MTN’s purchase of Cameroonian ISP may spell the end of independent ISPs

Africa’s largely small ISPs are under threat from all sides. The launch of broadband by the telco incumbents in an increasing number of countries has shifted the balance of market power decisively back in the direction of the telco. Most of Africa’s regulators are lagging behind the position in addressing the issues raised by DSL broadband roll-out. Unified licences mean that services defined by technology will disappear. Powerful mobile companies are now wanting to make sense of expensive upgrades like GPRS and are looking to add Internet operations. The purchase of GlobalNet in Cameroon by MTN may be the first of a growing trend that spells the end of independent ISPs, writes Russell Southwood.

MTN Cameroon announced in October 2005 that it wanted to purchase local ISP GlobalNet. It is understood that it offered FCFA2 billion to buy the company. The sale was opposed by the local private sector operators association Conestel (Collectif de opérateurs nationaux exploitant dans le secteur des télécommunications). It sought to argue that the sale of the ISP was in effect the sale of a national interest, “because the Internet remained one of the last elements of sovereignty.”

On more plausible grounds, Conestel sought to argue that it constituted “an abuse of dominant market power”. It pointed out that MTN already was using 40 mbs out of the 133 available and the regulator ART had never given Conestel’s members the kinds of frequency allocation opportunities enjoyed by MTN. It had promised Conestel’s members 10 LWANs but only 4 had thus far been been installed.

Three weeks ago MTN Network Solutions received official notification that it had been granted a first category operating licence for providing Internet services. This was despite a number of assurances being given to Conestel that the sale would be reconsidered. According to sources that spoke to local newspaper, Le Messager, the move to grant the ISP licence to MTN was in effect a quid pro quo for allowing the incumbent Camtel to enter the mobile market. With clearance having been granted for the sale, there is already local speculation that Orange is seeking to buy another local ISP, Creolink.

MTN Cameroon’s Corporate Communications Co-ordinator hit back at those opposing the sale by saying:”When you look at the actual market situation of the Internet in Cameroon, the situation is as follows: access to the Internet remains a luxury for the wealthy and for small companies. High prices remain a limiting factor. Access is only possible in the large urban centres of Douala and (the capital) Yaoundé. Rural populations do not yet have access. The products and services offered are very limited. The actual networks of ISPs are not very reliable and service to consumers is very weak.” The reasons why this is the case may be a subject for debate but as a description of the country’s Internet sector, it would be hard to fault.

In issue 227 Everything solid melts into air; welcome to the new business model we predicted that the boundaries between the voice, Internet and data sectors of the business would begin to break down. ISPs would go into the (eventually legal VoIP) business and mobile companies would repay the compliment by buying into ISPs and data and network providers. Unified licensing will simply accelerate these processes.

Unfortunately most of Africa’s ISPs are in no shape to respond competitively to the “big battalion” mobile companies. They are too small, undercapitalised and have often not sought to do more than live quietly (and unimaginatively) off the dial-up market of capital cities. Too few are making the kinds of innovative technology moves that will allow them to avoid getting crushed by the resurgent incumbents. DSL is allowing the incumbents to put the squeeze on ISPs that all too often were amongst those who campaigned for the opening up of markets. But too few are reacting like Africa Online (see Internet News below) and seeking to build out local loop infrastructure.

As a result, Africa’s ISPs are in danger of being crushed between the existing incumbents and the new incumbents, the mobile operators. If the cash-rich (but again innovation-lazy) mobile operators are allowed free rein they will simply replicate the vertical control previously exercised by the telco incumbents. They will accumulate dominate market power at every layer: services and applications, transport and infrastructure.

But when existing ISPs say they want to roll out cheaper VoIP mobile, you can be sure that the mobile companies will protest that it will destroy the investment they have already made in their network. However, you don’t have to be particularly observant to notice that mobile telephony charges are 3-5 times that for fixed operators, whereas it is considerably cheaper to connect a new mobile subscriber than a fixed one. The premium for mobility? There’s really no case to argue that if the majority of people are using mobiles and the majority of network investment is already in place.

Furthermore, on the basis of the current profitability of the major mobile operators, is it just possible that these mobile “franchises” favour the operator more than they do the user? So it will be interesting to see what happens when some of Africa’s ISPs start to want to offer mobile voice as they will do shortly.

And the argument must surely be about “dominant market power” in different parts of the layered network rather than the somewhat weak argument the Internet is a vital part of national sovereignty.

MTN TO SPEND $5.5BN TO BUY OUT INVESTCOM

MTN shares took a brief pummelling last week on news that it plans to spend $5.5bn to buy out Beirut-based Investcom, a move that will almost double its geographic footprint and raise pretax profit 20%. The massive investment -- about R33.5bn -- is MTN's biggest and boldest move in its decade-long history, taking it into 10 more countries in the Middle East and Africa. It was also one of the largest cross-border investments ever made by a South African company, said CEO Phuthuma Nhleko.

MTN will issue up to 204-million shares to cover about 40% of the fee, giving Investcom shareholders up to 13% of MTN. The cash portion will be financed by a $3.8bn loan from Deutsche Bank.

