Author: Gugu Lourie

South Africa’s third largest mobile network Cell C says that possible local regulation of over-the-top (OTT) services like WhatsApp could harm the industry and consumers. By Gareth van Zyl, NewsAgency OTT services – which range from WhatsApp to Skype and Google Hangouts – allow users to make messages and calls over data networks – typically at lower costs than traditional telephone calls or SMS. But local growth of these services prompted top chief executives at Vodacom and MTN last year to call for regulation of OTT services. And now that call has been taken to the Portfolio Committee on Telecommunications and…

Eskom envisages a bigger role for itself in the nascent renewable energy industry in South Africa, according to Ayanda Nakedi, senior general manager of Eskom’s Renewables Energy Unit. By Siseko Njobeni, NewsAgency The Department of Energy’s (DoE) Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP) has seen companies invest over R168bn in the renewable energy industry. After four rounds of bid windows – the first of which commenced in the latter half of 2011 – the department has allocated over 6 000MW to 79 projects. The bulk of the projects are for large-scale renewables plants such as concentrating solar power plants,…

French sporting goods retailer Decathlon, which is popular known for its accessible prices and mega stores, opens its first ever boutique in sub-Saran Africa based in in Cote d’Ivoire through a partnership with Jumia, the country’s No.1 online retailer.  By Staff Writer The partnership will result in the establishment of a 100% online shop. The boutique on Jumia is the first of its kind in sub-Saharan Africa for  the world’s largest sporting goods retailers. For now, it will propose a first range of products in limited stocks (shoes, bicycles, clothing, fitness equipments, etc.) to identify needs and expectations of the Ivorian consumers. The…

 At least three top independent technology experts have resigned from a national broadband council amid allegations of insufficient guidance from government. By Gareth van Zyl, NewsAgency The National Broadband Advisory Council was launched by former Communications Minister Yunus Carrim on March 4 2014, with the intention of tapping independent experts to support the department with policy implementation. However, the council was subject to President Jacob Zuma’s decision in May 2014 to split the Department of Communications into two. This meant that the broadband council subsequently fell under the watch of Telecommunications and Postal Services Minister Siyabonga Cwele. But the chairperson of…

Warren Buffett likes to say that when the tide goes out, we can see who has been swimming naked. That applies to overborrowed households and overleveraged companies. But it also applies to monoculture countries, ones who have allowed any narrow dependency to form or to linger, that can become a great weakness once a greater global unravelling strikes. By Cees Bruggemans   Well, the tide did go out, spectacularly Tsunami-like, in recent years, the knock-ons have grown wildly in scope, well beyond expectations, and the world is still trying to get a grip on the resulting adjustment. How much further does this…

ShowMax and MWEB have teamed up to offer three months’ free ADSL and complimentary access to ShowMax. By Staff Writer This offer, which is aimed at changing Internet TV or subscription video on demand (SVOD), is available until 31 March to customers who sign up for a 12-month subscription. It is available on all MWEB’s ADSL service products, except on 1GB, 2GB, 5GB Capped and Uncapped 1Mbps services. “If your New Year’s resolutions have anything to do with becoming more tech-savvy, living a more connected life, improving your internet connection or saving money, then this offer comes at the right time. By combining…

Zazoo, a technology division of the JSE and Nasdaq-listed company Net1 UEPS Technologies Inc, is expanding into India through a partnership with Oxygen Services India. By Gugu Lourie The partnership will enable Zazoo to seamlessly integrate its mobile virtual card (MVC)technology to power Visa Prepaid into Oxigen Wallet in association with RBL Bank as sponsor bank and co-branding partner. Zazoo has operations in 12 African countries, and it also has a presence in Colombia, Spain, South Korea, the Philippines, the UK and the US. The firm told TechFinancials.co.za last year that its is eyeing speedy global expansion focusing on the…

Swift Butler, South Africa’s start-up founded by young entrepreneur William Thubakgale known to most as the “Digital Pitbull”, wants to enable shoppers to buy groceries online by appointing a butler (shopper) to go out to do their groceries and have it delivered to their door. By Gugu Lourie Swift Butler promises same day deliveries for all orders made before 16:00 of that day, and strictly servicing customers in Johannesburg – it allows them to deliver to users door in a matter of hours. For added convenience to the customer, they are allowed to select a delivery date and time that suits them…

