Friday 21 December 2018

'Year-long' delay to UK 5G if we spike Huawei deals, say telcos

O2 presses on with Chinese supplier

Mobile network operators have reportedly said that tearing up their contracts with Huawei would set Britain's 5G back "by nine months to a year" – so they're ploughing on despite pressure.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/21/year_long_delay_to_uk_5g/

Ready for Glasto-net? Cheap, local low-power networks up for grabs

Ofcom proposes shakeup of spectrum bidding process

Some technologies lurking under the 5G umbrella promise to reshape the entire communications sector, creating new uses and businesses we can't imagine today. Ofcom showed it was hip to a few of these this week with a radical new way of opening up the airwaves.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/21/ofcom_spectrum_shakeup_proposal/

Thursday 20 December 2018

What's this under the Christmas tree? A gift-wrapped Mellanox, for Microsoft? Say it ain't so

Windows giant mulls gobbling up network kit maker, according to anon insiders

Microsoft is considering buying Mellanox, according to a report on Wednesday by an Israeli financial newspaper.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/20/microsoft_mellanox_rumors/

Wednesday 19 December 2018

Sticking with one mobile provider gets you... Oh. Price rises, big exit fees, and lovely, lovely lock-in

UK competition bods threaten action against 'loyalty penalty'

The UK's Competition and Markets Authority has issued an urgent call for action against mobile providers that rip off loyal customers with high prices even once handsets are paid off.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/19/cma_mobile_loyalty_penalty/

Cloudflare speaks out amid allegations it safeguards banned terror gangs' websites

We can't run away when there's free speech to protect, says biz's top lawyer

Analysis  Cloudflare found itself underfire this month for seemingly allowing officially designated foreign terrorists to use its website protection services. Which, under US law, would be a big no-no.…



via The Register - Data Centre: Cloud
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/19/cloudflare_terror_groups/

Tuesday 18 December 2018

Ofcom: More spectrum for all the good boys and girls. Except you, EE. You've had your fill

UK mobile networks had better open their wallets

Ofcom has revealed plans to offer more of the airwaves to mobile networks, increasing capacity by around 22 per cent overall, and by 62 per cent in the more attractive sub-1GHz portion of the spectrum.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/18/ofcom_more_spectrum/

BT: Soz about that £1.3m CEO bonus vote, shareholders. Friends?

We're listening, insists company right before new chief exec takes post

BT has belatedly given its shareholders a public pat on the head for not voting down departing chief exec Gavin Patterson's £1.3m bonus.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/18/bt_says_listening_shareholders_ceo_pay_revolt/

Still using Azure Scheduler? Schedule in 30 September 2019 'cos it's being euthanised

Hi! I'm a task scheduler! Nobody really knows what I do until I stop doing it...

Another long-in-the-tooth Azure service was put on notice this week.…



via The Register - Data Centre: Cloud
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/18/azure_scheduler/

Monday 17 December 2018

O little town of Bethlehem, Georgia. How still we see your internet lie... US govt throws another $600m at rural broadband

Money in form of loans and grants – but will it work or be wasted?

Analysis  The US government has added another $600m to the pot of money that is supposed to expand broadband internet access to rural areas of America. But it remains far from clear how effective the program will be.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/17/us_government_rural_broadband/

Friday 14 December 2018

One year on after US repealed net neutrality, policymakers reflect soberly on the future

Don't be daft, of course they haven't, we're still in Crazytown

One year ago today, the FCC passed a controversial measure that undermined its own rules, passed just two years earlier, over net neutrality.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/14/one_year_on_policymakers_reflect_soberly_on_net_neutrality_repeal/

Fed up with Oracle's Sith, AWS wades into Big Red's lawsuit over Pentagon JEDI contract

Long-standing cloud enemies to do battle in the courts

AWS has intervened in Oracle's lawsuit against the Pentagon's plans to award a $10bn cloud contract to a single vendor.…



via The Register - Data Centre: Cloud
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/14/aws_intervenes_in_oracle_lawsuit_over_jedi_contract/

Ofcom asks networks, ISPs: Hey, wouldn't it be nice if you let customers know the best deal once their contract's up?

You know, they've paid for the phone a few times over now...

UK regulator Ofcom wants ISPs and networks to tell customers when their contract is up and inform them of better deals. The consultation (PDF) was launched today alongside a review of broadband prices.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/14/ofcom_review/

If most punters are unlikely to pay more for 5G, why all the rush?

