SA's 3G world class , fixed broadband

Naspers CEO Koos Bekker said that while South Africa’s mobile broadband (3G) services are world class, fixed broadband access remains poor.

Speaking to Talk Radio 702’s Bruce Whitfield, Bekker said that South Africa’s Internet access diverges between mobile phones and PCs.

“Our 3G [mobile broadband] systems are as good as we get anywhere in the world,” said Bekker, adding that fixed broadband [used on a PC] has a problem with a lack of bandwidth.

The bandwidth restraints of fixed broadband access in SA, said Bekker, has a consequence on their pay-TV operations.

Bekker said in an interview with Moneyweb that they are forced to “fake the Internet” using their new DStv Explora decoder to make it possible for users to catch up on news or sporting events when it suits them.

“But we can fake the Internet a bit by putting it on satellite, loading it down into the PVR and then offering it to you as if it were the internet.”

source: www.mybroadband.co

the little black box bringing the internet to Kenya

The BRCK is, in a sense, just like the archetypal little black box. It does what you need and you don’t have to worry about its inner workings.

The team developing it has a simple aim – to extend and stabilise internet access in Africa. The plan is to keep people connected when the realities of weak infrastructure, such as regular power outages and a map of internet terrestrial cabling that looks like a colonial map of Africa circa 1800 – means that is by no means a given.

The BRCK is a ruggedised modem and wireless access point. It mops up power from mains or battery as required; it hops from Ethernet to wi-fi to 3G or 4G networks, depending on what is available. It can be configured and adapted remotely and has the potential to help solve problems across the continent and beyond, wherever continuous flows of information are required. It can help with systematically recording disease diagnoses or can trigger alerts when technologies such as water pumps fail.

source: www.theconversation.com

Range network enhances open source software with data and internet users

Enhanced features and increased accessibility - OpenBTS-UMTS is 3G compatible, allowing data throughput of 384 kbit/s per user. This enhanced data speed enables Internet access and use of mobile applications on 3G-enabled handsets.

Meets global 3GPP standards - The enhancement is 3GPP-compliant (3rd Generation Partnership Project), operates on any of the 3GPP-defined UMTS frequencies and supports network and handset authentication.

Available as a controlled release - OpenBTS-UMTS is suitable for early adopters and telecommunications labs interested in testing mobile applications.

SUPPORTING QUOTE: Faith Sedlin, COO of Range Networks said: "The release of OpenBTS-UMTS is a milestone in the development of single-core, low-cost and easy-to-implement cellular networks. Enabling high-speed data and Internet capabilities is a natural progression in our strategy to apply IP networking to mobile infrastructure, and we look forward to extending these services to rural populations."

source: www.allafrica.com

SA internet amongst most affordable in Africa

South Africa ranks highly for Internet affordability in Africa, according to the first annual Affordability Report, compiled by the Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI).

In the report, A4AI indexes 46 emerging and developing countries across the world in terms of communication infrastructure and Internet access and affordability (equally-weighted).

Out of the 46 countries, South Africa is ranked as the 12th most affordable country for Internet access – 3rd in Africa, behind Mauritius (1st) and Morocco (2nd).

Malaysia is ranked the most affordable, overall, with and index score of 68.6, while Yemen is ranked as the least affordable market, with an Index score of 0.0 – below Malawi (45th at 3.1) and Zimbabwe (44th at 3.6).

According to the report, top-ranked Malaysia launched a National Broadband Initiative in 2010, with the aim to increase both supply and demand for broadband.

As a result of its drive, more than four in five people in the country now has access to 3G coverage, and more than 63% of households have an Internet connection.

source: www.bussinesstech.co

NCC to auction spectrum

the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) on behalf of the Federal Government of Nigeria, will auction one frequency license in the 2.3 GHz Band to qualified applicants for the provision of wholesales broadband service in Nigeria. The auction is expected to take place toward the end of January 2014.

In a statement, NCC said the Commission had, as a complement to its open Access Broadband Strategy, decided to assign the one slot of 30MHz nationally available in the 2.3 GHz Band for the delivery of broadband wireless access service at the wholesale level, to provide ISPs and other Retail Telecoms Service Providers with the requisite bandwidth to service their subscribers. This wholesale broadband provider will have the required spectrum to expand wireless broadband access across the country to ISPs and other Retail Telecom Service Providers for the provision of retail high speed internet access services.

NCC invited expressions of interest from applicants. Information Memorandum detailing the qualification criteria, auction processes, requisite forms and other key information will be made available at the Commission’s Head Office and its official website (www.ncc.gov.ng) to guide all interested stakeholders.

source: www.biztechafrica.com

African mobile subscribers to number 930 million by 2019

The number of mobile subscriptions in sub-Saharan Africa could hit 930 million by the end of 2019, says international provider of communications technology and services Ericsson.

Ericsson unveiled the forecasts in its Mobility Report released earlier this week.

Mobile subscriptions in the region currently stand at 560 million, according to sub-Saharan Africa region head at Ericsson, Fredrik Jejdling.

The report is a summary of historical data subscriptions and traffic forecasts from various sources and validated with Ericsson internal data including extensive measurements in customer networks, revealed the company.

The forecasts are estimated based on macro-economic trends, user trends (researched by the Ericsson ConsumerLab), market maturity and technology development expectations.

“The mobile phone is the main device for voice communication and internet access in sub-Saharan Africa. This is primarily driven by the lack of fixed infrastructure in the region, and the device’s relatively low cost,” the report reads.

Also stated in the report is that in Africa there is expected to be 17 times more growth in mobile data traffic between 2013 and 2019.

Youth in countries such as South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria are also expected to be the primary drivers of social networking activity in sub-Saharan Africa.

Furthermore, the report found that although the Middle East and Africa had 80% of 2G subscriptions this year, the same figure would be for 3G/4G subscriptions in the year 2019.

The company’s mobility report also predicts that global mobile subscriptions are to reach 9.3 billion by 2019, with 5.6 billion being smartphone subscriptions.

source: itwebafrica.com