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WEEKLY PUBLICATION DEADLINE: 12 pm GMT Sunday. ISSUE NO 414 Race to build a west coast fibre promises to push international bandwidth prices to new lowsFour international fibre projects are racing to complete ahead of each other on the west cost of Africa to give some much needed additional capacity and price competition to SAT3. The drop in bandwidth prices could be spectacular. Russell Southwood looks at the runners in the race and asks whether West Africa is ready for the potentially market-changing impact of cheap international bandwidth. At last week’s US Trade and Development Agency organised event (West Africa ICT Road Map to Opportunities Conference), Funke Opeke of Mainstreet Technologies, the project to build the Main One cable down the west side of the continent promised that an E1 would cost US$400. It might have been my imagination but I’m sure I heard something like an audible intake of breath. There are four international cable projects racing to complete new routes that will connect that side of the continent to Europe and the USA. They are: - Globacom’s Glo One: The Glo One cable has been built from the UK to Dakar but has not yet been landed in Dakar. Despite an announcement that it would connect most West African countries between Dakar and Lagos, it has not yet been completed. Various cynics say that it has run out of money but this is a company that has just rolled out in Benin and plans to do the same again in Ghana. More credible rumours reaching us are that the countries where it was to have landed are asking too higher licence price, hence the delay. - Mainstreet’s Main One: Previously aired versions of this show a routing that pretty much matches SAT3. You would expect this company to focus its efforts on the growing Nigerian market. If Nitel is anything like sorted by then, a great deal of expansion may come from that direction. Last week CEO Opeke was sounding very bullish about the prospects of completing. - IWTGC’s Infinity cable: Again routing along the same course as the SAT3 cable, IWTGC looks close to signing its financing deal with European investors and a West African financial institution. The latter will put up US$300 million and the former will offer together with that amount a package that will be able to go up to US$1.5 billion. Last week it signed a protocol with Gran Canaria to put “back office” functions there. Infraco/DTI’s Africa West Coast Cable: This South African Government project signed a contract with the company that is going to build it two weeks ago but has not yet completely finalised its financing. Its final list of shareholders will reportedly include both telecoms companies, such as Telkom, Neotel, Equator Telecom Nigeria, and British Telecom, as well as Tenet, Tata Communications, Multichoice, Vox Telecom, Internet Solutions and Gateway Communications. It was touted as being ready for the World Cup in 2010 but looks unlikely to make that deadline. At least two of these cables look set to be built and a third is more than likely. This will push prices for international bandwidth down to the levels likely to be achieved on the East coast: somewhere between US$500-1,000. But it is clear that unlike on the East coast and in South Africa, there is not the same focused attention on getting the cables done at the political level. The situation is made more complicated by the cultural differences at many levels between Anglophones, Francophones and Lusophones. No-one seems to be prepared to crack heads at a political level to get regulators to line up (metaphorically speaking) on the beaches of their respective countries as welcoming committees. Without this kind of political determination, the cables will take much longer to be built. Forget the high licence fees and lie back and think about what cheap bandwidth will do for the economy. Also at present only 4 countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali and Senegal) have connections to 2 or more or their neighbours and only 4 (Cape Verde, Cote d’Ivoire, Nigeria and Togo) have a connection to one neighbour. And unlike South Africa, Nigeria as powerhouse economy of the sub-region is not connected to all of its neighbours. Inevitably cheaper international bandwidth will begin to push down the price of national bandwidth. If it is cheaper to go from the capital city of a country to Europe than from the capital city to another city in the same country, something is badly out of shape. And when the new cables arrive, then that will be as true for West Africa as it will be for East Africa. At the same event in Accra last week, somebody asked who were the most expensive countries on the SAT3 route at present in terms of international bandwidth . The answer? Gabon (Gabon Telecom), Cameroon (Camtel) and Angola (Angola Telecom).
Former MTN Nigeria top guns join bid to buy controlling stake in NITELA consortium promoted by ex-MTN Nigeria top executives have launched a bid for stakes to be unbundled by Transcorp in Nigeria’s incumbent telco Nitel. Technology Times reports that former CEO, MTN Nigeria, Adrian Wood is leading the consortium comprising two of his former colleagues, former Chief Marketing Officer, MTN Nigeria, Afam Edozie and ex-Chief Technical Officer, Demola Eleso who are teaming up with other investors from diverse parts of the country to pitch for Nitel through an investment vehicle that may have 60 per cent local shareholding. The Australian born former CEO of MTN Nigeria, Wood, who succeeded Karel Piennar to become the second chief executive of MTN was best remembered for growing the subscriber base before quitting the company. But a titanic battle appears underway as UK’s Vodafone has also expressed interest while South Africa’s mobile phone company, Vodacom SA, also sees NITEL as an alternative entry strategy into Nigeria after a botched deal to acquire stakes in mobile phone company, Celtel Nigeria. Also, India’s largest telecoms company, Bharti Airtel, is also thought to be interested. Additionally, it is understood that the consortium, said to be backed by four undisclosed international investors boasting a portfolio of over $40 billion investable funds looks set for battle with these other major telecoms company with eyes set on entering the profitable Nigerian telecoms market through acquisition of Nitel. A source in the know, who is also sympathetic towards the ex-MTNers’ current foray into the Nigerian telecoms market said last night that as a “deal breaker”, the group which has secured interest of two undisclosed major telecoms company but its pitching its case on the fact that competence and capacity exists locally to turn around the fortune of the ailing national operator, Nitel. (Source: Technology Times) TTCL workers petition government to cancel Celtel contract in TanzaniaWorkers at Tanzania’s national fixed line operator Tanzania Telecommunication Company Limited (TTCL) have reportedly called on the government to cancel its 25-year shareholding deal with mobile group Celtel International (part of Zain Group) amid concerns it is hampering the development of the incumbent telco. Sadly this is a case of blame someone else when you don’t want to take the blame yourself. IDG News Service quotes Junus Ndaro, general secretary for the Telecommunications Workers Union of Tanzania, as saying that as the parent company of Celtel Tanzania – TTCL’s principal rival in the domestic market – Celtel International has no desire to improve the fortunes of the national PTO. The Workers’ Union is also calling for a review of the state’s contract with Sasktel International of Canada, which manages TTCL on contract. The government has struggled to maintain operations at TTCL and has been forced to enter into joint management agreements due to its financial problems. However, Ndaro claims that ‘Foreign managements have failed to run the company and have failed to show commitment to improving the performance of the company. The government should place the company under local management.’ The union would rather see the government selling a 35% tranche in TTCL through the stock market to provide a valuable cash injection. However, the union made no mention of over-staffing levels at the company. (Source: Telegeography) TNM to spend US$28 on network upgrade in MalawiMalawian mobile phone network operator TNM says it has set aside US$28-million for the upgrading and expansion of its network in order to boost the quality of services and reach out to the rural areas of the Southern African country, which currently do not have access to mobile telecommunication services. TNM, one of two cellular network operators in Malawi, is owned by a consortium whose major shareholder is Malawi's landline service provider, Malawi Telecommunications Limited (MTL), which, in turn, is owned by a consortium Press Corporation, as an equity partner, German's Detecon, as a technical partner, and South Africa's Standard Bank and Development Bank of Southern Africa, as financial partners. TNM chief technical officer David Chetty says: "Our interest is to increase penetration by catering for the rural areas, which, currently, do not have access to cellphone services." At 7%, Malawi has one of the lowest cellular-phone penetration rates in Africa. TNM and Celtel Malawi, a subsidiary of pan-African mobile network operator Celtel, share about 1-million active mobile-phone service subscribers in Malawi, which has a 12-million-strong population. However, the Malawi government advertised for a third mobile network operator last year but has yet to grant a licence, despite receiving bids from five companies, with South Africa-based Econet Wireless and US-based Millennium Global Telecom seen as the frontrunners. The Malawi government is also receiving applications from firms wishing to operate a fourth mobile network firm in the southern African country. In order to ensure universal access to telecommunications facilities in the impoverished southern African country, the Malawi government has also just scraped import tax on mobile handsets. (Source: Nyasa Times) HSDPA on the rise in AfricaNine African countries now have commercial HSDPA mobile broadband offerings, with deployment under way in another two countries. This is according to statistics released last week by the UK-based Global Mobile Suppliers Association (GSA) in its “GMS/3G Market/Technology Update”. The GSA says there are now 207 commercial high-speed downlink packet access (HSDPA) networks in 89 countries worldwide. A year ago, there were 126 commercial HSDPA networks in 63 countries. HSDPA is a third-generation mobile telephony communications protocol. “HSDPA delivers advanced mobile multimedia services with typical user data throughputs of 0.8Mbps-3.0Mbps, according to individual network and user device capabilities,” the GSA explains. The group says network speeds are increasing, with most networks supporting 3.6Mbps peak downlink or higher, and many are evolving to 14.4Mbps. “Uplink speeds are also increasing, with 68 operators committed to HSUPA (high-speed uplink packet access), and 51 HSUPA networks launched in 35 countries,” it says. The GSA also notes that most high-speed packet access operators combine mobile broadband services delivery with GSM/EDGE for service continuity and the best user experience. “GSA estimates that there are over 1.46 billion GSM, GPRS, EDGE, WCDMA and HSPA subscribers in commercial HSPA-enabled networks.” The report lists 14 commercial HSDPA networks in nine countries in Africa. These are: Angola (Unitel – peak rate 1.8Mbps); Egypt (Etisalat Misr – 3.6Mbps, Vodafone – 7.2Mbps); Kenya (Safricom – 3.6Mbps); Morocco (Méditel – 3.6Mbps, Maroc Telecom – 3.6Mbps); Namibia (MTC – 1.8Mbps, Cell One – 1.8Mbps); Nigeria (MTN Nigeria – 3.6Mbps, Globacom – 3.6Mbps); SA (MTN – 3.6Mbps with 7.2Mbps on some sites, Vodacom – 3.6Mbps, deploying 7.2Mbps); Tanzania (Vodacom – 1.8Mbps); and Uganda (UTL – 1.8Mbps). The report points out that Libyana Mobile in Libya is deploying in 14 cities for the launch of a 3.6Mbps service and mcel is deploying a service in Mozambique. (Source: ITWeb) In brief:- According to report from the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the likelihood of the introduction of number portability is fading. The main issue is to get the telecommunications operators to sign up for number portability is it would require them to disclose technical information. However, this reason does not seem to have proved a stumbling block in South Africa. - The government of Tanzania announced plans to register all mobile phone numbers in the country to curb the rising tide of mobile phone theft and related crime. Under the new proposals the regulator, the Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority (TCRA), has been asked to form a national committee to work out a scheme for recording and logging all mobile phone numbers in the country. - Yemba, a subsidiary of Providence Technologique, claims to have become Cameroon's first mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) after inking a deal with government-owned Camtel. Yemba officials told reporters that there is 'untapped potentias' in the country's mobile market, and that the company hoped to gain two million subscribers by 2010. - Responding to an industry call, ITU has set up a new group to work on standards related to the impact of information and communication technologies (ICT) on climate change. - According to data published by Senegal’s telecoms regulator Agence de Regulation des Telecoms et Postes (ARTP), cellular penetration reached 39.09% by 31 March 2008, up from 31.93% the previous year, as the total number of active SIMs reached 4.135 million. Senegal’s two incumbent mobile operators - Orange Senegal (formerly Sonatel Mobiles/Alize) and Tigo Senegal (formerly SENTELgsm) - collectively added just 12,852 new users in the first quarter of 2008. In the fixed line segment, the number of lines in service dipped from 285,774 to 260,493 in the year to 31 March 2008. Telecoms, Rates, Offers and Coverage (briefs)- In a bid to boost services to its over 15 million subscribers nationwide, Celtel Nigeria, one of the nation's leading telecommunications companies, has inaugurated a new ultra-modern Switch worthUS $6 million in Enugu State. The switch, installed to service its south-east population is the fourth of such to be provided across the country. - Warid Telecom has launched a promotion dubbed "Mega Bonus" in which all subscribers can make free calls all day. The company which launched in Uganda in 2007, claims it has 650,000 subscribers. - Reltelwireless, one of the leading telecommunications solutions provider has announced that it has reached the 1.5 million subscriber mark, making it the largest CDMA operator in Nigeria. - As part of a new alliance initiative, Etisalat will offer special rates for customers roaming in two of its group networks Egypt's Etisalat Misr and Saudi Arabia's Mobily - Celtel Kenya, the mobile telephony operator, has entered into a partnership with Magadi Soda. The deal follows the expansion of Celtel's network to the Lake Magadi region. Under the partnership, Magadi Soda staff will now make calls at preferential rates. - Mobile-XL, a California-based technology company offering mobile applications has partnered with Fonexpress, a Kenyan retail chain of ICT products and services to provide content and added value services. Kenya is the first of eight African markets that the company is preparing to launch into. - Info2Cell.com has launched mobile short message and multimedia messaging services (SMS and MMS) in Sudan through a joint venture with ADU Communication Technology, a telecommunications specialist in Sudan. Recent projects launched under the new services include the LAKI and Women in Islam channels and full coverage of Euro 2008 via SMS and MMS. Additional services being planned comprises of ringtones, Java games and the introduction of ‘Magalati', the first SMS magazine in the country.
