Japan’s NTT plans to offer fibre-optic services with speeds of up to 200 Mbps, double the company’s current speed. … more

[news release] The results of the second annual global study on the quality of broadband connections released today reveal that 62 out of the 66 countries analyzed had improved the quality of consumer broadband services since last year. However, new data from the study highlights the extent of the digital quality divide between urban and rural areas and, for the first time, compares the quality of fixed and mobile broadband services. … more

Merger talks to create an emerging market powerhouse in mobile communications with 200m subscribers across Africa, the Middle East and South Asia have broken down. … more

Just in case residents of this capital are not feeling sufficiently nationalistic ahead of National Day, the state-controlled mobile service company has changed its customers’ cellphone ring-back tones to a patriotic song. … more

A recent spate of suicides at France Télécom has revealed a paradox at the heart of French society: Even with robust labor protection, workers here see themselves as profoundly insecure, with many complaining about being pushed beyond their limits by the pace of economic change. … more

An epidemic of suicides in one of France’s largest companies claimed another victim yesterday when a 51-year-old man threw himself from a bridge. He become the 24th France Telecom employee to take his own life in the past 19 months. … more

“Dongle” may sound a bit goofy, but the innocent-seeming technology is emerging as one of the biggest challenges to the mobile telecoms industry in coming years. … more

Australia is expected to add about 1.7 million household broadband connections between 2008 and 2013, lifting its penetration rate from about 55 per cent in 2008 to 69 per cent, according to new research from Gartner. … more

Using mobiles for just calls and texting is a thing of the past, as a third of Australians now check emails on their handsets and more than 70 per cent access mobile entertainment and information services. … more

Cellphone use on airplanes, it would seem, is on extended hold in the United States. … more