tech news
Sub-Saharan Africa’s to Mobile Traffic to Grow 6.5 Times by 2026
Mobile data traffic in Sub-Saharan Africa is estimated to grow by almost 6.5 times the current figures, with total traffic increasing from 0.87EB per month in 2020 to 5.6EB by 2026. Meanwhile, the average traffic per smartphone is expected to reach 8.9GB over the forecast period – this according to the Ericsson Mobility Report. As the demand for capacity and coverage of cellular networks continues to grow, service providers are expected to continue investing in their networks to cater for this uptake and meet evolving consumer requirements. In Sub-Saharan Africa, mobile subscriptions will continue to grow over the forecast period as mobile penetration today, at 84 percent, is less than the global average. LTE is estimated to account for around 15 percent of subscriptions by the end of...
Twitter is Shutting Down Periscope in 2021
Twitter has announced that it’s shutting down its live-streaming service Periscope. In a blog post shared to Medium, the social media company said that it will be discontinuing all Periscope apps by March of 2021, and folding all of their live video capabilities into the Twitter Live feature on the main Twitter app. “The Periscope app is in an unsustainable maintenance-mode state, and has been for a while,” Twitter wrote in the post. “Over the past couple of years, we’ve seen declining usage and know that the cost to support the app will only continue to go up over time.” Although Periscope will be up and running for active users until next year, the app’s latest update, which was rolled out today, is currently blocking any new account signups. The company assured existing users that ...
Cybersecurity will Remain a Priority Despite Reduced IT Budgets, Research Shows
Cybersecurity remains a priority for investment among businesses, according to a Kaspersky report. Its share of IT spending has grown from 23% in 2019 to 26% in 2020 for SMBs, and from 26% to 29% for enterprises. 71% of organisations also expect their cybersecurity budget to grow further in the next three years. This is despite overall IT budgets decreasing in both segments amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and cybersecurity cuts affecting the most economically hit SMBs. External conditions and events can influence IT priorities for businesses. As a result of the COVID-19 lockdown, organisations have had to adjust plans to meet changing business needs – from emergency digitalisation to cost optimisation. The Kaspersky report, based on a survey of more than 5,000 IT and cybersecurity practitioner...
Networks Unlimited Africa brings Festive Season Cheer to Tembisa school
There is no doubt that it has been difficult for many local companies to survive in 2020. Imagine then how much more challenging it must have been for worthy causes like The Love Trust and its beneficiary, Nokuphila School in Tembisa, Midrand? This is the question asked by Anton Jacobsz, CEO at Networks Unlimited Africa, a leading value-added distributor within the Sub-Saharan African market. He explains, “The Love Trust is a South African non-profit educational organisation which has, to date, reached over 20,000 primary and secondary beneficiaries in disadvantaged communities. Because the lockdown period has made it even harder for non-profit organisations to stay afloat, our company has made a point of continuing to offer our support to this worthwhile organisation. A team from Ne...
Vodacom Launches Widest 5G Network in KZN
Vodacom has announced its plans to roll-out the widest 5G network in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Its 5G network is currently available on 156 live 5G sites across the KwaZulu-Natal province and supports both mobile and fixed wireless access services. To launch the 5G network in KZN, Vodacom used the temporary spectrum assigned by the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA), including 1×50 MHz in the 3.5 GHz, 2x10MHz and 700MHz. Vodacom has decided to use the 700 MHz band for wide-scale mobile, 5G coverage and is supplementing network capacity with 3.5 GHz where required. “Vodacom now offers the widest 5G network coverage in KwaZulu-Natal and we expect to expand our national 5G footprint significantly once we get access to new spectrum. We are confident that the r...
Reddit Aquires Video Platform Dubsmash
Image sourced from Reddit Reddit is officially set to acquire TikTok rival – Dubsmash. The social news giant says that this deal will bring to key strengths to its platform. First, Dubsmash’s mission is unique among social platforms and is aligned with Reddit’s own mission of bringing community and belonging to everyone in the world. Just as Reddit is a place for content users won’t see anywhere else on the Internet, Dubsmash provides a welcoming platform for creators and users who are under-represented in social media. Second, Reddit says it will integrate Dubsmash’s innovative video creation tools into its own platform, which will empower its creators to express themselves in original and authentic ways. /* custom css */ .tdi_3_f92.td-a-rec-img{ text-align: left; }.tdi_3_f92.td-a-rec-img...
