Benin –DIY wireless enthusiasts launch Wi-Fi broadband and IP-to-IP calling

The do-it-yourself wireless movement has strong roots in the developed world and its enthusiasts have provided a constant guerrilla challenge at the edges of the market. But in Africa there have been a number of factors that have held it back. Regulation has until fairly recently favoured the incumbent and discouraged wireless innovation. Despite several attempts to seed the idea and some occasional enthusiasm, potential techie-activists  have (as with Open Source) seemed more interested in discussing the idea than actually doing anything about it. But something seems to have changed with the launch of Contonou-Wireless by a group of wireless activists, writes Isabelle Gross.

It all started when Mathias and its friends Abslom, Armel, Gildas and Gilles were shopping around for an affordable internet connection. To carry on working together on various IT projects, Mathias Houngbo and his friends needed connectivity in the evening at home after work. The initial idea was that each of them would get a broadband connection, but as it turned out, at 45,000 CFA Francs per month each (about US $90) for 128/64 Kbits, the cost of an ADSL connection was too high. Moreover, one of the five could obtain not obtain a dial up-connection, let alone an ADSL connection because there were no phone lines available in his area.

Full of hope, they contacted local ISPs offering wireless internet access but there again, as Mathias tells it the equipment and the monthly subscription for the connection were well above what they could afford. From their discussions to find a solution came the idea to build their own wireless network based on Wi-Fi technology, just as the French wireless association (www.wireless-fr.org) had already done. But all of this was great in theory, but in the real world, the problems were just around the corner.

Like many associations that rolled out a wireless mesh network, Cotonou-Wireless was confronted right at the beginning with issues such as cost and reliability. In order to keep equipment costs low they decided to go for a wireless Linksys router which they “sourced” in France at an affordable price (about €80). Mathias points out that this router is reliable and boasts good performance, but more interestingly, the firmware for the access points is based on the open source Linux software.

At present each home is equipped with a Linksys WRT54G and either an omni-directional antenna at 10 dbi for the relay nodes on the mesh network or a simple antenna at 20.5 dbi for an end user.  Mathias also told us that the Linksys WRT54GS or the WRT54GL works well too.

With their expertise, Cotonou-Wireless could afford to take the open access software route to expand their mesh network, using standard wireless equipment that can be found almost anywhere. However, Mathias explains that the retail price of these routers is so hugely inflated in Benin that he and his partners had to obtain a direct supply from France. The Linksys box works on Linux and the operating system is therefore accessible and can be improved and updated.

Several groups of developers have worked on it and have released improved versions of the original firmware, such as Open Wrt, DD-Wrt, and Hyper Wrt. Cotonou-wireless has opted for FreiFunk Firmware (Freifunk meaning free wave in German), an adaptation of Open Wrt. Freifunk’s open source firmware offers a web enabled administration application as well as the option to integrate the OLSR protocol developed by the INRIA (Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et Automatique). OLSR, which stands for Optimised Link State Routing, is a routing protocol for mobile ad-hoc networks. The protocol is pro-active, table driven and utilises a technique called multi-point relaying for message flooding.

Cotonou-Wireless access is protected with a dedicated firewall that runs on Linux too. Its primary function is to block all unauthorised access, but it also allows traffic shaping to optimise bandwidth use. Although the wireless mesh network was primarily intended for data, they have added voice capabilities and offer IP to IP calls. The idea is to use one of the computers as an IP PABX, running with Asterisk, an open source VoIP software. Any member of the wireless network will be able to install a small piece of software on its computer, then log in and call anybody else on the network for free, using a headset or an IP phone.

Cotonou-Wireless is a community group which is run on a non-profit making basis, explains Mathias Houngbo. The association’s aim is to provide wireless internet access to users throughout the capital city of Cotonou in the Republic of Benin. Mathias hopes to use open source software and a selection of affordable Wi-Fi equipment to make the Internet accessible at more affordable price to a wider number of members of the community.

He believes that this technology can be used to get people to communicate with each other, and this will help to create new communities. Cotonou-Wireless intends to use its access points to promote exchanges between its users, develop local usage of the Internet and provide information that will appeal to local people.

So what’s the future for Cotonou-wireless?  Mathias says that they are looking to add new members to their mesh network, while at the same time getting all the paperwork ready to make the association official. Entrepreneurial spirit is clearly a key motivator for Mathias, who during the day works as developer and network administrator for the BCEAO (Central Bank for West African States), and the group is keen to share their experience with others. In parallel, Mathias and his friends have set up a website, www.cotonou-wireless.org, which they intend to use to further stimulate communication and the development of local content to serve the community.

NIGERIA: V-MOBILE OFFERS SHARE OPTION TO ECONET BUT WANTS CELTEL

A three-year battle for control of one of Africa's hottest cellphone properties, Nigeria's V-Mobile, took a new twist last week when a 65% share-purchase  option was offered to Johannesburg-based Econet.

Although the Nigerians want to accept a US$1bn bid from pan-African operator Celtel, Econet already owns 5% and has the first right of refusal to any other shares that are offered for sale. http://www.armdiscoveryfund.com/

Econet dispatched a team of 20 legal, financial and technical experts to Nigeria yesterday to begin due diligence, although it would not comment on whether it believed the asking price of $1bn for 65% was fair.

"Our lawyers are going through the documents to confirm whether it's a bona fide and valid offer," said spokesman Sure Kamhunga.

Econet originally agreed to buy 33% of V-Mobile for $150m in 2003 until the Nigerians began negotiating to sell their shares to the far larger Vodacom instead.

Econet won an interdict preventing the sale of any shares until the issue was resolved in court. That legal stalemate was one reason why Vodacom quit its long-running quest to buy V-Mobile in February.

However, V-Mobile has continued to negotiate with other potential investors, resulting in an announcement by Celtel on Sunday that it had struck a condit-ional deal to buy 65% for $1bn.

Celtel's communications manager, Martin de Koning, would not say what the conditions necessary to firm up the offer were, but they should include settling the dispute with Econet so that a change of ownership can proceed.

Celtel will now be hoping that Econet cannot afford to buy the shares, or finally agrees to an out-of-court settlement to drop its legal action.

However, Kamhunga said Econet had enough money to buy the shares and had no intention of being paid off.

Celtel is Africa's third-largest cellphone operator after MTN and Vodacom, and it bid for V-Mobile through its new parent, the cash-flush Kuwaiti operator MTC.

V-Mobile has about 5-million subscribers, so $1bn for 65% worked out at about $310 a customer, said telecoms analyst Dobek Pater of Africa Analysis. Recent takeovers in Africa have seen companies pay anything from $400 to $500 a subscriber, making the V-Mobile deal substantially below the prevailing rate. "A Nigerian operator should expect more because the market is still in the early stages of growth," said Pater.

"There are about 22-million subscribers at present and we calculate it will go to 50-million in the next few years.

Nigeria is going to be a bigger telecoms market than SA, so Nigeria is key for any operator that wants to be counted in Africa." Pater expects Nigeria's cellphone market to ultimately hit 90-million customers.

V-Mobile's shareholders include the First Bank of Nigeria with 20,1%, three state governments and some institutional investors.

(SOURCE: Business Day)

SOUTH AFRICA TELECOMS 'AMONG WORLD'S MOST COSTLY', SAYS NEW SURVEY

Charges for both fixed-line and cellphone calls in SA continue to hamper efforts by South African companies to compete in the world's shows.

The survey, conducted by a US-based telecommunications and energy cost control consulting group NUS Consulting, says telecommunications charges in SA remain high despite competition in the cellphone sector and notwithstanding Telkom's reduced charges for national and local calls last year.

