What’s up with… Amazon Leo, Bell Canada, Kyivstar

• FCC gives approval to Amazon Leo’s $11.5bn Globalstar buyout
• Bell Canada partners with La Caisse for towerco spinout
• Kyivstar agrees $50m deal to buy GigaCloud

In today’s industry news roundup: The FCC gives Amazon Leo approval for its $11.5bn buyout of Globalstar; Bell Canada agrees to sell a minority stake in its newly created tower business; Veon’s Kyivstar strikes a deal to bolster its cloud offering by buying Ukrainian firm GigaCloud for $50m; and much more!

The US Federal Communications Commission has given Amazon Leo the thumbs up to complete its $11.5bn takeover of Globalstar, boosting Amazon’s efforts to compete with satellite rival SpaceX. The deal was announced in April and will bolster Amazon’s direct-to-device (D2D) satellite network in terms of satellites deployed, spectrum and customer base. So far, Amazon has launched around 400 satellites; it had planned to deploy thousands into Earth’s low orbit, though some of these plans have been beset by delays. The acquisition adds Globalstar’s two dozen satellites and around 25 megahertz of spectrum to Leo’s portfolio. Perhaps more importantly, it also gives Amazon a lucrative existing customer in Apple, with around 85% of Globalstar’s capability dedicated to supporting iPhones and Apple Watches. In the FCC’s authorisation document, the regulator stated that the acquisition “is likely to benefit the public by enhancing data coverage in unserved or underserved areas”. The approval comes just a week after the Space Bureau also approved Globalstar’s request for US market access for its non-geostationary C-3 satellites. This new low-earth orbit constellation will consist of 48 satellites capable of supporting D2D communications.

Bell Canada has agreed a $1.75bn deal to sell a 49.9% stake in its newly formed tower infrastructure unit to investment firm La Caisse, according to an announcement by the Canadian telco’s parent company BCE. The transaction values Towerco – which will own and operate more than 5,000 sites – at around CAN $4.9bn. The newly (though likely temporarily) dubbed TowerCo will be headquartered in Montréal and will become one of Canada’s largest dedicated tower companies, with Bell signing up as its first customer. The telco, which will retain a 50.1% controlling share, will lease capacity on the transferred towers, but Bell Canada will retain control of its spectrum assets, active network equipment and owned land. BCE said it expects the deal to close in the first quarter of 2027, subject to regulatory approvals, with the firm planning to use the money to pay down debt and fund key growth areas, such as AI-powered solutions. “This partnership unlocks the significant value embedded in our infrastructure assets while continuing to operate the award-winning wireless network our customers rely on every day,” said Mirko Bibic, president and CEO of BCE and Bell Canada. The decision to carve off some of its infrastructure assets follows similar moves seen across the industry in recent years. Last year, Canadian rival Telus also announced a deal with Le Caisse, creating a new tower joint venture called Terrion. Italy, meanwhile, has been a hotbed for tower action in recent years. However, not all operators are taking this approach, as was outlined in our recent interview with the CEO of Totem (Orange’s tower unit), which you can read here.

Ukrainian operator Kyivstar has struck a $50m deal to buy cloud infrastructure provider GigaCloud, expanding its enterprise cloud capabilities. The Veon-owned telco said the deal to buy its fellow Ukrainian company will strengthen its hand in sovereign cloud infrastructure while bolstering its enterprise technology portfolio by combining connectivity, cloud infrastructure and cybersecurity for businesses in Ukraine and Poland. GigaCloud, which launched in 2016, has more than 1,800 enterprise customers and will add some $14m to Kyivstar’s revenue, based on its unaudited 2025 figures. “GigaCloud brings to Kyivstar a well-established cloud business, cloud engineering expertise, R&D capabilities and an experienced team. By combining these capabilities with our connectivity, customer reach and investment capacity, we can help more businesses modernise their operations and build a larger enterprise technology business. This acquisition advances our digital strategy while supporting Ukraine’s long-term infrastructure needs,” said Oleksandr Komarov, president of Kyivstar Group Ltd. You can watch our recent interview here with Kyivstar COO Volodymyr Lutchenko when he discussed the importance of sovereign services in the face of extreme adversity.

German internet exchange DE-CIX has joined forces with Thai telco IGC to launch a new internet exchange in Bangkok. DE-CIX Thailand, a joint venture company that will be headquartered in the Thai capital, will build and operate regional internet exchange DE-CIX Bangkok, which is scheduled to launch in mid-2027. The partnership extends DE-CIX’s regional interconnection ecosystem to Bangkok, which is one of South-east Asia’s fastest-growing digital hubs. It will use IGC’s domestic and cross-border terrestrial network to link operators in Thailand and neighbouring countries to the DE-CIX exchange network. It will also connect with DE-CIX’s operations in other countries in the region, including in Singapore, Johor Bahru, Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Jakarta. As part of the JV, IGC will provide connectivity to DE-CIX Bangkok while also acting as a reseller for customers across the region. “Thailand is the next logical step in our South-east Asian growth strategy,” said Ivo Ivanov, CEO of DE-CIX. “The country has all the ingredients to become the gateway to mainland South-east Asia and one of the region’s leading digital connectivity hubs, serving millions of people. Together with IGC, we are creating an environment where networks in Thailand can interconnect locally while gaining seamless access to one of South-east Asia’s richest digital ecosystems.”

Ethiopia’s government has directed the country’s telecom regulator to measure its performance against improvements in service quality, affordability, consumer protection and access to services. Innovation and technology minister Frehiwot Tamru gave the directive during a five-year performance review of the Ethiopian Communications Authority’s (ECA). She called on the regulator to assess whether licences issued to telcos were being fully used, what services they enabled, and their contribution to sector growth. Sharing details in a Facebook post, she also ordered the regulator to work alongside telecom operators to boost access in rural and underserved areas in the African country that has a population of more than 140 million people but mobile penetration of less than 70%. Internet access is lower still, despite more than 98% of the population being covered by at least 3G services, according to Research ICT Africa.

– The staff, TelecomTV