5G is like 3G, except this time they mean it

Analysis  5G is a technical and economical miracle that you cannot help but admire. Soon our streets will be drenched in high-speed connectivity as all kinds of far-out radio boffinry get commercialised, productised, and deployed for something useful. Many billions of pounds of other people's money will be spent here. But the mobile networks are haunted by an awkward economic reality: for all the 5G razzle-dazzle, most punters just won't pay more for it.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/14/with_most_punters_unlikely_to_pay_more_for_5g_why_the_rush/

Wednesday 12 December 2018

Webinar: Supermicro and Intel offer a taste of cloud innovations

Test your own workload at their Cloud Center of Excellence

Promo  Server giant Supermicro recently teamed up with Intel to set up its Cloud Center of Excellence (CCoE) at its logistics hub and manufacturing facility in the Netherlands.…



via The Register - Data Centre: Cloud
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/12/webinar_supermicro_intel/

Qualcomm all ye faithful: 5G's soon triumphant... like 2020 soon. Really

We just modem down with that headline (OK maybe not)

As the chip supplier to almost half the phone market, Qualcomm should be able to make a decent guess about when 5G will condense from vapourware into something more solid.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/12/qualcomm_5g_prediction/

Tuesday 11 December 2018

Poor people should get slower internet speeds, American ISPs tell FCC

It's just not fair on profit-making companies otherwise

Analysis  ISPs should be paid to provide slower internet speeds to poor people.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/11/poor_slower_internet/

Salesforce has named a chief ethics officer and yes, the job description is appropriately woolly

What's she going to do? 'Engage' with people

Mega-bucks CRM titan Salesforce has appointed a loftily titled "chief ethical and humane use officer" to counteract the problems of being a tech giant in 2019.…



via The Register - Data Centre: Cloud
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/11/salesforce_chief_ethical_humane_use_officer/

Oracle takes its gripes about Pentagon's JEDI contract to federal court

Great way to make friends during procurement for a $10bn contract, eh Larry?

Fresh from defeat at the hands of the US Government Accountability Office, Oracle has taken its battle against the single-vendor Pentagon cloud contract to federal court.…



via The Register - Data Centre: Cloud
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/11/oracle_sues_pentagon_jedi/

The internet is going to hell and its creators want your help fixing it

Vint Cerf, Tim Berners-Lee and other identify lots of problems, few solutions

If ever there was doubt that 2018 is the year of fear, it was confirmed by a panel discussion involving the two men that are credited with inventing the internet and the world wide web.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/11/tinternet_needs_work/

Monday 10 December 2018

This ain't over, Viasat snarls as tribunal rules in satellite rival's favour

EU Aviation Network wrangle set to continue

US satcom provider Viasat has declared it will appeal a British tribunal ruling that rival European operator Inmarsat had not breached its licence by becoming part of an EU-wide satellite broadband network.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/10/viasat_inmarsat_ofcom_eu_aviation_network/

App-happy SAP Santa offers partners free access to Cloud Platform

All the better to lock customers into its fluffy white services

So desperate keen is SAP to lure more developers to write apps using its cloud tools that it is promising them a year's worth of platform access for free.…



via The Register - Data Centre: Cloud
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/10/sap_santa_offers_partners_free_access_to_cloud_platform/

BT to 'sunset' Apache CloudStack cloud, customer demand went AWOL

We don't want to be an IaaS about it, but...

BT’s Cloud of Clouds (CoC) field of vision is about to narrow. Its open-source cloud software platform, based on Apache CloudStack, will be "quietly withdrawn", The Reg can confirm.…



via The Register - Data Centre: Cloud
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/10/bt_to_sunset_apache_cloudstack_cloud_customer_demand_went_awol/

Friday 7 December 2018

The curious tale of ICANN, Verisign, claims of subterfuge, and the $135m .Web dot-word

DNS overseer faces probe over decision to award TLD to dot-com giant

Analysis  An ugly struggle over the .Web top-level domain may soon spill into public view again, after one of the companies vying for control of the dot-word demanded an independent review of DNS overlord ICANN's handling of the saga.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/07/dot_web_review/

It's a, it's a, it's a SYN flood: Quick, ditch that packet

Networking nuggets from the week that was

Networks roundup  What if all you had to do to block SYN-based denial-of-service attacks was drop the first incoming SYN packet?…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/07/network_roundup_december_7_2018/