"According to our latest annual survey of 14 of the world's most important telecommunica tions markets, our tariffs for national long-distance calls and cellphones are still the highest of the major world economies with which we do business," said Stephan Dolk of NUS Consulting in SA.

According to the survey, a three-minute national call (a call made over a distance of 320km) using a fixed-line phone costs $0,34 in SA while a similar call costs $0,08 in Sweden, the lowest call rate among the 14 countries surveyed. Similarly, a three- minute national call on a cell phone costs $0,74 in SA while a similar call costs $0,16 in the US.

Dolk said SA's fixed-line charges for local and international calls were the second-highest after those charged by operators in Belgium and the US respectively. He said fixed-line operator Telkom should be applauded for reducing its prices despite the ongoing continuing lack of competition.

"However, the decreases simply do not match up to the widespread price reductions made by telecommunications operators in many other countries, where charges for many call categories have dropped sharply as a result of competition," said Dolk.

Telkom said its prices were competitive. Company spokeswoman Lulu Letlape said call charges were used to subsidise the cost of the access network. "This is a deliberate strategy to ensure that the barrier to entry is kept as low as possible. We are of the opinion, therefore, that in terms of the basket of products, another operator would find it difficult to be cheaper."

Telkom had also said previously that its international tariffs were not determined unilaterally but were a product of agreements between it and other operators on whose network it connects for international traffic.

The NUS said Telkom had "alienated" its customers through its high telephone and internet prices and that the second national operator could capitalise on this "general feeling of anger and frustration" to cannibalise some of Telkom's market share.

Telkom said last year that it could lose 10%-15% of its market share to the second operator, which The second operator is expected to be launched in June.

The US, which has the lowest cellphone tariffs among the countries surveyed, is the most expensive country in as far as international fixed-line rates are concerned.

The study shows a three-minute international call from New York to London costs $0,78 while a similar call from London to New York costs $0,13.

Also surveyed were Spain, Germany, Canada, France, Denmark, Italy, The Netherlands, Australia and Finland.

(SOURCE: Business Day)

SA’S INTELVISION LAUNCHES ITSELF AS SEYCHELLES' THIRD TELECOMS OPERATOR

South African firm Intelvision on Wednesday launched Seychelles' third telecoms operator, boosting competition in the islands' telecoms sector, an official said.

The company started telephone and internet services, saying its charges would be lower than the country's other two service providers Airtel Seychelles and British-owned Cable and Wireless.

There are 21,000 landline telephone connections in the 120-island archipelago of 80,000 people. Seychelles' 54,368 subscribers are served in nearly equal proportions by the two existing operators.

India's Bharti Enterprises, the parent company of mobile phone service provider Bharti Televentures, owns Airtel Seychelles.

Intelvision's marketing manager, Sabrina Didon, said the company aims for cheaper services than the two companies. "Our monthly rental charges are 50 rupees compared with 72 rupees for Cable and Wireless," Didon told Reuters.

She added that their local call rates stood at 50 cents per minute compared with Airtel's 70 cents and Cable and Wireless' 82 cents.

Intelvision will charge 1.00 rupee per minute for local calls to mobile phones, compared with Cable and Wireless' 2.00 rupees per minute and Airtel's 2.60 rupees per minute, she said.

She added that the company will charge 3.90 rupees per minute for international calls, compared with its two competitors' 6.75 rupees per minute.

Intelvision first entered Seychelles in 2004, offering the archipelego's first and only cable-supported television service.

The firm will use a hybrid of optical fibre cable and coaxial cable to connect its subscribers, which many say is faster than the narrow-band satellite links offered by the other two companies.

Cable and Wireless had a monopoly in Seychelles for decades until Airtel launched its services in 1998.

(SOURCE: Reuters)

NIGERIA’S SNO GLOBACOM TO ACQUIRE STAKE IN AN INDIAN OPERATOR

Second national operator (SNO) Globacom Limited is to acquire stake in an Indian operator as part of its plans to explore beyond the Nigerian telecoms market.

Globacom, a relatively new entrant into the Nigerian telecoms business, has been built from ground up by Nigerian businessman, Mike Adenuga Jr., has commenced the initial phase of its international exploration through the foray into the Indian telecoms market.

Based on its plans, the SNO, which has no plans to set up a fresh telecoms business in India, wants to acquire an existing industry player before moving into the nation’s oil and banking sectors at a later date.

Chief Operating Officer (COO), Globacom Limited, Mohammed Jameel (an Indian national himself) was quoted by The Economic Times of India as saying that the SNO plans to invest some $700 million in India. It also hopes to explore new markets in Morocco, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Ghana and Benin Republic. Globacom would employ some 150 Indians out of the 400 people planned to drive its expansion into global markets.

The Indian newspaper estimates the value of Adenuga’s MA Group with interests in oil, banking and telecoms to be in the region of $5 billion.

“We are a cash-rich company keen on foraying into India, as the telecom market here is booming. We are not averse to investing in call centres, banking and petroleum sectors in India. We have decided to make India the Asian hub for our manpower needs for telecom,” he says adding that, “we are looking at a strategic partnership with one of the existing telecom operators. Globacom is going to invest $500-700m in India.”

He said the company is already in talks with some Indian operators for picking up equity stake, as well as for technology tie-ups. “The talks are in preliminary stages, but the response has been good,” he said, refusing to divulge names of companies.

But the firm is not keen to put money in smaller operators as it will be difficult to get returns in future. “We are not eager to pick up equity in any small firm,” he adds.

A team from Globacom is in India to identify manpower sourcing channels for fulfilling its requirements. “India is a reservoir of skilled and technically competent manpower in the telecom and retail sector. Manpower sourcing has been identified as a critical area by MA Group,” he added.

"We are in talks with some big players in the field of telecommunication in India for entering into a strategic relationship. Talks are at initial stages. However, an announcement is expected in the next two to three months," according to Jameel.

"The Indian telecom sector is slightly crowded. But, it has huge potential and requires significant investment to grow further," he adds.

"Our subscriber base is expected to cross the 10 million- mark by the middle of the current year and total turnover to cross $1.25 billion," Jameel said.

(SOURCE: Technology Times)

ERITEL WANTS TO PUT TELEEPHONE LINES IN ALL MAJOR CENTRES IN 3 YEARS

The Eritrean Telecommunication Corporation (Eritel) disclosed that it is making relentless efforts to meet the demands of its customers and is working on the distribution of telephone lines in all urban centers in the next three years.

The manager of Eritel, Tesfaselasse Berhane, said that most Eritrean cities and towns have mobile services and that work in progress to connect the remaining ones.

Plans to distribute mobile telephone lines to Nakfa, Afabet and Assab have already began and that work in the first two towns is expected to be completed within the 3 months time. Moreover, the lines in Assab town have been replaced with new ones, thereby alleviating the existing problem. Satellite connection enabling Assab town all the regions and abroad without operators has also been carried out.

Tesfaselasse added that the project to distribute mobile telephone service to the Southern Red Sea region has reached Gelalo and the Dahlak islands. Furthermore, the corporation has disbursed 1.2 million dollars for replacing the numbers starting with 11.

As regards internet service, the bandwidth would be increased in the next two months due to the growing number of customers.

In the past couple of years, Eritel has disbursed over 120 million Nakfa and is still allocating funds for the construction of office buildings and other purposes in different urban centers.

(SOURCE: Shabait)

AREEBA LAUNCHES NEW OPERATION IN GUINEA

Lebanese wireless holding group Investcom has announced the launch of its newest cellular operation, in the west African state of Guinea. Services, offered under the group’s preferred  Areeba banner, are initially only available in the capital city of Conakry, although national coverage is a long-term goal. Investcom was awarded its operating licence by the Guinean government last year and swiftly selected Ericsson to install the new equipment. Areeba will compete for customers with three others, namely Telecommunications de Guinee, SpaceTel and Intercel Guinee.

