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SAMENA Daily - Industry News Briefing

Industry News Briefing
December 16, 2025

Featured Member News

stc Bahrain and Lionscraft host Web3 workshops to drive digital innovation across Bahrain

stc Bahrain, a digital enabler, in partnership with Lionscraft, hosted a series of interactive Web3 workshops that began at its headquarters and extended to universities and community spaces across the Kingdom...

Member News

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AT&T declares dividends on common and preferred shares

The board of directors declared a quarterly dividend of $0.2775 per share on the company’s common shares, payable Feb. 2, 2026...

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ALE and Nokia deliver end-to-end network solutions

The deployments will help establish a campus-wide fiber-based LAN network capable of delivering multi-gigabit data speeds to customers...

Recent Developments

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stc Group honored for national leadership in sustainability with first place in King Khalid Award

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e& launches a smart keyboard designed to reconnect people with the Arabic language

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Mobily marks 20 years with strategy pledging to be 'Ever Closer'

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e& UAE to consider enabling Stablecoin Payments Through AE Coin

Policy and Regulation

•	NTRA issues urgent warning over unknown international calls and smartphone hacking risks Egypt’s National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA) has issued an urgent warning to citizens about increasing hacker attacks targeting smartphones, particularly through unknown international calls and...

•	Algeria introduces new ecommerce legal framework to empower youth entrepreneurs and protect consumers Algeria is advancing a new legal framework for e-commerce as part of a broader strategy to digitise the national economy, encourage youth entrepreneurship, and strengthen consumer protection...

South Asia

•	MeetKai and Pakistan announce joint venture to build national "Sovereign AI" stack MeetKai, a Sovereign AI company, announced a landmark joint venture with the Government of Pakistan, through its state-owned entity, AXI Systems, to build a national Sovereign AI stack...

•	NEIR implementation deferred to January 1 Bangladesh has deferred the implementation of the National Equipment Identity Register (NEIR) system until January 1, 2026, extending the deadline for mobile-phone traders to submit the details of unsold handsets...

Content & Immersive Technologies

•	wedotv expands LG Channels reach beyond Europe Free OTT sports and entertainment network wedotv has expanded its distribution partnership with LG Channels, extending the availability of its FAST Channels to audiences in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Asia and...

•	AP introduces AP Verify to strengthen, streamline online content verification The Associated Press has introduced AP Verify, a verification dashboard combining AI-powered features with established digital verification tools to transform the way newsrooms authenticate online photos, videos and other...

Global Telecom Update

•	NVIDIA acquires slurm developer SchedMD to strengthen AI and supercomputing infrastructure Graphics chip giant NVIDIA has acquired SchedMD, the company behind Slurm, a widely-used open-source job scheduler that powers more than half of the world’s top supercomputers...

•	Spark NZ leverages HPE GreenLake and Morpheus to scale hybrid cloud services HPE announced that Spark NZ’s implementation of a series of transformational infrastructure projects with HPE are enabling faster and more reliable hybrid cloud and managed IT services to its customers in New Zealand...

•	Telkom Indonesia shareholders approve spinoff of wholesale fiber biz Telkom Indonesia announced that independent shareholders have approved its plan to spin off Telkom’s wholesale fibre connectivity business and assets to its FTTH subsidiary Telkom Infrastruktur Indonesia (TIF), a.k.a....

Middle East

•	Ooredoo Qatar strengthens sovereign AI infrastructure through Rafay partnership Ooredoo Qatar has announced a strategic partnership with Rafay Systems to deliver an enterprise-grade Platform-as-a-Service powered by NVIDIA accelerated computing, further expanding its sovereign AI infrastructure in...

•	UAE emerges as model for responsible AI development amid global tech race As nations worldwide accelerate their artificial intelligence capabilities, the United Arab Emirates is distinguishing itself through a governance framework that prioritizes ethical considerations alongside technological...

•	Visa establishes new regional hub covering Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Oman The move is designed to accelerate digital payment adoption while aligning more closely with national digital transformation agendas across the three markets...

•	Space42 and Cobham Satcom redefine L-band performance with new portfolio of Thuraya-4 terminals Together, the new terminals and the Thuraya-4 network deliver a new level of capability in L-band mobility and mission performance, giving users more ways to access high-throughput connectivity in the field...

North Africa

•	Vodafone Egypt expands 5G coverage beyond 3,000 urban areas The rollout marks a significant increase from around 2,000 locations since June, underscoring the operator’s commitment to strengthening national digital infrastructure and accelerating next-generation connectivity...

3G, 4G and 5G Networks

•	Ethio Telecom expands 4G LTE coverage to cities across Ethiopia Ethio Telecom has announced the launch of its high-speed 4G LTE mobile network service in 93 cities across Ethiopia...

•	Ookla® recognizes Orange Belgium as the Belgian operator offering the best 5G mobile network on the market Based on first-half 2025 data, Orange Belgium has been recognized by Ookla® as the Belgian operator offering the best 5G mobile network on the market...

Satellite & Internet

•	Beeline Kazakhstan completes first satellite voice call via Starlink direct to cell in Central Asia Beeline Kazakhstan has completed a field test and delivered the first-ever voice call through an app, as well as text messages, via Starlink Direct to Cell in Central Asia, successfully merging satellite and terrestrial...

•	Globe's submarine cable project in Mindanao to start in 2026 Telecommunication firm Globe Telecom is set to start its Submarine Cable Project, a 48-core, 175-kilometer network connecting Zamboanga to Isabela City, Basilan and extending to Sulu, in early part of 2026...

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