Author: Gugu Lourie

“Clearly Cell C is positioning itself again as a trend setter – like before I expect that when this campaign goes pear-shaped the struggling operator will run as fast as it can to Icasa, the industry watchdog, to ask for a bailout via regulatory intervention.” By Gugu Lourie Cell C is dangling a whopping R10 000 reward to new customers who ditch contracts with Vodacom and MTN and sign up with South Africa’s third largest mobile service provider – but the unprecedented move raises sustainability questions. Cell C is yet to deliver its first bottom line profit after 14 years…

The launch of the Apple Watch heralds the transformation of BYOD into BYOX. How can businesses accommodate #GenMobile’s adoption of wearables, while still staying in control? By Matthew Barker “Gorgeous”. “Beautiful”. “Actually useful”. “Epic”. The accolades from the reviewers of the Apple Watch keep pouring in and the new device – though not the first of its kind in the market – holds the potential of becoming as ubiquitous as the iPhone or the iPod. However, the expected popularity of the Apple Watch raises interesting challenges for CIOs and IT managers. The Apple Watch is merely a herald of an…

By Tony Smith Over the years SMS marketing has become extremely prevalent as it is valuable, cost effective, intimate and reaches a specific target audience at a particular time. Small businesses with a tight marketing budget can achieve a high return on investment using SMS technology if they use it correctly. The majority of mobile users rarely leave home without their devices, meaning businesses are able to connect with their audience, wherever they may be. Therefore, effective mobile engagement platforms are required to achieve optimum results with SMS marketing. With the necessary tools to help  enhance and improve interactions with customers, small…

By Staff Writer In a move to encourage mobile subscribers to ditch Vodacom and MTN, Cell C  is giving customers of its rivals up to R10, 000 to help them buy themselves out of their contract should they want to move to Cell C but still have an outstanding value to settle before they can cancel. On Wednesday Cell C also reported a 44% rise in data traffic on it’s network , with data revenues up 59%  in the first quarter of 2014 versus the same period in 2014. South Africa’s third mobile phone operator said that contract and TopUp customers can…

By Staff Writer Allied Electronics Corporation (Altron) will announce an independent management structure later this year, the struggling technology group said on Wednesday. The company, which is also in a process of selling subscriber base of its struggling Altech Autopage, said it is also exploring strategic equity and technology partnerships with global industry players in other areas of the business. Altron, which reported a 50% decline in headline earnings per share to 94 cents in the year to end-February,  has also identified certain material non-core assets have been identified for disposal. “Altron’s board has undertaken a fundamental review of the group’s business strategy. As…

By Gugu Lourie Shares in struggling technology firm Allied Electronics Corporation (Altron) fell 3.7% to R12.89 by 11am on Tuesday after the company said it was in advanced talks to sell the mobile subscribers of Altech Autopage. The South African-based company, which is valued at more than R3.6bn, said on Tuesday that the decision to dispose of  Altech Autopage’s subscriber bases has been based on, among others, the impacts of the on-going Mobile Termination Rate reductions, as well as continued industry and consumer deflationary pressures. “Accordingly this business has been classified as a discontinued operation for purposes of the company’s 2015 annual…

By Matthew le Cordeur Naspers chair Koos Bekker said his decision to work without a salary when he was CEO helped him focus on building the value of the company, but he wouldn’t recommend it to everyone. In an interview with Fin24 at his Naspers office in Cape Town, Bekker said that not taking a salary during his 17 years as CEO was a gamble that, after a shaky start, eventually worked out for him. “I don’t recommend it to everyone, because it’s high risk,” said Bekker, who started his new role as chair in April. Controversial decision Bekker’s decision…

Technology firm Ricoh has released its new 3054SP/3554SP series of A3 black-and-white multifunction devices, for medium to large offices, that support intelligent document functionality. By Staff Writer “These devices go beyond standard printing, copying, scanning and faxing to help businesses be ready for the future. They can be used as an information portal into the document environment and can connect directly to cloud services from the operation panel,” says Esti Kilian, national head of marketing services at Ricoh SA. “They allow people to monitor user activity, energy consumption and operating costs and they can form part of Ricoh’s Managed Document Services  (MDS)…

By Gugu Lourie The decision by Gijima, a leading South African software and computer services group, to voluntarily delist from the bourse places the JSE technology index under the spotlight. Gijima’s delisting leaves only nine stocks on the technology index, which is made up of software and computer services as well as technology hardware and equipment shares. The technology index could be further depleted if Business Connexion (BCX) is bought by Telkom – a development that would see South Africa’s fastest-growing technology firm removed from the JSE. The R2.7bn deal, first announced nearly a year ago, awaits approval from SA’s competition watchdog. The transaction is likely to be finalised this year after which Telkom has indicated it will reverse…

By Scott Firsing Most do not associate Africa with the high-tech sphere of “space”. However, in recent years, many countries on the continent have woken up to the potential and usefulness of space technology. In sub-Saharan Africa, Nigeria and South Africa are leading the charge. What have South Africa and Nigeria have achieved? Both countries have recognised the usefulness of satellites for earth observation, telecommunications and advancing space science. They have funded and overseen a number of launches. Nigeria’s space agency, the National Space Research and Development Agency, flies several multimillion-dollar satellites. South Africa launched its first satellite, SUNSAT, in 1999.…