Kalaam Telecom and Riedel Networks renew partnership to turbocharge motorsport connectivity in MENA

How is Kalaam Telecom’s extended partnership with Riedel Networks shaping motorsport connectivity in the MENA region?

Kalaam Telecom Group has renewed its strategic partnership with Germany-based Riedel Networks for another three years through its wholesale arm, Kalaam Carrier Solutions, marking a decisive step in strengthening high-performance connectivity for motorsport across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). The collaboration, which initially launched in 2022, has played a central role in powering live broadcast and mission-critical communications for top-tier motorsport series in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.

This renewed agreement is designed to consolidate and expand the region’s digital infrastructure, which has become increasingly vital as motorsport events grow in scale and data intensity. Kalaam Telecom operates a fully owned terrestrial fiber network called the Kalaam Network Optical Transit (KNOT) system, which underpins the partnership. The KNOT system forms a 100% terrestrial route across the Gulf and connects to Riedel’s global backbone, enabling low-latency transmission between race venues and global broadcast centers. A major point of presence in Manama, Bahrain serves as the hub for this regional network, acting as the anchor point for data flows into Europe, Asia, and beyond.

According to Kalaam Telecom Group CEO Veer Passi, the company views this renewed partnership as a validation of Bahrain’s emergence as a digital gateway for the Middle East. He suggested that Riedel Networks’ decision to centralize its Middle East operations in Bahrain underscores the country’s rising strategic role in the global broadcast ecosystem.

Why are motorsport events driving demand for ultra-reliable low-latency network infrastructure in MENA?

The past decade has seen motorsport evolve from purely physical competition to a data-centric, high-bandwidth spectacle. Modern race operations now rely on real-time telemetry from hundreds of sensors per car, instant video feeds from multiple angles, and synchronized communications across trackside teams, race control, and global media outlets. Even milliseconds of delay can affect broadcast synchronization, betting markets, and team decision-making, making ultra-reliable connectivity indispensable.

This backdrop has fueled demand for specialized carriers like Kalaam Telecom and Riedel Networks that can provide high-capacity circuits engineered for performance and resilience. Riedel, known globally for its managed technology solutions for live events, brings expertise in designing and operating low-latency media networks, while Kalaam contributes regional scale and terrestrial network reach. Their joint solution has allowed motorsport organizers in the Gulf to match or even exceed the network quality seen in long-established venues in Europe and North America.

The success of this collaboration has also attracted attention from other industries in the MENA region that require dependable connectivity, including banking, logistics, and energy. Kalaam and Riedel have been increasingly serving enterprise clients seeking secure links between their local branches and international headquarters, leveraging the same high-resilience backbone built for motorsport broadcasts.

How does the partnership support Kalaam Telecom’s strategy to position Bahrain as a regional digital gateway?

For Kalaam Telecom, this deal is as much about geopolitical positioning as it is about network engineering. Bahrain has been pursuing a deliberate strategy to become a digital interconnection hub, capitalizing on its proximity to major Gulf markets and stable regulatory environment. Kalaam’s KNOT system is a cornerstone of this strategy, providing terrestrial redundancy that bypasses traditional undersea cable chokepoints and enhances route diversity for global carriers.

By anchoring Riedel’s Middle East operations in Manama, Kalaam has effectively elevated Bahrain’s profile within the global broadcast supply chain. Industry observers have noted that this positioning could enable Bahrain to capture a greater share of regional data center investments and content delivery traffic, especially as demand for edge computing and 5G-driven media services accelerates.

Kalaam executives have also indicated that the partnership’s credibility with international brands helps attract enterprise customers seeking high-availability infrastructure for their digital transformation initiatives. This aligns with Bahrain’s broader push to diversify its economy by developing ICT and cloud services as growth sectors.

What are the planned network expansions and their potential impact on enterprises and broadcasters in the region?

Under the renewed agreement, Kalaam Telecom and Riedel Networks plan to expand their joint footprint by adding new interconnection points across the Gulf, upgrading backbone capacity, and launching enhanced services tailored for broadcasters, media platforms, and enterprise clients. These include ultra-low latency circuits for live video production, encrypted backbone links for sensitive financial transactions, and scalable bandwidth-on-demand for large event organizers.

Industry analysts suggest this could reduce the reliance of MENA-based broadcasters on Europe-hosted production hubs, allowing more live content to be processed locally. That shift could lower costs, improve latency, and spur the development of homegrown media production ecosystems. For enterprises, the improved infrastructure promises faster access to global cloud platforms and higher network reliability, which are increasingly critical for hybrid work, AI workloads, and digital customer experiences.

Riedel Networks CEO Michael Martens remarked that the collaboration has already enabled the company to deliver premium connectivity for international motorsport events while simultaneously serving corporate network requirements across the MENA region. He indicated that the next phase will focus on scaling these services to address rising demand from corporate and global event customers, reflecting a broader convergence between entertainment-grade and enterprise-grade network requirements.

How could this partnership influence regional competition and investor sentiment in telecommunications?

Although Kalaam Telecom Group is privately held, the move has strategic implications for the wider Gulf telecom sector, where publicly listed incumbents such as stc (TADAWUL: 7010), Ooredoo Group (DSM: ORDS), and Etisalat by e& (ADX: ETISALAT) are all investing heavily in cross-border fiber and edge cloud capabilities. Analysts say Kalaam’s success in attracting high-profile media workloads could pressure these larger players to accelerate their own low-latency network offerings.

This could, in turn, reshape investor sentiment in the regional telecom industry by spotlighting the revenue potential of niche wholesale and event-connectivity segments, which have traditionally been overshadowed by consumer mobile and broadband services. Institutional flows in recent quarters have favored incumbents with diversified digital infrastructure arms, and market observers expect more M&A activity targeting regional fiber operators as demand surges from cloud providers, gaming platforms, and live event organizers.

While Kalaam itself is not publicly traded, its growing role as a carrier-neutral wholesale player may influence valuations and competitive strategies among listed Gulf telecom firms. Analysts have noted that as more live media and motorsport content is routed through Bahrain, there could be positive spillovers for data center REITs and cloud infrastructure providers in the region, further reinforcing bullish sentiment on the digital infrastructure theme.

How does this deal reflect broader global trends in sports broadcasting and network infrastructure investment?

The Kalaam-Riedel renewal aligns with a global shift in live event production toward remote and cloud-based workflows. Broadcasters worldwide are increasingly decentralizing production, relying on robust IP networks rather than physical on-site infrastructure to cut costs and increase flexibility. This has created a premium on carriers that can guarantee quality-of-service under extreme bandwidth and latency constraints.

Riedel Networks has been at the forefront of this transition in Europe, while Kalaam is emerging as one of the first regional players in the Gulf to adapt its network to these new requirements. Their partnership effectively brings tier-1 media network capabilities into a geography that has historically relied on backhaul to Europe for live event production. By reducing that dependence, the collaboration could accelerate the maturation of the MENA sports broadcasting market and position it as a growth node in the global media supply chain.

With motorsport’s audience base expanding across digital platforms and younger demographics, industry analysts anticipate sustained growth in live content demand, which will continue to place upward pressure on network capacity investments. This dynamic makes the Kalaam-Riedel partnership not just a regional infrastructure story but also part of a larger global trend reshaping how live sports are produced and delivered.