The deal comes at the same time as MTN is establishing a network in Iran, but Nhleko says MTN is not overstretching itself in money or manpower, as it is buying a cash-generative business with management skills that will boost MTN's own firepower. Investors were less confident, however, with MTN's shares quickly losing 4% to trade at R57.50 before recovering to close up at R60.25. Nhleko said he was not surprised by the dip, as investors needed time to absorb the details of such a large transaction.

Investcom's operations will fill in some pieces in MTN's operational jigsaw in west Africa and expand its presence in the Middle East. Investcom has networks in Benin, Cyprus, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. It holds licences to operate in Afghanistan and Guinea, but has yet to begin rolling out those networks.

With no overlap between the two operators, the deal will give MTN a presence in 21 countries. It is spending heavily on the move, however, by paying an average of $1127 for each subscriber, well above last year's typical acquisitions at $500 to $600 a head.

Investcom listed in Dubai and London only in September, prompting one analyst to question why MTN had not bought it either before or when it listed, since it would have paid far less. Eight months later MTN is paying roughly 50% more than the listing price, and a 27% premium on the current trading price.

Nhleko said a deal had been discussed before, but the talks never reached fruition. "It could have been cheaper, but we had to be careful," he said. "We are paying 40% of the price in MTN shares and our shares have been rising, so that neutralises it."

Investcom's 4,9-million subscribers will push MTN's user base up to 28-million, and MTN's earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation will grow from R14.7bn to R17.2bn. MTN's revenue was R34.7bn for financial 2005, compared with Investcom's R5.7bn.

(SOURCE: Business Day)

NIGERIA’S BPE DROPS BIDDING AND ADOPTS NEGOTIATED SALE FOR NITEL

The Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) has dropped competitive bidding process in the privatisation of the NITEL in favour of a negotiated sale following the failure of several attempts to privatise it. The choice of negotiated sale is in a bid to arrest the ever declining fortunes of the parastatal.

According to the agency, "overall, the single compelling reason for its sale sooner rather than later, and that is: NITEL value declines as its financial condition continues to erode -- as seen in a summary of its liabilities, revenue, and market share. NITEL loses value daily as liabilities increase and revenue declines. In 2003, for instance, NITEL liabilities amounted to N73.8 billion but this rose in 2005, as of October to approximately N130 billion and growing.

The BPE said while in 2002, on an annual basis, NITEL generated N15 billion in pre tax income, as at September last year it managed to generate N1.5 billion in pre tax income. In the same vein, NITEL generated N40.9 billion in revenue and N33.9 billion in collections in 2002 but in 2005 it revenue generation ability dropped to N22.8 billion and N16.9 billion in collections, as the collection rate slipped from 83 per cent to 73 per cent.

NITEL, according to the BPE, is failing technologically as evidenced by an eroding market share. In 2002, NITELs mobile communications subsidiary, M-TEL, had 11 per cent market share. In 2005, as of December, M-TEL's market share had fallen to five per cent. Since NITEL's fixed link is used by other providers, NITEL technological constraints compromise their reliability and inhibit roll out of new capacity and services.

According to a statement by the agency and signed by Chigbo Anichebe, in Abuja last week, the agency said it intended to conclude the negotiated sale to a preferred investor before the end of next month. It cited the past unsuccessful attempts to privatise NITEL, the long period that a round of competitive bidding would take, as well as its fast dwindling fortunes as reasons for the decision to sell NITEL through negotiated sale.

(SOURCE: Vanguard)

THIRD GSM LICENCE IN EGYPT ATTRACTS RUSSIAN INTEREST

Russia’s largest mobile operator Mobile TeleSystems (MTS) has found a local partner to participate in the tender for a third GSM license in Egypt, Vedomosti and Kommersant business dailies reported Friday.

MTS and Egyptian system integrator TeleTech have agreed to create a consortium to participate in the tender, a spokesperson with MTS said, adding that MTS would hold 60% in the venture, Vedomosti reported. The two companies have signed a memorandum of understanding on the matter. The partnership "will considerably increase MTS' chances of winning the tender," the spokesperson said, quoted by Vedomosti.

The Egyptian regulator closed Thursday the list of bidders, the daily said, adding that the starting price of the license amounts to U.S. $430 million. Applications filed by consortiums, which include local companies, will have priority, the regulator said, Vedomosti reported.

The tender is expected to take place in late June or early July, Kommersant reported. The list of applicants consists of 11 consortiums, including large telecommunications operators, such as Italy's Telecom Italia, Kuwait's MTC, Turkey's Turkcell and Norway's Telenor.

Analysts surveyed by Kommersant said that MTS chances of winning the license are slim, as there are many bidders from neighboring countries among the applicants, which may pay over the odds in order to expand their networks to an adjacent country. MTS operates in Russia, Belarus, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. MTS' subscriber base stood at 61.05 million people as of March 31, including 45.84 million people in Russia.

Earlier this week state-controlled Telecom Egypt, Tuesday said it would join forces with Telecom Italia to bid for Egypt's third mobile telecommunications license. A Telecom Egypt statement said the parties agreed Telecom Egypt would own a majority stake in the consortium. Telecom Italia previously cooperated with Telecom Egypt in 2004 when it agreed a deal that enabled the Egyptian company to offer Internet protocol services to its clients.