South Africa’s Top 10 Google Searches in 2020
Image sourced from Search Engine Land Google provides a unique insight into the major moments and top trends of 2020 based on the most popular searches conducted in South Africa. Search trends information is gleaned from data collated by Google based on what South Africans have been searching for and asking Google. The information goliath processes more than 40 000 search queries every second. This translates to more than a billion searches per day and 1.2 trillion searches per year worldwide. This year’s trending searches show South African’s keen interest in the world and people around them. The US election, COVID-19 and Sasol shares captured the nation’s attention. From pineapple beer recipes to Kobe Bryant and Joe Biden, South Africans use search to find out about the things that matte...
vivo V20 to Launch in Kenya
vivo is set to launch its latest premium device – the vivo V20 – in Kenya. The photography-focused smartphone is said to offer extraordinary photography and videography solutions. The vivo V20 features a signature 44MP Eye Autofocus selfie which can shoot up to 4K selfie video with additional unique features such as the—Slo-Mo Selfie video, steadiface selfie video, Dual-view video for back and front viewing at the same time and the Super Night Selfie — that enhance selfie quality and empower users to record life’s special moments. On the back, the V20 sports have a triple camera set up that brings a 64MP-8MP-2MP back camera featuring Super Night Mode on the main lens, which supports tripod shooting, wide-angle night scenes, and a stylish night filter, enabling users to capture stunnin...
Why 5G is Crucial to Closing the Digital Divide
It’s safe to say that high points during the COVID-19 pandemic have been few and far between. South Africans were, however, met with at least one welcome development earlier this year with the launch of the country’s first 5G which supports both commercial mobile and fixed wireless 5G services. Although people were confined to their homes for an extended period of time during lockdown, many South Africans living in major metros were able to use 5G technology to stay in touch, work from home and keep themselves entertained. Not surprisingly, the demand for data during this time was greater than ever before. Vodacom recorded a 40% increase in mobile data traffic in South Africa during the last week of June during the peak of the pandemic, compared with pre-COVID-19 lockdown levels. As the ci...
Apple iPhone 12 Available for Pre-Order in South Africa
The Apple iStore customers can pre-order the iPhone 12 range – for both cash purchases and contract upgrades – from 11 December 2020. The devices will then be delivered straight to their door starting 18 December. The full range of Apple devices includes: iPhone 12 iPhone 12 Mini iPhone 12 Pro iPhone 12 Pro Max “Pre-ordering from iStore is a great way to secure upgrades for both cash and contracts purchases early. We offer flexible delivery, so no matter where you are in South Africa during this holiday season, we will get your iPhone to you. To make the experience even better, we have over R3000 worth of free benefits only available to iStore iPhone 12 customers,” says Chris Dodd, CEO of iStore. How to pre-order the iPhone online for cash Pre-ordering online for cash gives custo...
PayCentral and Mastercard Partner to Launch DigiCentral
PayCentral has partnered with Mastercard to launch DigiCentral, a secure online platform that provides small business owners with a simple way of paying out incentives, rewards, gifting, corporate expenses and even salaries to their employees through a prepaid virtual card. The virtual card replaces a physical plastic card and can be used for eCommerce and in-store purchases. To complete a purchase online, DigiCentral virtual cardholders receive a 16-digit card number, security code and expiry date, which they would use much like a physical card. It can be linked to online retail apps like Uber, Uber Eats, Checkers 60 Sixty and others. For in-store purchases, the virtual card can be loaded to any Masterpass-enabled digital wallet. Once loaded, the cardholder can use their mobile phone to s...
SEACOM Appoints New CEO
SEACOM has appointed Oliver Fortuin as its new CEO – effective 4 January 2021. He will succeed Byron Clatterbuck, who joined the ICT company in 2012 as its Chief Commercial Officer and became SEACOM Group CEO in February 2015. Fortuin, who is currently the Group Chief Enterprise Officer at MTN, has worked for over two decades in the ICT sector, across South Africa and the rest of Africa, with industry-leading organisations such as IBM, BT, and, most recently, MTN. “The SEACOM team has built an excellent data connectivity platform in the markets where we operate. We now hope to expand upon this, as well as to develop more industry-leading services that today’s corporate customers in Africa require. Our key focus will be to strengthen our customer base in the corporate segment by offering a ...
