Southern Africa
DiDi Ride-Hailing Service to Rival Uber in South Africa
Image sourced from Reuters DiDi Chuxing Technology Co has announced it would launch a ride-hailing service in South Africa. The Chinese company already has more than 600 million users across Asia, Latin America & Russia. In a statement, DiDi says it “understands the challenges [South African] communities and the transportation industry face with the evolution of urban mobility (rideshare) and as a result is committed to creating the freedom and convenience to go places, open up horizons and give access to new experiences through our platforms.” The company then reveals that it’s now on a mission to help South Africans “move freely and to unlock their potential and that of the cities they live in”. UberGo Launches in South Africa Uber has launched its low-cost ride-hailing service ...
Apple Pay Launches in South Africa
Image sourced from BusinessTech Apple Pay – Apple’s digital payment platform – is now available in South Africa. The service allows users to load their bank cards – from supported banks like Absa, Discovery Bank, and Nedbank – onto their Apple devices in order to make contactless payments. According to Discovery Bank, every Apple Pay purchase is secure because it is authenticated with Face ID, Touch ID, or device passcode, as well as a one-time unique dynamic security code. Apple Pay users can also make faster and more convenient purchases in apps or on the web in Safari without having to create accounts or repeatedly type in shipping and billing information. “We are thrilled to announce Apple Pay is here for all Discovery Bank clients, providing an easy, secure and contactless way to pay,...
Liquid Expands Across South Africa with 2 New Fibre Routes
Liquid Intelligent Technologies (Liquid) has announced the successful completion of two key digital corridors – NLD5 and NLD6 connecting Durban to Cape Town via the inland route. The completion of this fibre network is expected to support the surging demand for high-speed internet as an increasing number of local businesses continue their digital transformation journeys. “The completion of these two digital corridors is yet another milestone achieved as part of our on-going investment into the South African economy. Liquid has been instrumental in the fruition of routes 1 through to 8, providing a digital backbone that connects metropolitan cities like Cape Town, Johannesburg and Durban to more remote areas like Nelspruit Bloemfontein, Lady Smith, Mthatha,” says Deon Geyser, CEO of Liquid ...
Payflex Introduces Online ‘Buy Now Pay Later’ Service in South Africa
Image sourced from Travel Money Oz Payflex has launched its buy now pay later online retail service to South Africa. The company – which has seen extraordinary popularity in Australia, the USA and Europe – lets users shop online and pay later, interest-free over six weeks. “Traditionally paying via instalments in South Africa has been associated with high-interest charges, as you are penalised for paying for the item over time,” says Paul Behrmann, CEO and founder of Payflex. “But by using Payflex, every purchase you make is interest-free. You’ll know exactly when each of the four interest-free payments is due and there are no hidden costs. It puts you in control of your finances.” Here’s how to use Payflex /* custom css */ .tdi_3_dee.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_dee.td-a-rec-im...
Best and Worst Mobile Networks in South Africa Revealed
2020 was a tumultuous year for the South African telecommunications sector which saw network providers left to grapple with calls for data price cuts in the face of a pandemic-driven demand for connectivity and digital customer service. From the perspective of consumers, however, the performance of local telcos has left much to be desired. That said, having tracked over two million social media posts about Cell C, MTN, rain, Telkom, and Vodacom throughout the year, BrandsEye’s latest Telco Sentiment Index – conducted in partnership with Deloitte Africa – found that some telcos received significantly more negativity than others. MTN comes out tops while rain gets left in the gutter Newcomer rain ranked last, scoring over 20 percentage points below the industry average. On the other end of t...
Nutanix Appoints New Channel Director for Sub-Saharan Africa
Nutanix has appointed Andrew Gill as Channel Director for Western Europe & Sub-Saharan Africa (WEURSSA). Responsible for leading all channel and OEM activities in WEURSSA, Gill will oversee Nutanix’s go-to-market relationships with resellers, distributors, regional system integrators and technology partners in the region. Additionally, he will play a key role in driving channel-focused initiatives such as Nutanix Cloud Bundles, a strategic and unified offering to access Nutanix enterprise cloud software and solutions, while providing partners with greater value and autonomy through the sales channel. This unified management bundle enables Nutanix to expand access to its solutions, with an offering that meets the needs and budgets of any company as an essential addition to their En...
