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African Android Statue To Be Constructed By Lenovo

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android

Lenovo wants to lead other companies in being the first company to create an African Android statue, this will happen alone side the launch of the Lenovo A1000, A3000 and S6000 Android tablets in Africa.

The most famous Android statues have been created by Google and are located at its corporate headquarters in California.

These statues mark important milestones in the history of Android and have traditionally been based on the code names for the versions of Google’s Android mobile operating system, which are named alphabetically after desserts: Cupcake; Donut; Éclair; Froyo; Gingerbread; Honeycomb; Ice Cream Sandwich; and Jellybean.

The grapevine has it that the next official version of Android will be called Key Lime Pie, a traditional American dessert, nevertheless Lenovo has decided to start on a campaign to ask Africans what they would name it if they had a choice. Lenovo will then build a statue, modeling it after the winning name.

The campaign is accompanied by a social media competition on Lenovo Africa Facebook page asking Android and Lenovo fans, in South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya, to name the statue. The winner of the best and most creative name will receive a hamper of Lenovo goodies worth R20,000.

The winner will be chosen by Lenovo and the Africa Android statue will be uncovered in October this year.

“We are thrilled to create Africa’s first ever Android statue to celebrate the launch of our new range of tablets,” says Graham Braum, country manager of Lenovo Africa.

“Our latest Android tablet family is perfectly matched to meet our customers’ demands. We’ve noted that 7-inch tablets are well accepted, particularly by young, active users who are always on the go, so we’ve created devices that address these customers’ needs, as well as devices for more demanding gamers and multimedia users.

“We are confident that our Android family will appeal to customers across Africa as we’ve made them highly accessible and flexible to serve multiple needs, styles and budgets.”

 

Sony Gets More Than A Million Orders For PlayStation 4 Before Its Market Availability

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Sony’s head of SCE computer entertainment stated that the company has so far received more than a million preorders worldwide for its new PlayStation 4 Console.

The Chief Executive of SCE, Andrew House further said that the console will be available from November 15 in North America and November 29 in Europe

“The response we have received is nothing short of incredible,” he said. He added that the console will be available in 32 countries worldwide during the holiday season.

Microsoft Corp, on the other hand, has said it will start selling its latest console,Xbox One, in November. Escalating competition between the two consoles is anticipated ahead of the year-end.

Sony’s new console after seven year has a price tag of $100 which is a lower price than the new Microsoft’s Xbox One whose price stands at $399.

Xbox One, which was launched in May following eight years after the previous console, marks as its strongest push by the company so far to take over the market.

Microsoft Europe’s Vice President of Interactive Entertainment Chris Lewis said that their preorders for the Xbox One were “unprecedented” but took a rain check when it came to give more details.

Sony held that it would also cut the retail price for its PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita devices to $199 in the United States and 199 Euros ($270) in Europe. The Vita was 249 Euros while the PlayStation 3 was 229 Euros.

 

Government Launches Solar Operated Laptops in Accra, Ghana

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Ghana is joining the fray to offer its students in schools solar powered laptops to enhance their education. The government through its education minister launched the use of the laptops in Accra signaling the embrace of eLearning.

The Solar Operated Laptop, the first of its kind in the world, is a private sector initiative in ICT geared towards the development of education in Africa.

The initiative is being spearheaded by WeWi Telecommunications Inc, a Canadian R&D Corporation dedicated to bringing innovative solutions to the market and marketed by WeWi Ghana.

Mr Roland Carson, Chief Technical Officer of WeWi Inc, said since its inception, the company had created unique products and services and, in the past several years, began exploring new markets and expanding internationally through its various subsidiaries.

Mr Carson said WeWi’s core competencies were in software, hardware development and systems integration while its main focus was creating highly specialized solutions servicing the government, defence and health sectors where the company’s core integrated team of award winning experts was both experienced and comfortable serving government institutions, military bodies and civil initiatives.

Prof Naana Jane Opoku-Agyeman the minister of education said that the Ghana ICT policy should be revised to meet the needs of the society currently.

Kenya is still in the process to get suppliers for its programme for standard one pupils. Rwanda on the other hand has seen great progress in their pilot plans for having one laptop for every school child.

Gambia Bloggers Risk 15 Years In Jail & $90,000 Fines If They Criticize The Government Online

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Bloggers in The Gambia risk 15 years in Jail or fines of up to 3 million dalasis (approx. $90,000) if they criticize the government officials, share meme or share anything derogatory against online.

This comes after The Gambia amended an act passed a new law limiting online freedoms, especially to the youth. The Act criminalizes whoever spreads “false news” about the government or public officials, caricatures or makes derogatory statements against public officials and incites dissatisfaction or instigates violence against the government.”

Offenders “risk 15 years in jail and/or fine of three million Dalasis (about US$90,000). The law seeks to silence critical Gambian internet users, online activists, online newspapers and bloggers within or without the country.”According to Nana Grey Johnson, Minister of Information and Communication, “the new law provides deterrent punishment for such persons who are engaged in treacherous campaigns against The Gambia both internally and outside.” While Hon. Seedy Njie, a member of the National Assembly added: “it is pertinent that government comes up with these stingy measures to curb the activities of offenders online.”

comic-guy-kenya

The law passed July, was passive until a recent notice by Momodou Sabally, head of Civil Service and Minister of Presidential Affairs at a meeting held August 8 with religious leaders and cabinet members at the the State House, that the government is set to “massively crack down online freedoms”. Sabally warned Gambians – especially the youth not to participate in online campaigns against the government. He was quoted, “If you cannot say anything good about the country, then you should keep quiet.”

Sad, however is that the religious leaders at the state meeting are reportedly supporting the government’s move.