(SOURCE: Cellular News)

CELTEL DANGLES OVER $500M FOR ANGOLA, GHANA AND SENEGAL

Celtel International is looking to expanding into Angola, Senegal and Ghana, at a pricey US$500 million, according to East African Business Week. While on a working visit to Kampala last week, the firm's group chief operations officer based in Amsterdam, Mr. Omari Issa accepted that his firm was interested in expanding to other parts of Africa.

However, it is still unclear when the plans will be cemented as the opening of bids for operations in Ghana and Senegal have been postponed a couple of times. June and July 2006 are the new respective dates for the bid openings."These acquisitions aren't something to predict with accuracy," Issa told Business Week on how soon Celtel would be able to commence operations.  All fingers are now pointing towards Angola, Senegal and Ghana as the countries Merali was referring to. Broken down equally, $166.67 million will be allotted for acquisitions in each of these three countries.

(SOURCE: East African Business Week)

UGANDAN GOVERNMENT TO DELAY NEW TELECOM POLICY

The government will not prioritise the consideration of the draft for a new telecommunications policy, defying mounting pressure from industry actors and potential investors, who have lambasted it for allegedly seeking to protect a few players at the expense of consumers and stifling the sector's growth.

Explaining the government's continued silence over the new policy, the commissioner for communications in the ministry of Works, Housing and Communication, Godfrey Kibuka, said the government does not see any need for hastening scrutiny of the draft and instead pleaded patience, saying the policy would still be published some time this year even if it's not done within the expected timeframe. "There's no need for pressure, we can only assure everybody that we'll work on it (policy)" he said in an interview recently. Kibuka also said, " we cannot afford to have a 100 companies in our telecom market."

(SOURCE: The Monitor)

MIC IN $1M REBRAND AS TIGO  IN TANZANIA

MIC Tanzania (Mobitel) has invested US$ 1 million to change its business logo from the current Buzz brand to the new international cellular brand called Tigo. Rowald Mtawali, MIC project director said last week in Dar that the new business logo, Tigo, that officially commenced last week replaces the current logo 'buzz' or 'Mobitel'.

Mtawali said Tigo is a new cellular experience that is already part of four other African countries including Chad, Senegal, The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Ghana.

(SOURCE: East African Business Week)

TELECOM NAMIBIA TO INVEST IN MODERNISATION AND RURAL CONNECTIVITY

Telecom Namibia plans to spend N$240 million this year in modernising its infrastructure and in boosting connectivity to rural areas, managing director Frans Ndoroma said.

"We are planning to modernise our infrastructure and increase connection in rural areas," said Ndoroma in a telephone interview. Ndoroma said Telecom Namibia is planning ahead of competition expected after a new Communications Bill is tabled in Parliament later this year. Telecom Namibia is already exploring other regional markets after South Africa and Angola in order to mitigate the negative effects on revenue in a small competitive market at home. Telecom Namibia acquired 44% of equity and shares in an Angolan fixed line operator, MundoStartel two years ago. In South Africa, Telecom Namibia is part of the CommuniTel consortium that was awarded a 13% stake in the Second National Operator (SNO).

Mobile Telecommunications (MTC), the state owned mobile operator, has already entered into a strategic partnership with Portugal Telecom which has acquired its 34% equity.

(SOURCE: Namibia Economist)

BENIN: NEW TELECOMS REGULATOR SUSPENDED

During an extraordinary Council of Ministers that took place on the 1st of May the new government of Benin headed by President Yayi Boni has suspended the new telecommunication authority. The telecommunications regulator was put in place in hastily by the outgoing government a couple of weeks prior to the presidential election.

During this session the Council of Ministers also went through several proposals one of them coming from the Ministry in charge of the communication and the new technologies providing an overview and an action plan for the restructuring and the development of the telecommunications sector in Benin.

In parallel to suspending the telecommunications regulator they also agreed to cancel the regulation implementing the Ordonnances 2002-02 and 2002-03 dated 31/01/2002 regarding on one hand the fundamental principles of the telecommunications regime in the Republic of Benin and on the other hand the creation and functions of the Regulation Authority of telecommunications in the Benin Republic with a view to make this Authority more professional and representative and furthermore to give it the financial independence to fulfil its mission.

The Council further agreed to get the private operators to pay as soon as possible the outstanding taxes that they owe to the Public Treasury The Council of Ministers has also decided to proceed with: the reassessment of the licences granted to private operators; setting up the list of partnership contracts between Benin Telecom SA and the private operators for the 1st June 2006 at the latest with the view to reassess them. The latter will clearly affect the two companies granted contracts to sell DSL services by the incumbent.

IN BRIEF:

- The High Court of Justice in Cape Verde has ordered the suspension of the governmental decree ending the exclusivity regime of the supply of fixed line services  by Cabo Verde Telecom.

- The UN has reported that a cargo plane carrying telecoms equipment has crashed in eastern Congo, killing up to eight passengers and crew. The plane carrying telecom gear from Kisangani to Goma, near the border with Rwanda, went down late Thursday. The plane wasn't affiliated with the United Nations, and whom it was delivering telecoms equipment on behalf of has not been released.

- Following the sabotage of the fibre optic cable at Gampéla in April more than 40% of Burkina Faso was cut off for more than 24 hours from any form of communication. The incumbent ONATEL that manages the fibre network has appealed to the government to solve this problem of vandalism which hinders the stability and development of the country.

