What's going on?

Europe�s largest telecommunications firm, Deutsche Telekom, dialed in well-received first-quarter results on Thursday � but results from the UK�s BT weren�t as loud and clear.

What does this mean?

Last quarter, Deutsche Telekom�s profit grew 4% compared to a year prior � and it had its American line largely to thank. Deutsche�s T-Mobile US added over a million new customers every quarter for the sixth year in a row, gaining ground on market leaders AT&T and Verizon. At home in Germany, selling more bundled packages of landline and mobile services helped earnings there grow too.

BT phoned in a decline in its annual profit � and its forecast for this year was below investor expectations. The company plans to step up investment in high-speed broadband infrastructure that might help the stock reconnect with investors.

Why should I care?

For markets: Investors hang on the line for telecoms.

Phone, wireless data, and broadband contracts are typically long-term. Despite price comparison tools to help you switch, only 10 million of America�s 400 million data contracts change provider each year. And connectivity’s likely to be the last thing scrapped by penny-pinching consumers when times are hard � so telecoms typically have predictable earnings and can pay regular dividends. BT on Thursday promised its annual dividend wouldn�t fall despite major investment plans this year. The company’s value represents over 1% of the British stock market and its regular payout is therefore important enough to keep investors in the UK on hold.

The bigger picture: Regulators call Sprint and Vodafone.

Japanese tech powerhouse SoftBank reported an 80% jump in its quarterly profit on Thursday, half of which was thanks to gains in the value of its investments � including a lift from Uber before its Friday stock market debut. SoftBank is also the biggest investor in American wireless carrier Sprint � whose proposed deal to merge with rival T-Mobile US last year is still at the mercy of competition regulators. And on Wednesday, Australian authorities blocked Vodafone�s $11 billion plan to take over the number-two internet service provider Down Under, TPG.