The Gambians are however not silent. Led by the Media Foundation of West Africa (MFWA) and other organizations, the recently-passed law is being condemned widely.  Alieu Mboge, MFWA’s spokesperson has told the cabinet that “we would do everything within our power to stop the youth both in[side] and outside the country from any online criticism of the government.” Other organisations are also calling on the government and religious leaders to recognize the importance of the Internet to the youth and the entire economy and are calling for  freedom of expression online and in public.

Apart from internet freedoms, Gambia’s traditional media such as radio stations and newspapers do not air programmes critical of the government. The government now wants to reign in on online activism.

Gambia’s announcement to take on activism online will derail internet penetration in the country and cause fear among users instead. Facebook’s plan to reach the next 5 billion will also be highly affected.

Traffic Alerts On Google Mobile Maps

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It would definitely be convenient to get your traffic updates from Google. Citizens of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, France, Germany, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Switzerland, UK and the USA are set to enjoy this service fro Google.

Google has already started incorporating this service through the Israeli traffic mapping company,Waze,although Google is still waiting for regulatory approval to buy the traffic company

As part of the consolidation, users of Google Maps for Mobile will now be able to see real time incident reports from Waze users. When Wazers report accidents, construction, road closures and more on Waze, the updates will also appear on the Google Maps app for Android and iOS.

In addition, the Waze app has been updated to include Google’s search functionality.

The Waze Map Editor, after a beta test, will now include Google Street View and satellite imagery to build out the map and make it easier to correct map errors reported by the community.

In June this year, Google beat had reported offers from both Apple and Facebook to buy the company. Waze has built up a user base of over 50 million customers all feeding live traffic information back to its users.

SanDisk Introduces New Memory Storage To Fit Today’s Technologies

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SanDisk corporation,a global leader in in flash memory storage solutions has today announced four new memory products in the market, ideal companions for users who want fast expanded memory. The three include SanDisk Extreme microSDHC and microSDXC UHS-I memory cards, SanDisk Ultra USB 3.0 Flash Drive, Cruzer orbit USB Flash Drive and the Cruzer Force USB Flash Drive.

 

sandisk extreme The SanDisk Extreme microSDHC and microSDXC UHS-I Memory Cards

The SanDisk extreme memory cards are used for smart phones, tablets and cameras. They are equipped with up to 80 MB/sec read and u to 50MB/sec and is an excellent choice for Android powered devices with 64GB of capacity.

 “The SanDisk Extreme microSDXC card allows users to do more with their devices. Our high performance and high-capacity microSD cards enable consumers to take advantage of the high-quality HD video and imaging capabilities in the latest 4G Smartphones, tablets and action cameras, ” said Susan Park, Director, retail product marketing SanDisk.

The memory cards are waterproof, shockproof and resist x-rays. They have an adapter for compatibility with full size SD/SDHC/SDXC supporting devices as well as a downloadable offer for RescuePro Deluxe data recovery software for bringing accidentally deleted images back to life.

The SanDisk Ultra USB 3.0 Flash DriveThe SanDisk Ultra USB 3.0 Flash Drive

This device allows users to transfer, store and share large files up to four times faster the USB 2.0 drives, with speeds of up to 80MB/sec. The drive’s fast performance speeds allow handling documents hi-res photos, HD videos and other large files with ease. The Ultra USB 3.0 drive is backed by a 5 year limited warranty and is shipping worldwide now in 16GB to 64GB capacities.

Cruzer Orbit USB Flash Drive Cruzer Orbit USB Flash Drive

The drive offers an easy and convenient way to store, transfer and share data in a 360 swivel design. It features a protective cover that rotates to shield the USB connector fro damage when it is not in use and is only 1.5 inches long and is available worldwide now in 8GB to 32GB capacities.

 

Cruzer Force USB Flash DriveCruzer Force USB Flash Drive

Built with a durable metal casing, the Cruzer Force USB offers a sleek design and protection for files. Combining fashion and function, the ultra thin drive comes with password protection software. They are available worldwide now in 8GB to 32GB.

All flash drives come with SanDisk SecureAccess Software that provides secure file encryption and password protection. The software provides 128-bit AES file encryption for private files while leaving the rest of the drive available for worry-free sharing.

Bradley Bennet, The Regional Marketing Manager, Mediterranean Middle East & Africa noted the possibility of having counterfeit products and to address the matter he said that the company is investing into the idea of educating the port vendors on the original and counterfeit products so that they will not receive them in the country and will do the same to the retail vendors in case the counterfeit products are already in the market.

To help curb counterfeit goods, the Marketing Manager said that the products have selected distributors in different regions, for instance, Mitsumi is the authorized dealer for East Africa and Despecs distributes for East Africa and Burundi.

He also noted that SanDisk intends to expand it is market to the whole of Africa given that the demand for such products is particularly high in Africa due to the introduction and growth of new technology systems like smartphones and tablets.

The company, SanDisk, has been in existence since 1988 and has provided innovations in flash memory and storage systems technologies have provided customer with diverse product portfolio includes flash memory cards and embedded solutions used in Smartphones, tablets, digital cameras, camcorders, digital media and other consumer electronic devices, as well as USB flash drivers and solid-state drives (SSD) for computing market.

African Virtual University Launches In Nigeria

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The Honourable Minister of Education Prof. Ruqayyatu Ahmed Rufa'i OON (Left) signs the AVU Charter at the Ministry’s offices in Abuja, Nigeria. Looking on is the AVU Rector, Dr. Bakary Diallo (Right). Nigeria becomes the 18th Member State of the AVU. The Honourable Minister of Education Prof. Ruqayyatu Ahmed Rufa'i OON (Left) signs the AVU Charter at the Ministry’s offices in Abuja, Nigeria. Looking on is the AVU Rector, Dr. Bakary Diallo (Right). Nigeria becomes the 18th Member State of the AVU.
The Honourable Minister of Education Prof. Ruqayyatu Ahmed Rufa’i OON (Left) signs the AVU Charter at the Ministry’s offices in Abuja, Nigeria. Looking on is the AVU Rector, Dr. Bakary Diallo (Right).