IN BRIEF:

- President Thabo Mbeki has signed the Electronic Communications Act (EC Act), formerly the Convergence Bill. A notice that he has assented to the Act was published in Government Gazette number 28743 and is available on the Department of Communications' Web site. The Act provides a regulatory framework for the convergence of broadcasting, broadcasting signal distribution and the telecommunications sectors. The Act also repeals the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the Independent Broadcasting Authority Act and portions of the Broadcasting Act. However, there are other legal processes that have to take place before it becomes operational law.

- The Chairman of the Tanzania Communication Regulatory Authority (TCRA), Rajabu Yusufu, says the average cost of making telephone calls has increased dramatically since the government privatised the industry. Yusufu blamed the rise on the imposition of new taxes on telephone facilities by various authorities, while has placed an additional burden on investors and operators. High import tariffs on telecoms equipment – all of which have to be imported – have undermined efforts to improve access to the masses. He said that the number of people connected to the PSTN or a mobile network numbered just four million out of a population of 35 million.

- Nokia has introduced an IVR system in local language in Nigeria. The phone manufacturer has introduced Nigerian languages like Hausa, Yoruba and Ibo as local language options on their mobile phones. This will be in the menu and manuals of the phone.

- Qatar's Qtel has announced its second partner in the bid for the 3rd Mobile License in Egypt. Qtel says that it has partnered with Naeem Holding, an Egyptian company; one of the fastest growing Investment Banking houses in the region. Qtel has already announced its partnership with ST Telemedia, an information-communications company. Together, Qtel, ST Telemedia and Naeem Holding have formed a consortium, of which Qtel is majority owner, to jointly bid for the 3rd GSM License in Egypt.

TELECOMS, RATES, OFFERS AND COVERAGE

- Celtel Tanzania has launched a mobile internet access service based on GRPS/EDGE technology offering significantly faster data connection speeds than those of existing dial-up and GSM alternatives. Announcing the launch of the Celtel Access service, the company’s Managing Director Steve Torode said, ‘Celtel Access gives post-paid as well as pre-paid customers the freedom to stay connected and be more productive while on the go.’

- Uganda MTN has introduced a reduced tariff for its publicoms. The tariff structure has been revised to meet the increasing demand for the affordable telecommunication services. All customers can now make a 15 second call to any MTN number for Shs100. In addition to that, the tariffs now allow callers to communicate with a minimum of Shs100.Furthermore, customers can also be able to make short international calls for a minimum of only Shs100. MTN Publicom has set up over 2,600 pay phones in over 150 towns and trading centers all over Uganda, hence taking affordable communication services nearer to the rural people.

- Touch, South Africa based leading provider of content and applications for mobile telephony has opened its headquaters base in Lagos. The move, according to the organisation is to facilitate its business expansion plan across African continent. The new office will house sales, customer support and marketing teams, along with the engineering staff, the aim being to maintain the company's technical system to give Nigerian customers the same fast, easy access to content and services enjoyed by I-Touch customers around the world

 - Mobile operator MTS First has commenced operation in Port- Harcourt. This will be the fourth city after Lagos, that MTS will be anchoring its services since the beginning of this year. In the last two months, MTS has extended its services to Abeokuta, Ibadan and Abuja. It has also spread extensively to all corners of Lagos State.

- Morocco's Maroc Telecom has signed a roaming-service deal with Batelco Mobile. The agreement brings wireless Internet service to Batelco postpaid handsets enabled for GPRS/MMS (general packet radio service/multimedia message service) technology.Tapping into Maroc Telecom's network will allow visitors to the North African nation to access high-speed services such as Internet browsing and transmissions of pictures and other large files.

- Orange, Cote D’Ivoire Telecom’s mobile subsidiary has announced that its pre-paid customers would be able from now on to use roaming when abroad. Without any extra costs (except for the roaming charges of course) pre-paid customers will be able to use their phone in seven African countries (Burkina Faso, Mali, Ghana, Nigeria, Togo, Sénégal and Equatorial Guinea) and two European countries (France and Spain).

BOTSWANA’S PRESIDENT MOGAE PLEADS WITH NAMIBIA TO JOIN WAFS FIBRE PROJECT TO GET FRIENDLY ACCESS TO SEA

In an unusual move last week, Botswana President Festus Mogae extended an invitation to his Namibian counterpart Hifikepunye Pohamba to participate in the WAFS undersea fibre project. Perhaps Namibia needs encouragement as although it invested in the SAT3 fibre, it failed to provide enough investment for a landing station. As a result, it now pays either for satellite transit or expensive transit fees via South Africa.

Mogae, who is in the country on a state visit announced that Botswana is seeking to expand its connectivity by participating in several initiatives including the West African Festoon Systems (WAFS). (However as a landlocked country, Botswana will need a friendly seaboard country like Namibia if it is not to be held to ransom on rates as it currently is by South Africa’s Telkom.)

The WAFS project aims to connects countries along the western coast of Africa from Nigeria to Namibia.

Participation of both Namibia and Angola is very critical as this project qualifies a country for two landing points," Mogae told Pohamba.

He added that Botswana was currently negotiating with Angola to participate in the project whose closing date for acceptance of new members is next month.

For a coastal country like Namibia, the required minimum investment is US$10 million, Mogae revealed.

The country has also completed detailed feasibility studies for the East African Cable System (EASSy) whilst the one for the West African Festoon System (WAFS) is in progress.

In the meantime, Botswana continues to seek transit routes through neighbouring countries to link the country to the sea, hence the plea to Namibia.

Botswana has already installed fibre-optic rings to boost the reliability of telecommunications links along the eastern part of the country and plans are at an advanced stage for the provision of the trans-Kalahari fibre optic transmission system to replace the existing obsolete microwave systems linking Jwaneng-Ghanzi-Maun-Orapa and Sebina-Nata-Kasane. The project will also include spurs from the main trans-Kalahari ring to the borders of Zambia and Namibia.

(SOURCE: New Era)

ALGERIA BECOMES THE ARAB WORLD'S WIMAX PIONEER

WiMAX is commercially available in Algeria, while several operators in other Arab countries have started testing the service. Smart Link Communication (SLC) has deployed WiMAX to provide broadband wireless services in Algeria. SLC's goal is to build a wireless broadband backbone covering the national territory, to develop the metropolitan broadband networks, and to set up an independent new generation telecom infrastructure. On July 25, 2005, SLC launched the first national multi-services network. The deployment of this network makes it possible to develop services based on Broadband Wireless Access (BWA), VoIP, Virtual Private Network (VPN-IP MPLS). Algeria's tough and mountainous terrain makes it an ideal candidate for wireless connectivity solutions.

"There are still no detailed regulations specific to WiMAX in Arab countries. Some Arab countries, however, have specified the type of license that needs to be obtained to provide WiMAX service. For example, in Algeria, the company should have a VOIP authorization and regulator has specified the 3.5 GHz band for WiMAX, while in Jordan, the company should have an individual license needed to use the frequency (a scare resource)." Ms. Serene Zawaydeh, a consultant at Arab Advisors Group wrote in the report

WiMAX stands for World Interoperability for Microwave Access. WiMAX/IEEE 802.16 is a global standard-based technology for Broadband Wireless Access. WiMAX vendors state that WiMAX systems are able to cover a large geographical area, up to 50 km and to deliver significant bandwidth to end-users at up to 72 Mbps. According to the WiMAX forum, WiMAX provides coverage economically and combines both Line of Sight (LOS) and None Line of Sight (NLOS) coverage. With Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) technology, WiMAX has been optimized to provide NLOS coverage (up to 15 Km around the base station) and long-range transmission up to 50Km in Line of Sight conditions. WiMAX technology can be deployed as a Point Multi-Point in last mile connection and as part of the backhaul to the PSTN and Internet access points.