TELECOMS, RATES, OFFERS AND COVERAGE

 - Since 1st of May there is one additional digit to add to a phone number in Chad. From now on users have to dial 6 in front of an existing number starting by 2,3,4 and 7. These phone numbers belong to Celtel’s subscribers. With regards to phone numbers starting by 8 and 9 which are allocated to Millicom’s subscribers, users will need to dial 9 in front of the existing number.

- Orange Botswana has introduced the Ericsson Expander solution that will enable it to achieve a cell range of up to 109 kilometres radius per base station instead of the normal radius of 30 kilometres. Orange Botswana will spread its services to new and existing customers who were previously too remote for cost efficient coverage. The new solution will reduce the total cost of ownership of network at the same time provide much-needed and improved coverage throughout rural Botswana.

- Nigerian mobile operator Globacom has launched the Me2u package  which enables Glo subscribers to send airtime from available credit on their pre-paid account to other Glo pre-paid subscribers without necessarily buying a recharge card or sending a recharge PIN.

- Uganda’s three telephone providers: Celtel Uganda, MTN Uganda and uganda telecom have adjusted tariffs upwards to absorb the increased cost of doing business in the country. Ugandans will wake up to adjusted telephone rates following hikes in phone calling rates that have been occasioned by the increasing energy cost for the three telephone companies. Although the cost of recharge vouchers will not increase, the talk time available on these vouchers will reduce to absorb the adjustments.

- Scancom, operators of Areeba, has reaffirmed its target of upgrading its switching centers to cater for their over three million subscribers in Ghana by contracting a total investment of USD $70 million. The expansion programme, which is to be completed by October this year, is divided into two phases.

KENYAN GOVERNMENT DECIDES TO GO IT ALONE ON EASSY

The Kenyan Government has decided to go it alone in the construction of a Sh15 billion fibre optic undersea sea cable system connecting it to the rest of the world. According to the Government, the envisaged Eastern Africa Submarine System (EASSy) cable project driven by 15 telecommunications firms from 13 Eastern Africa countries was taking too long.

Information and Communication permanent secretary, Bitange Ndemo, said Kenya would begin would begin discussions with Djibouti, one the countries involved in the construction of the cable network.

It is believed that a link to Djibouti will connect Kenya to the rest of the world. Apart from Kenya and Djibouti, other countries involved in the project are South Africa, Sudan, Mozambique, Madagascar, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Malawi, Botswana, Ethiopia and Somalia.

Dr Ndemo lamented that three-years since the project was envisaged nothing had been done apart from the holding of numerous meetings. "The costs of the meetings is almost half the total cost of the project," he added. Dr Ndemo spoke at an East African Regulatory, Posts and Telecommunications organisation meeting held in Nairobi last week.

The PS said Kenya needed the cable more than any other country saying many foreign companies had expressed interest to invest in the country but were holding back due to connectivity problems.

He, however, denied that the decision would put Kenya on collision course with other ESSAy members adding that one had to take the lead. "Somebody has to take control and start the project or else we will not get anywhere," he added. The money, the PS said would be raised using the Nairobi Stock Exchange where the public would buy shares.

A meeting involving players in the industry has already been organised to discuss raising funds and will be attended by among others Kenya Data Networks, Celtel and Telkom Kenya. "The cable should be ready by next year to enable the country benefit from the technology," Dr Ndemo said.

(SOURCE: The Nation)

FIXED LINE SERVICES MAY BE OUTPERFORMED BY WIRELESS BROADBAND IN SOUTH AFRICA

Wireless broadband services in South Africa look set to experience higher growth than the fixed line offerings. This is according to Michelle Branco, product marketing manager for Internet Solutions (IS) who noted that while the growth in both the ADSL and the wireless arena was exponential, wireless services look set to eat into the fixed line.

Branco noted that analysts struggle to predict the growth of the South African broadband industry and have in the past underestimated the demand for broadband services. “From the report it s evident that not even experts had any idea of what broadband uptake would be like,” said Branco.

Predictions from the South African research company, BMI-TechKnowledge, sit in the region of 662 000 broadband users by 2008. But as Branco noted the figures in the past have been consistently underestimated. Whilst the true extent of broadband growth in South Africa is debatable one trend that seems to be fact is that wireless broadband services will become increasingly popular.

In 2004 wireless services were negligible with a paltry 4600 subscribers. By 2009 BMI-T predicts that this access medium will grow to 12%. What is interesting is that ADSL which held 3.2% of the pie in 2004 will only grow to 17% with both services stealing market share from the 95% which dial-up held in 2004 A good look at the figures reveals that wireless will start to grab a bigger piece of the broadband pie as time passes.

(SOURCE: MY ADSL)

WIRELESS BROADBAND TO CUT INTERNET COSTS BY 30 PER CENT IN KENYA

The battle for control of wireless broadband Internet connectivity has risen a notch higher following the introduction of iBurst technology in the Kenyan market. The technology, a product of Africa On-line, can run connection speeds of up to 1 megabyte per second.

Fredrick Murunga, the managing director Africa On-line, reckons iBurst is in line with ongoing market shift in favour of integrated solutions that can relay voice, data and video over the same media. "The market is looking for dual and triple play and this is Africa On-line is providing through iBurst," said Murunga.

