Issue no 334 3rd December 2006
Top Story
Battle for the cheap education computer hots up
The holy grail of cheap computers for emerging markets is producing a sub-$100 laptop for education purposes. One Lap Top Per Child, the initiative launched by MIT’s tech showman Nicholas Negroponte took a step nearer last week with its first test production run. But it has a competitor in the shape of a Canadian company producing a similar if more expensive laptop product called Ink. The road to the holy grail is already littered with the failure of the Brazilian Volks and the Indian Simputer. The Volks never made it into production and the Simputer is under-specified and over-priced. It…
Telecoms
NAMIBIA TELECOM'S FIXED WIRELESS SOLUTION IS ACTUALLY MOBILE, SAYS NCC
Telecom Namibia last week launched its Switch mobile phone system surrounded by growing controversy about whether the company is entitled to offer the service or not. Chairman of the Namibia…
Telecoms
SIERRATEL TRIES TO CRACK DOWN ON GREY MARKET
With the passing of the Telecommunication Act by Parliament and signed into law by President Kabbah, the management of Sierratel has employed the services of California based IDENTITEL to stop…
Telecoms
FRANCE TELECOM’S SENEGAL AND MALI OPERATIONS REBRAND AS ORANGE
"The commercial marks of Alizé, Sentoo and Keurgui TV in Senegal and the Sonatel department in Mali are to adopt a joint name: Orange," according to statements by the General…
Telecoms
NITEL’S WORKERS SHORT CHANGED ON PENSIONS AGREEMENT
A meeting between the federal government and telecommunication workers unions over the payment of a N46.7 billion severance package ended last weekin deadlock. Report said the Minister of Communications, Engineer…
Telecoms
ZDF BLASTS POTRAZ IN ZIMBABWE AND CLAIMS SINGLE GATEWAY ONLY WAY TO CONDUCT SURVEILLANCE
Just when you thought it could not get any worse, Zimbabwe always seems to go one step further. This week the armed forces came to Parliament to support the Government’s…
Telecoms
TELKOM SOUTH AFRICA TO INTERCONNECT WITH LOCAL VOIP PROVIDERS
Telkom has come down from the hill. The telecommunication giant’s initial reluctance to interconnect with companies that provide cheaper calls over the Internet has come to an end. The…
Telecoms
Telecoms News - In Brief
- Vivendi’s 51%-owned Moroccan subsidiary Maroc Télécom has revealed it is launching a new mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) in France, called Mobisud, on 1 December 2006, aiming the service…
Internet
DRC SIGNS NEPAD EASSY PROTOCOL, ZAMBIA TO FOLLOW
An African broadband protocol would help the continent bridge the digital divide, the Democratic Republic of Congo's (DRC) ambassador to South Africa said ahead of it signing on behalf of…
Internet
SA VANS LICENSE DELAYS ADVERSELY AFFECT 2010 INFRASTRUCTURE PLANS
The Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) has informed the Internet Service Providers’ Association of SA (ISPA) that VANS (Value-Added Network Services) licence applications submitted to the Regulator from…
Internet
VODACOM GOES WIRELESS G
Vodacom Ventures, a subsidiary of the Vodacom Group, has signed a deal with G-Mobile Holdings - the holding company of WirelessG, a local provider of global broadband Internet access. This…
Internet
NEW TOOL AIMS TO BYPASS INTERNET CENSORSHIP
A new tool aimed at circumventing Internet filters used by some governments was released Friday, offering hopes for freer access to information for activists, journalists and others. The "psiphon"…
Internet
JUDGE BANS ONLINE GAMBLING IN GAUTENG PROVINCE
Pretoria High Court judge Willie Hartzenberg this week granted the Gauteng Gambling Board a declaratory order, banning online gambling – other than bookmaking – in the province. But the position…
Internet
Internet News - In Brief
- National operator Mauritius Telecom has been given approval by the Information and Communication Technologies Authority to cut its wholesale ADSL tariffs by 26%, writes online news portal lexpress.mu. If…
Computing
DAR ES SALAAM STOCK EXCHANGE SET FOR ELECTRONIC TRADING
The Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE) will go electronic as soon as the installation of the Automated Trading System (ATS) is complete. According to Jonathan Njau, the chief executive…
Computing
MICROSOFT ANNOUNCES VISTA AVAILABLE FOR AFRICAN BUSINESS CUSTOMERS
Reaffirming its commitment to markets across Africa as part of its global activities, Microsoft last announced the availability of Windows Vista, the 2007 Office System and Exchange 2007 for business…
Computing
KENYA WILL GET ELECTRONIC TAX RETURNS BY 2008
Next year could see the last gatherings of crowds as Kenya Revenue Authority employees gather their annual paper mountains.Taxpayers will be able to file their returns electronically by June 2008,…
Computing
ANGOLA’S INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES STEERING PLAN COMES INTO EFFECT
The Cabinet Council's decree that approves the Government's Steering Plan on Information Technologies (ITs)aimed at the equipping of the organisms with technological means, improvement of the quality of services and…
Computing
THE PROMISE AND PROBLEMS OF TELEMEDICINE
As the 11th annual conference of the International Society for Telemedicine and eHealth drew to a close Wednesday in Cape Town, South Africa, the ability of Africa to adopt and…
Computing
IS INNOVATION HUB THE WAY FORWARD FOR BOTSWANA?
