South Africa's Vodacom abandons $566M bid for Neotel; BCN Telecom names Duca as VP of marketing

Wireline news from across the Web:

> South African telco Vodacom has abandoned its planned $566 million acquisition of domestic rival Neotel from its majority owner Tata Communications of India due to "regulatory complexities." TeleGeography article

> BCN Telecom, a nationwide telecommunications service provider, announced the addition of Jeanne Duca as VP of Marketing. Release

> Next Century Cities, a nonprofit membership organization of 128 mayors and city leaders working to ensure access to high-quality broadband Internet for more Americans, expressed support for the member community of Louisville, Kentucky. Next Century Cities blog post

> Mexico will receive $13 billion of foreign investment in the telecommunications sector, according to the country's Secretary of Communications and Transport, Gerardo Ruiz Esparza. Telecompaper article 

> Cisco is acquiring San Jose-based cloud management software specialist CliQr for $260 million. Release

Cable News
> AT&T became the last major pay-TV operator to tout — or test — a virtual video delivery system, announcing that three IP-only DirecTV tiers will debut later this year. Article

> While it wasn't technically among the group of top cable operators who reported full-year video subscriber growth for 2015, Comcast is in fact growing its pay-TV base again. Article

Installer News
> Fiber-optic lines are often cut but a recent outage in Gorham, Maine happened after a fiber cable was hit by gunshots, causing $30,000 in damages. Article

Online Video News
> CBS Corp. is in a great position as a must-have network that viewers either won't drop from their skinny bundle selections, or will pick up as an SVOD option should they completely cut the cord, Chairman and CEO Les Moonves told attendees at an investor conference. Article

Wireless News
> AT&T finally announced the cross-platform video service it has hinted at for months, outlining a three-tiered offering for smartphones, tablets, PCs, web-enabled TVs and other connected devices. Article

> Sprint Chairman Masayoshi Son plans to create a subsidiary of SoftBank that will accept some of the carrier's network gear and spectrum as collateral for billions in loans this year, as outlined in a new report from Bloomberg. Article

And finally … Telecom pundits are discovering dark fiber in forgotten corners of the country. Dark Fiber Community post