Justice Mohammed Idris of the Federal High Court in Lagos yesterday refused to grant an application of mareva injunction filed by the federal government seeking to stop MTN Nigeria Communications Ltd from moving funds in its accounts in 21 commercial banks out of Nigeria, according to a media report on Monday. The Leadership newspaper said  the Nigerian court held that the federal government failed to place enough material before the court to prove that MTN was about to empty its bank accounts and move its funds out of the country. The government had filed the application to prevent MTN from boycotting…

 MTN SA Foundation is rewarding top performing matriculants with bursaries and laptops to assist them with furthering their studies and give them access to the technological tools that are critical in their studies. By Staff writer The recipients of the 18 bursaries and 200 laptops include three top learners in the LSEN (learners with special educational needs) category. A top performing learner who is visually impaired will receive a laptop with specialised software and 10GB of data. The 18 bursaries will be distributed to two qualifying learners per province that are selected by the provincial education department.  The bursaries cover registration, tuition, accommodation, books, pocket money and top-up allowance…

In the world’s new knowledge economy, innovation and technological change are recognised as the primary drivers of progress. Technological and digital literacy will be a crucial part of helping many countries move beyond their reliance on material resources. By Michael Rowe Such literacy, and an understanding of technology in general, will also be crucial for university students. They will have to develop the ability to collaborate across multiple contexts, filter and synthesise information from a variety of sources. These skills will be necessary if students are to contribute to the world in the 21st century. We live in a world where…

Who could possibly be against free internet access? This is the question that Mark Zuckerberg asks in a piece for the Times of India in which he claims Facebook’s Free Basics service “protects net neutrality”. By Mark Graham Free Basics is the rebranded Internet.org, a Facebook operation where by partnering with local telecoms firms in the developing world the firm offers free internet access – limited only to Facebook, Facebook-owned WhatsApp, and a few other carefully selected sites and services. Zuckerberg was responding to the strong backlash that Free Basics has faced in India, where the country’s Telecom Regulatory Authority recently…

Respected business academic and consultant Dr Bheki Shongwe has come out in support of suspended Standard Bank economist Chris Hart after claims his tweet about slow economic growth last week was racist. “While it is understandable that the tweets … may be perceived to have racial undertones, I would like to state on record that this does not represent the Chris Hart I know,” Shongwe said in a statement in his personal capacity. He called for South Africans to start a social dialogue platform that will help remove misconceptions about each other, and that will bring us together as a…

The internet erupted in outrage last week at reports that Twitter is poised to increase the limit for tweets from 140 to 10,000 characters. By Jean Burgess The first rumours of such a move emerged in the tech news website Re/code back in September then again last week. The response on Twitter was immediate and, for the most part, somewhere between incensed and bemused, with many thousands of tweets posted with hashtags such as #10kTwitter, #Twitter10k, #10000gate, #140twitter, #beyond140 and #longtweets. CEO and prodigal co-founder of Twitter, Jack Dorsey, clarified things in a proof-of-concept #longtweet of his own: We don’t know…

Controversial radio personality Gareth Cliff and realtor Penny Sparrow have dominated South African social media in the past week, ROi Media has said. By Kaveel Singh, NewsAgency In a statement, ROi Media, who generate news and social media statistics, said that the duo combined accounted for over 45% of the social conversation in seven days. “Matric results and Protea conversation follow with just over 20%,” the statement said. ROi Media said that South African news media was dominated by the matric results and Hashim Amla’s resignation, saying racism-related news was smaller than both these stories. “Penny Sparrow comes in at just…

 The #FeesMustFall movement will be making a return in 2016 when it occupies the Wits University Solomon House on Monday, the first day of registration, the Wits Student Representative Council (SRC) has said. By Kaveel Singh, NewsAgency In a statement, the SRC said January 2016 saw students confronted with “a similar problem that we faced a year ago”. “Thousands of young people do not have access to institutions of higher learning despite their academic capabilities in the most challenging circumstances!” The statement added that the SRC spent the last weeks of last year and the first of this year fully engaged…

The South African National Consumer Union (Sancu) is urging consumers to be aware of their smart phone charges after receiving complaints from users with bills running over R20 000. By Adiel Ismail, NewsAgency Sancu vice chairperson Ina Wilken told Fin24 that in 2015 the union received nearly 500 cell phone-related complaints, with some being sent to the Consumer Commission. “It seems to me the big issue here is the bundles,” she said. “Smart phones have the ability to devour huge quantities of data when performing certain of their functions, and this can easily exceed the amount of data provided for in…

