Author: Gugu Lourie
The Vuma Fibre has started rolling out its high-speed fibre network in the southern areas of Johannesburg. The company is already rolling out its fibre network in Bassonia, Glenanda, Glenvista and Mulburton. As the demand for superfast broadband increases, Vumatel plans to extend the build to the rest of Johannesburg South and surrounding suburbs. Vumatel is building its open access fibre network in partnership with the community and connect every home, complex and apartment block to super-fast world-class fibre broadband. The fibre provider will also connect every certified Primary and High school passed when deploying the network to free 1Gbps…
Vula Telematix, South Africa’s first Internet of Things (IoT) network operator, has hit a major milestone with coverage of four main South African cities with its IoT dedicated network. “We have created coverage in Durban, Cape Town, Johannesburg, and Tshwane. We are now going to Nelson Mandela Bay,” Agnat Max Makgoale, CEO Vula Telematix, told Techfinancials in an interview. He added that the company was also involved in several projects in smaller municipalities across the country. The IoT is the internetworking of physical devices, vehicles, buildings, and other items – embedded with electronics, software, sensors, actuators, and network connectivity that…
The vote of a motion of no confidence tomorrow against President Jacob Zuma in South Africa’s Parliament will be conducted in a secret ballot. Baleka Mbete, the National Speaker of Parliament, informed the media on Monday that the vote of no confidence in Zuma will be done through a secret ballot on Tuesday. “This decision is therefore in the best interest of the country. The Speaker is required to guard the procedure of this house and to ensure that the outcome of this very important vote is credible. The Speaker must do this without fear or favour. It is with…
South African cities and municipalities are facing pressing and complex challenges, such as providing services, including water, electricity, housing, and free Wi-Fi on limited budgets. Inadequate housing, unreliable electricity, and water supplies are some of the major problems faced by South African cities and smaller municipalities. However, the Internet of Things (IoT) can greatly improve the provision of public services. IoT solutions can enable smart interactions with city services to save municipalities a lot of money and make them more efficient. IoT also could transform the lives of residents by providing tangible solutions to many of society’s ills. Vula Telematix, South…
Silvertree Internet Holdings is planning to invest about R130 million in the next 12 months into new and existing portfolio companies that make use of technology to reach consumers, with a focus on growth stage and buyout opportunities. The Cape Town-based firm has already invested $15 million (R 200 million) into African consumer-focused technology companies since inception in 2014. The company said its portfolio has achieved an average of more than 200% annual revenue growth, helped by fast-growing companies like car buying site carzar.co.za and meal-kit delivery company ucook.co.za. Silvertree has a unique owner and operator approach with active and…
South Africa’s retailer Pick n Pay last week released the latest version of its mobile app for Android and quickly recorded more than 10 000 downloads were recorded within 24 hours. Today, the iPhone version was released, and the retailer expects comparable download volumes. The app offers practical updates that have been designed to enhance the Pick n Pay shopping experience. It also brings all the functionality of the Smart Shopper kiosk to the palm of users’ hands. New features on the app include: Barcode scanner: Users can scan any product and instantly add it to their shopping lists New recipes…
Blue Label announced on Monday that it has completed its recapitalisation of mobile phone operator Cell C. The company’s recapitalisation has resulted in Cell C’s net borrowings reduced to R6 billion. South African-based Blue Label said through its wholly-owned subsidiary, The Prepaid Company, now owns 45% of the issued share capital of the mobile phone operator. The JSE-listed telecommunications group also announced that The Prepaid Company has implemented the acquisition of 47.37% stake in 3G Mobile for R900 million The acquisition of the remaining 52.63% for R1 billion is subject to regulatory approvals and the first acquisition becoming unconditional. 3G…
Mxolisi Saady Zuma has been accused of trying to broker a R54-million bribe to use his father’s influence to swing a multibillion-rand TV set-top box (STBs) contract, according to the Sunday Times. The country is migrating from analogue to digital terrestrial TV and the decoder will be necessary for homes to receive signals. SA has been planning for digital migration since 2008. The initial deadline, as determined by the International Telecommunication Union, was June 17, 2015, but South Africa missed that deadline. The South African government has committed to giving five million subsidised STBs to poor TV-owning households. The Universal Service…
On the same day former Vodacom executive, Rob Shuter, presented his maiden financial results for his present employer MTN, Treasury named Vodacom’s Vuyani Jarana as the new CEO of South African Airways. Jarana is the latest Vodacom executive to land a plum job at another entity. The Vodafone-owned mobile phone operator hasn’t named a successor to Jarana. For more read: SAA Taps Vodacom Executive Vuyani Jarana as CEO Vodacom under Shameel Joosub may be doing something right. Judging from the trend, It has obviously hired high-calibre individuals and groomed them for bigger positions. For Joosub, Vodacom’s emergence as a “breeding…
We live in a world where five billion people are connected and where mobile, broadband, and cloud are transforming the fabric of society. Ericsson in a new report titled: An Economic Study of the Hyperscale Data Centre, calls this world the Networked Society and it is impacting our everyday lives in profound ways, not unlike the titanic shifts of the industrial revolution more than a century ago. Ericsson added that with the rise of the Internet of Things, more products are becoming “smart” and connected with other things across an expanding global cloud network. Meanwhile, information streams from these networks…