(SOURCE: Cellular News)

NIGERIAN FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO SUPPORT THE ESTABLISHMENT OF NIGERIAN IXP

The Federal Government is to actively support the establishment of Internet Exchange Points, IXPs around the country in order to encourage the proliferation of the technology among the Nigerian people.

To this end, the board of the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC has recently approved a proposal to fund the setting-up of Internet eXchange Points, IXPs, in Nigeria and the collaboration of NCC with the ISP Industry under the umbrella of Internet Service Providers Association of Nigeria (ISPAN) to achieve this objective. The proposed IXPs will operate on a not-for-profit basis.

The NCC has also approved the appointment of Digitek TeeVee Engineering Co. LTD to manage the implementation of the first phase of the IXP project in Lagos.

The Internet is a network of interconnected computer networks and IXPs are the points at which multiple networks interconnect. In the absence of domestic IXP an Internet Service Provider (ISP) must send all outbound traffic through its international links, most commonly satellite. The aim of building a Nigerian IXP is to keep and interchange local Nigerian internet traffic such as e-mail, download of local website content, file transfers via ftp, etc within Nigeria and allow only international traffic to be exchanged at points outside Nigeria.

At present, local internet traffic is exchanged outside the country, often across several hops with the attendant high cost of service delivery which limits internet penetration & local-content distribution, associated security risks, and the potential increase in congestion of international access circuits which could negatively affect Quality of Service.

The NCC held a consultative meeting on 28th February 2006 with the key industry stake-holders at its Abuja office, after deliberations, an industry committee was set-up to discuss and agree a way forward for the rapid establishment of the IXP for Nigeria. Membership of this committee includes Engr Ndukwe Kalu, CEO, Amsco Telecoms and VP for ISPAN who was appointed the Committee Chair, and the other members are Mr Ike Nnamani, CEO, Medallion communications Limited, Mr Tosin Oni, CMO, Interconnect Clearing House Nigeria Limited, Mr Femi Adalemo, HOD,Content Emperion WA, Engr O. T. Abiodun, DGM, Nitel Internet Services, Mr Abubakar Yakubu, Assistant Director, licensing, NCC, and Engr. Chris Agha, Deputy Manager, Technical Research and Standards NCC. The committee recommended that the IXPs be built with 7 branches in Phases; these branches are to be located in Lagos, with Main-branch at NECOM House, and additional 2 sites at Ikeja and Victoria Island, Ibadan, Port-Harcourt, Enugu , Abuja, Kano and Maiduguri, after which further sites will be built as may be required. All sites are to be link using high Capacity IP back-bone of over 100Mbs.

(SOURCE: Vanguard)

ZAMBIA'S POSTAL SERVICE REVOLUTION FIGHTS EXTINCTION WITH E-POST

In a bid to save itself from being declared 'a closed shop' by its customers due to technological advancements the Zambia Postal Service Corporation (Zampost) has embarked on fresh initiatives aimed at introducing Hybrid mail service which is also known as e-Post.

This facility helps in promoting communication through letter writing between Internet users and people in remote areas without access to communication gadgets.

  The new e-Post concept aims at reviving the habit of letter writing which has over the years been under threat of extinction after the coming of the Internet.

The e-Post concept, which will soon be launched in Zambia aims at transforming electronic mail into physical mail.

Zampost public relations manager, Francis Mumba, said the country's postal service provider came up with the new concept after teaming up with Coppernet Solutions, an Internet service provider in order to bridge the seemingly growing communication gap between those with access to the Internet and those without.

"We are simply responding to the continued threat to the tradition of letter writing and the provision of postal service existence after the Internet which developed as an efficient alternative.

"A lot of people find it easy and faster to communicate using the Internet than writing letters, putting them in envelopes and then going to post the letter at the nearest Post Office which is a time consuming process," Mumba said.

According to a recent Zampost findings, the levels of physical mail traffic has over the years been declining.

The findings show that few individuals were communicating to each other through the use of physical mail.

Zambia Telecommunications Company (ZAMTEL) has now started making attempts to re-capture its market after the introduction of the Internet.

ZAMTEL officials said there was still some hope to recapture the market because the majority of Zambians have heard about communicating using the Internet but they lack access.

Mail sent under e-Post will be treated as priority mail status and expected to be moved faster than ordinary mail

Mumba noted that the Universal Postal Union (UPU), an umbrella body for all postal service providers in the world was encouraging Zambia and other developing nations to come up with means of integrating the new communication technology or resort to e-business.

ZAMTEL has acquired state of the art equipment which will enable it to easily use electronic mail to generate physical mail.

According to Mumba , instead of being pushed out of business as widely expected Zamtel is using the new technology to help it to create business for the letter posting service.

"ZAMTEL is set to use the new technology widely seen as a threat to its traditional postal service business to create more or additional business for the postal service provider," he stated.

He said that with the assistance from UPU, Zampost and Coppernet Solutions have jointly devised a formula which enables those who use their Internet mail box as a means of communication to send messages someone with no access to the internet through the use of a special coupon, which works like scratch card being issued to clients of mobile phone service providers.

The scratch cards will also be sold by e-Post vendors in Internet cafes.

He added that the e-post service coupons come in three types: Those costing K2,500.00 transferring mail from a Internet mail box to a postal mail box from Ndola to Lusaka. The service which will soon be opened to the public on a pilot basis being offered by Ndola's Kansenshi and Lusaka Main Post Offices.

The machines for the service have already been installed at the two post offices.

"It's just a simple process one just need to log in on the hosts web page address: www.e-post.com.zm and they will have their mail delivered to a person without access to the Internet by our express mail officers," Mumba said.

The usage of the service is not only meant for those living in Zambia. Some people living abroad also have access to the service as long as they have in possession the special coupon number.

Mumba disclosed that ZAMTEL has put in place measures which would enable as many people as possible to have access to the coupons, which would be sold in Internet café's and post offices.

Using the special scratch cards anyone with a post office address can receive as many messages as they could depending on the number of coupons the sender has acquired.

(SOURCE: The Times of Zambia)

RWANDA PICKS ICT AGENCY RITA AS ITS VEHICLE FOR EASSY FIBRE BID

The Rwanda government has nominated its ICT development agency, RITA, as its official representative to the multi-million dollar Eastern African undersea cable project. But RITA must be licensed first as an operator before joining the consortium, according to the conditions governing it.

RITA executive director, Dr. Shem Ochuodho, told Business Week in an interview last week that Rwanda's membership to the consortium was through Rwandatel, which has since been sold to Terracom.

He said RITA has since been nominated as the government's representative to EASSy but that hurdles over its status as a government body were hampering its active participation in the consortium.

"We have been negotiating with other EASSy members over these hurdles but as you may know, RITA operates the Rwanda Internet Exchange (RINEX) and we hope to be a licensed data operator," he said.

Controversy has been brewing among consortium members over its financing ever since the World Bank expressed willingness to jointly finance the project on condition that members accept its Open Access principle.

The project, expected to cost US$200million has had a financing shortfall because some of the members are unable to raise the required capital from their own resources, prompting a call of help from the World Bank.

The Open Access principle holds that members must accept not to charge excessive premiums from non-members when the project is complete.

Consortium members, however, contend that they own the project and have a right to charge market rates to recover their investment.

Under the World Bank offer, members must relax their exclusive right to capacity and other tight controls and allow unlimited use of the project, lest the purpose for which it was created, namely increase use of telecoms services through low rates, will be defeated.

