IT News Africa: Top Stories of the Week

This week in technology has been especially busy. Not only was AfricaCom 2014 a major highlight of the week, but we also had some hands-on time with Huawei’s latest mobile devices – the Ascend Mate 7 and the Ascend G7.

Also making the headlines this week was MTN, The network provider has called for a collaboration between operators & OTT players. Facebook also made waves in tech this week. The social media platform revealed that its internet.org app is heading to Kenya. IT News Africa also had an exclusive interview with Chris Daniels, Facebook’s Vice President for Internet.org regarding the app as well as the importance of mobile and internet connectivity in Africa.

We hope you have a fantastic weekend. Be sure to wrap-up as the South African Weather Service has issued a warning regarding severe thunderstorms and a cold front that is on the way to Johannesburg.

News

Facebook’s Internet.org App headed to Kenya
Facebook’s Vice President of Internet.org, Chris Daniels spoke about Internet.org and the importance of making internet access available to the two-thirds of the world not yet connected. As part of this effort, Chris announced the availability of Facebook’s Internet.org app for Airtel subscribers in Kenya later this week. Read More.

MTN calls for collaboration between operators & OTT players
A balanced co-operation between mobile network operators and Over the Top (OTT) players is required to develop a win-win ecosystem as operators cannot be in complete control of the internet ecosystem while a broadband pipe that lacks appealing content and applications means little to end users, said Ahmad Farroukh, Chief Executive Officer: MTN South Africa. Read More.

Nigeria: BPE screening Nitel/Mtel bid proposals
Nigeria’s Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) has begun the process of screening the technical as well as the financial proposals submitted by bidders for the Nigerian Telecommunications (Nitel) and its mobile subsidiary, Mtel. Read More.

Uganda: Alcatel-Lucent & Liquid Telecom to expand networks
Alcatel-Lucent is set to provide Liquid Telecom with various GPON and DWDM technologies for the expansion of its networks in Kenya and Uganda. Read More.

MTN Group unveils “United Against Ebola” initiative
MTN Group has invited over 219 million customers across Africa and the Middle East to join hands with the company in a 3-month campaign, starting 1 December, to raise funds for a “United Against Ebola” initiative. Read More.

Opinions

Spawning Africa’s digital dragons in the cloud
Earlier this year, technology research house Gartner released a report entitled “Taming the Digital Dragon” as part of its 2014 CIO Agenda. In it, it suggests that if CIOs don’t respond quickly to a tsunami of digital opportunities, they will be washed away – but if they do, untold success lies in store. Read More.

Security a top priority as Africa moves to LTE
Securing the network is a top priority for telcos and carriers as LTE becomes increasingly mainstream across Africa, says Fortinet. Read More.

Interviews

Airtel to improve network & efficiency moving forward – Airtel CEO
IT News Africa had an exclusive interview with Christian De Faria, CEO – Airtel Africa AfricaCom 2014. The Airtel Africa CEO explains in the interview that Airtel is focusing on its customers, expanding in Africa, and improving the overall efficiency of the network moving forward. Watch the interview here.

Internet connectivity changes lives – Facebook VP
At AfricaCom 2014, IT News Africa had an exclusive interview with Chris Daniels, Facebook’s Vice President for Internet.org. Daniels explains in the interview that Facebook’s mission is to make the world more open and connected. Daniels also explains that Internet.org also has a mission, which is connecting the two thirds of the world that don’t have access to the internet. Watch the interview here.

Top Feature

Rwanda accelerates plans for cashless economy
The Government of Rwanda has moved to accelerate its plans to transform Rwanda into a cashless economy and achieve 80 percent financial inclusion by 2017. Read More.

Top List

7 Tips for Selling to the CIO
Let’s face it, selling to the modern day CIO is not an easy task. These industry executives essentially live busy lives. They are busy 24/7, and are bombarded with technical sales calls day in and day day out; however, there are ways and means to successfully sell to them. Read More.

Top 5 apps to ease exam stress across Africa
Various students from a multitude educational institutions, across the continent, will preparing to hit the books, internet and other forms of educational resources in order to gain knowledge as well as prepare for their upcoming exams. Read More.

10 African tech start-ups to look out for
Africa is bursting with potential, especially when it comes to the tech start-up scene. A great number of companies have entered the African tech scene recently; however, 10 of these start-ups have shined, much like the glorious African sun, in the eyes of IT News Africa. Read More.

Gadgets and Gaming

Huawei reveals Ascend Mate 7 & Ascend G7
Huawei announced the launch of two new flagship smartphones that are set to hit the African market January/February 2015. The devices were revealed during AfricaCom 2014 at an exclusive event, which was held in Cape Town, South Africa. Read More.

MTN SA launches low-cost Steppa Tablet
Following the sell-out of the Steppa 1, MTN SA has revealed the next device in their low-cost range – the Steppa Tablet. Read More.

Darryl Linington