Türk Telekom owns 56 patents in US: CEO

Sefer Levent - SAN FRANCISCO

Türk Telekom’s subsidiary Argela and its U.S.-based affiliated firm, Netsia, operating in the Silicon Valley, have registered intellectual property rights for 56 products used in 5G technology and fiber networks in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Türk Telekom CEO Ümit Önal has said.

“The Silicon Valley is the gate opening to the world. Ideas about technology from all over the world materialize here,” he told a group of journalists in San Francisco.

“Netsia has developed a software that enables using mobile base stations more efficiently, and that will break ground with the transition to 5G. Global giants have been keeping a close eye on this software. We have started signing cooperation deals to present the product to the world markets,” he said, referring to a recent agreement with U.S. conglomerate Juniper Networks.

Since its privatization in 2005, Türk Telekom has invested $17.9 billion in research and development and acquisitions, according to Önal’s remarks.

Türk Telekom racked up 15.8 billion Turkish Liras ($1.8 billion) in consolidated revenues in the first half of 2021, posting an annual increase of 19 percent.

The group’s net profits reached 2.6 billion Turkish Liras ($302.2 million) in the same period, while its investment expenditures increased 25 percent to 2.7 billion liras ($312.2 million).

By the second quarter of this year, the length of its fiber network in the 81 provinces reached 345,000 kilometers, while the total number of its fiber broadband subscribers reached 8.1 million.

Türk Telekom’s total subscriptions increased by 2 million in the last 12 months, reaching 50.7 million at the end of the second quarter. The company has 13.8 million fixed broadband and 23.4 million mobile customers.