"It would be the same as a similar one running through West Africa which has not helped people due to high telecom prices," another official said.

Also proposed by the Bank under the open structure, is funding through commercial debt and equity.

The 8,840km undersea project, mooted two years ago, has 20 consortium members from over a dozen countries, with Kenya leading the group.

Others are South Africa, Botswana, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Malawi, Madagascar, Somalia, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi, Sudan and Zanzibar.

(SOURCE: East African Business Week)

HIGH COSTS HAMPER DOMAIN DISPUTE RESOLUTION IN SOUTH AFRICA

The Department of Communications expects progress to be made on the development of an alternative domain name dispute resolution process within the next three months. The absence of an alternative dispute resolution process (ADRP) has led to high costs for businesses, say industry players. According to Calvin Browne, a director at the .co.za domain name administrator Uniforum, the lack of an ADRP for domain names is also hampering the development of Internet commerce in this country as it leads to high court costs to resolve disputes.

“The lack of an ADRP means the only alternative a company has to settle a dispute is to go to court and this can easily cost from R20 000 upwards,” he says.

E-lawyer Gerrie van Gaalen, who is handling two disputes for clients, echoes Browne's comments.

“An ADRP can make an award in terms of two parties disputing their domain names; however, Uniforum cannot. It works on a ‘first-come-first-service' basis and it does not have access to the databases that register trademarks and company names,” he says.

Van Gaalen says it hampers access to markets when companies with well-known names cannot use the domain name with which they are associated.

“Part of the problem is that in some cases a Web designer or service provider has registered the domain name ‘as a favour' to a company and then refuses to release it once a dispute arises,” he says.

Mike Silber, a board member of the .za Domain Name Authority, says the original draft regulations were issued for public comment towards the end of 2004.

“An extensive consultation process has been held and as far as I am concerned the Department of Communications has done everything it needs to do,” he says.

Silber says most of the groundwork has been done so that once the regulations are promulgated, the ADRP can be set up as quickly as possible.

The Electronic Communications Act states in section 69 (1): “The minister [meaning the minister of communications], in consultation with the minister of trade and industry, must make regulations for an alternative mechanism for the resolution of disputes in respect of the .za domain name space.”

It goes on to say the regulations must be made with due regard to existing international precedent, and prescribe procedures for the resolution of certain types of disputes determined in the regulations and which relate to a domain name registration.

“Consultations between this department and the Department of Trade and Industry are almost complete,” says Albi Modise, the Department of Communications' director for media. “We expect final progress to be made within the next three months at in inter-ministerial level.”

(SOURCE: ITWeb)

IN BRIEF:

- The Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) will hold its public hearings into its proposed ADSL regulations before the end of May, though firm dates have yet to be set, it says. The hearings will focus on pricing, speeds, caps and contention rates, among other issues.

- The number of websites in Algeria remains still "insufficient" compared with other Maghreb countries, an expert considered Tuesday during a seminar international on new technologies which is being held in Algiers. "The number of websites in Algeria reached 1, 400 sites only, produced in their majority by Algerians living abroad," the former Director of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Informatics Programme Youcef Mentalechta stressed in an address devoted to "E-governance: present and perspectives."

MICROSOFT TRANSLATES WINDOWS INTO THREE SOUTH AFRICAN LOCAL LANGUAGES

First-time computer users who are daunted by a barrage of alien terms and technologies will find the learning process far easier as Microsoft finally converts its most popular software to Zulu, Setswana and Afrikaans.

Schools, community centres, government bodies and individuals can download the software to convert the popular Windows XP operating system into user-friendly native languages.

The programs sit on top of the system and translate 400000 words and phrases, including all menu items, tool bars, help files and error messages.

The Zulu version will be launched in eThekwini today, with the Setswana version due in May and Afrikaans in June.

Versions in the other seven official languages will probably be finished only for the new Vista operating system next year.

Microsoft had been preparing local-language software for about two years, as the process took far longer than expected, says Gordon Frazer, its MD in SA.

"We are pretty excited about it. It's something we have been working on for some time in partnership with a lot of people because we had to deliver linguistically correct versions."

Although some open-source software is already available in a handful of African languages, until now there has been little to cater for the 90% of PCs running the dominant Windows operating system.

The first word processors in Zulu, Sepedi and Afrikaans were released by the Zuza Software Foundation in 2004 so people could work in their mother tongues. Again, those programs took more than two years to develop, with Zuza founder Dwayne Bailey citing the difficulty in translating words such as spreadsheet or format.

Debates about how to translate phrases such as "your printer is not connected" were the main stumbling point for the Microsoft developers, too.

They consulted the Pan South African Language Board, the National Language Board, several universities, various communities and government's departments of science and technology, arts and culture, education and communications.

"We wanted to get consensus on the terms and terminology to protect the integrity of the languages. We didn't want to just say e-this and e-that," Frazer says.

But if there was no suitable translation some English words did sneak in, with Zulu users offered an "e-Internet" icon.

Frazer expects most demand for the software to come from new computer users.

"The benefit will be for first-time users who don't speak English and have a fear of PCs.

"I think we will see quite a big take-up in schools and in the 50 community computer centres we sponsor where English is an issue.

"But I don't know whether the provincial departments in KwaZulu-Natal will use the Zulu version rather than English."

The software can be downloaded for free from microsoft.com, but to reach people without internet access it will be distributed on CDs as well.

Microsoft will also supply it to schools around the country, building on its existing commitment to supply free software to every state school to increase SA's computer literacy.

"We are not looking at it from a commercial perspective. We see it as a way to make Windows more relevant to the local marketplace, and it's also part of our corporate citizenship."

Microsoft SA has spent more than R1m on the project so far, and will spend more.

(SOURCE: Business Day)

FACE TECHNOLOGY BEHIND NSSF SHS6B LOSS, SAYS UGANDAN MP

Face Technology caused the $3million (about Shs 6billion) loss to the National Social Security Fund, Kasilo county MP Elijah Okupa told Parliament on Thursday NSSF lost over Shs6 billion in setting up a computerised system, which failed to work.

This was revealed by PKF, an international auditing firm, sanctioned by the Auditor General to audit NSSF's Integrated Management Information system.

Okupa said, "The report quoted by the media did not name the company that caused NSSF the $3billion loss. I want to bring it to the attention of this House that it was Face Technologies."

"If Face Technologies could fail to handle a project of such little money, how can it manage a project of $153 million? I want us to rise up, take a stand and save this country from losing a colossal sum of money," he told a parliamentary session chaired by the Deputy Speaker, Ms Rebecca Kadaga. The procurement of national identity cards is to cost government more than $153 million.

Face Technologies, a South African firm in charge of the computerised driving permits, was also awarded a contract to handle national identity cards beating Supercom and Contec in a controversy-ridden bid deal.

It took the intervention of the Prime Minister and the Finance Ministry to halt the project following allegations of underhand deals by some government officials. The Inspector General of Government is investigating the allegations.

Mr Francis Mashate, the chairman of the contracts committee of the Ministry of Finance, had declared Face Technology the winner on January 23.

Museveni is reportedly unhappy with a series of scandals that have dogged the project delaying its takeoff. The parliamentary finance committee is yet to produce its report into the allegations that have marred the national identity card tender, which Parliament will debate tomorrow. Okupa said he had a letter from the Zanzibar finance minister detailing how Face Technologies failed to handle the national identity cards there.

"We should be concerned because we shall be losers like Zanzibar," he said.

Rubanda West Member of Parliament Henry Banyenzaki, a member of the finance committee, wondered why Parliament was delaying to discuss the report on Face Technology. when it was "ready a long time ago".