With initial costs standing at more than US1200 and installation costs of US$300, existing wireless technology has remained out of reach for thousands of potential users. Murunga says wireless broadband prices on the international arena could cost over Sh100,000 including Sh81,000 for the equipment and Sh30,000 for professional equipment set-up. To get connected on the wireless broadband loop, subscribers must buy iBurst equipment from Africa online at a one off price of Sh16,000.

The subscriber is then hooked up at a monthly fee of Sh8,000 (to local servers) and at a speed of 1 megabyte. Those looking for high performance connection to internationally located servers will pay a fee of Sh20,000 per month.

. Africa On-line plans to spend Sh300 million on phase one of the project that will cover Nairobi. The system similar to that of mobile phones and needs base stations to function. Murunga says rollout to other towns will be limited to commercially viability, meaning that much of Kenya will again be left out of the loop.

(SOURCE: The East African Standard)

BETTERCOMPUTER SUPPLY HITS INTERNET CAFES HARD IN UGANDA

City Internet café proprietors are crying foul over increased supply of computers and computer accessories coming into the country. The increased supply has enabled most Internet café users to own personal computers. This comes amidst an acute shortage of power in the country, which has greatly reduced the Internet cafe operators' number of working hours. They work for a few hours a day or do not work sometimes.

Some Internet cafe managers fear they may be forced to close shop.

Ali Kiyonga of Advanced Surfing Café on Kampala Road said on Wednesday that the number of customers had drastically declined.

"Most clients have found it cheaper to have their own computers at home," Kiyonga said. The price of computers ranges from sh450,000 to sh500,000, almost half of the previous prices.

Romeo Serunjogi, a manager at Kaaka Enterprises, said computer sales are soaring. The proprietors attributed the fall in computer prices to favourable import taxes. Computers and computer accessories are exempted from import taxes.

Simon Apedel of Quick Surfing Café in Kireka said even the number of clients who used to be trained in basic computer skills had declined.

Jackson Okurut of New Line Cafe on Wilson Road said cut-throat competition for the few clients had made the situation worse.

He said each operator reduces the price so that it is lower than their competitors.' Surfing rates range from sh25 to sh50 a minute, down from sh59 to sh100 a few years ago. An hour of surfing costs sh2,000 in most city cafes and sh5,000 in the suburbs. However, computer dealers say the drop in computer prices is due to technological advancement worldwide.

(SOURCE: New Vision)

IN BRIEF

- The Gambian Secretary of State MacDouall-Gaye held discussions with officials of the AU in a bid to participate in the Pan-African e-Network project. The project is aimed at connecting 53 member-states of the African Union by satellite network (VSAT) and fibre optic to provide mainly Tele-Medicine and Tele-Education services, under a South-South cooperation Grant of 55 million dollars. The project will run for five years and according to the discussions between the secretary of state and AU officials, The Gambia is envisaged to be in the first group of African countries to benefit from this regional program.

-  A new Arabic search engine to rival Google and Yahoo! has been announced by a Saudi-German business venture. The search engine, named Sawafi, the Arabic word for sandstorm, will provide the first full Arabic internet search engine on the market, and is planned for release later this year. Although there are Arabic search engines already available, they only offer a directory search and do not allow users to search the entire content of the Internet.

AFRICAN JAVA DEVELOPERS FIRST RATE, SAYS GOSLING

Java inventor James Gosling believes Africa has the upper hand when it comes to adopting new technology because it's free of many of the constraints that frustrate progress in the developed countries.

Gosling, Sun Microsystems CTO, is in SA for this week's Sun Tech Days and allied Java and Solaris events taking place at the Sandton Convention Centre.

“There is more opportunity to do interesting things in Africa and other emerging regions than in the US, where there is an entrenched legacy infrastructure and the system is so knotted up, you can't do anything,” says Gosling.

Like most countries in Africa, SA is faced with bridging the divide between the first and third world in terms of education, economic empowerment, and access to resources, but Gosling says the government appears to be progressive and interested in helping citizens develop.

“Although relatively small, the local developer community is first rate. Judging from people's questions and areas of interest, there is no lag with the rest of the world. The issue is quantity not quality,” he says.

Regarding the future of Java, Gosling concedes it would be unrealistic to expect it to last forever in the face of technological evolution, but he also believes Java will not be replaced soon.

According to Gosling, there is no sign yet of a viable successor to Java. “So far only Microsoft has come close with .Net, but they don't do cross-platform or end-to-end networking and Microsoft's security architecture tends to be goofy. Java still has a long way to go.”

Gosling says the biggest driver of further Java evolution will be the tension between complexity and sophistication. The need to build ever more sophisticated applications inherently creates complexity, he explains.

“Already in Java Enterprise Edition 5.0 (J5EE) we have had success in achieving simplicity without giving up sophistication.” For Gosling, J5EE is the most important area of Java development at present.

The battle against complexity will continue to be the focus of Java, and has been responsible for the focus in recent years on creating software development tools like NetBeans.

“These tools provide automatic assistance to ensure best practices are followed and isolate the developer from the complexity, but without denying access to the details where necessary.”

Gosling denies ever feeling the need to influence the evolution of Java. “I am not a control freak, but I do wish there had been more co-operation and less competitive bickering along the way.”