Telkom South Africa to Reduce Costs of Bandwidth to Boost BPO&O IndustryTelkom has announced it's willingness to work with the Department of Trade and Industry's incentive programme and the Business Process Outsourcing and Offshoring (BPO&O) industry by significantly dropping the costs of bandwidth. Group Executive for Strategy, Steven Hayward, on Thursday said: "We do not expect to make any profit from the BPO sector. We are prepared to do this for the department's incentive programme and the BPO industry." Speaking at the two-day national BPO&O policy conference in Durban, Hayward said Telkom regarded the BPO and government incentive scheme as strategic for South Africa. He said debate would naturally circle around whether Telkom's pricing structure would be an enabler or an inhibitor to the growth of the BPO sector in the country. In 2004, reports of Telkom's telecommunications pricing structure were mostly negative due to the high price of communications. Two megabits of bandwidth, for example, was costing R250,000 per month, which Hayward described as "absolutely exorbitant". "In 2005, the same product would cost you R200,000 per month, which is high but still lower than the previous year. In 2006, the price was significantly dropped to R135 for the same amount of bandwidth and in 2007, we further dropped the price to R105,000. "This year the price will be R88,000. (US$11,603) Now that is a significant change in price over a period of four years," Mr Hayward said. He also announced that Telkom was now offering its Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) technology, which has voice carrying capabilities and is far less expensive than equivalents, offered at R50,000 (US$6,593) to local industry. Managing Director of TeleTech, which recently located to South Africa, Craig Reines told the conference there seemed to be significant confusion as to what exactly Business Process Outsourcing and Offshoring was. He said BPO included far more than merely call centres. Dimension Data Group Executive of Sales Andrew Briggs said government's incentive scheme to make the BPO industry more attractive showed commitment, however, he noted that South Africa's cost of doing business and ease of investment was still a concern. "South Africa, however, scored 14 out of 30 on the fundamental Key Performance Indicators (KPI) measuring things such as customer satisfaction, first contact resolution, staff retention, staff attendance, and the amount of answered calls, among others," Briggs said. What is significant to note is that South Africa scored above the global average score of 13 points on the KPI measurement system. (Source: BuaNews) Benue State in Nigeria Gets N100 Million Wimax Internet BackboneBenue State Government is set to install a WIMAX Internet backbone at the cost of N100 million. The State Governor, Gabriel Tor-Suswam, announced this when Information and Communications Technology Consultant to the state government, Tahav Agerzua, leading the Greater Benue Online Project team, paid him a courtesy call at Government House in Makurdi. Governor Suswam also approved the release of funds for the resuscitation of the Benue Digital Village in Katsina-Ala and the training of Benue indigenes in professional information and communications technology institutions abroad. Suswam lamented the dearth of information on the state especially on past administrations and expressed hope that at the end of his administration, one could get information on the state at the click of a button for the benefit of the present generation and those unborn. Towards this end, he said he has appointed a Special Assistant on ICT,. Gideon Inyom and directed ministries and government agencies to liaise with the Special Assistant and the consultant to ensure that their information is uploaded on the site. Agerzua had explained that the Greater Benue Online Project was an initiative of the Suswam administration as part of its e-governance program as contained under the broad Information and Communications Technology provisions enshrined in the economic blueprint, 'Our Benue, Our Future.' He said the project's objectives include making Benue State accessible online globally through the website www.greaterbenue.com on which information on the state can be obtained. 'It is a public-private sector initiative between the Benue State Government in conjunction with Culture Media Nigeria Limited and J M Technologies World Wide,' Mr. Agerzua said. (Source: Daily Trust) UniNet restructures to offer low cost voice and data services across Africa.Synglo Technologies, which is a 100% South African BEE company involved in the ICT Sector, headed by Papi Molotsane has acquired a 65% stake in UniNet. Papi, who previously headed up incumbent Telkom, is now the Executive Chairperson of UniNet, and plans to revolutionize the telecoms sector in Africa using UniNet as the vehicle. UniNet’s previous CEO and founder David Jarvis has driven much of the technology innovation in the company and is recognized as a regulatory reform activist and the continents pre-eminent expert on wireless broadband. David continues to serve as executive director on the UniNet board. Under David’s leadership the company has developed an unmatched track record in Southern Africa as a leader in Open Access telecommunications networks over the past 10 years. UniNet is well known internationally for its partnership with the Knysna Municipality, the first wireless broadband city on the African continent, that delivers on Governments mandate of universal access for all. UniNet’s network infrastructure facilitates the delivery of converged services and allows the provision of low cost access to broadband, voice and video services. UniNet’s networks already cover the greater Cape Town area, Knysna, George, Gauteng province and Durban City. UniNet has embarked an aggressive acquisition strategy to rapidly scale its operation, increase its coverage and consolidate some of the existing wireless access market. Some recent acquisitions have allowed the network expansion into Gauteng and Durban, and more are currently being finalized. UniNet is also pursuing strategic acquisition of some of the larger service providers in South Africa and Africa as well as other businesses that are synergistically linked to its vision statement. UniNet’s edge in the market is partly due to its unique last-mile platform, which has been developed over the past 9 years and is modeled around selected components of the technology utilized in WiFi and Wimax and LTE standards. UniNet’s service offerings are also uniquely modeled allowing for example, low-cost voice, data and multimedia services to be deployed in townships across South Africa. UniNet will continue to use a combination of Satellite, terrestrial wireless and fibre deployments to provide the transport layer for its networks. UniNet’s open access, multi-play platform