Issue no 759 29th May 2015
Top Story
Online mobile music sites springing up in francophone countries – Two start-ups join the party in Congo-Brazzaville and DRC
There are well over 100 online and mobile music platforms in Africa and not a week seems to pass without another one being launched. This week it's the turn of the two francophone Congos – DRC and Brazzaville – as music platforms start to spread more widely into francophone Africa.It’s a bit of surprise that it’s not happened earlier. Both Congo-Brazzaville and DRC have such a rich musical talent pool. Congo-B’s latest music platform start-up Litoyi has set out to present the best of music from both banks of the Congo river. Launched by Kenan Jered Mfoundou, he simply wants…
Telecoms
Tanzania: TCRA goes for infrastructure sharing and spectrum auctions
Dar es Salaam. Tanzania is planning to introduce a system that would require telecommunication companies to share infrastructure in a bid to promote quality, reliability and reduce cost on consumers.The…
Telecoms
Nigeria: As President Jonathan Quits, Emeka Offor's Firm Remains Locked in a U.S.$470 Million Controversial Telecom Deal
President Goodluck Jonathan will be leaving office this week unable to resolve what has become a major telecommunication controversy: the 2012 sale, by the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC), of the…
Telecoms
Globacom subscribers near 30m mark
Nigerian mobile network operator Globacom has revealed that its mobile subscriber base is approaching the 30 million mark, local newspaper Vanguard cites the company’s national sales coordinator for North West…
Telecoms
ARCEP Orders Benin Operators to Reimburse Overbilled Subscribers
Benin’s telecoms regulator, Authority for Regulation of Electronic Communications and Post (ARCEP) has ordered operators MTN Benin (formerly Areeba), Moov Benin and Globacom Benin (Glo Mobile) to reimburse their overbilled…
Telecoms
Telecoms – In Brief
Malawian operator TNM is offering free access to a theme song for the 'Send Your Girls to School' project, performed by musician and parliamentarian Lucius Banda. The 'Send Your Girls…
Internet
Project Isizwe Will Extend its Free Wi-Fi to Eastern Cape, South Africa
The project provides internet access to areas with low internet penetration, in a manner similar to that of Facebook’s Internet.org.“The Eastern Cape is ideal because it is as rural as…
Internet
Abu Dhabi-based Yahsat to storm Africa’s telecom industry with massive expansion agenda
VENTURES AFRICA – Yahsat, the Abu Dhabi-based satellite communications firm, is steaming ahead with its expansion plans into Africa, it emerged on Wednesday. The company wants to enter this market…
Internet
Airtel provides Machakos police with free Internet
Airtel has connected Machakos Police station, in Kenya to the Internet for free.The connection will allow the officers at the station connect to relevant online platforms such as Facebook and…
Internet
Microsoft launches low-cost Internet in rural Kenya
Microsoft is aiming to connect rural residents in Nanyuki, a market town in Laikipia County in central Kenya, with low-cost wireless Internet. The move aims to deliver affordable Internet service…
Internet
Opera Software launches Opera Max with Data saving, Wi-Fi management and App Blocking features
Opera Software, the company that developed Opera Mini, Africa’s most popular mobile browser, has today launched the new Opera Max, a data compression tool that has seen huge popularity amongst…
Internet
Kenya: Access Kenya Completes Network Upgrade in Nairobi, Nakuru and Thika
Access Kenya has completed network upgrade in Nairobi, Nakuru and Thika as part of increasing business connectivity.The chief technical officer Raymond Macharia said the upgrade is part of Sh300 million…
Internet
Internet – In Brief
Nigeria's Globacom, has launched the country's first ever-comprehensive airport Wi-Fi facility in collaboration with the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN). With this development, passengers and other users of the…
Computing
Liberian Open Government Partnership could get SMS platform
Liberian Deputy Information Minister Andrew Tehmeh has called on the government to develop an SMS platform to gather feedback on national development, aimed at enhancing the Open Government Partnership (OGP).…
Money Transfer
Airtel Pushes its Airtel Money VISA Card Before Launch of Safaricom M-PESA MastercardCard
Airtel partnered with Chase Bank to launch its Money VISA card launched last year to allow easy access funds 24 hours a day, bringing new point-of-sale and ATM transaction options…
Money Transfer
Kenya’s Stima introduces M-Pawa
Kenya Power’s savings and credit cooperative Stima Sacco announced the introduction of the M-Pawa mobile application. The app has been introduced in an effort to provide members with access to…
Money Transfer
Ingenico Group earns Award for ‘Financial Inclusion Platform of the Year’, ‘Best Mobile Money/Card Combination’ and ‘Best Data Monitoring Solution’
At the 5th edition of the annual Mobile Money Expo in Lagos, Nigeria, Ingenico Group, a leader in seamless payment, won the very coveted ‘Financial Inclusion Platform of the Year’…
Money Transfer
SimbaPay launches free UK to Nigeria money transfers
SimbaPay, a leading digital money transfer provider – has announced the launch of its money transfer service to Nigeria. Using the SimbaPay app or website, Nigerians living in the UK…
Mergers, Acquisitions and Financial Results
Nigeria's Hotels.ng Raises $1.2 Million
Nigeria’s leading hotel booking website, Hotels.ng, has raised $1.2 million from the Omidyar Network, the investment vehicle of eBay founder Pierre Omidyar, and EchoVC Pan-Africa Fund, a seed-stage technology fund.Founded…
Mergers, Acquisitions and Financial Results
TTCL recapitalised at USD45.5m; telco clears debts
The Tanzanian government has recapitalised incumbent Tanzania Telecommunications Company Ltd (TTCL) to the tune of TZS96.4 billion (USD45.5 million), Agence Ecofin writes, citing comments by Deputy Minister for Communication, Science…
Mergers, Acquisitions and Financial Results
Econet Claims to Be Owed USD26m by State Operators
Econet Wireless Zimbabwe, the country’s mobile market leader in terms of subscribers, says it is owed USD26 million in interconnect fees by the state-run telcos NetOne and TelOne.A report from…
Digital Content
Seedstars World coins cinema booking site Moovi Mozambique’s top startup
Global seed-stage competition for startups Seedstars World has kicked off its African tour in Maputo, Mozambique this week where cinema booking site Moovi walked away as the winning company.The inaugural…
Digital Content
Africa's digital capacity under spotlight in August
The attention of Africa's software engineers, academics, technology enthusiasts and innovators will move to Johannesburg, South Africa in August 2015 as the country hosts the second Africa and Middle East…
Digital Content
Nigerian teens develop “Crocodile Browser Lite”
The duo of Osine Ikhianosime and Anesi Ikhianosime have rekindled hope in the future of Nigeria as they entered their names in the catalogue of application developers when they built…
Digital Content
HelloFood app wins “Best Mobile App of the Year” at Ghana’s ICT-based industry awards
Online food ordering and delivery platform, HelloFood has been awarded the Best Mobile App Company of the Year at the 5th edition of the Ghana Telecom Awards, ahead of OLX,…
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Opportunities
Make innovation go further, fasterSpeaker nominations now open for ITU Telecom World 2015From the current state of 5G to international standards in the Internet of Things, from new connectivity solutions…
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Events
Broadband World Forum 201520-22 October 2015Excel Centre, LondonBroadband World Forum is one of the world’s largest telecoms, media & technology events with over 7,800 senior executives from across the globe.For…
