Antevia Networks and Benetel sign strategic partnership to accelerate scalable, mission-critical outdoor private 5G deployments

23 March 2026

Antevia Networks, the telecoms equipment vendor changing the economics of 5G private networks, has signed a strategic partnership with Benetel, an Irish manufacturer of O-RAN compliant radio units.

The agreement follows successful integration testing of Benetel’s outdoor O-RU with Antevia’s 5G SHIFT™ private network platform, enabling customers to deploy high-performance outdoor coverage with simpler procurement, faster installation, and consistent operational outcomes.

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Future scenarios for the South African broadband LEO satellite industry

11 March 2026

Dawie de Wet, CEO of Q-KON

Dawie de Wet, CEO of Q-KON

The South African and wider African telecommunication industries are highly regulated – and with good reason. It was this regulatory framework that underpinned the success of investments in mobile networks and ultimately, the incredible growth of mobile services across Africa. Yes, any regulatory framework should be dynamic and able to adapt to changing circumstances in order to achieve a balance between incorporating emerging technologies and protecting national interests. However, there is also strength to be found in a certain degree of rigidity.

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Starlink: Why all the hype?

03 March 2026

Jens Langenhorst, Specialist RF Engineer and Vice Chair of WAPA (Wireless Access Providers Association)

Jens Langenhorst, Specialist RF Engineer and Vice Chair of WAPA (Wireless Access Providers Association)

The South African media landscape has been saturated with Starlink coverage for months. Every ministerial statement, every regulatory development, every parliamentary objection becomes headline news. Yet amid this relentless coverage, a curious question emerges: why Starlink specifically?

The regulatory challenges facing Elon Musk's satellite service aren't unique. Major global technology companies have long navigated South Africa's Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) framework when entering the market.

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Connecting the Central African Republic

27 February 2026

Located between Cameroon and South Sudan, the Central African Republic (CAR) is a country with a rich culture and natural beauty. However, providing reliable broadband communications and Internet connectivity throughout this landlocked country, and between the CAR and the rest of the world, has been challenging for the country’s social and economic development.

Prior to 2017, Orange CAR, one of the largest communications providers serving the CAR, found that delivering reliable services to its customers was problematic. At that time, 2G and 3G mobile services were the norm in the country, and 4G had not yet been deployed. Approximately 2 million residents – just 38% of the population – had mobile service, with 3G penetration accounting for about 60%, with 2G serving the remainder. Only a small fraction – 11% or approximately 600,000 residents – had Internet access, with an average download speed of 22.55Mbps on fixed connections. Orange CAR was able to address these problems and accelerate the deployment of services to the CAR by making use of SES’s multi-orbit network of MEO and GEO satellites.

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