Nigeria has become the 18th Member State to sign the African Virtual University (AVU) Charter, paving way to delivery of tertiary education in the country’s institutions via Information and Communication Technologies (ICT).

The AVU charter was signed by Hon Minister of Education Prof. Ruqayyatu Ahmed Rufa’i OON  at his Ministry’s offices in Abuja, Nigeria.
According to  AVU Rector, Dr. Bakary Diallo the Charter will strengthen AVU’s cooperation with the Nigerian government and increase access to quality higher education and training through the innovative use of ICT.

Established in 1997, AVU has trained over 43,000 students and build the largest network of Distance and eLearning institutions in over 30 African Countries.

January last year, AVU received $95,588 from the Nigerian Technical Cooperation Fund to enhance its capacity to further its work in Mathematics and Sciences Teacher Education.

The country will now benefit from $15 million AVU Multinational Support Project II funded by the African Development Bank.

Other countries that are AVU Member States include Kenya, Senegal, Mauritania, Cote d’Ivoire, Mali, Tanzania, Mozambique, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Benin, Ghana, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Niger, South Sudan, Sudan, Guinea Bissau, The Gambia, and Nigeria. The number of AVU Member States has increased from 5 in 2010 to 18 in 2013.

The AVU based in Nairobi Kenya, recently signed an MOU with the African Union Commission to promote use of ICT in Education on the continent with focus on teacher education, content development, infrastructure, quality assurance, open education  esources, capacity building and networking.

Nigeria has a population of over 170 million and has several universities and tertiary institutions. AVU will supplement those universities by reaching out some of its over 50 million internet users interested in online learning.

Rwanda’s Tax Collection Goes Mobile With Launch Of M-Declaration

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rraThe Rwanda Revenue Authority (RRA) early next week launches a mobile platform dubbed M-Declaration in a bid to make tax declaration easier and fast among SME’s .

M-declaration, (or mobile declaration and payment of taxes) is a USSD platform able to work with Rwanda’s MTN-Mobile money, Tigo Cash or Airtel Mone, is expected to ease tax collection by over 50,000 SME’s in the country with annual turnover of between Rwf2m and Rwf500m.

With a mobile phone, a national ID card or passport and a tax-payer identification number users type  *800# and follow a few basic steps to declare their taxes.

M-declaration system was developed by CMC-TATA Ltd and features a section for one to register with TIN, & Mobile No to avail the services, declaration using USSD / Apps / SMS solutions, allows users to declare previous year’s turnover, profit tax calculated for the current year, allows payment through Banks or Mobile Money, acknowledges payment, allows payments every quarter and users can too check the check the status of previous transactions. A user can also decide to use mobile money, pay over the counter or online after completing their tax declaration.

Rwanda Revenue Authority is expecting the system to increase tax collection due to its convenience, have more informal sector players registered and reduce tax evasion. There are an estimated 80,000 informal businesses in the country.

M-declaration however, is not the first service to ease tax declaration. The authority also launched E-filing and E-payment to ease compliance costs on administration and taxpayers, Electronic Single Window for easy customs clearance of goods, Electronic Cargo Tracking Equipment for cargo protection while in transit and The Gold Card scheme system to facilitate compliant taxpayers.

M-declaration, will work as an alternative to E-filing and payment which has since become popular with big taxpayers since its launch last year. According to Fred Karara, the Project Manager for e-payment, all large taxpayers in the country- with an annual turnover of over Frw 1billion were using E-filling. The over 330 large firms contribute to the country’s 70% of all domestic tax revenues. M-declaration, on the other hand, is customized for  small entrepreneurs such as motorcycle taxis (boda boda) among others who are estimated to be around 80,000 or 100,000.

 

Google Street View Goes Wild | Adds 6 More Zoos From Around The World

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giant-panda_543_600x450Google Street View has added six more zoos and must-see spots at zoos from around the world to enable you watch wildlife from the safety of your office or home online.

The firm Wednesday said users can now visit lion, tigers and (panda) bears on the Google Street View.

“Animal-lovers, rejoice! If you enjoy watching wildlife, but find yourself stuck in the urban jungle, never fear. You can now use Google Maps and Street View to preview the must-see spots at zoos around the world before heading there in person, or take a virtual trip to some of the most famous zoos and animal parks, right from your living room,” posted Deanna Yick, Street View Program Manager.
The firm announced that it had added China’s Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, world-renowned San Diego Zoo, in North America.  Google also welcomed South America’s Buin Zoo in Chile and Zoologico de Bauru in Brazil to our existing collection of global zoos and animal parks. While in Germany Zoo Safari Park Stukenbrock, and  Tierpark Hagenbeck, were also brought on board.
Users can Virtually explore the animal exhibits in Houston Zoo, Zoo Atlanta, in Chicago, the Chapultepec Zoo in Mexico, and the Toronto Zoo and Jungle Cat World Wildlife Park in Ontario, Canada. Those who want to view more exotic animals can check out tigers and kangaroos at the Shou Shan Zoo in Taiwan, polar bears and penguins at the Asahiyama Zoo in Japan, the world’s largest captive colony of orangutans at the Singapore Zoo, and giraffes, chimpanzees and even Asian elephants at the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia.
Also on Google Street View users can view Zoo Aquarium de Madrid and Parc Zoologic de Barcelona in Spain, La Ferme aux Crocodiles in France, Olmense Zoo in Belgium and Whipsnade Zoo in the UK.

Google Street View first started as an experimental project in the US in 2007 and has expanded its 360-degree panoramic views to include locations on all seven continents.