However, Gosling admits it is mainly due to the competing interests within the Java community that has brought in lots of knowledge from many different directions and contributed to making Java “more fit for those who use it”.

(SOURCE: ITWeb)

SCARCE SKILLS STILL THE TOP EARNER IN IT INDUSTRY

Technology workers are still enjoying higher wages than people in most other industries, although their conditions have toughened a little over the past few years.

Chief information officers earn an average of R47542, with some receiving a far higher R85000, according to the latest survey by online publishers ITWeb.

Information technology (IT) operations managers draw an average salary of R31000 a month, with some earning up to R60417.

The highest reported salary, of R2m a year, was for a business intelligence consultant working on contract. At the other end of the scale, call-centre and help-desk operators earn an average of R9250 a month, with some receiving as little as R5896.

IT salaries have become more aligned with other industries as companies have spent less on technology and technicians are no longer in short supply. Bonuses, long-term incentives and annual pay rises were particularly hard hit, with only 12% of IT employees now receive a guaranteed annual bonus.

However, salaries are swinging upwards again for specialists whose skills are in short supply. The top-end salaries reported by a few high-fliers showed what the industry was prepared to pay for specialised skills, said ITWeb's editorial director, Ranka Jovanovic.

The highest wages are going to experts in voice-over-internet protocol (VOIP) and internet protocol (IP) technologies, with companies keen to install VOIP systems to cut telecommunications costs. There were very few people with VOIP skills in SA, and they were being highly paid, said Jovanovic.

The average wage for a VOIP expert is R37000, while people with a lower level of network skills may struggle to find a job at all. Software architects and enterprise resource planning consultants are also at the top of the payroll.

The complexion of the industry is changing slowly, with 82% of the replies coming from men and 80% from whites. The number of black staff has risen slightly from a year ago, to 13% of the responses.

The survey reported a declining interest in leaving the country, with only 4% of respondents making firm moves to emigrate. Of those, 30% said better career prospects were the main attraction, with 21% being driven away by crime and 20% driven by the lure of higher salaries.

One of the biggest problems facing IT companies is retaining staff. The survey found that 44% of people loved their jobs, 43% were neutral, while 13% were discontent. The unhappy staff were usually those taking home the lowest pay, although money was not the main contributor to satisfaction.

"The top reason for satisfaction is the challenge of the job and the responsibility," Jovanovic said. The working atmosphere was the next cause of happiness or discontent, with remuneration ranking third.

Job hopping was a serious possibility, and companies that did not look after staff would be surprised at how difficult and expensive it was to replace them, said Susan Haiden, a manager at Insource ICT.

"Since 2002, the market has expanded. A client that was looking for one person a month is now looking for 10 a month. We can't keep up with demand," she said.

"There are so many positions available that IT people have a choice. A few years ago, candidates struggled to get one or two interviews, now they can get four or five job interviews and can wait until they get offered a better package."

Technicians were not only looking for better salaries, but were also looking for a better balance between their work and private lives, she said.

Good news is that the pool of young black people entering the IT industry is increasing, as learnerships begin to produce more entry-level candidates.

Young people are also seeing IT as a career with interesting and lucrative prospects, after a dip a few years ago when IT was no longer seen as a smart career move.

(SOURCE: Business Day)

ALGERIA’S EEPAD TO OFFER LOCALLY ASSEMBLED LAPTOPS FOR DA49,999

In Algeria the distance vocational learning establishment (EEPAD) will shortly put on sale laptops that cost 49,999 DA inclusive of tax for students and pupils, Nouar Harzallah, the establishment's President announced. Guest of El Moudjahid daily forum, the enterprise's first official pointed out that these laptops, which assembly was carried out in the EEPAD-owned plant in Annaba, will be available on the market by next June, stressing that the establishment offers to the purchasers three months of free Broadband Wireless Internet Access.

IN BRIEF:

- The University of Namibia (Unam) is to establish a faculty of Engineering and Information Technology at its Northern Campus to be located at Ongwediva. Another important partner in this initiative is the University of Indiana in the United States of America, which has offered to assist and work closely with Unam in this endeavour.

- Microsoft has set up a workshop in Dakar to evaluate the feasibility to translate some programmes like Windows Vista and the Office Suite in Wolof, a local language spoken in Senegal and the neighbouring countries.

- Air Mauritius has launched its e-ticketing service. Travellers will be able to book their tickets online and will no any longer be issued with a paper ticket. The facility is now available on flights between  to Rodrigues, la Réunion and France. More destinations will be added when Air Mauritius server will be connected to more international airlines.

SHARE PRICE SURGE AND SOLID RESULTS ALLOW INFOWAVE TO RAISE DIVIDEND

Software company InfoWave has increased its dividend to 3.67c a share after reporting solid results for the year ending February 28.

CEO Tiffany Dunsdon said that represented a dividend yield of 5.1% on the share's current trading price of 72c, making InfoWave the most generous distributor of dividends in the JSE's software and computer services sectors. At the beginning of the financial year, its shares had traded at just 35c, so from a shareholders' perspective the value of the company had doubled, she said. The company had produced solid results, allowing it to boost its dividend 22%.

The latest figures show revenue of R34.3m for the year, up 8% from R31,8m, while earnings a share grew 3.7% from 5.66c to 5.87c. An increase in administration and running costs ate into the income, leaving a profit of R5m, up only a fraction from R4.9m last year.