allows other licenced service providers to provide services to their customers. UniNet’s philosophy is one of partnership with service providers. UniNet empowers service providers, including VANS in South Africa, with competitive wholesale telecommunications services which will create the landscape which will reduce costs to the consumer significantly. UniNet’s roll-out will provide, amongst others, service to 80 sub-economic townships across South Africa, that house more than half the SA population. These communities have access to cellular communications but not at affordable rates. UniNet plans an alternative mobile communications service, based on its UniFi technology, which will allow it to introduce affordable R39 monthly packages that include unlimited local-calls (within a township environs), and low cost Telkom, Neotel and Cellular calls. The subscription will also include limited free Internet access as is currently deployed in the Knysna project and across the Cape Town Metropol. UniNet will soon be introducing its new range of handsets which are affordable dual- mode “smartphone” devices, which will allow subscribers to use the GSM and UniNet UniFi networks, for voice and data and low-cost mobile IPTV services. UniNet Africa, a subsidiary focused on the rollout of UniNet’s networks and services across the continent, is headed by Dr Jones Killimbe as non-executive Chairperson. Dr Killimbe is currently CEO of RASCOM, and also heads up the Africa desk of the ITU. RASCOM own and operate the first pan-African Satellite launched in December 2007 and as a strategic alliance partner to UniNet will allow the rapid deployment of UniNet’s networks across the continent. UniNet intends bidding for Wimax spectrum and is pre-qualified in terms of ICASA’s decision on allocation to operators that are more than 51% BEE. UniNet is able to use Wimax spectrum, un-licenced spectrum, and other less popular licenced bands for the deployment of its services, as it uses its proprietary UniFi technology platform modeled largely on the open standards of Wimax and Wifi. This allows the building of high capacity networks, not limited to the relatively small 20MHz allocations envisaged for the 2.6GHz WIMAX band. In brief:- The Ghana Health Service (GHS) has embraced ICT with the launch of its corporate website www.ghanahealthservice.org - South Africa’s second national operator Neotel has launched its first commercial WiMAX wireless broadband services. The firm has completed trials with seven WiMAX base stations around Gauteng and is now deploying a further 100 base stations in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban, local newspaper The Sowetan reports. Neotel recently called for additional spectrum to be made available for WiMAX services so that it can upgrade from a fixed access service to a full mobile service. - Tony Chomba Mwangi Njanja spends 6 years in Australia, stumbling in the dark, enduring semi-homelessness and accruing thousands of dollars in debts and now puts all his lessons online so that his fellow immigrants can learn from his mistakes. The Displaced African website ( www.thedisplacedafrican.com) has a quickly growing community around it and has been visited by close to 16,000 people and resulted in things the author could only previously have dreamed of.
Uganda’s Army gets Computerised Data Management SystemThe UPDF has installed the integrated information management system at all the division and brigade headquarters to eradicate ghost soldiers on the payroll, reports Chris Ocowun. "This is part of the ongoing exercise to ensure that there is no stone left unturned as regards the annihilation of ghost soldiers in our units," the 5th Division public relations officer, Capt. Deo Akiiki, said recently. The system, he said, would network all UPDF divisions and units on a central data bank to get rid of ghost soldiers. "This data bank comprises several interconnected computers which are closely monitored at the headquarters in Bombo. The information about personnel can now be accessed and managed through the Internet at the division and brigade levels." Akiiki stated that the commanders at all levels could use the system to manage information about their personnel centrally on the data bank linked up to Bombo. "Those in villages at brigade levels were issued with computers with special functions to link them to the main system. These systems are mobile and water proof to suit operational hazards." (Source: New Vision) Over 12,000 young Nigerians to Benefit From KarRox N100 Million IT Scholarship ProjectNo fewer than 12,000 Nigerian youths are expected to benefit from the over N100 million IT empowerment scholarship project floated by one of Nigeria's frontline IT training institute, KarROX Nigeria to empower Nigerian youths. The project, KarROX Nigeria IT Empowerment scholarship, which is in its third edition, the company told Vanguard, was to help bridge the skill and knowledge gap that exists among Nigerian youths. The fund according to the company would enable beneficiaries of the scholarship trained in various software, networking and security modules with multiple platforms and technologies by world leaders in ICT like Microsoft, Oracle, IBM, CompTIA and Sun Microsystems among others. Managing Director of the company Sunil Dhanuka, told Vanguard that "due to the wide gap in demand and supply of learned and well trained ICT professionals in Nigeria, the overall ICT sector is not growing at its full potential. Students have been applying for short term and single technology specialization. Thus we have innovated a model wherein students and applicants would be given a choice to do a complete program which makes them more marketable and work on multiple platforms and technologies". Dhanuka also challenged other corporate organisations to join in creating wealth and skill for Nigerian youths, even as a corporate social responsibility. Vanguard gathered that the last two editions of the scholarship programme received an overwhelming response with 60,000 students applying for it and 12,000 students offered scholarships to complete their various specialized courses on ICT. Business development Manager of the company's franchise agency, Mr. Pritesh Zaveri, noted that the cutting edge of these programs is the blended model of deep foundation and latest technologies offered, adding that even the assessment and evaluation scheme makes the student acceptable in industry and worldwide. The company said the training will be provided at all 15 karROX centres nationwide even as beneficiaries of the scholarship would be based on the applicant's skill, performance in the test and up to 100% fee waiver along with Job assistance guaranteed. (Source: Vanguard) UNISA uses Freedom Toaster to provide digital course materialThe University of South Africa (UNISA) is one of the world’s largest distance-learning universities