Is 2014 the year of Wi-Fi in Africa

Free Wi-Fi initiatives in African cities such as Rwanda’s Kigali and South Africa’s Tshwane are set to drive wireless internet access on the continent, says Ruckus Wireless.

Ruckus Wireless, a supplier of advanced wireless systems for the mobile internet infrastructure market, has predicted that this year could be a watershed one for Wi-Fi.

According to research from the Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA) compiled by Informa Telecoms & Media, global public Wi-Fi hotspot numbers could reach 5.8 million by 2015, marking a 350% increase since 2011.

And officials at Ruckus Wireless say that in 2014 the state of the Wi-Fi industry could continue to improve

source: www.itwebafrica.com

Africans will benefit from global technology

The 2013 AfricaCom conference and technology exhibition in Cape Town, South Africa, focused on new technologies that will drive development in Africa. It equally uncovered new ways of managing customer experience and how they will benefit from the evolving technologies. Emma Okonji writes
Technology companies from across the globe, last week, gathered in Cape Town, South Africa for the 2013 AfricaCom event to discuss new technologies that will speed up development among African countries.

At the conference, which was organised by Informa Telecoms had Nigeria fully represented at the 2013 conference and exhibition, through Information and Communications Technology  (ICT) companies like Etisalat, MTN, Cisco, Qualcomm, Ericsson, among others that have presence and are currently operating in Nigeria.
Paramount among the new technologies that were discussed and exhibited, were the Long Term Evolution (LTE), including evolving technologies that will drive big data penetration, enhance voice telephony, speed up mobile money penetration, as well as enrich customer experience across African countries.
Etisalat Nigeria used the occasion to announce winners of the software application competition it organised in Nigeria. It presented the winners during the AfricaCom Awards Night, which it co-sponsored with other ICT companies like PCCW Global, MTN, Mahindra Comviva, and Orange.
The LTE Technology
Technology has over time, evolved from 2G, 2.5G, 3G, 3.5G, to the Long Term Evolution technology, otherwise known as 4G LTE technology.
The 4G LTE technology, which is currently being adopted globally, is designed to speed up the broadband technology. The conference advised ICT companies operating in Africa to begin investments in LTE technology, since it is the emerging technology that will drive fast broadband penetration even in remote communities across Africa.

source:www.thisdaylive.com

Africans will benefit from Global technology

The 2013 AfricaCom conference and technology exhibition in Cape Town, South Africa, focused on new technologies that will drive development in Africa. It equally uncovered new ways of managing customer experience and how they will benefit from the evolving technologies. Emma Okonji writes
Technology companies from across the globe, last week, gathered in Cape Town, South Africa for the 2013 AfricaCom event to discuss new technologies that will speed up development among African countries.

At the conference, which was organised by Informa Telecoms had Nigeria fully represented at the 2013 conference and exhibition, through Information and Communications Technology (ICT) companies like Etisalat, MTN, Cisco, Qualcomm, Ericsson, among others that have presence and are currently operating in Nigeria.
Paramount among the new technologies that were discussed and exhibited, were the Long Term Evolution (LTE), including evolving technologies that will drive big data penetration, enhance voice telephony, speed up mobile money penetration, as well as enrich customer experience across African countries.
Etisalat Nigeria used the occasion to announce winners of the software application competition it organised in Nigeria. It presented the winners during the AfricaCom Awards Night, which it co-sponsored with other ICT companies like PCCW Global, MTN, Mahindra Comviva, and Orange.
The LTE Technology
Technology has over time, evolved from 2G, 2.5G, 3G, 3.5G, to the Long Term Evolution technology, otherwise known as 4G LTE technology.
The 4G LTE technology, which is currently being adopted globally, is designed to speed up the broadband technology. The conference advised ICT companies operating in Africa to begin investments in LTE technology, since it is the emerging technology that will drive fast broadband penetration even in remote communities across Africa.

source: www.thisdaylive.com

Africa's mobile subscription predicted to surpass 1.2 bn in 2018

Informa Telecoms and Media, organisers of the on-going AfricaCom conference in Cape Town, South Africa, has said the mobile subscriptions in Africa will surpass 1.2 billion by the end of 2018.

The forecast, according to Informa Telecoms and Media, is based on the continued increasing growth of mobile subscriptions in Africa, even though its penetration level among major world regions, which is currently put at 68.81 per cent, is still low, when compared with the global average of 90.48 per cent.

Principal Analyst, Middle East and Africa (MEA) at Informa Telecoms and Media, Mr. Matthew Reed, who gave the prediction during a keynote address on Tuesday at the opening session of the 2013 AfricaCom conference, said: "Africa had 745.34 million mobile subscriptions at the end of 2012, representing 15.24 per cent year-on-year increase, the highest rate of growth among major world regions.

Corroborating Informa Telecoms and Media’s prediction, Chairman, Mobile Monday, Mr. Richard Walton, said the Africa mobile subscription growth rate was amazing and encouraging.
According to him, mobile subscriptions in the sub-Saharan Africa, contributed immensely to the Africa's mobile subscription number, attributing the growth to Apps culture, especially in the area mobile banking applications, he said, would be propelled by the adoption of Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology that is gradually spreading across the globe.

He however challenged telecoms operators to turn data growth into revenue growth, while still maintaining cost efficiency in mobile broadband in Africa.

Speaking on some of the challenges on mobile subscriptions, some of the telecoms operators that spoke, identified size of their business, connectivity issues and the drive to discover more markets and business opportunities, using new brands, as some of their major challenges.

According to Reed, "The number of mobile subscriptions in Africa is still growing at a higher rate than in any other major Wot prod region. Mobile data subscriptions and  revenues are rising strongly on the continent, albeit from a low base. The rollout of 3G and 4G networks combined with expanded back haul and submarine capacity, should enable further growth in Africa's data sector."