Going.co.za Wants To Be Africa’s Leading B2B Marketplace For Wholesalers

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Going.co.za, an online business to business marketplace for wholesalers has launched to enable buyers, small and medium sized businesses, traders and retailers throughout Africa access heavily discounted inventory, and offer manufacturers, distributors and retailers an alternative sales channel to quickly monetise surplus stock.

According to the team, the marketplace aims to be the top marketplace for clearing and stock liquidation of ageing, counter-seasonal, clearance, returned, surplus, distressed and end-of-range products.

Team1 Founded by Paul Greenberg, Peter Moyo of Amabubesi, Nevil Bear, Ismail Hendricks and Jonathan Kantey recently the portal promises state-of-the-art Internet security and payment technology to give clients a secure environment and accept all major credit cards such as VISA, MasterCard, American Express and Diners Club.

Going.co.za delivers to  Johannesburg, Pretoria, Cape Town, Durban, Port Elizabeth and Bloemfontein and nationally in South Africa with a typical delivery time of 3-5 days in major centre’s and up to 7 days in outlying areas. Orders above R2000 without charge while orders below R2000 have a delivery fee of R75. They deliver out of the country too but on email request.

According to co-founder Paul Greenberg‚ who also founded DealersDirect Group‚ a leading online retailer in Australia, the launch comes at a time when international e-commerce players are eying the country for domination. Apart from MIH Naspers, investors like Rocket Internet have set up several online shops in the country but still there is room for more players, especially the local ones.

Going.co.za will solve the headaches retailers‚ wholesalers‚ distributors and manufacturers in South Africa, and internationally. It will be the marketplace for bulk, discounted, returned and unsold stock for resellers and will help other online retailers clear their stocks and warehouses of unsold stuff and lead to efficiency.

Here Is A Videographic Of Middle East’s Tech Recap 2012

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This Videographic recapping changes in the tech industry in the Middle East for the year 2012 has been prepared by Discover Digital Arabia  and Startappz.

Here are some of the highlights shared here with permission:

Kenya’s Scrobber Rebrands To Kuhire.com & Launches B2B Equipment Hire Section

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kuhire joKenya’s first hiring platform Scrobber.com is launching a business to business hiring platform, just days after rebranding to Kuhire.com as it races to build a community of renters in the region.
Kuhire said it was introducing its B2B system,tailored for business so as not to lock out firm’s that want to lease their equipment. Kuhire for business will be a section where a firm can have its own page or profile where it lists everything it wants to lease out.
However, before its B2B platform, the firm said it realized it needed a name change.
Brian Anyanzwa, co-founder and CEO Kuhire told TechMoran, “Change was inevitable as the previous name was more “corporate” . We wanted to build a community of renters and not a bureaucracy.”

Anyanzwa added, “Scrobber.com sounded more ‘serious’ and not close to the community of item renters we wanted, so we chose a Sheng (Nairobi Slang for rent it) name to make it more fun and friendly. Scrobber, the previous startup name is now the name of our entire company mainly for our corporate dealings while Kuhire is the online classifieds ad platform for individuals and now companies to hire out their stuff.”

Kuhire now has 1000+ and 800 verified listings compared to the 82 hire businesses listed on the platform and 100 inquiries per week as at July 5 during our first interview with the team.

Another Pivot the startup has made is that they expected car hires but amusingly people are looking mostly for wedding gowns and tuxedos (fashionable items.

Another big challenge is adequately meeting the demand from consumers.  “We are making a call to action for people to list stuff they dont use frequently to those who have a need for them. In turn they will earn an extra income. we shall continue to profile everyone on the system to ensure safe renting which is in line with our goal “a satisfied customer comes back with friends,” Anyanzwa said.

 

‘e-Waste’ Could BeThe New South African Gold

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The Africa Institute-for the ‘environmentally sound management of hazardous and other wastes programme officer, Dr. Koebu Khalema said that addressing electronic waste, e-waste, problems in South Africa could be the next money minting industry for the country.

In the Doctor’s research paper labeled “e-Waste South Africa’s next gold rush?”, he said that the increased production and consumption of electronic equipment has led to a rapid growth in e-waste in the country.

Improper disposal of this waste produces could mean an increased health risk and toxic environmental pollution from lead, mercury and other toxic compounds found in most computers and monitors, he has written.

However, he has told ITWeb Africa that South Africa’s e-waste need not be a problem but that it instead presents business opportunities for industry players, especially manufacturers and distributors.

“The industry in South Africa is actually very keen to make sure that they can actually reclaim all the material because of its value,” Dr. Khalema has told ITWeb Africa.“There are other players who would like to set up recycling facilities right here in South Africa, all the role players believe this is the way to go,”

According to Dr. Khalema reclaiming means that e-waste products are reprocessed by industry players instead of ending up in municipal landfills.

More than 60% of electronics disposed of can be reused, refurbished and resold, said Dr. Khalema.

 “We need facilities to actually process all these components and not only certain parts but the overall processing of the components – that’s what we hope it will actually come down to,” he explained.

He also said that such a process need not be specific to South Africa, as other countries in the southern African region could develop similar systems when dealing with e-waste.

Khalema said government and industry players plan to meet in November to discuss the business of reclaiming the country’s e-waste.

 

Tourism Radio & Diners Club Partner To Produce Travel Guides For Most Visited Cities & Restaurants

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Diners-Club-POISouth Africa’s Tourism Radio, a location-based radio station that uses audio to guide tourists has partnered with Diners Club S.A, a charge card firm to produce mobile app travel guides into South Africa’s most visited cities with a focus on Diners Club Wine List Award restaurants.

The guides dubbed the Diners Club SA Travel Guide, cover Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban and Port Elizabeth and run on Tourism Radio’s White Label audio and text travel guide content. Diners Club supplied content on the award-winning restaurants.

