Author: Staff Writer

Telkom’s landline customers will be able to align their calling plans to its popular SmartVoice offering. The SmartVoice packages, which are fibre or “fixed wireless landline look-alike” products that usually include additional features such as mobile data, minutes, and free on-net calls. The company said it has not only introduced new closer calling plans for customers wishing to get more value for their money, but it has also reduced the prices of some of these plans. The new Closer Calling plans are available to new and existing customers and can be provisioned on Copper, Fibre and as a bolt-on to…

Telkom’s Blue Bargain Sale is offering unbelievable deals, dropped prices and fabulous freebies. The Blue Bargain Sale with a reduced price applies to selected FreeMe contracts. It offers up to 30% reduction devices and free data for three months. The free promotional Telkom Mobile Data shall be allocated for three consecutive months (deal dependent). The sale is available to new and existing mobile customers who apply or renewing a contract. The company will charge the standard Once-off SIM and Connection fee of R99.00 applicable to mobile deals on the customer’s first invoice for all new provide orders. The Blue Bargain…

Volvo Cars is committed to becoming a leader in the fast-growing premium electric car market and plan to become a fully electric car company by 2030, the Swedish firm said. By then, Volvo Cars intends to only sell fully electric cars and phase out any car in its global portfolio with an internal combustion engine, including hybrids. The company’s transition towards becoming a fully electric car maker is part of its ambitious climate plan, which seeks to consistently reduce the life cycle carbon footprint per car through concrete action. Volvo Cars said the 2030 ambition represents an acceleration of its…

Vodacom Financial Services has announced an expansion of its services to include a supplier portal called VodaTrade, where the small supplier will be able to go digital and connect with bigger business partners. This digital trading platform is set to support small and medium-sized business by connecting them to exciting new business prospects. VodaTrade is a one-stop interface for small business to interact with all aspects of their trade. Some key features include analytics, receiving orders, catalogue management, confirming fulfilment, as well as sending back an invoice. “I’m really excited that we are launching a product which caters for SMEs,…

Vodacom and Mondia announced today the rollout of the Mum & Baby maternal health service across the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Mum & Baby is a free-of-charge mobile health intervention service that provides Vodacom DRC subscribers with maternal, neonatal and child health information designed to encourage good health practices amongst pregnant women, mothers, partners and caregivers. Mondia creates Mum & Baby’s tailored content in the local language, and includes expert articles, videos and information-sharing SMS messages. Mum & Baby’s future enhancements in the DRC will provide interactive tools including a due-date calculator, an immunisation calendar, medication reminder, medication…

Luno, South Africa’s cryptocurrency exchange, now has seven million customers (wallets), just seven weeks after reaching the milestone of six million customers. The business has grown rapidly due to the simplicity of its online and mobile platforms, offering education, bank-grade security and self-regulation. It is actively working with regulators and banks to safely increase access to cryptocurrencies. Luno was ranked in the top six cryptocurrency exchanges worldwide in the latest CryptoCompare Exchange Benchmark and also received the top tier AA rating. Luno was founded in 2013 by two South Africans, Marcus Swanepoel, a former investment banker, and Timothy Stranex, who…

New research from beauty company Avon reveals that women find strength from hearing every day, relatable stories and sharing experiences with others. Nearly a third say these connections help them overcome challenges (32%) and for over a third (36%) it decreases feelings of anxiety or reduces self-doubt. With fears that the coronavirus pandemic has set the fight for gender equality back decades[1], and the new research highlighting that 41% of women have lost confidence as a result of lockdown restrictions, Avon is launching a campaign to celebrate the achievements and stories of women and men around the world. Commissioned as…

Decision Inc. has become one of only four companies in South Africa to have achieved the Qlik Elite Partner Status, the highest tier available from the multinational business intelligence organisation that develops cloud data integration and data analytics solutions. “The recognition reaffirms Decision Inc.’s commitment to delivering purpose-built, value-driven solutions that result in a demonstratable business return for our customers across industry sectors,” says Gavin Sheehan, Executive: Data, Information and Analytics at Decision Inc. “Despite the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic and resultant lockdown conditions, Decision Inc. has shown its resilience to weather the storm, maintain its strong client…

Microsoft is continuing to roll out more industry-specific cloud packages tailored for specific vertical industries. “Over the past year, we have experienced dramatic disruption around the world. Companies in every industry have turned to digital technologies for the resilience and agility necessary to survive. The urgency for entire industries to transform at scale has never been greater,” said Alysa Taylor, Corporate vice president of Business Applications and Global Industry. In response, Taylor said the company has accelerated its efforts to support and co-innovate with customers and partners — both now and long term — with industry-specific cloud offerings that can…

Spotify, the global audio streaming subscription service, is now available in Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda as of 23 February. With a worldwide community of more than 345 million monthly active listeners, Spotify will offer a world-class audio listening and music discovery experience to listeners. The Spotify service is available for free or with an upgrade to Spotify Premium, a subscription service that offers an ad-free music listening experience. Spotify, which is already in South Africa, expands its operations into the rest of Africa with its unrivalled mix of features that have made it the world’s most popular audio…