(SOURCE: The Monitor)

CNTI APPEALS FOR COLLABORATION ON COMPUTERISED CRIME LAW FOR ANGOLA

The National Information Technology Commission (CNTI) appealed to experts of the sector for a greater participation in the elaboration of the law on computerised crime, protection of data and information security.

CNTI has already elaborated the bills that aim at improving with the contribution of citizens, jurists and experts of the sector.

The bills are found on public consultation since late January, in the www.angola-online.ao site, but at the moment CNTI has only registered five contributions.

CNTI's press attaché, Luísa dos Santos said that it is urgent for citizens to participate in the conclusion of the documents for the later approval of the Cabinet Council.

She added that the documents should have been analysed in March, but due to the feeble collaboration of the population and of experts it was postponed "sine die".

Speaking to ANGOP, Cadete Mondlane an engineer with CNTI stressed that it is urgent to reflect about these laws because the country is growing and the economy is almost totally based on the use of information technologies.

(SOURCE: Angola Press Agency)

NIGERIA RANKED THIRD IN THE WORLD FOR CYBER-CRIME, SAYS SURVEY

A computer crime as well as cyber survey conducted recently indicated that Nigeria is the most internet fraudulent country in Africa. Besides, the same report further stated that the giant of Africa is ranked third among others identified with cyber fraud and computer crime in the world.

The report contained in a global computer crime and security survey brought stakeholders in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in Nigeria together at Heinrich Boll Foundation (HBF) Conference Hall to discuss how to facilitate information security, reduce security breaches, and steps to contain cyber crime in Africa.

Dr. Martins Ikpehai, chief executive officer, Computer Audit and Security Associates Ltd, Lagos heightened tension of the participants when he disclosed that the third world war might be fought on the computer considering how different attacks were being launched through internet.

Ikpehai, expressing concerns on how terrorists have been distorting information on internet, said internet facility has recently become an instrument of terrorism. He reiterated that the third world war might be fought on computers as terrorist groups like Al Queada have been taking advantages of internet facilities to launch attacks and invectives.

This development, he stressed, has called for concerted efforts among stakeholders, civil society groups, corporate bodies and government institutions to join forces together to rid the continent of the imminent terrorist attacks through the use of information technology.

"Law enforcement agencies such as Economic and Financial Commission (EFCC), Independent Corrupt Practice and other related offences Commission (ICPC), State Security Service (SSS), the Nigeria Police among others play prominent roles in the fight against the new trend of social vice.

"Computer security and cyber crime awareness should be created with a view to sensitising all users of the internet facility with the emerging indicators of crime and fraud being committed through computer.

"Need now arises to the surviving mega banks, oil multinationals, business conglomerates and communication firms from untold sorrow which the cyber criminals have resolved to inflict on most businesses" he said.

All participants at the three-day conference agreed in various papers presented that the law enforcement agencies and judiciary in the continent have roles to play in devising ways of curbing internet fraud and enhancing their skills in computer security and risk management.

Participants at the conference, upholding the standpoint of the internet group's president, unanimously stated that the diplomats, international legal practitioners and international institutions have roles to play in ensuring that legal provisions at the international level.

Sensitising them with the effort by the internet group to outlaw the practice, Ajayi said the group had sponsored Computer Security and Cybercrime Bill in the National Assembly, and that its passage would mark the beginning of the war against internet crime in the country.

He explained that "it is not enough to ensure that the bill is passed. But there is also need to create a centre where the victims of security breaches can lodge complaints. The Nigeria Internet Group has set up Cybercrime and Security Support Centre mainly to serve this purpose."

Messer Bankole Olubamise, the executive director, Development Information Network (DevNet) said the security breaches has become so rife and frequent that it required concerted efforts of stakeholders in the industry to bring an end to computer crime in the country.

He said: "variants of cybercrime include unauthorised access, theft of proprietary info, denial of service, inside net abuse, financial fraud, misuse of public web application system penetration, laptop theft, and abuse of wireless network, sabotage telecom fraud and web site defacement.

"There is need to devise means to stop perpetrators of internet crime. There is need to secure the present global village, mega businesses and the posterity from the protracted evil of cyber crime without delay," he said.

Olubamise, drawing inferences from the 2005 Computer Crime and Security Survey conducted by the CSI and FBI, said it was necessary for information stakeholders to conduct survey and research with a view to containing cyber-related crimes and computer security breaches.

Worried by challenges that face African countries, Mr. Jide Awe, who presented paper on Building Global Competitiveness through Computer Security Education, Awareness, Training and Certification, said lack of understanding, education, training, unclear policies of government, insufficient information security and low confidence exhibited in Africa's e-business.

He charged the information security expertise in the continent to identify threats to computer security, protect both internal and external threats, and human error has been a major threat to cyber security which need be addressed with care and skill acquisition and enhancement.

Giving more insights on how such crimes can contained, Awe said since survey indicated that human action contributed more to security failure than technological weaknesses, more people need be educated to understand security threats, vulnerabilities and other breaches.

Participants from different African countries resolved to establish African Information Security Association (AISA) at the end of the conference with a view to promoting knowledge and creating awareness about computer security and cybercrime on the continent.

It was resolved in a communiqué that AISA would serve to promote global best practices in information, computer and internet security, campaign against cybercrime, conduct annual survey on information security, promote legislation and regulations and create linkages and networks in Africa.

(SOURCE: This Day)

MOROCCO TO HOST OUTSOURCED BANKING, INSURANCE AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY CENTRES

 Speaking at the "Moroccan Youth Days" held in the Paris-based Arab World Institute (IMA), on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Moroccan independence, Fourtou said the computer consultancy and services group Cap Gemini has decided to install centres in Morocco.

Cap Gemini sent representatives last week to Morocco and is opening a centre in Casablanca to deal with a number of its customers in Europe from the north African country, Fourtou said.

The Axa group and the « Banque Nationale de Paris » are also considering the possibility of opening production centres in Morocco, said the chairman of the surveillance Council of Vivendi Universal.

Fourtou said the implantation of French enterprises in Morocco shows the “deep dynamic and trust investors have in the Moroccan economy”, adding French outstanding groups of the CAC 40 are already present in the north African kingdom.

 Morocco has set up dozens of telecommunications call centers employing some 10,000 agents. It offers skilled, French-speaking, young personnel, tax exemption for a five year period as well as installation assistance and administrative facilities.

(SOURCE: MAP)

IN BRIEF:

- Young people from eight African countries have formed an e-Africa Youth Programme to promote information technology in their countries. The body has been formed as a New Partnership for Africa's Development (Nepad) initiative. Their first step will be to create an internet portal for sharing information on matters such as career guidance, skills development, learning materials and sources of funding.

- The multi-lingual computer keyboard, invented by a Nigerian engineer, Walter Oluwole, has started selling in the United States. According to Oluwole, based in the U.S., the product, named "Konyin"--meaning honey drops in Yoruba--has attracted encouraging patronage in the U.S. where a marketing company has bought the right to market it. The wireless and multimedia model of the keyboard sells for about $199, while the basic model goes for about $55, according to the company's price list.

KENYA SAFARICOM SIGNS KSH12BILLION LOAN

Mobile telephone operator Safaricom has signed a Ksh12billion (about US$166.6 million) loan facility to finance the company's planned expansion of its network.

Safaricom's chief executive, Michael Joseph, said the funds raised from the transaction would be invested in the network, repay all the existing borrowing including a Ksh4billion (about US$55.5 million) bond, Ksh2.5 billion (about US$34.7 million) Export Credit Agency (ECA) and another Ksh3 billion (Euro 35 million) ECA facility as well as facilitate a special dividend.

