Author: Gugu Lourie
Picture yourself as an explorer in a distant and dangerous place. Something goes wrong, and you and your team have to abandon the venture and head straight for home. But you get left behind, the rest of the team thinking you are dead, and you have no way to contact them. By Helen Maynard-Casely Now you are in the shoes of the protagonist of Ridley Scott’s latest flick, The Martian. But rather than being abandoned on an ice floe or desert island, the film’s protagonist, Mark Watney (Matt Damon), is marooned on the desolate planet Mars, roughly 225 million kilometres…
Cognition Holdings is looking to grow its business throughout 2016 financial year using its R95 million cash pile. By Gugu Lourie The firm that operates quietly to provide telecoms and IT solutions to big telecommunications operators said on Tuesday it has a strong balance sheet with cash of R95 million, which “will be used to evaluate additional acquisitions in line with our knowledge and data strategy”. The JSE-listed Cognition Holdings, formerly known as FoneWorx, has successfully traded for the past 19 years, building solid blue chip clients such as Cell C, DStv, MTN, SAB, SABC, Telkom, Unilever and Vodacom.…
EMC has appointed former CEO of unlisted technology firm Gijima, Jonas Bogoshi as Country Manager of Southern Africa. By Staff Writer Bogoshi joins EMC from T-Systems International where he acted in the role of vice president sales. He has held executive roles in both private and public sector organisations, and his leadership experience spans South African enterprises as well as multinational companies. “One of our focus areas will be to position and demonstrate EMC as a catalyst for digital transformation. This journey for customers will require a strong ecosystem between us and our partners to make it real. Furthermore,…
Vodacom, South Africa’s largest mobile phone operator, has sold more than 2.1 million Vodacom branded handsets and tablets since August 2014. By Gugu Lourie “It’s no secret South Africans are data hungry and there is an increasing need for smart devices. I’m confident that our own branded smart range partnered with our propositions and world-class network is well positioned to provide the best mobile experience to customers,” said Vodacom’s managing executive for Terminals, Davide Tacchino. As part of its commitment to democratising access to the Internet, Vodacom on Tuesday introduced four new branded range of Smart devices at its…
Metrofibre Networx, a company led by ex-Absa boss Steve Booysen, will be deploying Fibre to the Home (FTTH) services to the surburbs of Sunninghill and Barbeque Downs. By Staff Writer Working with the local Sunninghill ratepayers association, Metrofibre was selected as the area’s preferred FTTH supplier, enabling residents access to high-speed fibre and data services right to the home. The first estate in Sunninghill went live in June 2015, subsequently a further six have been completed, with 14 more to follow suit, and further construction happening in excess of 10 additional estates. Metrofibre is aiming to connect more than…
The tungsten lightbulb has served well over the century or so since it was introduced, but its days are numbered now with the arrival of LED lighting, which consume a tenth of the power of incandescent bulbs and have a lifespan 30 times longer. Potential uses of LEDs are not limited to illumination: smart lighting products are emerging that can offer various additional features, including linking your laptop or smartphone to the internet. Move over Wi-Fi, Li-Fi is here. By Pavlos Manousiadis, Graham Turnbull and Ifor Samuel Wireless communication with visible light is, in fact, not a new idea. Everyone knows…
As part of its strategy to enhance its foothold in the fibre network space, MTN is buying Smart Village from Multichoice. By Staff Writer MTN announced on Monday it has concluded a deal with MultiChoice to acquire Smart Village, which it hopes will accelerate its fibre to the home (FTTH) strategy to be the provider of choice for high speed fibre network across South Africa. The deal is subject to approval by the South African competition authorities. Smart Village is a wholly owned subsidiary of MultiChoice that owns fibre networks in gated communities. Its expansive fibre network passes 29 000 residential homes and stands in…
Telkom, South Africa’s biggest fixed-line telephone group, may be closer to buying Cell C – the country’s third mobile phone operator. Telkom announced on Monday it was involved in unspecified talks. By Gugu Lourie “Shareholders are advised that Telkom is in discussions which may have a material effect on the price of Telkom’s securities,” Telkom released statement shortly after the market opened on Monday. The telco, which is valued at more than R35 billion, advised shareholders to exercise caution when dealing in it’s shares until a further announcement is made regarding the unspecified discussions. Last week on Wednesday, TechFinancials.co.za reported that price…
The South African cabinet taps the Information Communications Technology (ICT) industry veteran as the new CEO of state-owned signal distributor Sentech. By Gugu Lourie The South African cabinet has finally announced the new CEO of Sentech. Known industry veteran Mlamli Booi, an electrical engineer, has been named as the new boss of the state signal distributor to replace Dr. Setumo Mohapi, who left the company on 1st April 2015. Mohapi joined State IT Agency (SITA) as the CEO. Booi joins the state-owned signal distributor with many years of experience in the ICT industry with the Independent Broadcasting Authority, MNET, Telkom…
Mark Zuckerberg, the billionaire founder and CEO of Facebook, has zoomed into the subject of internet connectivity as a tool to address poverty across the globe. By Ujuh Reporter Using an Indian example in his latest blog, he touches on the subject of ehealth in a way that resonates with recently launched initiatives in South Africa and mainly to the project called MomConnect and a youth focused Mobi-Site. “Connectivity isn’t an end in itself. It’s what people do with it that matters — like raising a healthy family,” says Zuckerberg. He was speaking about improvements via the Internet.org to help…