The free apps for iPhone and Android  enable Diners Club customers to find places they want to visit and list of restaurants to dine from. They can also be used by Diners Club suppliers or clients for branding, to reach Diners Club customers on their smartphones.

According to Ebrahim Matthews, Diners Club MD in a statement: “Always on the lookout for ways to enhance our members’ experience, we welcome the opportunity to use new applications and social media. By using new technologies and mediums to facilitate conversations among members we can help them to share and enjoy new experiences.”

“Our investment in smart phone applications, like the Diners Club Travel Guide, offers new ways to enhance our members’ passion for exploring and experiencing the finer things in life,” Mathews added.

Diners Club South Africa began 1949 when businessman Frank McNamara arranged a dinner with guests at Major’s Cabin Grill, a New York City restaurant. Once dinner was over, Frank realized he had left his wallet in his other suit. Luckily, the restaurant owner knew him and let him leave his business card as an IOU. He resolved never to face this embarrassment again.

In February 1950, Frank McNamara and his partner Ralph Schneider returned to Major’s Cabin Grill. When the bill came, Frank presented a small cardboard card (a Diners Club Card) and signed for the meal. In the card industry, this event is known as the First Supper and in 1955 the Diners Club Card became the first charge card accepted by airlines.

Since then Diners Club International is now global brand with the world’s first charge card and has been issued 200 countries and accepted by 14 million establishments globally.

 

Zuku TV Hunts Sh8.7bn Expansion Capital

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Zuku Tv which is owned by Wananchi online is in preparation to launch a funding on all sides of of between Sh4.3 billion ($50 million) and Sh8.7 billion ($100 million) to aid in the expansion of its cable business in Tanzania and Uganda before the end of next year.

Richard Bell, the Group’s CEO said that the firm has it in mind to raise the funds both locally and internationally, adding that it has drawn an expansion plan in these two markets.

Zuku already has cable TV service in East Africa but said that there are indications of increasing demand in Uganda and Tanzania and for this reason the need to grow its cable footprint there.

“We are looking to grow our cable TV in Tanzania and Uganda to meet the growing demand, that’s why we will be launching this fresh funding round before the end of next year,” said Bell.

In 2011, Wananchi was able to raise Sh4.9 in growth capital from investors including Liberty Global, Oppenheimer Funds, Canada-based emerging markets fund manager Sarona Asset Management, and African private equity firm East Africa Capital Partners.

Since its arrival in 2008, the pay Tv company, Zuku has been trying to extract the market from market leader DStv through its lower-priced bouquets, but has has not beeb quite successful simply because of the wide popularity of the rival’s English Premier League football show.

Zuku accomplished the migration of its Zuku TV satellite service from SES’s NSS-12 satellite to SES-5 in June, which the CEO affirmed that it gives it more capacity as well as wider reach, across sub-Saharan Africa.

 

Kenya Data Networks Launches Pay As You Use Internet Subscription Model

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Kenya’s largest private data carrier, Kenya Data Networks (KDN) has said it will charge internet subscribers based on what they use as a measure to fight back market share in a competitive environment.

The company, just like the other players in the industry has been leasing internet capacity to customers but will now issue meters to their users.

This move is set it recover lost ground in the data market where other players such as AccessKenya have made inroads and framed out KDN as the top player.

The model, the foreign-majority-owned firm says, will help manage its communication budgets based on actual usage as opposed to the size of the bandwidth.

KDN’s CEO Shahab Meshaki said that some of the measure to take back its market and expand its product portfolio to include video and voice and upgrading its switches to improve the quality of its network.

“I am confident about our current shareholders’ vision and where they want to take this company. Since Liquid came on board they have spent approximately $10 million which has helped us sort the network challenges we had,” said Meshaki.

The CEO added that the firm was still working on the technical aspect of the new billing model, focusing on how they will calculate the usage and also that the new billing system will provide smaller Internet service providers (ISPs).

According to the latest data from the Communication Commission of Kenya (CCK), KDN’s market share dropped to 23.4 percent which holds 21,377 clients in the year to March from 30.2 per cent which holds 24,094 clients in the previous year. This put them in the second position after Wananchi.

 

Nigerian Startup Hits $1 Million In Revenue From Initial $250

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Image: mobileeastafrica.com
Image: mobileeastafrica.com

Africa continues to produce inspirational stories, with the latest being that of  Abasiama Idaresit, an entrepreneur who has been able to grow his company’s revenue from its initial 250 dollars to over one million dollars in 2012.

Abasiama Idaresit is the founder of Wild Fusion, a digital marketing and online media-buying company, and Nigeria’s first ever Google Adwords partner.

Speaking to ThisDayLive, Idaresit said that he went back to Nigeria back in 2008 after completing his degree in Information Systems & Management at the London School of Economics, with an intention to use the internet to change how things were done on the continent.

Starting was not easy for him, since back then, people did not understand about internet advertising, with Facebook being a new concept to many. “People literally chased me out of their offices,” Idaresit told ThisDayLive.

His first breakthrough as an internet marketing consultant came when he was able to convince the owner of Baby M, a company that deals in mother and baby products, to allow him conduct an online advertising campaign for just N40,000 ($250).

The campaign saw Baby M’s revenue grow from $1,000 per month to over $100,000 per month, something that also attracted Google’s attention.

With that, Idaresit formed Wild Fusion, and today, provides digital services to clients including Diamond Bank Nigeria, Pepsi, Vodafone Ghana among others. The company made over $1 million in revenue in 2012, and looking to double that figure in 2013, and over $100 million in the next five years.

The company has branches in Ghana and Kenya, with the latter being the most recently opened.

Econet Launches LTE In Zimbabwe As Millions Await Mugabe Inauguration

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Econet Wireless Zimbabwe has launched Long Term Evolution (LTE) networks, joining ranks as one of Africa’s first countries to evolve to LTE, a technology that allows the fastest mobile Internet speeds possible on a cell phone, which is still not available in most European and Asian countries.