Announcing the loan, the largest of this kind in the Kenyan market, Joseph revealed that the loan had been approved by both the ministry of finance and the ministry of information and communications.

"The additional cash will allow us continue with the expansion of our network, to add new functionality and features to meet the growing demand of our subscribers," said Joseph.

The loan has been arranged by a consortium of nine local banks led by Standard Chartered Bank of Kenya Limited as the global coordinator and book runner, mandate lead arrangers are Barclays Bank of Kenya Limited, Citibank N.A, Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) and Stanbic Bank of Kenya.

Other banks that played a key role are Commercial Bank of Africa Limited, Cooperative Bank of Kenya Limited, CFC Bank Limited and NIC Bank Limited.

The loan, repayable between 2008 and 2011, will attract interest rate on one percent over the 91-day Treasury Bill.

Safaricom is scheduled to unveil new products, aimed at improving on its service delivery, in the next two weeks. The new products come in the wake of subscriber expansion that was projected to hit a 4 million mark by the end of March and close to 5 million subscribers by the end of the company's financial year.

Safaricom will also pay a dividend to its two shareholders, Vodafone and Telkom Kenya Limited (TKL) according to the proportion of their shareholding in the company, which stands at 40 and 60 respectively.

However Joseph pointed out that TKL's dividend would be used in turn to pay a debt owed to Safaricom by TKL.

"As at December last year, TKL owed Safaricom KSh2 billion (about US$27.7 million) as the principal debt thus the dividend will be more of a book transaction meant to offset part of the debt," announced Joseph.

Meanwhile Kenya's minister for information and communications, Mutahi Kagwe, said his ministry is looking for ways to ensure that Kenyans access affordable mobile services.

He said the ministry was in negotiations with the ministry of finance for a possibility of lowering taxes charged on mobile call tariffs.

Kagwe also said that the need to grant an international gateway to both Safaricom and Celtel Kenya would be an advantage in reducing the high rates charged on international calls.

"We have already presented a paper to the minister of finance, Amos Kimunya, in relation to the reduction of taxes on mobile calls," Kagwe said.

(SOURCE: East African Business Week)

SOUTH AFRICAN ALTECH CASH PILE TOPS R1,5BN ON YEAR OF GROWTH

Technology group Altech is sitting on R1,5bn in cash while its directors continue their long-running quest to find suitable acquisitions to spend it on.

A solid year of cash generation from its 20 businesses has seen Altech grow into a R6bn company, turning in an after-tax profit of R369m.

Now the directors are assessing several potential acquisitions to strengthen its telecommunications, information technology and multimedia operations both locally and abroad.

For the year ending February 28, Altech's revenue was up 9% from R5,5bn and headline earnings a share of 379c were up 12% from 338c. The cash pile alone generated R54m in interest, allowing the company to declare a dividend of R2,09, or R200m, and barely dent its bank balance.

"It's a good set of results, and our order book sits at R855m where last year it was R665m," said CEO Craig Venter.

The one blip came from NamITech, a division specialising in smart cards and SIM cards. NamITech's poor performance dragged down the operating income of the IT division from R151m to just R40m this year.

"We bridged the shortfall from NamITech with an exceptional performance from the other companies and still got 12% growth in headline earnings a share," said Venter.

The strong rand, pricing pressures and management issues hit NamITech, and a "rectification programme" has cut its costs by R70m but clocked up a goodwill impairment of R82m.

Its new manufacturing plant in Nigeria is already profitable and producing a million pre-paid cellular vouchers a day, and NamITech should post sound results this year, said Venter.

The UEC division, which produces set-top boxes, reported strong earnings after a previously poor performance. The successful launch of its personal video recorder (PVR) decoder for MultiChoice in November contributed R70m of revenue in just one quarter. The product has won orders from pay-TV operators in Greece, Dubai and Nigeria, generating business worth R421m.

Overall, Altech's most successful units were Autopage Cellular and Netstar. Autopage is SA's largest independent cellular service provider, serving 700000 users.

Autopage has secured its future by signing five-year deals with cellular providers Vodacom and MTN, preventing either of those operators from trying to muscle out the middleman.

Stolen vehicle tracking division Netstar benefited from strong sales of new cars and now tracks 362000 vehicles, boosting its profit by 50%. It also tracks 32800 vehicles in Malaysia and is working on African expansion plans.

Venter said he was happy with Altech's composition but wants to beef up each division. "We are keeping everything and will complement with some large acquisitive growth," he said.

(SOURCE: Business Day)

MAROC TÉLÉCOM’S 1Q SALES UP 12%

Moroccan fixed line and mobile operator Maroc Télécom last week announced a 12% year-on-year increase in first quarter revenues, driven by an 8% rise in fixed line and internet sales and a 15.5% jump in mobile turnover. Revenues from all telecoms operations stood at MAD5.276 billion (USD591 million) for the quarter. Earlier, the telco reported that its net income in 2005 rose to MAD5.809 billion (USD633.6 million), a 12% increase compared to 2004.

Maroc Télécom had 1.336 million fixed line subscribers at the end of March 2006, down from 1.341 million at the end of December 2005. It added 339,000 mobile customers in 1Q06 to reach a total of 8.576 million, whilst ADSL subscribers increased by 54,000 to stand at 296,000. Its mobile customer total was lower than its December 2005 figure of 8.8 million due to the recent compliance with Moroccan regulator ANRT’s definition of subscribers, which includes pre-paid users making or receiving a voice call during the last three months only and excludes resiliated post-paid customers.

(SOURCE: Telegeography)

AS SIERRATEL INVESTIGATION STARTS NEXT WEEK, THE GOVERNEMNT OWES IT OVER $10 MILLION

As the proposed investigation instructed by President Kabbah into the activities of one of the most lucrative but backward parastatals, Sierratel is expected to start next week, the government of Sierra Leone is indebted to the telecommunications outfit over $10 million, investigations mounted by Concord Times reveal.

Investigations reveal the debts of Sierratel are largely due to the non-payment of bills by government offices, including that of the President and some prominent individuals dating back to 2004 and beyond.

However, Concord Times investigation further unearthed cases of mismanagement and corruption by some company officials that have left office.

According to findings, the office of the President combined with that of his Vice have to pay Sierratel bills for IDD lines about two billion Leones.

The IDD lines in offices of government ministers and other government functionaries have incurred hefty amounts in the tune of hundreds of millions of Leones.

Sources at Sierratel maintain that with all these bills paid, the company will be able to meet its indebtedness to other mobile phone companies like CELTEL and Millicom that the former has to pay $9.4 million and $4. million respectively.

Sierratel's problems of debt collection and degeneration started since 2001. Some reports say some of the General Managers ran the company like their private property and fleeced the company thousands of dollars.

Other investigations by Concord Times reveal the company has not been able to sustain viable investments like the card phone system that would have brought meaningful revenue to the company in order to sustain it in competition with other mobile phone companies today. Sierratel failed to take the lead in mobile telecommunications despite the fact that they had the 'gateway' to the world initially as all other local phone companies had to go through their network before accessing the wider world.

Reports monitored at Sierratel say the current management has put in place a structure to help reduce their indebtedness.

(SOURCE: Concord Times)

IN BRIEF:

- Orascom Telecom is to increase its stake in Hutchison Telecom International by 3.7%, lifting its overall ownership to 23%. ‘It'll take a couple of weeks because we'll have to get approvals from countries in which they are operating,’ Orascom Telecom chairman Naguib Sawiris commented. Orascom operates GSM networks in Algeria, Pakistan, Egypt, Tunisia, Iraq, Bangladesh and Zimbabwe and is traded on the Egyptian bourse and on the London Stock Exchange. The firm's subscribers exceeded 30 million by the end of 2005, and Sawiris is keen for the company to expand its reach. 'We think things will pop up in the coming two years ... we're looking at increasing our footprint in Europe because just being in Italy alone [via Wind] is very lonely,' he said, before adding, ‘There are single operators in Austria, there's one in France, there's one in Holland, so there are opportunities still open. If you look at what happened in America, all the big guys came together and there's half the number of operators you used to have a number of years ago... It's very clear that size matters.’

