Today’s telecom news includes announcements from Inseego, Mobile World Congress, Telefonica, Liberty Global, Netomnia, AT&T, Verizon, among others.
Inseego Gears Up to Spotlight Next-Gen 5G Innovations at MWC Barcelona 2026
Inseego Corp. announced it will participate in Mobile World Congress (MWC) Barcelona 2026, scheduled for March 2–5 in Barcelona, Spain, one of the world’s largest telecom and connectivity events. During the event, the company will engage with customers, partners, and investors while showcasing its latest 5G-Advanced hardware, cloud software, and edge connectivity solutions. Inseego plans to demonstrate commercially available 5G devices and highlight its Inseego Subscribe SaaS platform, which supports cloud-based subscriber and device management. The company’s leadership and product teams will also host on-site meetings and live demonstrations, focusing on enterprise connectivity, fixed wireless access, and next-generation mobile broadband use cases.
UK Fibre Shake-Up: Telefonica and Liberty Global in £2 billion Talks for Netomnia
Telefonica and Liberty Global, the joint owners of Virgin Media O2, are reportedly in discussions to acquire UK fibre broadband provider Netomnia in a deal valued at around £2 billion. The talks involve Nexfibre, their fibre-focused joint venture with InfraVia Capital, which is accelerating full-fibre deployment across the UK. Netomnia has expanded rapidly, with its network now passing roughly 3 million homes, making it a valuable asset in the increasingly competitive broadband market. A potential acquisition would significantly boost Nexfibre’s infrastructure scale and strengthen its position against established operators.
Telecom Giants Cut Thousands of Jobs as AI Adoption Remains Nascent
AT&T and Verizon together cut around 17,700 jobs in 2025, accounting for nearly 7 percent of their combined workforce, as both US telecom operators pressed ahead with aggressive cost-cutting and restructuring efforts. Verizon led the reductions with about 9,700 job cuts, many announced late in the year following leadership changes, while AT&T eliminated roughly 8,000 roles, ending 2025 with close to 133,000 employees compared with Verizon’s 89,900. The layoffs came despite relatively stable revenues and at a time when advanced artificial intelligence deployment remains limited. While early automation tools are beginning to influence operations, the workforce reductions were largely driven by efficiency programmes, organisational streamlining, and shifting priorities across core telecom businesses.
SHAFANA FAZAL
