Author: Gugu Lourie

By Staff Writer It is that time of the year when MTN employees across the country will be exchanging their tools of the trade for picks and shovels when they roll up their sleeves and embark on community upliftment programmes as part of 21 Days of Y’ello Care, MTN’s employee volunteerism programme. MTN SA Foundation has injected an R8 million into the 21 Days of Y’ello Care campaign to capitalise on the partnership with the MTNers in the 2015 investments in education. As part of MTN’s employees’ volunteerism project, the campaign will be implemented between 1 and 21 June this…

Vodacom, South Africa’s largest mobile phone operator, in a creative and clever advert is calling subscribers to remain with the best network in the country to avoid #SlaapTiger network and potential customers to #ChangeTheGame by joining the country’s super-fast network #PowerToYou. The operator is asking potential customers not to let a bad connection slow them down by switching to its super-fast LTE network. “By switching to SA’s best mobile network you switch to a range of top devices, convenience and reliable connectivity that always has you covered,” says Vodacom.           Change the Game – Vodacom Slaap Tiger TV #SlaapTiger #ChangeTheGame The company added that…

Telematics to remain the M2M sector champion despite high growth in smart-metering By Staff Writer Leading hi-tech analysts Juniper Research are forecasting that the telematics sector will continue to outperform all other M2M markets over the next five years, in revenue terms, with one in five passenger vehicles connected globally by 2019. Smartphone-based models have become the key disruptor for M2M, as sectors such as healthcare, consumer electronics and retail continue to evolve. Juniper Research forecasts that the M2M sector will generate service revenues of over $40 billion globally by 2019 – doubling the size of today’s market. Smart metering…

By Staff Writer Prepaid customers will receive 100MB of data per month for free for the first six months. The Smart 6 also comes with free access to Vodacom’s e-school portal.  Vodacom today launched the Vodacom Smart 6 smartphone, a 4 inch handset with a full Android 4.4 (KitKat) experience. The Smart 6 is the latest Vodacom device to launch in South Africa with the express purpose of making the cost to connect to South Africa’s best network with the  fastest  mobile internet* more affordable, particularly when combined with Vodacom’s low-cost data plans. The Smart 6 will be available from…

By Staff Writer  A legally binding arbitration process that MTN is suggesting to the Communication Workers Union (CWU) is fair and it can help put an end to the current industrial action, MTN SA CEO Ahmad Farroukh told the delegation representing the striking employees. This follows a meeting that MTN management had with a delegation from the CWU this afternoon. “MTN wishes to reiterate that the proposal for the appointment of an independent arbitrator that is fair and impartial may be the only practical solution to this stalemate. I therefore urge the unions to accept it. As a law abiding corporate…

By Mortimer Hope Explosive growth in mobile connectivity has already transformed the lives of millions of people across Africa. According to GSMA research, Sub-Saharan Africa has been the world’s fastest-growing mobile region over the last five years and is forecast to continue to lead global growth through 2020. By then, the number of unique mobile subscribers in the region is expected to pass the half billion mark as mobile services become increasingly affordable and accessible to millions of currently unconnected citizens. As government and business leaders prepare to convene in Cape Town to “Reimagine Africa’s Future” at the World Economic…

By Staff Writer MTN Business has appointed four new senior managers as part of an ongoing overhaul of its top leadership aimed at making the firm  a key player in the enterprise market. The firm said Mandisa Ntloko would take over as the head of enterprise marketing. She joins MTN from Accenture. Ntloko has extensive experience in developing and implementing marketing and communications strategies at a number of multinationals. She worked for a number of entities in various roles, including at MTN South Africa, later at Dimension Data where she served in different roles including Director for Marketing and Communications for…

By Staff Writer OpenWeb has launched an incredible Uncapped ADSL sale, offering up to 60% discount. The company claims to provide some of the lowest prices ever seen in South Africa. OpenWeb CEO Keoma Wright says OpenWeb home uncapped is an affordable and redefined ADSL package perfect for home use. “Prices range from R139 for 2Mbps to R349 for 10Mbps.” The special is subject to activating a debit order or auto deduction from a credit card. It allows for one ADSL line to be connected at a time, but unlimited devices may be connected from the same line. OpenWeb requires one…

Huawei, the world’s largest telecoms equipment maker, has teamed up with Vodacom Business to develop a technology solution for efficient energy and water use. The solution enables users to intelligently monitor and manage their geysers or boilers in real time. Presently, water heaters are managed manually. This often means that faults are not always detected timeously. This method of physically monitoring geysers or boilers in an era of machine-tomachine (M2M) solutions is obviously outdated. M2M – also referred to as the Internet of Things (IoT) – involves connecting an assortment of devices including refrigerators, toothbrushes, geysers, couches, smart electricity meters and coffee makers to the internet. At the Huawei Network Congress 2015 held in Beijing in May, Huawei revealed…

By Gugu Lourie Through the simplification of what has historically been perceived as a highly technical arena, SAP is making coding more appealing and accessible to a wider audience. SAP has, developed a coding course which is available at no cost on openSAP, where registrations are now open for all learners in Africa with courses scheduled to begin on 2 June 2015. “You’ll be truly amazed at how fast your learners get up to speed with coding skills. And if you’ve never written a line of code in your life, don’t worry. This course will get you started step-by-step,” said…