Author: Gugu Lourie
By Gugu Lourie Samsung, Tecno, and Apple were the leading smartphone vendors in Africa during the first quarter of 2015, with Huawei being ousted from the top three, according to the global technology consulting firm International Data Corporation (IDC) Mobile Phone Tracker. The three leading vendors accounted for a combined 55% share of Africa’s smartphone shipments in the first quarter of 2015. Smartphones sales were up 66% during the first quarter to reach more than 36 million units being shipped by vendors in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region. The Mobile Phone Tracker predicts that MEA smartphone shipments are set to total 155…
By Jed Hewson, director of 1Stream. For both new and established e-commerce merchants worldwide, customer experience and customer care have become key to survival. While online stores can beat out their brick and mortar competitors on price, gaining a competitive edge over other online merchants has become about excellence in customer experience. And nowhere is customer experience more important than in the call centre. Indeed, for online customers, the only real point of contact is the call centre. Sadly, it often represents a pain point and last resort. Despite the strategic importance of the call centre, however, many e-commerce companies don’t…
By Staff Writer Vodacom embarks on a skills development training in information and communication technology (ICT) in order to help empower unemployed youth through the Cisco IT essentials. Vodacom saw it fit to capacitive the instructors further, by once again partnering with both Cisco & Microsoft. The training focuses on Cisco CCNA 1 & 2 & Microsoft ITA. The training will help and give learners an opportunity to be competitive in the field of IT as both help desk & technical support. The programme aims to train unemployed youth in ICT skills and to further develop them into ICT entrepreneurs.…
By Staff Writer Technology firm MoWallet walked away with the bragging rights and a cool R1 million after winning the inaugural #Hack.Jozi Challenge. The #Hack.Jozi Challenge is an initiative between the City of Johannesburg and the Joburg Centre for Software Engineering (JCSE) at Wits University, which is aimed at unearthing techno-savvy individuals and SMMEs with great solutions to the city’s everyday problems. MoveThis Stuff and Lazy Lizzard each received R350 000 cash incentives for clinching second and third places respectively. Johannesburg Executive Mayor Councillor Parks Tau said the #Hack.Jozi Challenge and other techno-centric projects were an integral part of the City’s…
By Gugu Lourie MTN Zakhele said on Thursday that it was on track to list on the black economic empowerment (BEE) platform of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) alongside the Sasol Inzalo shares. The Financial Services Board (FSB) ordered all over the counter (OTC) trading platforms to apply for trade exchange licence. The order came last year but has been postponed to accommodate initiatives like the MTN Zakhele OTC trading platform to get their houses in order. MTN Zakhele, the Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) scheme of MTN, has since been granted a number of temporary exemptions to sort out its situation.…
By James Moar Satya Nadella has announced that Microsoft will be laying off 7,800 workers in a reshuffle, accompanied by a $7.6 billion write-off related to the acquisition of Nokia. This is despite Lumia sales that have been showing steady increases throughout 2014, although they do not come close to the likes of Samsung, Apple or even LG. A Nexus-like Future for Microsoft Devices? The formation of the Windows and Devices Group earlier this month was an early acknowledgement that something needed to be done about this – Microsoft is looking to integrate its software and hardware more tightly than it…
By Gugu Lourie ZAR X, a newly formed company, is keen to set-up a stock exchange in South Africa that will compete with the current incumbent, the JSE. The Financial Services Board has issued a notice of application for exchange licence in terms in Section 7 of the financial markets Act, 2012 and identified ZAR X as an applicant. “In terms of section 7(4)(b)(iii) of the FMA all interested persons who have objections to the application are hereby called upon to lodge their objections with the Registrar of Securities Services, on or before 3 August 2015,” the FSB said in…
By Gugu Lourie Telkom said on Wednesday that the interim order granted by the Labour Court in Johannesburg to stop retrenchments is a “temporary delay” in its much-needed restructuring process of the business. “We will study the full detail of the judgement to allow us to determine our next steps,” Telkom spokesperson Jacqui O’Sullivan said on Wednesday. “While the judgment is disappointing, this is a temporary delay in the restructuring of Telkom, which remains a key business requirement for the future sustainability of the organisation.” The judge has ordered that the dispute, which relates to information sharing, must be referred…
Following weeks of participation on the Quiz4Moola platform, today MTN announced the grand winners of the Quiz4Moola who will respectively pocket R1 million in cash and all-expenses paid family trip to Disneyland. Andre Bernard, from Durban was selected as the winner of the R1 million prize, while Gordon Gcwabaza from Soweto won the runner’s up prize of an all-expenses family trip to Disneyland in the United States. MTN launched the Quiz4Moola competition in March this year. This knowledge-based competition rewards customers with points for each correct answer and bonus points for getting a stipulated number of consecutive answers right. After…
By Gugu Lourie The Labour Court on Wednesday has granted an interim order preventing Telkom, South Africa’s largest fixed-line telephone group, from going ahead with its retrenchment process. The application, which was heard in the Labour Court in Johannesburg, was lodged on Tuesday by Solidarity Union after Telkom “disregarded the agreement with trade unions with regard to restructuring processes”, according to Solidarity. The Labour Court in Johannesburg on Wednesday decided in Solidarity’s favour, ruling that Telkom’s restructuring and retrenchment process be stopped. Judge David Gush further ordered Telkom to retract its restructuring and retrenchment notice. Furthermore, trade unions must refer a…