noted that the lack of an LTE device and high-end smartphones is impacting its performance in the US. It also noted that while its Curve devices “defined the entry level smartphone segment around the world,” this did not go unnoticed by its competitors.

Heins said that the company will refocus on the enterprise business, having lost momentum due to the move toward “bring-your-own device.” In line with this, the company introduced its Mobile Fusion device management technology.

He also said the company plans a selective approach to the consumer market, to go after targeted segments and to seek partnerships for “features and content that are not central to the BlackBerry value proposition” – such as media apps.

Heins also said that despite making numerous acquisitions to build a value-added services business in recent years, it would be “extremely difficult” and costly for the company to transition this into a profitable operation. As a result, this activity will be scaled back.

The company is now looking for a single COO to run its global operations. As previously announced, RIM is also looking to appoint a new CMO.

At an event held in London on the night of March 29, Saad al Barrak, former CEO of Zain Group launched his biography, entitled A Passion for Adventure – Turning Zain into a telecom giant.

The biography is described as a fast-paced life story, full of tips on leadership, business philosophy and personal values, and lauds how in just seven years (2002-2009), al Barrak transformed MTC Kuwait with a base of 500,000 customers into the international giant Zain, a company with over 72 million customers across 23 countries. Over the same period, revenues leapt from US$570 million to US$8 billion.

Al Barrak’s life has been a colourful one, and he has seen Zain through challenging times, like the Iraqi invasion and occupation of Kuwait in the early 1990s. His entrepreneurial taste for risk and his understanding of emerging markets led him to the acquisition of Celtel International, sparking the trend of Arab investment in Africa’s telecom sector.