News & Views

Content posted in January 2018

Ericsson's Sales, Staff Numbers Shrink

Ray Le Maistre
1/31/2018

As telecoms vendor giant Ericsson continues to report losses and execute a turnaround strategy, its revenues and staff numbers dipped in the Middle East and Africa during 2017.

Safaricom Slashes Home Data Prices by More Than 50%

Connecting Africa News
1/31/2018

Safaricom home customers to enjoy discounted 3G/4G bundles as alternative to home fiber.

Africa Data Centres Opens Expanded Facilities in Cape Town, Johannesburg

Connecting Africa News
1/30/2018

South Africa Data Centre (SADC) Johannesburg and SADC Cape Town will support rising demand for cloud-based services in Southern Africa.

Ghana, Kenya Boost Africa's Broadband Stats

Ray Le Maistre
1/30/2018

The African fixed broadband market grew by 5% during the third quarter of 2017 thanks mostly to uptake of services in Ghana and Kenya, according to statistics from analyst house Point Topic.

Teleology in Driving Seat to Buy 9mobile

Connecting Africa News
1/29/2018

Not surprisingly, the highest bidder has been identified as the favorite to take control of Nigeria's fourth mobile operator, according to local reports.

Liquid Telecom & Strathmore Business School to Drive Africa's Data Revolution Through New Analytics Center

Connecting Africa News
1/28/2018

Strathmore Africa Data Analytic Centre will be hosted at East Africa Data Centre (EADC) in Nairobi where it will provide businesses with data analytics services.

Orange, Gavi and Côte d’Ivoire Ministry of Health Join Forces to Boost Child Immunisation

Connecting Africa News
1/25/2018

The mobile phone project "M-Vaccin Côte d' Ivoire" will raise awareness of immunisation among parents and communities to increase vaccine coverage in regions with the lowest coverage.

MTN Targets 3x Growth in Mobile Money Subs by 2021

Connecting Africa News
1/24/2018

CEO tells Deloitte Africa event attendees of the mobile giant's ambitions in customer growth and mobile money service usage.

Partech Ventures Launches $120M Africa Tech Fund

Connecting Africa News
1/23/2018

VC firm launches Partech Africa, a $120 million fund dedicated to raising capital for investment in African tech startups.

Kenya Launches Mobile Money Interoperability Trial

Connecting Africa News
1/22/2018

The Communications Authority of Kenya announces the launch of a mobile financial services trial, setting stage for lower cross networks transactions costs.

9Mobile Bids: And Then There Were Two

Connecting Africa News
1/22/2018

It's a two-horse race to become the new majority shareholder in Nigerian mobile operator 9Mobile, according to local reports.

South Africa's IT Market Grew 5.3% in 2017: Report

Connecting Africa News
1/22/2018

South Africa's IT market grew by 5.3% in 2017 according to estimates by research firm BMIT and will grow at a faster pace during the next four years.

Africa Stars in Airtel’s Q3 Results

Ray Le Maistre
1/19/2018

While the Indian market proves tough for Bharti Airtel, revenues from its African operations are up by more than 5% in the fiscal third quarter that ended December 31, 2017.

Bango Teams Up with MTN Ghana to Launch Mobile Money Wallet in Google Play

Connecting Africa News
1/19/2018

This is the first use of the MTN Mobile Money wallet to fund app store purchases, according to the partners.

Cell C On the Acquisition Trail

Connecting Africa News
1/18/2018

South African operator is looking to make a couple of acquisitions to bolster its service portfolio, CEO tells Bloomberg.

Satellite Hopeful Plans Free Internet Access for Africa

Connecting Africa News
1/17/2018

Quika plans to offer free connectivity to consumers, low-cost satellite broadband to SMEs.

Samsung Targets Africa Growth: Report

Connecting Africa News
1/16/2018

Mobile phone and electronics giant aims to boost its sales in Africa and generate 20% of its total revenues from the continent within five years, according to Reuters.

9Mobile Ownership Decision Still in Balance

Ray Le Maistre
1/15/2018

Regulatory process means identity of Nigerian operator's new owner will not be announced imminently.

Huawei Pumps $100M Into South Africa Campus

Connecting Africa News
1/12/2018

Chinese technology giant is investing in a substantial campus facility in Johannesburg.

A Kick in the Wallet for Operators in Kenya, Chad

Ray Le Maistre
1/12/2018

Kenyan operators fined for poor quality of service while tax rates have been hiked for mobile operators in Chad.

Cote d’Ivoire Imposes Tax on Mobile Money Transfers

Connecting Africa News
1/11/2018

This could fray some nerves in the mobile commerce community.

CETel to Connect Sites in Africa via SES's MEO Fleet

Connecting Africa News
1/10/2018

CETel has signed a five-year deal with SES Networks to connect new exploration and production sites in Africa via SES's medium earth orbit (MEO) O3b satellite constellation.

Analyzing South Africa's Controversial 4G Wholesale Plan

Guy Zibi
1/10/2018

Guy Zibi from Xalam Analytics takes stock of South Africa's proposed 4G wholesale experiment and how it could impact multiple markets.

Pay-TV Subs to Grow 74% by 2023

Ray Le Maistre
1/9/2018

The number of pay-TV subscribers in sub-Saharan Africa will grow by 74% between 2017 and 2023, according to a new forecast from Digital TV Research.

MTN Hits 20 Gbit/s in 5G Trial but Needs Spectrum

Ray Le Maistre
1/8/2018

South African operator has been conducting 5G trials with partner Ericsson but knows it will need more spectrum to make 5G a reality.

Zimbabwe's NetOne Strikes Loan Deal for Rural Expansion

Connecting Africa News
1/4/2018

Zimbabwe mobile operator has agreed a vendor financing deal with China's Huawei to help fund its network expansion in rural areas, according to local media reports.

Kenyan Authorities Drop Plans to Break Up Safaricom – Report

Iain Morris
1/3/2018

A proposal to curb the dominance of Safaricom by breaking it up has been jettisoned in a new regulatory report.

PEACE Subsea Cable Set for Late 2019 Launch

Ray Le Maistre
1/3/2018

A new subsea cable linking East Africa and Asia is set for launch in the fourth quarter of 2019, according to the company building the network.

MTN Provides Loan Boost to IHS Towers

Connecting Africa News
1/2/2018

Shareholder loan of US$231 million will ensure investment in MTN Nigeria's supporting infrastructure.

5 in Line to Acquire Nigeria's 9Mobile

Ray Le Maistre
1/2/2018

Decision on sale process of troubled mobile operator delayed to January 16.

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