Author: Contributor

By Staff Writer South Africa’s power utility is sitting on its last R20-billion but wants bonuses to be paid to axed CEO Brian Molefe, suspended acting chief executive Matshela Koko and others, Sunday Times reported. The newspaper reported that this means that, unless something is done urgently, the parastatal could find itself unable to pay November salaries. However, Eskom proposes that Molefe be paid a R2.1-million bonus for the eight months he served as CEO in the 2016-17 financial year, said the newspaper. Earlier this year, Eskom attempted to secure a R30-million pension payout for Molefe – who was CEO…

By Martin Walshaw,  F5 Networks Senior Systems Engineer Rapid advances in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning are about to revolutionise society in ways we cannot yet imagine. Many will welcome the possibilities brought about by the technological shake-up, but there is also growing uncertainty about the long-term impact on jobs. The Future of Apps – an F5-commissioned report by the Foresight Factory – recently reported that 30% of South Africans between the ages of 16 and 25 believe their current job could be replaced by AI or robots within the next decade. While fear of the technological unknown is understandable,…

By Staff Writer South African payments company Yoco announced on Thursday that it now has 10 000 SMEs in South Africa using its point-of-sale payments platform to accept card payments. Yoco, which was launched at the end of 2015, said it was adding over 1 000 new SMEs to its base every month, “making it the largest independent mobile point-of-sale player in South Africa by number of merchants”. SMEs are big business in South Africa, contributing close to 50% to GDP and driving most of employment. However, due to their small size, fragmented nature, and general unpredictability, they remain overlooked…

by Ben Dickson Why would Amazon, one of the biggest tech companies in the world, spend $13.4 billion to acquire Whole Foods, a grocery chain? Some analysts believe this is Bezos’ response to Walmart’s inroads into online retail. But I think the bigger picture is about data, the new oil, the new gold, the subject of a not-so-secret battle between the leading tech companies (Apple, Google, Facebook, Microsoft and Amazon). While you scroll through our social media timeline, search the web, watch videos online and do a lot of different things on your smartphones and computers—and all of it without paying a dime—the companies…

By Sara Behdad, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York Traditionally, when a car breaks down, the solution has been to fix it. Repair manuals, knowledgeable mechanics and auto parts stores make car repairs common, quick and relatively inexpensive. Even with modern computer-equipped vehicles, regular people have plenty they can do: change oil, change tires and many more advanced upgrades. But when a computer or smartphone breaks, it’s hard to get it fixed, and much more common to throw the broken device away. Even small electronic devices can add up to massive amounts of electronic waste – between…

By News Agency Staff The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) has reached yet another milestone, with a significant development that cements the way towards the second phase construction of the colossal telescope. The Ghanaian and South African governments on Thursday announced the combination of ‘first light’ science observations, which confirm the successful conversion of the Ghana communications antenna from a redundant telecoms instrument into a functioning Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) radio telescope. Ghana is the first partner country of the African Very Large Baseline Interferometer (VLBI) Network (AVN) to complete the conversion of a communications antenna into a functioning radio…

By Staff Writer SAP, German-based software firm, has has initiated an independent investigation spearheaded by a multinational law firm and overseen by executive board member Adaire Fox-Martin to vigorously review contracts awarded by SAP South Africa. Fox-Martin is currently traveling to South Africa to address the concerns of customers, partners and employees. The German-based firm has placed the current management team on administrative leave pending the findings of the review. The South African office of the German software giant SAP is believed to have paid the Gupta front about R100 million “kickbacks” for state business. The AmaBhungane and Scorpio said…

By NewsAgency Staff South Africa must build its skills base in the Information Communication Technology (ICT) industry if it is to cement its position in the fourth industrial revolution. “As we exist in the digital age and in the midst of a universe that is continuously shrinking to become a global village, ICT and innovation are elements that underpin our future growth and development. “If we are to dream of a brighter future for our country, it is essential that training in ICT and business development become integral in our education system. That is the best way we can cultivate…

By Staff Writer  Times are financially tough for many South Africans, making special offers and opportunities to save more appealing than ever. So why is it that SA’s ‘big four’ retail banks are sitting with more than R2 billion in unspent loyalty points? Surely the discounts redeemable through these points should be sought after as consumers attempt to make hard-earned money go further? The financial services industry, specifically the big four banks, have offered loyalty programmes for a number of years now and have acquired important customer transactional data in the process. But is this data being analysed effectively to…

By Staff Writer South Africa’s Vox is calling all wireless internet service providers (WISPS) in towns where broadband coverage is limited, or where ADSL is old, over-subscribed and unlikely to be extended, to partner with the integrated ICT and connectivity provider, to drive enhanced connectivity experiences for their customers. Leveraging its investment in its national long-distance fibre project, which was launched in October 2016, Vox is deploying wireless links via a high capacity backhaul that it anticipates will assist WISPS to convert what were previously best effort basic services to a more inclusive, far-reaching broadband connectivity experience for businesses and…