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Info Tech
Thursday, December 13, 2012
FG tasked on broadband stimulus fund KUNLE A ZEEZ
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he Federal Government has been urged to establish a special intervention fund to support orgainsations willing to participate in ensuring widespread deployment of broadband services across the country. Stakeholders in the nation’s Information and Communication Technology made the call in a communiqué issued at the end of the second biennial Africa Digital Forum & Awards , which held in Lagos recently. Key stakeholders at the forum included the former Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission, and Chairman OpenMedia Group, Dr. Ernest Ndukwe; former Minister of Communications, Mr. Olawale Ige; President, Association of Telecoms Companies of Nigeria, Mr. Lanre Ajayi; Chief Executive Officer, Teledom Group, Dr. Emmanuel Ekuwem;
guest speaker and Chief Executive Officer, Computer Warehouse Group, Mr. Austin Okere, among others. In the communiqué signed by the Coordinator of the forum, Mr. Tayo Adewusi, the stakeholders drawn from the regulatory bodies and private sector of the ICT said to tackle “the challenges of broadband penetration in the country, there was need for regulatory intervention, through the establishment of ‘Broadband Intervention Fund.” They argue that the Broadband Intervention Fund will encourage more service providers into broadband delivery, thereby creating more infrastructures to increase access and more competition to decrease prices. At the forum, the stakeholders recognised ICT, which entails broadband services, has become crucial to individual and businesses lives, stressing that as the issue of broadband infrastructure is being deliberated on, the
industry must also focus on the creation of contents to be made use of with the broadband, pointing out that as contents were being created, demand should also be stimulated. According to the communiqué, “With the level of internet bandwidth at Nigeria’s shore, the consumption level is at six per cent, if demand is not increased, ICT companies providing broadband may go moribund. “There was the need for creation of awareness to the masses, especially the youth on the importance of broadband, as this will further enhance advocacy to the government.” The stakeholders identified broadband challenges such as interconnection issues, Right of Way and barriers to deployment, multiple and illegal taxation, multiple regulations, among others, which they said must be addressed if Nigeria seeks to attain the desired level of broadband penetration.
National Mirror www.nationalmirroronline.net
Tech Box Beta BBM 7 version:
Designed with Voice feature
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esearch In Motion on Tuesday launched BlackBerry Messenger version 7, a free update for the globally popular mobile social network. A key new feature of the update will allow customers to make free voice calls to their BBM contacts around the world over a Wi-Fi connection. The feature is a fast, convenient, and inexpensive way to stay connected with friends, family and colleagues. The Beta version of BBM 7 with the new BBM Voice feature was made available to the public through BlackBerry Beta Zone on November 14, 2012. Beta testers were excited and pleased with the update, generating comments such as: “The voice feature is easy to use and the audio quality is excellent.” When RIM surveyed customers who downloaded the Beta,
over 80 per cent of testers said that they were likely to recommend BBM version 7. In the same survey, 90 per cent of testers said that they would use BBM Voice while travelling to keep in touch. Nearly half of BBM customers have international contacts and can benefit from free Wi-Fi calls. According to the Vice President of BBM and Social Communities at RIM, T.A. McCann, “BBM began as a convenient and effective business messaging tool, and today it is an essential part of daily communications for customers around the world.Now, with BBM version 7, customers have a new option: they can text and talk with their BBM contacts near and far, for free.” He said with the integrated experience, RIM has extended the core features of reliable, real-time engagement to include voice calling and take BBM to the next level. The BBM 7 with BBM Voice offers multi-tasking with Splitscreen feature, as customers can do more while they talk, such as check other BBM text chats, check email, or navigate to other apps while engaged on a BBM Voice call, among others.
Etisalat appointed Apple reseller in Nigeria
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L-R: Executive Vice Chairman, Nigerian Communications Commission, Dr, Eugene Juwah; President, Association of Telecoms Companies of Nigeria, Mr. Lanre Ajayi and Head, Licensing and Compliance, Airtel Nigeria, Mr. Shola Adeyemi at the Telecoms Executives and Regulator’s Forum 2012 organised by ATCON in Lagos yesterday.
Firm restates commitment to outsourcing business KUNLE A ZEEZ
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est Africa’s leading Systems Integration Company, Resourcery Plc., has restated its commitment to continue to support its outsourcing customers for continuous value addition to their business activities and the economy. The company stated this during an ‘Information Technology Support Customers’ Appreciation Event,” organised for its outsourcing customers in Lagos recently. The forum, which provided an opportunity for the organisation to thank them as well as listen to their present IT challenges, was organised to appreciate the outsourcing partners their business in the course of the year. Speaking at the event, the
Executive Director, People and Projects at Resourcery, Mr. Akanimo Ekong, who stressed the company’s commitment to development of the sub-sector, emphasised the growing awareness and importance of IT support to organisations no matter how big or small. “As the economy of the nation grows, so also the need for specialised information technology support services grows. As a leading ICT company in West Africa, we understand the local IT needs in our business environment and we strive to always take the IT burden off our customers’ shoulders so that they can concentrate on their core business,” he said. While expressing the company’s gratitude to organisations that chose Resourcery as their Information Technology Support (outsourcing) partner, Ekong said, “Meeting with our
customers outside the office environment provides an opportunity for us to reflect on our services and get direct feedback on how we can serve them even better in 2013. It’s also an avenue for us to share our dream for the coming year as it relates to the support of our customers’ I.T needs.” Delivering the company’s plan for 2013 on outsourcing, the Solutions Manager, Information Technology Outsourcing, Resourcery, Mr. Dayo Ige, highlighted the company’s path towards a more efficient outsourcing program for customers. He said this was necessary because outsourcing, in its early days, was seen to be an exclusive preserve of large companies, adding, however, that today, it is had become the normal way of doing business worldwide.
igeria’s fifth Global System for Mobile Communication-licensed operator, Etisalat Nigeria has entered into a deal with Core Group Africa, the Apple authorised distributor for Nigeria, to make Apple’s products readily available across the country. The deal makes Etisalat the first mobile network operator to become an authorised reseller of various Apple iPads and accessories in Nigeria. The new partnership with allow Etisalat to respond to the growing demand for Apple products in Nigeria, especially the iPad and iPhone range of smartphones. Speaking on the partnership, the Chief Commercial Officer, Etisalat Nigeria, Mr. Wael Ammar, said that with the signing of the agreement between the two companies, Etisalat will be the first telecoms operator permitted to sell Apple’s iPad in selected retail outlets spread across the country, while offering a two-year warranty cover on all iPad devices sold. In addition, he announced, the company will also be offering customers who purchase the products at its Experience
Centres with an unbeatable 12-month free internet data access on its super fast easy blaze product. “As part of our promise to provide our customers with value added propositions, Etisalat as the first mobile network operator to be an official Reseller for Apple in Nigeria, will also be offering our customers 12 months free data on all iPads purchased at our Experience Centres and sales outlets, and the products come with a two-year warranty,” he said. He, however, pointed out that the two-year warranty will only apply once the subscriber registers the iPad purchased from Etisalat’s website.