News update Telecoms and ICT in Africa - Issue no 1005 – 6 December2019
Top Story
Congo Telecom plans to make major bandwidth increases for its FTTH customers but to hold to the same prices
6 December 2019
Despite some economic difficulties caused by falling oil prices, Congo-Brazzaville has been taking some significant digital steps forward. The incumbent telco Congo Telecom has ambitious plans to upgrade broadband delivery. Russell Southwood spoke to Renylle Akouala, Multimedia, Wholesale and Enterprise Solutions, Congo Telecom at AfricaCom 2019. Congo-Brazzaville’s fibre link to the world is through the WACS landing station which makes the incumbent Congo Telecom the only seller of international bandwidth in the country. The current price for an IP transit STM64 link is US$28,000 but for much smaller amounts of capacity the prices are obviously much higher per mbps. The…
Telecoms
SA second-worst in the world for spam SMSes
6 December 2019
South Africa is one of the most spammed countries in the world via SMS and phone calls, according to a new report by caller ID and spam blocking app Truecaller.…
Telecoms
Africa: Is Africa Ready for 5G?
6 December 2019
As Nigeria trials superfast 5G networking, there's no shortage of hype over how the next generation of wireless technology could leapfrog Africa into the high-speed internet age. Here's what you…
Telecoms
In brief
6 December 2019
Satellite Mediaport Services Ltd. (SMS Teleport) has announced it has been selected by Spacecom to act as the European Gateway for their newly operational AMOS-17 communication satellite. SMS is uplinking…
Internet
Mainone’s Submarine Cable, Ready for Service in Cote d’Ivoire
6 December 2019
MainOne’s entry into the Cote d’Ivoire market will facilitate world-class infrastructure availability and accessibility that meets market needs at any time MainOne has announced its submarine cable in Cote d’Ivoire…
Internet
Competition watchdog blasts Vodacom and MTN for ‘excessive pricing’ of mobile data
6 December 2019
A Competition Commission official told Business Maverick that the watchdog is expecting legal action from Vodacom and MTN on its findings. ‘We are prepared to fight them and defend our…
Internet
Vox To Roll Out Uncapped Data Satellite Service In South Africa
6 December 2019
The integrated ICT and infrastructure provider, Vox revealed on Tuesday, 3 December 2019, that it had launched its uncapped voice and data satellite service plans. As part of its new…
Internet
Djibouti Telecom, Somtel, Telkom Kenya and SubCom announce the completion of the manufacturing aspects of the DARE1 submarine cable
6 December 2019
Cable loading commenced on November 13, 2019; cable is on track for RFPA in June 2020 Djibouti Telecom, Somtel, Telkom Kenya and SubCom today announced that all manufacturing aspects for…
Internet
Nigeria: NCC Intervenes In Telco And Govt Data Price Dispute
6 December 2019
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has stepped in on behalf of Nigeria’s telecommunication service providers in a stand-off between the operators and the Minister of Communication Dr Isa Ibrahim Pantami…
Computing
Cameroon Minister Urges Experts to Render Big Data Profitable for Africa
6 December 2019
"By 2030, revenues generated by big data in Africa will reach 10 billion dollars, but how much of this will stay in Africa, how many of our youths will play…
Computing
Nigeria’s National sex offenders register is a victory, but it’s just the first step.
6 December 2019
Nigeria launched its first national sexual offenders register on Monday in the nation’s capital- Abuja, with the goal of having a federal database for persons convicted of sexual crime across…
Money Transfer
Safaricom’s newsavings product Mali to allow M-Pesa customers to save & get 10% annual interest
6 December 2019
Kenyan telecommunication company Safaricom has launched a new digital saving product called Mali. The new product will be available to Safaricom M-Pesa customers. Through Mali, Safaricom M-Pesa customers will be…
Money Transfer
Zimbabwe’s Econet Shuts Down Post-Paid Platform
6 December 2019
Zimbabwe’s drastically inflationary economic environment has forced the nation’s biggest telco, Econet Wireless, to cancel contract line arrangements, forcing post-paid subscribers to pay in advance for roaming and talk time.…
Money Transfer
Altron co-launches new cashless payment solution in Rwanda
6 December 2019
JSE-listed technology company Altron, through its Rest of Africa (ROA) operations, has partnered with Pascal Technologies to provide a seamless and integrated payment system for motorcycle public transport services in…
Money Transfer
Cameroon Rolls Out Mobile Money Aggregation Platform For Financial Inclusion
6 December 2019
On 26 November 2019, Minette Libom Li Likeng, Cameroon’s Minister of Posts and Telecommunications signed a decree clarifying the conditions and operating rules of Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) for…
Money Transfer
NetOne Focuses On Mobile Money And Data Services To Avoid Liquidation -Reports
6 December 2019
Zimbabwe’s state-owned mobile operator NetOne has revealed that it plans direct its focus towards data, financial services and entertainment media in order to avoid liquidation. The company’s Public Relations, Marketing…
Money Transfer
In brief
6 December 2019
President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi expressed his support for launching a joint e-commerce platform in Africa, as suggested by Bishar Abdirahman Hussein, Director General of the Universal Postal Union."We will study…
Mergers, Acquisitions and Financial Results
Blue Label shareholders fully behind disposals
6 December 2019
Shareholders of JSE-listed Blue Label Telecoms, which has lost almost half of its value since January, have unanimously approved the sale of two assets for about R1bn, in an effort…
Mergers, Acquisitions and Financial Results
Cell C creditors hire lawyers to push through rejected Telkom takeover
6 December 2019
Following the announcement that Telkom South Africa’s takeover bid for cash-strapped Cell C has been rejected, the latter company’s creditors remain keen to push through the transaction. According to Bloomberg,…
Mergers, Acquisitions and Financial Results
In brief
6 December 2019
Orange Group has confirmed it has completed the sale of its entire 95.5% stake in its Niger business to Zamani Com, after the transaction received approval from the relevant authorities.…
Mergers, Acquisitions and Financial Results
In brief
6 December 2019
Somalia nationals took to social media to express their disgust at the country’s omission from among the world list of countries. They wondered why despite the mobile phone company opening…
Digital Content
MTN Nigeria launched its music streaming platform MusicTime
6 December 2019
MTN Nigeria unveiled a platform for streaming music, MusicTime! This allows music enthusiasts to choose from millions of songs available around the world. Developed in partnership with Simfy Africa, MusicTime!…
Digital Content
#SayNoToSocialMediaBill: Nigerians Protest Proposed Law Allowing Government to Block the Internet
6 December 2019
Nigerians are saying no to the 'Protection from Internet Falsehood and Manipulation Bill' that they say will give the government the power to silence them. A bill that could limit…
Digital Content
These are 2019’s Most Shazamed South African Songs
6 December 2019
"Fetch Your Life" by Prince Kaybee and Msaki was the most Shazamed song of 2019 in South Africa. Apple Music recently released the statistics for the most streamed songs, artists…
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People
6 December 2019
Tanzanian Dollar Millionaire Ali Mufuruki Dies in South Africa Dar es Salaam — One of Tanzania's dollar millionaires and chairman for Infotech Investment Group, Ali Mufuruki, is no more. Mr…
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Opportunities
6 December 2019
Join Global Voices’ #WritingTowardFreedom Twitter chat on December 11, 2019 'Writing toward freedom: Politics and digital rights in Africa' Global Voices Twitter Chat #WritingTowardFreedom will discuss politics and digital rights…