Expired cert... Really? #o2down meltdown shows we should fear bungles and bugs more than hackers

Incompetence is a kind of malware

Comment  It's a bit of a cliche that "everything’s connected", but O2's stunning outage yesterday – chalked up by Swedish kitmaker Ericsson to an expired software certificate – is a reminder of how true that is.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/07/o2_crash_lessons_comment/

Thursday 6 December 2018

Funnily enough, China fuming, senator cheering after Huawei CFO cuffed by Canadian cops at Uncle Sam's request

Beijing demands US 'correct' Meng detainment pronto

The arrest of Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou earlier this week is sending shockwaves through both the US and China.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/06/huawei_cfos_arrest/

Why millions of Brits' mobile phones were knackered on Thursday: An expired Ericsson software certificate

Swede Jesus!

Ericsson says an expired software certificate was responsible for the outage that left tens of millions in the UK unable to call or text from their mobile phones on Thursday.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/06/ericsson_o2_telefonica_uk_outage/

Total Inability To Support User Phones: O2 fries, burning data for 32 million Brits

Ohhhh-that-TOO! Network issue pinned on 'third party suppliers'

Customers of O2, GiffGaff and virtual operators who use Telefonica's network in the UK have been hit by a spectacular outage across the country. Transport information services have also been affected.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/06/o2_fries_burning_data_for_32_million_brits/

Huawei CFO poutine cuffs by Canadian cops after allegedly busting sanctions on Iran

Exec could face trial in the US for 'cutting deals' with White House's Middle East bête noire

The chief financial officer and deputy chairwoman of Huawei has been arrested in Canada – and could face extradition to the US on charges of violating trade sanctions against Iran.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/06/huawei_cfo_meng_arrest/

Wednesday 5 December 2018

UK's BT: It's not unusual to pull Huawei from our core mobile networks

It came with the package when we swallowed EE

BT and Huawei said today that reports the Chinese kit-maker's products would not be used on EE's 3G and 4G core mobile ops – and that it was out of the running for any bids for the 5G core – should surprise no one.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/05/bt_huawei_ee_5g/

After all that! Ofcom proposes BT as only broadband universal services provider

Just 8 telcos applied, most didn't meet critera

BT will likely remain the sole broadband universal service provider for most of the UK because smaller ISPs didn't meet Ofcom's qualification criteria and Hyperoptic pulled out of the running.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/05/ofcom_proposes_bt_as_only_broadband_universal_services_provider/

Tuesday 4 December 2018

Sing it loud and sing it proud: It's all about the cloud for Microsoft

And AI, DevOps and, of course, the edge

Connect();  Because it wouldn't be a Microsoft event without the Azure drum being banged loudly and often, there were a slew of reveals related to Redmond's cloudy product line at today's Connect();.…



via The Register - Data Centre: Cloud
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/04/azure_microsoft_connect_2018/

Accenture in doghouse after NHSmail mass outage cuts off 1m+ UK health staff

Users locked out of emails for almost a day due to data centre upgrade – reports

Accenture is reportedly facing major financial penalties after a failed upgrade took down the email system used by about 1.2 million staffers at the UK's National Health Service this weekend.…



via The Register - Data Centre: Cloud
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/04/nhsmail_outage_accenture_fine/

BT pension scheme will stay on RPI interest rates for now

Court of Appeal nixes telco's £14bn deficit reduction effort

BT has lost its legal bid to cut its £14bn pension deficit by slashing interest rates for 83,000 members of its post-privatisation pension scheme.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/04/bt_pension_scheme_court_appeal_judgment/

Monday 3 December 2018

European fibre lobby calls for end to fake fibre broadband ads

If you think you have a full-fibre connection, you probably don't

The UK's fibre industry wants European regulators, who meet in Brussels today, to get tougher on misleading broadband claims. Topping its complaints is "fake fibre" – the practice of calling broadband connections digital "fibre" when they contain plain old copper.…


via The Register - Data Centre: Networks
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/03/end_fake_fibre_ads_fumes_euro_fibre_lobby/

Save the date: Cloudera, Hortonworks set merger vote for 28 December

'Twas 3 nights after Xmas and all through the house, shareholders mulled sending the deal south

Cloudera and Hortonworks shareholders will be asked to sign off on the companies' uneven merger on 28 December.…



via The Register - Data Centre: Cloud
http://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.co.uk/2018/12/03/cloudera_hortonworks_shareholder_vote_28_dec/