Aramco Digital, Intel to Establish 1st Center to Develop Open Radio Access Networks in Saudi Arabia

Aramco Digital and Intel plan to establish Saudi Arabia’s first open radio access networks (Open RAN) center. (SPA)
Aramco Digital and Intel plan to establish Saudi Arabia’s first open radio access networks (Open RAN) center. (SPA)
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Aramco Digital, Intel to Establish 1st Center to Develop Open Radio Access Networks in Saudi Arabia

Aramco Digital and Intel plan to establish Saudi Arabia’s first open radio access networks (Open RAN) center. (SPA)
Aramco Digital and Intel plan to establish Saudi Arabia’s first open radio access networks (Open RAN) center. (SPA)

Aramco Digital and Intel announced on Monday their intention to establish Saudi Arabia’s first open radio access networks (Open RAN) center, which is expected to contribute to driving innovation, promoting technological progress and contributing to the Saudi digital transformation process.

Their cooperation is bound to accelerate the development and application of Open RAN technologies, which will boost the Kingdom's endeavor to establish a robust and flexible telecommunications infrastructure focused on accelerating digital transformation across various industries and fulfilling the Saudi Vision 2030, which envisages technological progress and economic diversification.

Open RAN, a sophisticated model of radio network structure, allows for greater flexibility, interoperability and innovation.

Aramco Digital will provide deep knowledge of the Kingdom's development needs and aspirations, and opportunities for the application of Open RAN technology, along with a unique perspective on the Kingdom's economic landscape, while Intel, a leader in computing and communications technologies, will offer its expertise in Open RAN technologies.

The top areas of collaboration between the two companies include the innovation center, which aims to develop an Open RAN to be the focus of innovation, and promote collaboration between engineers of Aramco Digital and Intel, and researchers and industry experts.

The center also seeks to contribute to the development of local competencies by providing training and practical expertise in Open RAN technology and in rapidly evolving edge computing technology through which data is collected and processed.



Pinterest Plunges as Gloomy Forecast Dampens Revenue Rebound Hopes

Image sharing company Pinterest Inc beat Wall Street estimates for second-quarter revenue. (AFP)
Image sharing company Pinterest Inc beat Wall Street estimates for second-quarter revenue. (AFP)
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Pinterest Plunges as Gloomy Forecast Dampens Revenue Rebound Hopes

Image sharing company Pinterest Inc beat Wall Street estimates for second-quarter revenue. (AFP)
Image sharing company Pinterest Inc beat Wall Street estimates for second-quarter revenue. (AFP)

Pinterest shares tumbled more than 12% premarket on Wednesday after a muted third-quarter outlook dashed Wall Street's expectations for a stabilization in its revenues amid a rebound in the digital ad market.

The photo-sharing platform on Tuesday projected current-quarter revenue below analysts' estimates, as it struggles to keep up with the competition from bigger rivals including Meta's Instagram and Facebook and Alphabet .

The digital advertising market is bouncing back from a slump seen in 2022 and early 2023, but pockets of weakness remain and are eating into business at Pinterest, Reuters reported.

San Francisco, California-based Pinterest flagged material weakness in demand from advertisers in the consumer goods space, particularly food and beverage companies, which offset strength in ad spend in the technology and financial services sectors.

"The optics of a lighter (third quarter) guide will not help recently growing ad fears, and some will be concerned that food & beverage pressure — which has been isolated — could spread to other verticals with a potentially softer consumer," J.P. Morgan analyst Doug Anmuth said in a note.

Pinterest's outlook could also spell trouble for other smaller ad players such as SnapChat owner Snap and ad tech firm Trade Desk, analysts said, noting 18% of the gross spend at Trade Desk last year came from food and beverage firms.

Shares of Snap dipped more than 2% premarket on Wednesday, with Trade Desk down 1.5%. Pinterest is set to lose about $2.8 billion in market value, if losses hold.

Pinterest could take yet another hit from the lack of political ads on its platform, unlike Meta and Alphabet which are set to benefit from political advertising in the run-up to the U.S. elections.

"Pinterest... gets no benefit from momentum others will get starting end of August/early September," RBC analysts said, noting that could be a "few hundred" basis points of a headwind for Pinterest.

At least 11 brokerages cut their price targets on Pinterest.