The operating margin at the unit providing software to the sugar industry was down due to investments in employees, skills development and quality assurance.

On the plus side, investments in extra sales and marketing capacity resulted in improved sales for InfoWave's CaneLab software. A major win for that unit was the signing of a further six-year outsourcing deal with Illovo. The company also won new clients in Swaziland and Zimbabwe and has begun a more aggressive marketing campaign in Africa.

The DevMan business unit underperformed and a new black-owned company, InfraSoft, has been formed with black partners to sell its services to the public sector.

InfoWave bought 63.8% of the software company ApplyIT for R9,1m this year, subject to revenue growth targets of 40% next year and 20% in the second year.

ApplyIT specialises in operational, health, safety, environment and quality management systems for the manufacturing sector. One month into the acquisition, ApplyIT had a near record performance, said Dunsdon.

The prospects for the year ahead were healthy and the company would use its cash resources of R4.2m to invest in more niche software to expand its offerings.

(SOURCE: Business Day)

US$100M GSM COMPANY IN THE OFFING IN GAMBIA

Abubacarr Malamin, Corporate Secretary of West Coast Investment Ltd., a Nigeria-based company, has disclosed that his company plans to invest US$100 million in the telecommunications industry in The Gambia. He made this disclosure to journalists last week, shortly after his audience with the Gambian leader at State House.

Malamin added that they have kept aside additional US$200 million to sustain the project. According to him, since they have already got the approval, they are now working towards getting a site and a licence to operate the 57 cell sites they intend to have across the country. He said they will soon start operation.

Malamin added that the Gambian economy requires foreign investment and they are ready and willing to do just that. He also indicated interest in the energy, aviation, and tourism sectors. He noted that they want to use The Gambia as a test case before going on to other countries.

(SOURCE: The Daily Observer)

SOUTH AFRICAN TELKOM FACES RIVAL IN BID FOR BUSINESS CONNEXION

Telkom's R2.4bn bid for Business Connexion is under threat after an unknown rival launched a potential counter-offer -- with all the indications pointing at a foreign company looking to buy into the South African market.

Business Connexion shares rose 5.8% to R8.75 on Friday after it issued a notice saying it was considering an expression of interest from another potential bidder. No value was disclosed and the deal was "subject to numerous conditions precedent", the company said.

Telkom's shares shed R1.05 to R142 as its takeover plans received unexpected competition. Telkom has bid a hefty R9 a share plus a dividend of 25c, which is widely seen as over- generous. But in foreign terms that could appear highly affordable for any information technology (IT) services company or network operator looking for growth in an emerging market.

The new rival may also be offering less than Telkom, as Telkom's move has raised numerous objections from the industry and faces fierce opposition. Business Connexion shareholders may prefer to accept a rival bid -- even if it is lower -- rather than face a longwinded battle with an uncertain outcome at the Competition Commission. No large local IT or telecoms players are trading under a cautionary, ruling out a local listed company as the mystery bidder.

The second network operator seemed the most likely candidate. The acquisition would give it instant relationships with large corporate clients and a slew of IT services to sell with its telecommunications offerings, making it a stronger rival to Telkom. But that speculation was sunk when the operator issued a statement saying that it had not made a bid.

Bytes Technology is also keen to acquire the company, and made a bid late last year that Business Connexion rejected as too low to present to its shareholders. Last week, Bytes CEO Dave Redshaw confirmed that Bytes was not back in the running, and he doubted that anybody in SA would be prepared to pay the amount that Business Connexion was holding out for.

That leaves either private equity investors or a foreigner. Private equity investor VenFin is sitting on R1bn which it intends to pump into hi-tech companies. But a VenFin source said he was not aware of any bid.

Possible foreign buyers are global IT services companies such as Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) or EDS, or a network operator looking to grow its African presence, such as UK-based BT.

Analyst Irnest Kaplan believes Business Connexion is worth about R7 a share, so Telkom's R9,25 carries a huge premium. But that may still look cheap for an international player. "Any big company looking at the globe and asking where things are going to improve would pick SA, because we have an upgraded outlook for the next 10 years," Kaplan said. They would see Business Connexion as an easy entry point because of its blue-chip clients, its excellent skills and its strong brand, he said.

Telkom wants to clinch the deal to gain "a meaningful presence" in software, technical support and business process outsourcing, to broaden revenue as profit from voice calls dwindles.

(SOURCE: Business Day)

IN BRIEF:

- Amalgamated Electronic Corporation (Amecor) was on the lookout for new acquisitions in manufacturing, distribution and electronic technology, group CE Dereck Alexander said. Amecor is the holding company of FSK Electronics and Sabre Radio Net, which design, manufacturer and supply electronics equipment, technologies and solutions to the security industry.

CORRECTIONS AND ADDITIONS: ISSUE 303: THE NEW SCRAMBLE FOR AFRICA

We failed to anticipate MTN’s bid for Investcom. However, the company has had to borrow US3.8 billion and will have to craft a management structure that can manage companies from Afghanistan to Johannesburg, something that’s not yet in place. It may be the first step on the road to becoming a global company but it’s not there yet….

