Making the headlines this week was Nigerian-born scientist, Samuel Achilefu. Achilefu has been awarded the prestigious 2014 Louis Award for creating cancer-seeing glasses. Also making the headlines this week was telco providers Safaricom and Airtel. Safaricom has obtained temporary orders against Airtel’s aggressive advertising on mobile money transfers.
In South Africa, the City of Johannesburg’s transformation drive into a Smart City received a boost from Microsoft South Africa. It News Africa conducted an array of interviews. These interviews can be found below. The team at IT News Africa hopes you have a great weekend. The top tech stories for the week can be found below.
News
Nigerian-born scientist wins award for cancer-seeing glasses
Nigerian-born scientist, Samuel Achilefu, has been awarded the prestigious 2014 Louis Award for creating cancer-seeing glasses. Read More.
Digital Switch in Kenya leaves 1.3 mln citizens without TV
More than 1.3 million Kenyan citizens are unable to watch television due to the country switching from analogue to digital broadcasting. According to the The Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) only 2.2 million Kenyan citizens have acquired set-top boxes to access digital TV. Read More.
Tigo Rwanda partners with Bank of Kigali
Tigo Rwanda has partnered with Bank of Kigali Ltd (BK) to enable customers to send money between any Tigo Cash wallet and any Bank of Kigali bank account. Read More.
MTN staff round off community projects in Africa
MTN has rounded off its annual 21 Days of Y’ello Care employee volunteer programme, which saw employees from Afghanistan to South Africa, give back to their communities, under the theme of “Investing in Education for All.” Read More.
Kenya: Safaricom plagued by Airtel’s aggressive advertising
Kenya operator Safaricom has obtained temporary orders against its rival’s aggressive advertising on mobile money transfers. Read More.
Internet users in SA still think branches are safer than online banking
Almost half (43%) of Internet users in South Africa believe traditional over-the-counter banking is safer than banking online, according to a survey carried out by Kaspersky Lab and B2B International. Read More.
South Africa: Johannesburg Smart City gets boost from Microsoft
The City of Johannesburg’s transformation drive into a Smart City received a boost on Tuesday, June 23, 2015, when the metropolitan signed a collaboration deal with Microsoft South Africa. Read More.
Nigeria: 200 Metrotaxis in Lagos get free Wi-Fi
Smile Communications Nigeria and auto service firm Metro-taxi have activated free Wi-Fi in over 200 MetroTaxis in Lagos. At the official announcement of the partnership, Alero Ladipo, chief marketing officer, Smile Communications Nigeria, described the feat as a partnership designed to redefine life style among Metro-taxi passengers. Read More.
Opinions
Securing the cloud: The factors that need to be considered
Security has typically been, and continues to be, one of the major areas of concern for organisations contemplating a move into the cloud, and for good reason. Security breaches can have far-reaching consequences that could cripple a business, and legislative compliance issues add further complications. However, security challenges, particularly regarding the public cloud, have led to a misconception that a private cloud is the most secure offering. Read More.
Organisations need to support the BYOD trend
Organisations in Africa and globally are faced with the challenge of dealing with a highly mobile, tech-savvy workforce that demands to use devices of their choice. Read More.
Is Augmented Reality the key to a new digital future?
The concept of Augmented Reality (AR) has existed for many years now – and commentators have remained rigidly sceptical about whether it will truly materialise in our everyday lives. Read More.
Business Connexion CEO discusses harnessing technology to leverage IoT
The internet of things is driving the need for organisations to transform into digital businesses and this is disrupting business operations like never before. Read More.
Event Gallery
In Pictures: Innovation Dinner Johannesburg & Cape Town
IT leaders convened at The Michelangelo Hotel in Sandton, Johannesburg & The Southern Sun Cape Sun Hotel in Cape Town for the latest Innovation Dinner Series, which were held on the 15th & 18th of June 2015. View the Gallery.
In Pictures: CIO Roadmap 2015
Leading technology players including Performanta, Websense, Btitehouse, Cosign, K2, Complexus, Business Connexion and Trivector presented their solutions at CIO Roadmap on 24 June 2015 in Sandton, Johannesburg. View the Gallery.
Interviews
Video Interview: Ebi Atawodi discusses Uber in Nigeria
Ebi Atawodi, GM for Uber Nigeria, discusses her presentation at Mondato Summit 2015 as well as how Uber has taken off in Nigeria. Watch the Interview.
Video Interview: Software defines quality of service – Paul Muller VP HP Software
In the video, Muller recaps on his presentation at the HP Software Performance Tour 2015, which was held in Johannesburg. Watch the Interview.
Video Interview: Digitisation and the impact it has on enterprises – Sukhi Gill CT HP
In the interview Gill discusses his keynote session at the HP Software Performance Tour 2015, which covered digitisation of the industry and the impact it has on enterprises. Watch the Interview.
Gadgets and Gaming
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Review
To say that the Witcher 3 is a typical Role-Playing-Game (RPG) is an understatement. The Witcher 3 is a genre re-defining game that has changed the expectations of gamers for years to come. For those who have never experienced a Witcher title, now is the time to play one of the greatest titles to grace the world of gaming. Read More.
Borderlands – The Handsome Collection Review
The Borderlands series is possibly one of the most colourful, crazy and hilarious game series to grace the First-Person Shooter genre. Since it inception in 2009, it’s spawned three titles which have provided gamers with hours of fun, humour and fast-paced action. Recently Borderlands: The Handsome Collection has been released for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, which contains Borderlands 2 with all its released DLC. Read More.
Farming Simulator 2015 Review
Most console titles tend to focus on modern warfare, tactical espionage, or a mix of the two; however, there are few titles on the market that focus on farming and agriculture. To change this, developer Giants Software and publisher Focus Home Interactive have now introduced Farming Simulator 2015 to home consoles. Read More.
Sony reveals the 1TB PlayStation 4
PlayStation 4 owners will know that a 500GB hard drive is just not enough in this technology driven day and age. PlayStation 4 titles are growing in size, with some titles taking up at least 50GB of space – once installed. Read More.
Darryl Linington