He explained that big international information technology (IT) companies such as Google, Intel and Microsoft, are targeting Africa's telecoms market because of its growth potential, particularly in data services.

"The story of Africa's telecoms market continues to be about growth, but the emphasis is shifting from basic mobile services to data and internet services, even though the basic mobile services like voice telephony still dominate the market," Reed said.

Giving details of the growth rate, he said Africa's mobile subscriptions as at October 2013 was 800 million but predicted that in 2014, it would rise to 900 million, and at the end of 2015, it would further increase to 1 billion. He also predicted that by the end of 2016, the figure would increase to 1.1 billion and at the end of 2017, it would further rise to 1.18 billion, before surpassing the 1.2 billion mark in 2018.

source: www.thisdaylive.com

south Africans spend more on mobile

South Africans spend more on their mobile bill than the global average, new research from the GSMA shows.

According to the “Sub-Saharan Africa Mobile Economy 2013” report by the GSMA, South Africa’s Average revenue per subscriber (ARPU) is recorded at $25.4 (R264) – above the global average of $25 (R260) and a Sub-Saharan Africa average of $13.6 (R141).

It follows a study commissioned by Informa Telecoms & Media in July 2013, which found that smartphone users in South Africa spend on average US$31 (R321) per month on their mobile phone bills.

ARPU levels vary significantly across the SSA region – largely driven by differing GDP per capita and income levels – but remain in line with the developing market average, the GSMA said.

The only exception is South Africa which, of the larger markets, has ARPUs above the global average level – reflecting mainly high average income levels in the country.

source : businesstech.co

Vodacom data usage soars

Data usage on Vodacom South Africa's network grew 79% in the past year‚ driven by lower handset prices and data costs.As a result of the demand Vodacom is investing in increasing network capacity‚ providing innovative solutions and improving customer service. The group plans to increase its data coverage on its 3G network from 88,9% to 100% in South Africa in near future.

According to Frost & Sullivan the growing demand for data services, triggered by the proliferation of smartphones with innovative‚ value-added services and customer demand for converged voice and data services‚ is driving the broadband market in southern Africa.

Vodacom reported a 29% rise in data revenue to R6.1bn for the six months to September driven by bundle sales and integrated offers. In South Africa‚ Vodacom has 15-million active data customers up 13.4% from 2012. 

"Mobile data is one of the biggest opportunities facing us‚ with smartphone and tablet penetration still at low levels in all our markets‚" says Vodacom's chief executive Shameel Joosub.

Research by Informa Telecoms and Media found that smartphone users in South Africa spend on average US$31 per month on their mobile phone. Of the 12 countries surveyed‚ South Africans are the fourth biggest spenders‚ behind consumers in the US‚ Saudi Arabia and the UK.

Mobile data usage rising sharply

Africa's mobile data business is worth US$8.5bn a year and will rise to more than US$23bn in 2018‚ according to the report. 

"It is consumer demand that is driving this growth‚" says principal analyst at Informa Telecoms and Media‚ Nick Jotischky. "But retail prices are still too high‚ smartphones are too expensive and there is a lack of investment in connecting parts of rural Africa. These are barriers restraining greater consumer demand."

Vodacom has been providing finance for consumers who cannot afford to buy smartphones upfront. The company says in South Africa‚ handset financing underpins its strategy of putting data capable devices into customers' hands.
source : bizcommunity.com

Mideast operators join race for African telecoms

Connecting another billion people to the internet is an ambition for many mobile operators, which see the relatively untapped markets of Africa as the next big opportunity for growth.

With a lack of fixed-line infrastructure in many parts of the continent, people have embraced smartphones as their means of connecting to the web, which has placed mobile operators among the main providers of internet services in Africa.

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The number of broadband connections over cellular networks is expected to top 250m by the end of 2015. A fifth of internet traffic in Africa will be carried by mobile broadband by 2015, according to Informa Telecoms and Media, compared with 3 per cent globally.

Demand for telecoms services is high, as parts of the continent are becoming increasingly affluent. However, poorer areas also represent a good opportunity for telecoms operators that offer plans designed to get users connected to social networking sites using mobile devices.

Mobile is at the centre of life in Africa, where it has applications from sending vaccination reminders by text to credit lines for farmers. The M-Pesa mobile payment system is so successful that it acts as a quasi-currency.

Qatar telecom firm Ooredo planning to list on foreign bourse

Ooredoo, Qatar’s majority state-owned telecoms operator, is looking to list on the London Stock Exchange or another major bourse in a bid to bring more liquidity to its shares, the company's CEO said on Monday.

"We have been looking at [a further listing] for some time because one of the issues is the liquidity of the shares - it's not only us, its most of the companies in the region," said Nasser Marafih at Dubai’s GSMA telecoms conference, according to Reuters.

The telecoms firm, which has operations in 15 markets in the Middle East, Africa and Asia, is already listed on the Qatar Exchange. 

Matthew Reed, a UAE-based analyst at Informa Telecoms and Media, said a listing on another exchange will not have a “huge significance” for Ooredeoo, but said that the move would give the company better access to a wider pool of investors.

“They are becoming quite a big international player, and they have further ambitions to grow,” Reed told Al Arabiya, noting that such a listing could fit in with their business goals.

Speaking at the conference, Marafih called for more cooperation between governments and operators.

“We believe today that there is there isn’t enough [cooperation] there between government and operators,” he said. “There are, increasingly, operators under pressure by mobile regulators by which they are imposing more license fees,” added Marafih.

Reed noted that mobile technologies were often considered a big potential growth sector in developing countries, sometimes leading to heavy taxes on telecom services which can be problematic for operators.

source: english.alarabiya.net