Author: Gugu Lourie
Johannesburg based entrepreneurs, Sanele Ngubane and Thokozani Mashego, are positioned to boost the momentum of radical change in the mode of moving people, goods and services in the information era. Their push comes through Phuza Patrol, a new online outfit positioned as mobile liquor store that can be hauled via a mobile phone tap. By Vula Mthimkhulu, Ujuh News They are part of a big story. It is a story that will one day, in the near future, have a drone hovering over a pool party to top up the depleted beer and whiskey stocks. Many other interesting things can be…
Vox Telecom announced on Tueday that it has acquired a majority stake in Everlytic, an enterprise level cloud tech company, for an undisclosed amount. By Gugu Lourie Everlytic will operate as a standalone business division within Vox Telecom, retaining its highly skilled team of developers, creatives and marketers. The Vumela Fund, which is managed by FNB and Edge Growth, will retain the minority stake it acquired in Everlytic in 2013. The deal would enable Vox Telecom customers to leverage the skills and expertise of the Everlytic team to extend and enhance their digital footprint. “The addition of Everlytic completes our…
Unlisted technology firm Business Connexion (BCX) is working tirelessly with its parent company, Telkom – South Africa’s biggest fixed-line telephone group, to develop converged products and launch them onto market in three to four months’ time. By Gugu Lourie The company, which was acquired by Telkom late last year and kept as a standalone entity, will help the leading South African fixed-line group advance its convergence strategy and support it grow its enterprise operations. BCX CEO Isaac Mophatlane said the technology group was fully aware that the market is anticipating products and solutions around convergence. “I think we are…
Upington – Hakskeen Pan in the Kalahari, the site where the Bloodhound Supersonic Car (SSC) will attempt the land speed record later this year, is flooded. And organisers couldn’t be happier about it. NewsAgency Correspondent The Kalahari received some 51mm of rain recently and the pan is flooded to a depth of 25cm. “Oh, it’s great that it’s flooded,” said Dave Rowley, the Bloodhound’s education director in SA. “It means the work that’s been done on the pan is being repaired.” For years, hundreds of locals have been manually picking up stones on the pan. Some 350 men and women from…
VIDI, South Africa’s first video on demand (VoD) streaming service, is finished as competition in the VoD space intensified in the country. By Gugu Lourie VIDI, which was launched in September 2014, has offered both a monthly subscription option and/or an instant rental option across one platform. VIDI’s end was written on the wall last year. Last year, TISO Blackstar said is set to exit its VoD business Vidi following poor take-up. Last October, Tiso Blackstar CEO Andrew Bonamour told Business Day newspaper that Vidi had not been a success and “we will exit over the next 12 months”. Then, just four…
The tough economic environment in South Africa – seen through interest rates hikes – is going to be a drag on earnings of companies. That is why Business Connexion (BCX), a standalone unit of Telkom, is taking steps to face the economic realities of a downturn. By Gugu Lourie BCX is implementing various cost-cutting initiatives to remain relevant and profitable. For more, read: “Extraordinary times hit BCX” “For us to remain profitable and relevant, we have to look at our cost structure in response to the current market realities and how these impact our client base. This is particular…
Telkom Mobile, a business unit of information and communication solutions provider Telkom, posted a 22% rise in customers to 2.6 million total subscribers in the three months to end-December 2015 and is unlikely to break even by March 2016. By Gugu Lourie The Centurion-based firm said on Monday Telkom Mobile increased subscribers by 22% to 2.56 million, with blended average revenue per user of R90.26. The telco added that its contract customers spiked 45% while prepaid users grew by 15%. The mobile unit also grew its service revenue by 37% and data revenue was up 56% year-on-year. “Our initial expectation…
Telkom, South Africa’s biggest fixed-line telephone group, has connected 56 000 homes to its fibre-to-the-home network as of 31 December 2015. By Gugu Lourie The telco said on Monday in the three months to end-December 2015 its fibre-to-the-curb (FTTC) has passed 1,25 million homes with 56 000 homes currently having access. Telkom fibre would be accessible to one million homes by March 2018, with half a million homes to have access by the end of 2016. Fibre to the home currently allows for download speeds of up to 100Mbps, allowing users to download a standard definition 4.7GB video in…
Business Connexion (BCX), a Telkom-owned technology firm, is planning to accelerate the expansion of its converged cloud computing services offering in the coming months. By Gugu Lourie The South African-based technology firm is hoping that its converged cloud services are likely to benefit from tough economic times and through the reverse integration of Cybernest by Telkom into BCX. “I think this is magnificent for us to be driving the cloud with consolidation of Cybernest. I think in terms of the data centres and the real estate we will be enjoying, we are certainly growing our cloud with our tech…
Epson is targeting to save companies millions and the firm is betting on a new Replaceable Ink Pack System technology that can print up to 75,000 pages without interruptions. The Epson’s WorkForce Pro Replaceable Ink Pack System (RIPS) printers are available in South Africa at a recommended retail price from R33,400.00 for a WF-R5690DTWF and at R63,876.00 for a WF-R8590DTWF. The Epson WorkForce Pro WF-R8590DTWF provides quick and accurate A3 printing while the WorkForce Pro WF-5690DTWF A4 printer is designed to reduce environmental impact. Both printers are designed to cut costs and are suitable for enterprises of all sizes, with up…