Econet Zimbabwe’s LTE will go live in Victoria Falls August 24 then spread to major cities including Harare. Other countries in Africa with 4G LTE include South Africa, Ghana, Uganda,  Angola, Namibia, Mauritius and Tanzania.

Speaking during the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Econet Wireless CEO Mr Douglas Mboweni said the LTE  launch was an opportunity to show that Zimbabwe “is not dead and buried; we are very much alive, and we have kept pace with developments in the world.”According to Mr Mboweni, his group of companies Liquid Telecom and ZOL, among others have invested heavily in ensuring that telecommunications services in the country’s major cities are world-class.

“Our network is used almost exclusively by the business community in Zimbabwe and we have a duty to ensure that they have the most advanced services available,” said Mr Mboweni.

Econet Wireless added that it was one of the first operators in Africa to launch 3G before countries like India and Nigeria and as a result, Zimbabwe has the highest percentage of Internet access by cell phone in the world, at just over 58% of all Internet users in the country.

Zimbabwe will Thursday inaugurate 89-year-old Robert Mugabe after Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku declared the July 31 elections were “free, fair and credible.”  and declared Mugabe duly elected president.

 

Safaricom Launches House Rent Payments Service Similar to Manyatta Rent

 

payyourrent

Safaricom has announced a new service that will enable house rent payers to submit their monthly dues through mobile money payment, MPesa dubbed Lipa Kodi.

The service will be charge at Kshs 5 from rent amount of Kshs 5,000 to Kshs 220 for upwards of Kshs70,000 rent. This rent range seems to be targeting the small income earners who usually pay through cash or have to do cash deposits.

The service that aims to sell the idea to home agents and owners is targeting to enter into the real estate sector that is quite lucrative in Kenya. It is estimated that the sector is valued at Kshs 17.2 billion.

This new drive complements other MPesa related services including, Lipa na Mpesa, which aims to recruit businesses, small and large to use their services.

Manyatta Rent a Kenyan startup is also offering similar services in addition to free software for management for businesses. The startup uses MPesa to help landlords collect rent from their tenants and charges a small fee for every transaction done.

It is yet to be seen if this new MPesa product will pull the carpet off the young startup or Manyatta Rent will be able to ride on this new wave to increase its market share.

MPesa’s competitor, Airtel Money on the other hand is busy recruiting banks and other companies to encourage the use of their product and increase their user base.

In Kenya, it is not enough anymore to just provide money transfer services. It has to be relevant to the general money transactions.

 

ICT leaders to convene in Nairobi this September

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Image: www.eaosummit.com/
Image: www.eaosummit.com/

Key players in the ICT sector will be convening in Nairobi for the Kenya IT Week, slated to take place on 2nd to 5th of September this year.

The 3 day conference is hosted by the Kenya ICT Board in partnership with KITOS and international business-to-business conferencing company, Kinetic. The Event will comprise of two summits, the 2nd Annual East Africa Outsourcing Summit and the 3rd Annual IT Leaders East Africa summit.

The event will attract researchers, academicians and policy makers in the ICT sector, acting as a platform for both existing and potential players in the out­sourcing space in East Africa to network and gain insight from the major outsourcing regions.

“Kenya is confident of its position within the IT industry and has revealed its intention to become the information and communication technology, and business process outsourcing hub of choice for Africa by 2030,” said the Kenya ICT Board.

The ICT body also said that the event is aimed at boosting the Kenya Vision 2030 of maintaining a sustained economic growth rate of 10 per cent per annum from 2012, with a focus on macroeconomic stability, infrastructural development; science, technology and innovation (STI), land reforms, human resource development, and security and public sector reforms.

Key on the agenda will be to explore the alignment of people, process and technology; offering insight into the solutions available to contact centres today, assisting companies in the negotiations and selecting the tools best suited to their needs.

A New Social Media Site For Mandela Launched

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Mandela

Mandela.is is the latest social networking site created in honour of the ailing former president of South Africa.

The network which names its users “citizens” aims to encourage them to post pictures and photos and emulate the leaders impact on the world.

The site was the idea of two of Mandela’s grandchildren and was spearheaded by the company behind Lady Gaga’s website, Littlemonsters.com

“We only celebrate our icons, our leaders when they have passed away,” Ndaba told AFP. “We came together as a family and said ‘guys, let’s not wait until he is dead, let us start the celebration now (while) he is still moving, talking, communicating.”

The iconic leader has been hospitalized since July this year and the world has been remembering the hero through different activities. Check out our comprehensive article on the same.

Yahoo! Shuts Down Mail Services In China | Hires Dawn Airey As SVP For EMEA

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Dawn_Airey-012Yahoo! has shut down its Yahoo Mail services in China, after a four-month warning to users to shift their mails to alternative services such as Alibaba run Aliyun email Tencent’s QQ Mail or Netease’s 163 Mail.
In a move showing change of focus, the firm has today appointed Dawn Airey as senior vice president of the company’s Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) operation. Airey will report to COO Henrique de Castro.
According to de Castro, “Dawn is well known for her visionary thinking, operational discipline and leadership skills, and I can’t wait to work with her as we position Yahoo! for growth throughout the EMEA region.”
“Together with Dawn’s direction and energy, I’m confident that the future is bright for Yahoo! in EMEA,” de Castro added.
Airey has worked in television for 30 years and has held senior positions in the majority of the commercial broadcasters in the UK. Most recently, she was President of a unit of RTL Group.  She joined in September 2010 from the Broadcaster Five where, as Chairman and CEO, she oversaw all operations. Previously she was Managing Director of Global Content at ITV where she oversaw its UK and International production and content businesses. Prior to that she was Managing Director, Channels & Services, at BSkyB. She has also held senior posts at Channel 4.
Airey was awarded a fellowship by the Royal Television Society (RTS) in June 1998.  She is a Vice President of the RTS, a member of the Board of the British Library, a non-executive Director of Thomas Cook PLC and Chair of the Grierson Trust.  In December 2011, Airey was appointed Chair of the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain.
 Dawn joins Yahoo! during an exciting renaissance led by CEO Marissa Mayer. Dawn will be at the helm of driving change, innovation and growth for the EMEA region.”
She replaces Christophe Parcot, who has served as Yahoo!’s interim lead of EMEA from November 1. Parcot will take on a new role with Yahoo!

