5G from Space, Musk, Twitter Go to Court Over Buy, Internet Society Adds Principal

July 11, 2022 – Swedish telecom equipment provider Ericsson, Thales, a French aerospace company, and semiconductor company Qualcomm Technologies announced Monday a joint effort to make a space-based network.

According to a press release, 5G non-terrestrial networks could enable a 5G smartphone with 5G connectivity “anywhere on Earth and provide complete global coverage for wideband data services, including places normally only covered by legacy satellite phone systems with limited data connectivity capabilities.”

“Such widespread connectivity would boost 5G smartphone subscriber roaming service capabilities, as well as enabling global connectivity for transportation, energy and health sector 5G use cases” and could also be used as back-up in potential network outages or disasters, the release added.

Erik Ekudden, senior vice president and chief technology officer at Ericsson, called this cooperation between Ericsson, Thales, and Qualcomm Technologies “a major milestone in the history of communications.

“No matter where you are on Earth – in the middle of an ocean or the remotest forest – high-end, secure and cost-effective connectivity will be available through collaborative 5G satellite and terrestrial connectivity,” said Ekudden.

Musk backs out of Twitter deal, faces possible repercussions

Following SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk announcing Friday that he wanted out of his proposal to buy Twitter, the social media platform is going to court to compel the transaction.

The world’s wealthiest man said Twitter failed to comply with agreement obligations, said a news report from CNBC, including not providing Musk with the information needed to verify whether 5 percent of the platform’s base is just spam accounts. Twitter says this is not possible to calculate from public information

Meanwhile, Bret Taylor, who sits on the board of directors at Twitter, said the board – which approved the $44-billion transaction – is committed to closing the deal with legal action against Musk. Taylor tweeted: “We are confident that we will prevail in the Delaware Court of Chancery.”

As Twitter shares are down, the news report says that “while Musk is officially seeking to walk away from the deal, the saga is likely far from over.”

The terms of agreement require Musk to pay $1 billion if he backs out, and Musk faces future repercussions as Twitter says it can hold Musk to the original terms of the agreement in legal action.

Internet Society adds principal of U.S. internet policy and advocacy

The Internet Society, a global nonprofit advocating for an open internet, announced in a press release Monday that John Morris Jr. will become principal of U.S. internet policy and advocacy.

With a background in technology across the public, nonprofit and private sectors, the organization said Morris brings expertise in a variety of issues such as privacy, cybersecurity, national security, surveillance, law enforcement, network neutrality, intellectual property, and emerging technology.

According to the release, in this position, Morris will join “a global team of Internet experts to drive campaigns that promote and defend the Internet both in the United States and across the globe.

“I hope to be able to contribute to the Internet Society’s efforts to help stakeholders – including industry and governments – to navigate the serious challenges that we face in the online environment while still promoting the core values that have made the Internet a key driver of citizen empowerment and economic growth around the world.” Morris said.

Morris was most recently at the Brookings Institution as a senior non-resident fellow with the Center for Technology Innovation, and notably served two presidential terms as a member of the senior executive service at the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, an agency of the Commerce Department.