MetroFibre’s South African Network Rollout Backed by Investec
Investec has taken charge of arranging R2.5 billion in debt funding for MetroFibre Networx, a South African fibre infrastructure provider. “There’s a massive demand for fibre connectivity in many outlying regions. Filling that gap makes sense not only from a business perspective but also from a socioeconomic upliftment standpoint,” says Wayne Edwards, Financial Director of MetroFibre. “In a growing and fiercely competitive market, the timely funding arranged by Investec, together with our recent R1.5 billion equity raise, will enable us to take fibre to more individuals and more businesses, giving them the opportunity to participate in the globally connected economy.” The funding agreement builds on an existing relationship between the two companies that dates back to 2016 when MetroFibre ...
Huawei Mate40 Pro to Launch in South Africa
Huawei is set to launch its newest flagship smartphone – the Huawei Mate40 Pro – in South Africa on 1 April 2021. The device is expected to combine innovative features and striking design elements that elevate the user experience. It also has a strong focus on 5G performance, trendsetting design ethos and smartphone videography. The Huawei Mate40 Pro continues with its smartphone design trend thanks to its iconic Space Ring design with its unique colourways of Mystic Silver and Black. This is then complemented upfront with the ultra-curved Huawei Horizon Display, which curves at 88 degrees, allowing for a completely borderless and futuristic viewing experience. By curving the display to this extent, Huawei also gives users the option to use the volume rockers either with the physical ...
New MVNO Launches in South Africa
Shoprite has launched k’nect mobile – its own mobile virtual network operator (MVNO). This offering – which piggybacks off the mobile network infrastructure of Cell C – is expected to offer competitive rates and several other rewards to customers. k’nect mobile’s airtime, data bundles and rewards only expire after 60 days, rather than the more common 30-day expiry. Call and data rates are as follows: 50c per minute all day k’nect to k’nect calls 99c per minute all day calls to other networks 15c per megabyte for any size data bundle, up to 1GB k’nect mobile also offers the following Xtra rewards: 10% free on recharge 10% Xtra for Xtra Savings cardholders 5% Xtra when recharging via Money Market Account Double airtime rewards on Xtra Savings airtime deals Other rewards include early access ...
3 Things Affecting Internet Connectivity in South Africa
Loadshedding, cable theft and vandalism not only disrupts the supply of electricity and internet connectivity in households but also has a significant effect on the economy. Criminals steal infrastructure such as copper cables and electrical equipment to make easy money and with each incident, thousands of homes are left without electricity for many hours or days. Businesses that have no access to generators have to close and unfortunately lose money as they cannot operate during that period. Many small businesses have become heavily reliant on the internet to be able to conduct their business operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a disruption to internet connectivity due to cable theft and vandalism can place such businesses at a disadvantage. “Copper line theft has a significant impac...
Shoprite to Launch an MVNO to Rival Pick n Pay
Shoprite CEO, Pieter Engelbrecht says that the retailer plans to launch its own mobile virtual network operator (MVNO). Speaking at Shoprite’s Group results, Engelbrecht says “Very soon we will launch our own virtual network to enhance our customer data even further”. This MVNO is expected to rival Pick n Pay’s newly launched service that uses MTN’s mobile network infrastructure to offer customers prepaid, SIM-based access to services including airtime, data, and SMS. “Mobile technology is core to South Africans’ way of life and an essential part of the monthly grocery shop. Our country has a very high mobile phone penetration, but data costs have been a barrier. We believe expanding our services to enter the mobile market will benefit millions of our customers,” says Richard van Rens...
Cell C Introduces New All-in-One Data Bundles
Image sourced from Town Press Cell C is set to bring back the Double Data deal for customers purchasing any All-in-One bundle, replacing the social data promotion that allocated free Facebook data. Essentially, users will get double anytime data to use on any platform when buying an All-In-One bundle. The bonus data offerings and price structures are as follows: Description All-In-One 5GB (10.5GB) All-In-One 10GB (21GB) All-In-One 20GB (42GB) Bundle Fee (Incl VAT) R359,00 R669,00 R1 249,00 Validity(days) 30 30 30 Data 5GB 10GB 20GB Bonus Anytime Data 5GB Free 10GB free 20GB Free Social Data 500MB 1GB 2GB On-net minutes Unlimited Unlimited Unlimited On-net minutes FUP 1000 1000 1000 Any-net minutes 90 120 350 Cell C has also introduced two new 6-month data bundles: 100GB and 200GB. These wi...