Mark Zuckerberg, Ericsson, Nokia, Qualcomm & Samsung Launch Internet.org To Take Internet To Over 5 Billion

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mark-zuckerberg-scaled-812312030Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has partnered with Ericsson, MediaTek, Nokia, Opera, Qualcomm and Samsung to launch internet.org, n a move to make internet accessible to the next 5 billion people.

Internet.org is to make internet access available to the 5 billion who are not yet connected, and to bring the same opportunities to everyone that the connected third of the world has today.

“Everything Facebook has done has been about giving all people around the world the power to connect,” Zuckerberg said. “There are huge barriers in developing countries to connecting and joining the knowledge economy. Internet.org brings together a global partnership that will work to overcome these challenges, including making internet access available to those who cannot currently afford it.”

Facebook, Ericsson, MediaTek, Nokia, Opera, Qualcomm and Samsung — will develop joint projects, share knowledge, and mobilize industry and governments to bring the world online. Internet.org is influenced by the successful Open Compute Project, an industry-wide initiative that has lowered the costs of cloud computing by making hardware designs more efficient and innovative.

Internet.org will focus on making and adopting technologies that make mobile connectivity more affordable and decrease the cost of delivering data to people worldwide such as lower-cost, higher-quality smartphones and partnerships to more broadly deploy internet access in underserved communities. Reduce the amount of data required to use most apps and internet experiences and supporting news models that lead to increased access so as mobile operators, device manufacturers, developers and other businesses provide more affordable access than has previously been possible.

Nokia is deeply passionate about connecting people – to one another and the world around them said Nokia President and CEO Stephen Elop. “Over the years, Nokia has connected well over a billion people. Our industry is now at an exciting inflection point where Internet connectivity is becoming more affordable and efficient for consumers while still offering them great experiences. Universal internet access will be the next great industrial revolution.”

“This new initiative has big potential to help accelerate access to the Internet for everyone,” said JK Shin, CEO and President of the IT & Mobile Communications Division at Samsung Electronics. “We’re focused on delivering high quality mobile devices to ensure that the next five billion people have great mobile Internet experiences.”

The Internet.org website launches today and provides an overview of the mission and goals, as well as a full list of the partners. In the coming weeks, it will feature interviews with technology leaders and experts, along with the latest news on Internet.org activities.

South African Government and FNB Make Business Registration a Breeze

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Business Card

First National Bank (FNB) South Africa has partnered with the South African government to launch a new initiative that will enable individuals open businesses with ease through an integrated system.

“First National Bank (FNB) partnered with the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC), a public entity reporting to the Department of Trade and Industry (the dti), in an endeavour to streamline the company registration and corporate bank opening processes,” the company announced.

This is in a drive to help small and medium enterprises in Africa by making it easier to settle legal documents and make relevant payments.

“A key theme for the dti and its agencies is continuous improvement and reduction of red tape for the end-user. This is exactly what this project is demonstrating: it is a public private partnership in the true sense of the term, where government and the bank partnered to offer its different products to their mutual customer through an integrated process,” the Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr Rob Davies said.

“This FNB partnership is one of a number of initiatives that we are implementing to reduce red tape for small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) and promote efficiencies for end-users,” he added.

The system will use FNB’s online platform to open and pay for registration services. This will make it almost instant for potential business owners to get their companies legitimized.

“The process is instantaneous and will reduce red tape, improve service delivery, become more accessible to the broader public and will improve the integrity of the register as well as reduce the turnaround time which is dependent on the speed at which the entrepreneur provides the bank with its “Know your customer” documentation and payment for the service,” says Astrid Ludin, Commissioner of CIPC.

Mandalay Digital and YellowDot Partner with MTN for Mobile Content in Cameroon

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Mobile added value services
Image from Whiteafrican.com

Starting September this year, MTN customers will be offered a new wide array of content from Mandalay Digital a mobile service provider and YellowDot a value added service provider.

The new partnership deal with the three companies will give users SMS and gaming-based content through its Digital Turbine Marketplace™.

“This partnership is an exciting step forward for us as we continue to expand our services to new territories,” says Noy Hazan, CEO of YellowDot, Africa.

“The demand for data and cellphone content is growing rapidly in the region and we hope that we can do our part to help meet that growing demand. Operators have to continuously be aware of mobile trends, and what we are noticing is that while consumption of voice content and services has plateaued, VAS content, such as gaming and music content is just beginning to take hold.”

“This deal is a win-win for MTN, YellowDot and Mandalay,” added Peter Adderton, Chief Executive Officer of Mandalay Digital Group. “We are excited about our expansion into the mobile market in Africa where we can continue to leverage our knowledge and technological abilities to drive higher consumption of quality content.”

MTN Cameroon has 7.5 million subscribers which is approximately 56 percent of the total mobile users in the country.

The agreement marks Mandalay Digital’s first venture into the African mobile market and YellowDot’s continued growth on the African continent, the second largest mobile marketplace in the World.

Kenya Launches fund for Film Production and Music to a tune of Kshs 600 million

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Film production

The government of Kenya through the Youth Enterprise Development Fund has set aside Kshs 600 million for film and music production in the country.

Half of that money will be used as loans to give out to production houses for film production with hopes of it earning income.