and is now using Freedom Toasters from Breadbin Interactive, rebranded as ‘UNISA Toasters’, to provide students with content for their courses. The Freedom Toaster is an innovative content delivery kiosk that allows users to choose and burn relevant content onto CDs, DVDs or USB flash drives using an easy touch screen interface. The Freedom Toaster uses a customised open source operating system that allows the kiosks to burn multiple disks at once. Thanks to the open source nature of the Freedom Toaster, UNISA has been able to customise the platform for its own requirements. Students using the UNISA Toasters simply punch their student numbers onto the touch screen interface which then displays their registered course list in digital format. The student chooses the course material he requires and then burns it onto CD, DVD or USB flash drive. There is a global trend towards providing students with digital courseware at universities,” says Louise Schmidt, head of Electronic and Web Communication at UNISA. “However, in Africa this is limited by the digital divide and challenges in terms of connectivity. The UNISA Toaster helps us to bridge the divide and provide digital content to students who do not necessarily have Internet access, or enough bandwidth available to download resources.” UNISA piloted the project in 2007,” she continues. “Our initial plan was to gauge the interest of students to receive digital material. The pilot was a success and we decided to expand the project. We are now launching it at all registration centres in order to assist students to have their study material immediately upon registration, saving them having to wait for material to arrive via conventional mail.” Schmidt says that the Toaster is robust and user friendly and fits perfectly into the UNISA environment. We ordered 30 Toasters and are busy rolling them out to all of our offices nationwide,” she adds. Says Brett Simpson, managing director of Breadbin Interactive, “UNISA has done amazing work with its Toasters and is leading the way in terms of digital courseware and general content distribution at universities. They have shown some out-of-the-box thinking on what can be done with the Toaster's platform.” UNISA is busy installing the initial 30 Toasters and has ordered another 31 units from Breadbin Interactive. In brief:- Intel today announced the successful completion of Phase I of the implementation of the Intel-Powered Classmate PC into 6 schools inside and outside Cairo in Egypt. Following the conclusion of the trial period, the Education Service Provider covering Egypt - has pledged a further order of 5,000 Intel-Powered classmate PCs to be supplied to around 40 schools across Egypt. - The Federal Government of Nigeria has inaugurated a seven-man committee for the establishment of Science and Technology Development Fund (STDF). The committee, chaired by Professor Oluwafeyisola Adegoke, is expected to advise government and facilitate the establishment of STDF, especially the joint management and administration of fund. - OpenOffice.org 3.0, the next major release of the open source office suite, is scheduled to be released in September. Which means that it is pretty much guaranteed to be included in the next release of Ubuntu 8.10, Mandriva 2009 and Fedora 10, all of which are due out in October. Until then it is easy enough to test out the beta releases of OpenOffice 3.0 without removing your existing 2x OpenOffice installation. - Local security specialist distribution company, Biodata, has been awarded the rights to distribute the full range of IBM Internet Security Systems (ISS) products with immediate effect. Biodata is currently the only distributor of ISS products in the region, and will deliver the full scope of ISS security solutions in South Africa, Namibia, Swaziland and Lesotho. - If you're in the US and you walk into a BestBuy this week you may spot some new software peeking out from the shelves. Ubuntu is now available as a boxed set in stores and on-line.
Telkom South Africa Needs More Time for Talks on Its Convoluted Vodacom TransactionA convoluted two-part deal for Telkom to shed its 50% stake in Vodacom and sell everything else it owns to a black empowerment group is taking a while to negotiate, prompting Telkom to buy itself more time. Telkom has updated a cautionary notice first published on June 2, saying the discussions were continuing. That comes as no surprise since the proposed deals involve cleaving Telkom right down the middle. News that the talks may still reach fruition saw Telkom rise R3 to an intra-day high of R134 last week - still substantially less than its R158 when the talks were first confirmed. One offer on the table would see Vodafone pay R18.75 billion for an additional 12.5% of Vodacom, finally giving the UK operator control over the mobile company. But the deal is conditional on Telkom agreeing to shed the 37.5% of Vodacom it would still hold, by distributing the stock to Telkom's shareholders. Vodafone's offer was initially described as independent of a second approach by black investment group Mvelaphanda, which wants to take over Telkom but not its Vodacom stake. Last week, those two bids were officially linked, with the cautionary saying Vodafone's offer depended partly on Telkom considering the bid by Mvelaphanda and its proposed financiers, which include the US-based Och-Ziff Capital Management Group. Details on Mvela's bid are scant, although sources say it offered R90 billion. That has provoked unease among analysts, as Telkom's remaining fixed line assets are worth far more. Mvela's bid works out at R172.80 a share and this is a considerable premium to Telkom's current trading price. Telkom CEO Reuben September has said he favours selling out of Vodacom as soon as possible. "The two businesses are increasingly competing against each other," he said last month. "The value of Telkom needs to be totally liberated." If Telkom was free to partner with any mobile operator or to build its own wireless network, it could offer a full range of services in its own right, without the "unnatural impediment" of being shackled to Vodacom. "Telkom could come into its own if it would participate in the market fully as a stand-alone entity," he said. (Source: Business Day) Starcomms Makes History as the First Telecom Firm to List On Stock MarketStarcomms Plc, Nigeria's fourth largest telecommunications company yesterday made history in the industry by becoming the first operator to get listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). Before Monday's listing on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, Starcomms had successfully raised N64.35 billion through a private placement offer. Proceeds from the private placement beefed up the company capital base. However two institutional investor Actis, and Emerging Capital Partners LLC, (ECP) divested some of their holdings