Cell C, South Africa’s third-largest mobile phone operator, is likely to be floated on the JSE in the next three to four years, according to a media report published on Sunday. By Staff Writer The Sunday Times newspaper report said the country’s third-largest mobile phone operator plans to use the next three years to position itself for a favourable listing. “We think the markets will still be trying over the next two or so years, but we will use this time to make sure we have changed perceptions about this company and to ensure that there is an appetite to buy…

 After four days in hospital following a “hit and run” incident, actor Thapelo Mokoena has taken to social media to recount what happened to him. By Mpho Raborife, NewsAgency On Saturday morning, Mokoena posted on his Facebook account that he had been struck by what bystanders described as a red Audi while he was jogging in Vanderbijlpark, south of Johannesburg on Tuesday night. “I started my run and it’s was going well as usual,” Mokoena wrote. He had started jogging at 19:45. “I reached my 5km mark and started to make my way back. I keep going and just before I…

 The rand could be between R18.37 and R19 against the dollar by the end of 2016, Peter Attard Montalto, emerging markets economist at Nomura, said on Friday. By Carin Smith, NewsAgency This is an adjustment of Nomura’s previous expectation of the rand at R16 to the dollar by the end of 2016. The key factor regarding the rand remains what he calls “the negative narrative” against the backdrop of the country facing a downgrade, a widening current account deficit, capital flight and looming rate hikes in the US and China. His analyses indicate that emerging market currencies are likely to underperform…

Government employee Velaphi Khumalo has been suspended with full pay from the Gauteng Sports, Arts, Culture and Recreation Department. By Naledi Shange, NewsAgency In a Facebook post, Khumalo called for black South Africans to do to white people what “Hitler did to the Jews” and cleanse the country of white people. The Sports Promotion Officer was served with an official suspension letter on Friday morning, said department spokesperson Nomazwe Ntlokwane. Disciplinary action was expected to follow. “Mr Khumalo has been suspended as from today and due process will be taken. We regard the allegations against him as a serious matter,” Ntlokwane said. “His pay…

The ANC says it has met with freelance journalist Carien du Plessis over a tweet she sent about “pantypreneurs and tenderpreneurs” at the party’s 104th anniversary celebration and resolved to allow her to attend the rally. By Karabo Ngoepe and Genevieve Quintal, NewsAgency “The ANC has been in contact with Carien to discuss her tweet… she expressed to us her commitment to non-racialism and unfortunately a very genuine mistake was made,” spokesperson Zizi Kodwa said. “We accepted that and her commitment to non-racialism.” Kodwa said the ANC had withdrawn its decision to bar her from attending the party’s 104th anniversary celebration…

In his keynote address at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this week, Reed Hastings, Netflix CEO, announced that Netflix will now be available in 130 new countries. This sees Netflix more than triple its global presence. By Marc C-Scott The world map of Netflix availability on the company’s website is now a sea of red. Among the countries yet to have access to Netflix is China, although the company is exploring this. Crimea, North Korea and Syria are also yet to be included due to United States government restrictions. Netflix CES 2016 Keynote – Reed Hastings, Ted Sarandos -…

MTN, Africa’s biggest mobile phone operator by subscribers, on Thursday afternoon confirmed that it has acquired Visafone, Nigeria’s wireless network provider as it vies to deploy broadband internet in Africa’s largest economy. By Gugu Lourie The news follows market speculation on Thursday that MTN has acquired Visafone and the deal has been given a go-ahead by the country’s communications industry watchdog, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC). The deal seems to issue a clear message that MTN is committed to the lucrative Nigerian market despite a possible R59 billion ($3.9 billion) fine imposed by the NCC on the South African-based mobile…

 The ANC has decided to ban journalist Carien du Plessis from attending its 104th anniversary celebration in Rustenburg this weekend following a tweet referring to people attending the event as “pantypreneurs and tenderpreneurs”. By Genevieve Quintal, NewsAgency “If she applies to come to this event we have taken a decision that she will not attend any of the ANC events. With immediate effect we have withdrawn her accreditation if she did apply,” ANC national spokesperson Zizi Kodwa said. “We will take action against her because we think it is unfortunate for a person who comes from such a profession to make…