News In Brief: Berg Insight, Aicent, Cenx, Telecom Srbija, BT, Akamai

The number of smart meters installed in Europe will hit 111.4 million by end 2015, a compound annual growth rate of 17.9% over 2009, research firm Berg Insight predicts. Nordic countries and Italy are leading the charge, with France, Spain and the UK ripe for rapid growth.
 
Inter-network roaming provider Aicent recorded a 300% rise in network traffic during the recent World Cup soccer tournament in South Africa, as fans sent pictures, videos and e-mails back to their home countries.
 
Carrier Ethernet exchange operator Cenx has partnered with service assurance firm Exfo to offer an off-net service-level SLA monitoring for carrier Ethernet networks. The vendor agnostic system constantly monitors the performance of Ethernet virtual connections and compares it against pre-defined SLA criteria.
 
Uganda Telecom owner LAP Green is in discussions with the Serbian government over investing in the country's telecom sector, and has submitted a bid to acquire Telecom Srbija.
 
BT has launched a nationwide campaign against cable theft through its BT Openreach division, deploying the SmartWater forensic tagging solution and GPS tracking technologies to help deter thefts and catch culprits.
 
Europe houses six of the top ten fastest countries by average internet speeds according to data from Akamai. Romania has the fastest speeds in Europe - and the fourth fastest overall - followed by Sweden, Latvia and Belgium.
 
Indian fixed broadband infrastructure provider Radius Infratel has signed a new fiber-to-the-home contract with Ericsson to use its GPON system and passive fiber portfolio to provide high-speed connections to 600,000 homes and businesses.
 
Bouygues Telecom has deployed Alcatel-Lucent’s IP/MPLS mobile backhaul product to meet forecasted growth in demand for data services on smartphones. Separately, Alcatel-Lucent revealed that China Mobile is deploying its IMS Solution in three provinces to deliver video sharing, presence-enhanced contact management, and unified messaging on fixed and mobile devices.