Speaking at a conference on the Botswana Innovation Hub in Gaborone, the Minister of Finance and Development Planning, Baledzi Gaolathe, said the policy was central to the governments macroeconomic management,…
Computing
Computer News - In Brief
- A new satellite-based information system will allow poorer nations to gain cheap access to crop, health and climate data, enabling them to better prepare for natural disasters.Starting next year,…
Telecoms, Rates, Offers and Coverage
TELECOMS, RATES, OFFERS AND COVERAGE
- Nigerian CDMA2000 1x fixed wireless access (FWA) operator Starcomms, which claims over 400,000 subscribers nationwide, has launched services in the city of Ibadan. - The recent release of prepaid…
Mergers, Acquisitions and Financial Results
NAMIBIA BANK EXTENDS FINANCIAL GUARANTEE TO POWERCOM
The Development Bank of Namibia (DBN) has announced four new projects it is financing, to a total value N$36.75 million, with N$30.5 million of that amount going to new mobile…
Mergers, Acquisitions and Financial Results
AFRICA CELLULAR'S SHARES INCREASE 40 PERCENT ON ALTX DEBUT
Shares in Africa Cellular Towers, a manufacturer of steel communication towers, gained as much as 40% in their debut on AltX last week. The stock, which was privately sold for…
Mergers, Acquisitions and Financial Results
TELKOM STUNG BY COURT'S R1.5BN TELCORDIA RULING
Fixed-line operator Telkom was dealt a R1,5bn blow when the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) yesterday ruled against it in a long-running dispute with US computer software company Telcordia Technologies.…
Mergers, Acquisitions and Financial Results
On The Money - In Brief
- The European Union, Delegation of the European Commission in Ethiopia said on Tuesday that the Commission has signed a two million Euro agreement with the United Nations Food and…
Digital Content
BROTHERS LAUNCH TEXT MESSAGE CONTENDER IN SOUTH AFRICA
Brothers Sean and Donovan Bergsma, 20-somethings and owners of the R60m-a-year ComIT Technologies and Elite Mobile companies, have been catapulted into the mobile technology industry with the launch of their…
Digital Content
NEW WEBSITE AFRICANHERITAGETRAVEL.COM PROVIDES FREE INFORMATION FOR TRAVELERS TO AFRICA
The new website AfricanHeritageTravel.com (www.africanheritagetravel.com) is the essential travel toolbox for travelers to Africa and the world. It is essentially a portal for world travel with hyper-links to travel information…
Web and Mobile Data_old
CABO VERDE TELECOM TO ROLL OUT IPTV
Cabo Verde Telecom has signed a contract with Siemens Networks for the supply of an IPTV solution for TV via DSL broadband. Cabo Verde, the fixed and mobile services operator…
Web and Mobile Data_old
NTV, KBC LINK TO 'THE DISH'
Multichoice of South Africa has linked up with two of Kenya's television stations which will now be available on DSTv. Private station NTV, operated by the Nation Media Group, and…
Web and Mobile Data_old
JUMP TV LAUNCHED IN UGANDA
Dubai based Internet Protocol Television, JumpTV, has established its Africa offices in Uganda.Jump TV, which delivers programmes to households through broadband connection, will enable Ugandans living in the Diaspora subscribe…
Web and Mobile Data_old
GOVERNMENT RECEIVES REPORT ON SWITCH TO DIGITAL BROADCASTING IN SOUTH AFRICA
Communications Minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri received a report Wednesday with recommendations on how government could best manage the transition from analogue to digital broadcasting. The Digital Migration Working Group delivered the…
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PEOPLE
The MTN Group has announced that Group President and CEO, Phuthuma Nhleko, has been appointed to the new board of directors of the GSM Association (GSMA), the global trade association…
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EVENTS
- WIRELESS BROADBAND AFRICA –WEST AFRICA 4-6 December 2006, Eko Meridien Hotel, Lagos, Nigieria The West African Wireless Broadband Forums will provide a marketing and education platform to promote effective…
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JOBS AND OPPORTUNITIES
* SYSTEM ENGINEER FOR WCDMA RAN OPTIMISATION – SOUTH AFRICA The company is looking for a System engineer for WCDMA RAN Optimisation with the following skills: He must have WCDMA…
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CONTRACTS: WHO'S SELLING WHAT TO WHOM?
* NAMIBIA TELECOM AND DIMENSION DATA - NAMIBIA Telecom Namibia signed a N$120-million contract for the acquisition of an IP/MPLS data backbone network from Dimension Data - the biggest ever…