from the company thus widening the shareholder base. The shares of the company which were listed at 12.27pm made significant gain, as it went up five per cent after only five minutes of listing/trading to close at N14.33k. Reacting to the development Maher Qubain, Chief Executive Officer said "At Starcomms, we do not just cook up figures. We operate as a transparent company and today's history making event is meant to drive our growth. We want to become the 3rd, if not 2nd biggest telecom operator in Nigeria by 2010. This is a promise, and at Starcomms, we keep our promise". Mr. Qubain, briefing stock brokers on the company's performance sheet, stated "Starcomms now controls 3 per cent of the Nigerian telecom market. We also have 37 per cent of the fixed wireless sector. By the end of 2008, we would have reached a subscriber base level of 2.5 million. That is our target. Our current subscribers base is approximately 1.6 million by end of June 2008. I make bold to state that at Starcomms, we deliver on our promise". The proceeds from the private placement will enable the company to expand its product range and network thereby bringing more telecom choices to Nigerians nationwide. Now, as the company achieves its landmark listing, we hope to watch its growth accelerate as a publicly-owned company. ECP is very pleased that Starcomms has emerged as the first company to list on the Nigerian Stock Exchange." Both the private placement and listing on the floor of stock exchange were handled by Chapel Hill Advisory Partners Limited and IBTC Asset Management Company Ltd. (Source: Vanguard) As Mcel’s net profit is up by 12%, the company embarks on a large expansion plan in MozambiqueMozambique's largest mobile phone operator, Mcel (Mocambique Celular), has guaranteed that all of the country's 128 districts will be linked to the Mcel network by 2009. At a meeting in Maputo on Friday, held to present Mcel's results for the 2007 financial year, the company's Chief Executive Officer, Gomes Zitha, said that this year Mcel will invest around 70 million US dollars to improve the quality of its network, and expand its geographical coverage. The money will also introduce third generation mobile phone services, and provide mobile broadband connection to the Internet for Mcel users. Zitha said this would also permit greater speed and efficiency in teleconferencing, and the sending of packages of data at high velocity. The chairperson of the Mcel Board of Directors, Salvador Adriano, said that Mcel's revenue grew by 32 per cent, when compared with the 2006 figures, reaching 5.8 billion meticais (about 241 million US dollars). Net profits were much higher than expected, at 346 million meticais (14 million dollars), which was a 12 per cent increase on the 2006 profits. Expansion went ahead rapidly in 2007, with the installation of a further 79 base stations, allowing mcel to cover about 60 per cent of Mozambique's territory, and about 80 per cent of its population (the corresponding figures for 2006 were 54 per cent and 76 per cent). Total investment in the network in 2007 was 1.3 billion meticais. Adriano said that since 2006 Mcel has been undertaking "an ambitious programme of modernizing its technological infrastructure, and now has the equipment that can "satisfy the highest expectations of an increasingly sophisticated market". The 2007 results, he added, were highly significant given the intensive competition in mobile telephony. He was referring to the battle between Mcel and its South African rival, Vodacom, for the Mozambican market. Mcel claims to be winning this battle, consolidating its leadership position with a market share of about 70 per cent (a total of around three million clients). (Source: Agencia de Informacao de Mocambique) South Africa’s Blue Label Seeks Opportunities in Latin AmericaTelecoms player Blue Label has set its sights on ambitious expansion in the emerging markets of Latin America by forming a joint-venture company in Mexico. Blue Label Mexico is owned jointly by Nadhari, a company that develops products and services for emerging markets. The new venture would pursue opportunities that were complementary to its areas of business, Blue Label (BLU) said yesterday. The Mexican venture will sell and distribute secure electronic tokens that give customers access to products including Microsoft software and services. Senior managers and technicians have been posted to Mexico to introduce its business processes and technologies ready for its official launch on September 1. The group sees foreign expansion as a way of reducing its dependency on the South African market and as a timely move into regions where the demand for electronic payment services is growing. Its activities are based on electronic transactions and began with the sale of cellphone airtime. It is now using its network of point-of-sale terminals to expand into prepaid electricity, water and insurance policies, the sale of bus and train tickets, and bill payments. The company is 12% owned by Microsoft, which paid at least R560m for the shares ahead of its listing last November. Microsoft plans to collaborate with Blue Label to sell products and services in developing countries and share the revenue that generates. Blue Label issued a trading update yesterday, saying core earnings for the year to May would come in at R367 million-R384 million, up from the R340m predicted in its prelisting forecast. Core earnings per share will exceed the forecast 45,81c by 5%-10%, by coming in at 47,89c- 50,11c. The rise was due partly to an increased demand for the prepaid airtime Blue Label distributes and to a restructuring of its subsidiaries to achieve economies of scale and operational efficiencies. The results had also been pepped up by using the cash it raised by listing to enhance its liquidity and the ability of its operations to generate cash. Blue Label shares were trading 10c up at 610c yesterday after a belated afternoon opening of the JSE caused by network problems. (Source: Business Day) In brief:- In Kenya, some investors of the Safaricom Initial Public Offering (IPO) are yet to receive their share refunds over a month after the results were unveiled. The investors from Eldoret complained that some of the brokers were reluctant to refund their money following over-subscription of the shares. - Celtel Kenya says it is planning to invest KES25 billion (USD370 million) over the next few years to expand the coverage of its wireless networks. ‘These investments will enable us to provide quality services for our growing number of subscribers in Kenya,’ said new managing director, Rene Meza, last week. The Kenyan mobile sector is currently home to just two players – Celtel and market leader Safaricom – but two new operators are expected to launch this year in the shape of Econet Wireless and Telkom Kenya, ramping up competition in the fast-growing market.