- DATATEL's Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Christain Ogoo disclosed his company would soon start selling shares to the local populace as they increase their network countrywide for which they have sourced funds. He said they have sourced a loan of $15 million that would be used to build additional cell sites across Sierra Leone. The CEO said DATATEL is no longer an individual, but now a public entity that would have 40% of its shares sold out to would be buyers.

- Investor confidence in South African technology company Datacentrix has returned, with its shares briefly jumping 15% to R3,40 after strong year-end results made up for disappointing interims. The interim glitch was eradicated as its revenue hit R1bn for the first time in its history. For the year ending February 28, its revenue was up 17% from R882m, and attributable profit of R49,9m was up from R42m. Headline earnings per share of 28,7c were 12% up from 25,7c a year ago.

START-UP GIVES COAST ITS FIRST ONLINE SHOP IN KENYA

As more people turn to the Internet to transact business, the upsurge in online shops has spread to the Kenya’s Coast. Pwanitech, a company based in Mombasa, has launched onlinebiashara.com, an Internet marketing web site.

Besides listing company contacts and physical address, the site also provides a town guide complete with maps, safety tips for travellers as well as police, hospital and ambulance hotlines. There is a host of information about where to stay, travel directions and a shopping guide complete with location of outlets and prices of various items and hours of operation.

"We have listed major companies in Mombasa so that those who log onto the site are able to get these contracts," says Juma Mitsumi, 26, an IT specialist and co-director at Pwanitech. He explains that the web site has a bias for tourists because Mombasa is the country's tourism hub.

"To find their way around town, tourists will only need to check into a cyber café, log onto the web site and print out the map of the town. They may not have had a chance to obtain the maps and other vital information at the time of departure and this is what we are taking care of," says Mr Hassan Sumba, the site's marketing executive.

Going by the excitement shown by the business community and local leaders who attended the launch on April 7, the service is likely to be a hit Mombasa. The choice of the historic Fort Jesus for the launch could not have been more apt. In fact, onlinebiashara.com is the first e-commerce web site at the coast.

The launch was attended by Heritage minister and Likoni MP Mr Suleiman Shakombo, who was chief guest, and Changamwe MP Ramadhan Kajembe. The tourism industry was represented by Mrs Saada Khamis, the Kenya Association of Hotel Keepers and Caterers (KAHC) Coast executive officer and Mr Zul Harunani, Kenya Hotel and Restaurants Association chairman. They all pledged to support business.

"The web site will go along way to market tourism products and we commend these young men for their efforts," Mr Shakombo said, pledging that his ministry would use it to market historical sites. "We believe that the web site will go a long way to cater to the needs of modern day tourism," Mrs Khamis said.

According to Mr Mitsumi, who designed the web site, onlinebiashara.com will initially deal with marketing and advertising before expanding to buying and selling section. It has been in operation for the one month.

Pwanitech started as a networking and hardware maintenance company, and later turned into a web designer and software developer. Some of their clients include Datoo Kithiki, a land company, Czar Motors, Ruth Crafts, Smart Force Traders, which deals in car accessories, and Ketty Tours among others.

And with this stable of clients, the company's director, Mr Mabarak Salim, is optimistic that selling will commence soon. "Our sales people are in the field recruiting companies and since the annual fee of Sh500 is quite low, we are talking of having all businesses around here being listed. The web site is also expected to charge for advertising."

"We want the Coast to be at par with the rest of the county," Mr Salim says, pointing out that it was time the region discovered its potential while exploiting opportunities in tourism.

Indeed, according to Mr Sumba, it wasn't easy convincing Coast business people to be listed, let alone pay for advertising. "Most people have not embraced information technology and do not even appreciate the power of the Internet in business," he says.

Seeing the site live after six months of labour is one thing, but maintaining it to appealing standards is quite another. "The site has an appealing interface and a user-friendly menu and we intend to keep improving it in terms of appearance and content," he says. On tourism, he plans to work with writers who will provide features for inclusion on the site.

Despite the challenges, there is hope - the numerous comments he has received since the shop went live. The site has attracted over 22,000 visitors in a span of only a month, which is "quite overwhelming. I think we are headed somewhere," Mr Mitsumi says.

"This is an excellent web site where one can get everything concerning the coast," one of the visitors commented, writing from Nairobi, "and you have linked us with Mombasa. I was able to get all the contacts I needed."

Which brings Mr Mitsumi to the next level: online selling. "We are also aware of the challenges especially with regard to selling and buying online and we are prepared for that." he said. "We will liaise with other partners who offer credit to make the shop a reality."

(SOURCE: The Nation)

ONLINE MEDIA COMES OF AGE IN SOUTH AFRICA

Local online advertising revenue is expected to reach R183m in 2006, and to pass the R200m mark in 2007, according to a survey from World Wide Worx.

“Online Media in South Africa 2005”, a study conducted with the co-operation of the Online Publishers Association (OPA), which represents the country's 25 major online publishers, reveals an industry that is quickly shaking off the slump of the early 2000s.

It took the online publishing industry nine years, from 1994 to 2003, to grow to the R60m revenue mark, yet it is set to treble that amount in the subsequent three years.

“It is looking very positive for online advertising – a medium that has finally come of age,” says Arthur Goldstuck, MD of World Wide Worx.

“But this phenomenal growth masks the fact that the numbers would be far higher if the advertising industry woke up to the potential of the medium.”

The study found that lack of awareness within the traditional advertising industry of the efficiency, measurability and reach of online advertising has held back the growth of the medium.

By the same token, it underlined the potential of the medium should advertisers and agencies become better educated about online advertising.

Shirley Singer of Insights Research, which collaborated with World Wide Worx on the research project, noted that 2004 was the first breakeven year for the industry, after an overall loss of R18m for 2003.

“The industry only moved into clear profitability in 2006,” says Singer. “The conclusion is that companies need to invest time, money and patience in developing their online presence.”

As in SA, the growth of online advertising revenue in the world's largest media market, the USA, resumed an upward path in 2003, after falling dramatically in 2000.

“Ironically, online advertising is one arena of online activity in which SA has seen more substantial percentage growth than the USA over the past four years, and where the growth rate for 2006 is similar to that in the USA,” says Goldstuck.

OPA chairperson, Russell Hanly, agrees: “The local online advertising industry is growing rapidly and can now claim itself to be tracking global growth trends.

"We believe that online advertising is now a strong creative platform that offers real connections with consumers whilst being highly measurable and data-driven.”

(SOURCE: ICT WORLD)

PEOPLE

*Former President, Nigeria Internet Group (NIG), Emmanuel Ekuwem, has been appointed President of the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) held by the telecom industry association in Lagos. He succeeds CEO/President, Mobitel Limited, Late Alaba Joseph who died in controversial circumstances in office during a controversial takeover bid of his company September last year by a Lagos bank.

* Michael Dabal is  the new chief commercial officer at Celtel Kenya. Mr Dabaly, seconded by Celtel International to Kenya i has somehow earned his bragging rights. Mr Dabaly has worked in the region for 17 years in the tobacco industry, advertising and then telecoms and has lined up closely guarded new products.

* Tracey Newman, managing director of FrontRange Solutions South Africa, is to leave the company at the end of April for personal reasons.

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