Senegal’s SNO has been put back to July this year, almost two years after the first announcement…Ghana will licence a third mobile operator and Celtel would like to acquire it…Algerie Telecom and Telecom Egypt will both be up for privatisation this year…tenders should also be issues for SNOs in Egypt and Tunisia this year.

We missed out Wanadoo’s relationship with Planet Tunisie and Orange’s Botswana operation pre-dated its ownership by France Telecom.

NAMIBIANS TO GO HOUSE HUNTING ON LOCAL WEB

House hunting has been made easy with the launch of a property web portal 'Property.com.na'. The website allows visitors to find property of their choice to buy, rent or sell at a click of a button.

This website is Namibia's first fully interactive online property portal, and currently contains almost 800 available properties across the country, mostly submitted by leading estate agents.

Although estate agents have provided 90 percent of the properties, private individuals can also submit free of charge their properties for sale or rent.

The website is the result of a collaboration between the Property News magazine, Interact FCB, one of Namibia's leading advertising agencies, and Interact's sister company, Intertech which specialises in e-business, software development and web design and hosting.

John McCartney, one of the founding directors of www.property.com.na, who officiated at the launch of the website said since the website was activated on the 17th of April, there has been over 900 visitors to the site, and each visitor has viewed an average of more than 11 different pages of the website.

He said almost 20 percent of all visitors spend more than half an hour checking properties and the professional service listings on the site, which is remarkable traffic, especially for a Namibian website.

Under the 'Professional Services' section the site provides information on services associated with homes and commercial properties, such as plumbing, landscaping and painting, valuers and lawyers, together with information on financial services such as banks and insurance companies.

The site also incorporates a mortgage calculator that helps visitors immediately check what properties they are likely to be able to afford.

The launch was attended by representatives from estate agencies, insurance companies, financial institutions and suqHort services.

"It's good to see Namibians showing such keen interest in the online business sector. The positive responses are a good indication that people are ready to embrace this type of web-based business model.

It's clear that there is a greater understanding and better adoption culture than a few years ago and this will surely stimulate growth and further development for the web-based business industry as a whole, " Gareth Amos, Senior Director of Interact FCB, said.

(SOURCE: New Era)

ZAMBIAN STATE HOUSE WEBSITE ON LINE

The State House website is now on line, chief policy analyst for Press and public relations at State House, David Kombe, has announced. Kombe said in a statement in Lusaka yesterday that people wishing to access the site should log on to www.statehouse.gov.zm.

He explained that the move was intended to keep the public and Zambians in the diaspora abreast with events taking place in Zambia. The site would carry current affairs, events and activities at State House, the President's speeches and other important information from line ministries and Government departments.

(SOURCE: The Times of Zambia)

UGANDA MULTICHOICE AGREES POWER DEAL WITH UECI

Multichoice Uganda agreed a partnership deal with Uganda Electronics and Computer Industries (UECI) to exclusively offer an alternative power supply solution to its subscribers.

The deal that will benefit Multichoice customers comes after a continued power outrage across the country in the last six month.

The device, which is in form of a power back up, and solar system can be installed within a maximum of two hours.

Uganda Electronics and Computer Industries Managing Director Charles Muhamata told the press on Buganda Road that the deal will give all Multichoice subscribers an opportunity to fully enjoy Dstv services without any interruptions of the current power problems.

"It is a great opportunity for Multichoice subscribers and we at UECI feel that a partnership with them gives chance to their subscribers to enjoy Dstv with uninterrupted power supply," Muhamata said.

He added that the deal gives a variation of 10 percent to the subscribers from the original fare for the four to six hour back up system.

The back-up power systems cost between Shs1,085,600 and Shs3,646,200 depending on the voltage.

"We view our partnership with UECI as one that gives our subscribers the opportunity to fully gain full benefit Dstv subscriptions and it also allows users of this alternative power source to put to use other domestic items hence enhancing the quality of their lives at home," Multichoice Sales and Marketing Manager Peter Mungoma said.

(SOURCE: The Monitor)

PEOPLE

* Emilienne Macauley has been appointed as the new general director  of  Celtel Madagascar (ex-Madacom). She replaces Parwez Jugoo who has managed the mobile operation over the last 8 years.

* Douglas Ramaphosa  has been appointed as Altron Group Executive: Corporate Affairs with effect from 1 May 2006. Mr Ramaphosa, formerly of Anglo American Corporation, will replace Adv Dali Mpofu at the group’s Parktown head office.  Dali left Altron last year to take up the role of Chief Executive Officer of the SABC, but remains on the Altron Board as a non-executive director.

* South African Sentech, this month welcomed five new non-executive directors to its board:

- Yussur Abrar, CEO of a pan-African provider of financial advisory services

- Mlamli Booi, an engineer with professional experience in telecommunications and broadcasting

- Lulama Patricia Chakela, CEO of an empowerment-driven multimedia production company

- Dr Len Konar, a chartered accountant and internal audit and corporate governance specialist.

- Thabo Patrick Leeuw is a member of the Thesele Group

* The individual selected for the office of CIO at the city of Johannesburg has declined the position, according to city spokesman Virgil James.  “The successful applicant [who may not be named] subsequently withdrew, after initially accepting the position,” he says.

EVENTS

- AFNOG WORKSHOP ON NETWORK TECHNOLOGY