Mixed Reactions As Celtel prepares to change to Zain in UgandaYesse Oenga, the head of Celtel Uganda hands over a house key to one of the recent winners of a promotion which featured the prominent red and yellow colours, but a switch is imminent. Celtel Uganda will next month be known as the Zain Company, in an ongoing process to unify the Zain brand, sources close to the company have said. The Zain Group owns Celtel, the pan-African mobile phone firm. Its parent company is MTC of Kuwait. Uganda will have joined Kuwait, Jordan, Bahrain and the Sudan that were the first operators to undergo the Zain rebranding. To build up the hype, the group is flying in renowned Haitian artist Wyclef Jean for a major concert in August to launch the brand. There has been no official confirmation from Celtel Uganda. But sources familiar with the process explained that "a lot better change was expected for Celtel after Wyclef's concert."The full-page Wyclef Jean concert adverts presented in black, purple and green, the Zain colours, suggest the re-branding process has began. Tito Alai, the Zain Group chief commercial officer, is the brain behind the re-branding. "The name Zain was selected from a list of over 400 extensive researches across many countries and cultures. This validated its broad global appeal," Alai explained. "Zain tested extremely well among cross-sections of the potential global audience and with a planned investment will become a formidable brand within a short period." The rebranding will see a choice of dark theme and purple fantasy to replace the vibrant renowned Celtel yellow and red brand that for the last three years underwent a major re-branding from its former orange and white and an advertising blitz that has seen their ratings rise significantly. In the last three years, the Celtel brand has become so entrenched observers wonder whether by changing to Zain, they will not risk alienating the consumers. Celtel decided two years ago to increase its advertising budget which saw a unified message throughout the continent. Industry sources said the brand succeeded in surpassing its rival MTN at some point in media buying. Its strategy was to take MTN on toe-for-toe, blow-for-blow. The rival went on outdoor advertising blitz, Celtel followed suit, the rival brought a renowned international Reggae group, and Celtel replied with Senegalese star Akon and got its public excited. However, the re-branding has attracted mixed reactions from the local users. It also makes one wonder what such a change would mean to a Celtel user or a small-scale airtime retailer? Mary Namubiru, a domestic worker, wondered where she would buy airtime. Peter Odoki of Makerere Business School said he was used to the red and yellow colours. "The combination of purple, black and yellow looks like the colours of doom," he asserted. He, however, said change was after all always good. "The word sounds funky and it will probably move away from the ghost of the past during Celtel Uganda's inception, where some people felt like they were being ripped off," Odoki said. (Source: New Vision) IPTV before digital broadcasting in AfricaSouth Africa's telecommunications companies could well take advantage of IPTV, especially if it is implemented before the digital terrestrial television migration (DTT) expected in November. Speaking at the TM Forum held in Sandton yesterday, Sami Matri, Safrecom senior multimedia consultant for France Telecom, likened the African climate to that experienced by France. “Businesses in Africa need to open the right window. In France, that window was also the opportunity to launch IPTV services before DTT.” He said without the heavy competition of large numbers of digital channels in traditional broadcast streams, French telecoms companies had the advantage of providing local content before the broadcasters. His description of the broadcasting climate in France had many parallels with the local market. “There were around five or six channels before DTT and IPTV really took off.” According to Matri, the country has low penetration of satellite broadcast technology and low penetration and growth of cable networks. However, the primary distinction between the countries is the broadband penetration, which he noted is the primary technology requirement for successful IPTV. “Our high broadband competition gave us time to gain penetration on the platform, before a channel service could be made available by DTT.” He believes that key for the African situation will be to build hybrid networks that can be connected using WiMax to ensure data rates are high enough to transmit streaming television services. Companies hoping to implement IPTV will need networks that run with a minimum of 2Mbps, Matri added. However, according to his research figures, around 7% of all telecoms networks running in the Middle East and Africa can manage that. He said 92% of networks run under 2Mbps and only 1% of networks will carry 10Mbps or more. With high mobile penetration in Africa, it seems to be the most viable option for an alternative television platform, he noted. However, Matri added that growing subscriber numbers will degrade network performance. “This will hinder real-time content delivery.” It is essential that local companies start considering hybrid networks to build a sustainable IPTV platform, he urged. (Source: ITWeb)
People* Pieter Uys has been appointed to the position of Vodacom Group CEO, succeeding Alan Knott-Craig. Uys, a 15-year veteran of the group and current COO, will take over from Knott-Craig with effect from 1 October 2008. * Toufic Ramadan has been appointed at the head of MTN Congo while Eric Tronel will lead the company’s operations in Benin. Events*29th DURBAN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 23 July to 3 August 2008 Cinema in all its diversity will once again be celebrated at the 29 th Durban International Film Festival which runs from 23 July to 3 August. Featuring more than 200 films from more than 95 countries, spread over more than 300 screenings at 26 venues across the city, the festival will bring together established masters of cinema and innovative new talents from around the world. Alongside the presentation of the some of the year's finest films, the festival will run an extensive workshop and seminar programme giving the regions aspirant filmmakers an opportunity to learn from and be inspired by some of cinema's greats. Programme booklets with the full screening schedule and synopses of all the films are available free at cinemas, Computicket, and other outlets. Full festival details can also be found on www.cca.ukzn.ac.za or by calling 031 2602506 or 031 2601650.For media queries contact Sharlene Versfeld at sharlene@versfeld.co.za * UNLOCKING THE POTENTIAL OF MOBILE TECHNOLOGY FOR SOCIAL IMPACT August 2008, Johannesburg, South Africa The fourth annual SANGONeT “ICTs for Civil Society” conference and exhibition will be held in August 2008 in Johannesburg. This year’s event will be co-hosted with MobileActive.org and branded as “MobileActive08”. For further information visit www.sangonet.org.za * 1st INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON E-COMMERCE AND INTERNET SECURITY IN EAST AFRICA 13-15th August 2008, Kenyatta international Conference Centre, Nairobi, Kenya Information and Communication Technology has been recognised as the engine of development all over the world. ICT sector provides endless opportunities for Africa and its growth in East Africa provides even greater benefits. Information and Communication