The other remaining half will be used to promote music production in a bid to grow youth employment in this sector.

“We have outlined measures and structures that if implemented would create over 5,000 job opportunities annually for young people,” fund chairman, Gor Semelang’o, said according to the Daily Nation.

The film industry in Kenya has been lagging behind as compared to its Tanzania neighbor. Analyst see the arts as a way of encompassing millions of youth who are unemployed but highly talented.

Over the years, local independent film makers have been making money through the production and sale of low cost budget movies aptly named Riverwood after the street where they are commonly found, in downtown Nairobi.

This new move by the government should see more film makers accessing cash for their production, which has been a hindering factor in film production.

Uhuru Kenyatta Asks China To Invest In Kenya’s $10 Billion Konza Technology City

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kenyatta chinglyAfter signing energy and railway line deals worth $5 billion with China, Kenya’s president Uhuru Kenyatta wants China to invest in Kenya’s Konza technology city.

The Konza Technology City, a $10 billion dollar project on 5,000 acres is Kenya’s Vision 2030 plan for job creation and economic development. The Konza Technology City was initiated in 2009 as Africa’s ‘Silicon Savannah’. The site is expected to create over 20,000 direct and indirect jobs. The city will be developed under Public Private Partnership where the Government will take minimal role by developing the basic infrastructure and regulatory guidelines. ICT stakeholders expect the city to be “a beacon of excellence in the league of Egypt’s Smart Village, Mauritius’ Ebene Cyber City or even US’s Silicon Valley where innovative minds interact with financiers to transform ideas into global products”

Leading companies, including Safaricom, Kenya’s leading mobile network provider, software firm Craft Silicon,internet service provider Wananchi Online, among others have shown interest. International mobile phone manufacturers such as Samsung and Huawei have also expressed interest.

Kenyatta also asked China to invest in its new oil industry, $25.5 billion Lamu port  and wildlife protection especially elephant tusks mainly shipped to China for use in making ornaments. The agreement was made during Kenyatta’s ongoing state visit to China where he is meeting China’s resident Xi Jinping and Chinese investors.

Kenyatta’s visit to China is a promise he made before his election into power March 4. His lean towards the East comes after isolation from the West due to his indictment for crimes against humanity at the International Criminal Court after the 2007 post-election violence.

Scholars argue that China is taking advantage of this isolation to ‘invest’ in the country and ship its raw materials away.  China is not new to Africa, it is Zimbabwe’s biggest investor and funder of development projects. In Kenya, it has bankrolled key construction projects.

Microsoft To Launch Its MSN Portal In Nigeria

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msn-logoMicrosoft is set to launch its MSN portal in Nigeria, in a move to expand across Africa. The firm has at the moment launched its portal already awaiting an officially launch this September.

MSN Kenya is already operational, and was launched after MSN South Africa.

MSN is published in Africa in partnership with South Africa’s Kagiso Media under its HowZIT brand name which the firm says has grown rapidly to become South Africa’s largest website by audience according to the OPA. Run by Marcus Stephens,General Manager, its African expansion is anticipated to be dilutive of profits in its first year it will still show strong revenue growth and profit especially from mobile.

Like MSN Kenya, MSN Nigeria has dedicated local news on sports, entertainment, lifestyle, weather, politics plus African and world news.

According to TechLoy, Nigeria’s leading Tech blog, Microsoft Nigeria will officially launch the MSN Nigeria portal early September. TechLoy adds that MSN Nigeria syndicates Nigerian local news from the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) and from other publishers.

Kenyan Primary School Ditches Bulky Textbooks For Kindles

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kindlesMenara Primary School, a primary school in Muhoroni, Kisumu County, Kenya has ditched bulky textbooks for Kindles in the latest move to make learning interesting, friendly and cheaper for parents who will not have to buy books each new school year.

Organized by the Kindles for Schools Project, a pilot programme started two years ago by Worldreader, and US-based Gordon Family Connect Africa Programme and the Robert Ouko Community Initiatives run by Mrs Christabel Ouko, widow of the late Robert Ouko.

According to the Business Daily, “The project aims to maximise the use of digital technology in the village by providing age-appropriate government specified textbooks in multiple subjects, African and International titles for leisure reading.”

The report adds that each pupil has been given a 3.5GB Kindle containing over 308 titles including storybooks, question-answer revision papers, past papers, dictionary, atlas and various bible versions. The Kindles are 3G Internet-enabled, have simple easy search features for users to easily locate book titles and definitions. The Kindles have a longer battery shelf life for longer use and can also be used as phones as they have phone functions.

The school is reporting high enrollment due to interest from learners to familiarize themselves with the gadgets.  The organizations are planning to roll the Kindles into more primary schools in the country.
Started March 21 last year, over 208 digital books were loaded on 46 e-readers including 37 books by local Kenyan authors and Textbooks for Standard 1- 4, the goal is to use technology and teacher training to create an environment that supports reading and learning. The Kenyan government is also working on introducing tablets for all class one pupils who enroll next year.

 

 

Kenya’s KCB Launches New Portal To Drive Online Banking

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KCB Group CEO Joshua Oigara reveals the new website
KCB Group CEO Joshua Oigara reveals the new website

Kenya’s KCB Bank Group has unveiled a new portal in a move to drive digital banking.

The new portal, www.kcbbankgroup.com, will allow the banks customers to carry transactions online  conveniently. It also brings together the banks other sites with different products. The bank expects its clients to utilize the site for internet banking services such as KCB Bankika, KCB Mobi Bank and the KCB Diaspora Banking.

KCB Group CEO Joshua Oigara said users can transfer cash, make payments and get their bank statements without visiting a physical branch.

With over 210 branches across Kenya, Tanzania, Sudan, Uganda and Rwanda, KCB Group is East Africa’s largest bank with total assets worth KShs 369.5Billion.

Check out more details here.