Technology (ICT) may arguably be the most powerful tool for social and economic development. For further information visit www.purpleimages.com * THE AFRICAN NETWORK (TAN) CONFERENCE 16th August 2008, Accra, Ghana The theme for TANCon Ghana 2008 is “Next Frontier in Business: Propelling Africa to New Heights”, to reflect the growing number of African entrepreneurs in business today, and to showcase to the world Africa's limitless intellectual and economic capital. This year’s attendees will include seasoned, as well as first-time entrepreneurs, business leaders, public policy leaders, venture capitalists and investment bankers interested in learning first-hand how to successfully invest in technology and in Africa. The topics that would be covered at this year’s conference will include Social Entrepreneurship, Women in African Business, Raising Capital, Entrepreneurship in Informal Sector, Infrastructure Development and Creative Partnership Strategies. Attendees will network with the big wigs in entrepreneurship, business, government policy makers and politicians. For further information visit http://www.theafricannetwork.org/tancon/africa/ * ITU REGIONAL CYBERSECURITY FORUM FOR EASTERN AND SOUTHERN AFRICA 25-28 August 2008, Lusaka, Zambia The purpose of the forum is to identify the main challenges faced by countries in the region in developing frameworks for cybersecurity and critical information infrastructure protection, to consider best practices, share information on development activities being undertaken by ITU as well as other entities, and review the role of various actors in promoting a culture of cybersecurity. For further information visit www.itu.int/ITU-D/cyb/events/2008/lusaka/ * 3rd CONNECTING RURAL COMMUNITIES AFRICA FORUM 2008 26th - 28th August 2008, Lilongwe, Malawi With strong support from the industry and public sector this ICT forum will be the continent’s most important forum devoted to last mile solutions. To participate as a delegate, sponsor or exhibit please contact j.taylor@cto.int, m.dekock@cto.int or s.naidoo@cto.int. * 7th IWEEK ANNUAL CONFERENCE 17 - 19 September 2008, Johannesburg, South Africa iWeek has become a critical calendar entry for everyone with a stake in the Internet sector and is the only conference endorsed by the Internet Society of South Africa (ISOC-ZA). Anyone with an interest is welcome to attend free of charge. You are encouraged to register at your earliest convenience at: http://www.ispa.org.za/iweek/2008/apply.shtml prior to the conference. * MOBILEACTIVE08 SUMMIT 13-15 October 2008, Johannesburg, South Africa SANGONeT and MobileActive.org are pleased to announce that they will be hosting the MobileActive08 Summit. The theme of the event is “Unlocking the Potential of Mobile Technology for Social Impact”. More information about the event is available on the MobileActive08 Summit website at http://www.mobileactive08.org * CAPACITY AFRICA 2008 14-15 Oct 2008, Cape Town, South Africa This unique event features a business-driven agenda that will address the latest market developments and opportunities and equip delegates with strategic information to enable them to grow their businesses. Dedicated networking opportunities throughout the programme will provide you with the optimum opportunity to build profitable partnerships and execute business deals. For additional information visit http://www.capacitymedia.com/conferences-events.asp * NORTH AFRICA COM 14-15 October 2008, Cairo, Egypt North AfricaCom is the largest telecommunication event specifically designed for operators and telecoms professionals. With 35 expert speakers, 700 communications professionals and a 50-stand exhibition in 2007, this event is the best opportunity for you to learn from your colleagues' experiences in other countries and find out the latest solutions that can improve your business. For further information visit http://www.comworldseries.com/newt/l/gsm/events/northafrica * TECHNOLOGY: A PLATFORM FOR DEVELOPMENT? 30 - 31 October 2008, Chatham House, London, UK Technology is now recognized as having the potential to transform the lives of millions in the developing world. This major international conference will seek to identify best practice for achieving the successful implementation of new technology. For further information visit http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/events/conferences/view/-/id/127/ Jobs and Opportunities* Transmission Fibre Optic Planner – West Africa Transmission Fibre Optic Planner, required for one of our customers who has deep knowledge in the following: Fiber Optic route planning, loss calculation, civil structures specifications. Understand and have recent experience in Fibre optic technologies, DWDM, CWDM, ROADM, etc Knowledge of Heterogeneous networks - PDH, SDH, ATM and Ethernet. Familiar with any major vendor s product line and detailed knowledge of any major vendors Fibre planning tool. (Alcatel-Lucent, Huawei, Ericsson/Marconi, NSN,etc) Understanding in the use and operation of OTDR s to perform trace recording of spare fibers along the routes and to troubleshoot network problems. Indepth knowledge of G821, G826, G828 Error performance objectives including ability toset end to end and per segment objectives. Good knowledge of Capacity planning, load balancing in SDH rings, network protection SNCP, MSPRING Expert Synchronization network planning, implementation and optimization Able to roffer and implement solutions for Legacy/TDM Transmission to NGN Ethernet,IP, etc migration Knowledge in Planning Tools such as PATHLOSS 4.0, Ellipse and TEMS. Experience in the preparation of BOQ/BOM and vendor negotiation. Knowledge in IP Networking for the Next Generation Network, an advantage. For further information contact advertising@balancingact-africa.com Contracts* Datacom Ltd and MagnaQuest - Zanzibar MagnaQuest Technologies Pvt Ltd, a Customer Management and Billing solution provider, announces that its product, MQSubscribe has been chosen by Zanzibar Datacom Ltd., Zanzibar, United Republic of Tanzania for managing its broadband subscription business. It would leverage MQSubscribe to quickly acquire market and stay ahead of competition. Service packaging, CPE installations, Service provisioning, Rating Billing and Customer Care will all be managed through MQSubscribe. * SASSA and MTN Network Solutions – South Africa MTN Network Solutions (MTN NS) has been awarded its biggest government tender yet – a South African Social Security Agency (Sassa) contract worth R166 million over three years. In terms of the tender, which was first published in February last year, MTN NS will provide virtual private network services to Sassa nationally. * BTC and Redknee - Botswana Botswana Telecommunications (BTC), a government owned communications service provider in Africa has ordered a Converged Billing Solution from Redknee Solutions. * ANESRIF and Nortel - Algeria Nortel has been selected to provide wireless communications with its GSM-R technology for two new railway lines in Algeria. GSM-R is expected to enable the Algerian railway infrastructure agency, Agence Nationale d'Etudes et de Suivi de la Realisation des Investissements Ferroviaires (ANESRIF) to improve safety and increase average train speeds to reduce travel times while reducing operational costs. Nortel's technology will also help increase network interoperability and support new voice applications running over the GSM-R network such as railway emergency and group conference calls.
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