Why Nigeria is important market for iPhone 8

By Tare Youdeowei Apple’s iPhone 8 has launched in Lagos, Nigeria and is dubbed a new generation of iPhone due to its new, durable glass design with an embedded wireless charging system, that is described for living conditions in Nigeria.

SMART CITY: TAXIFYing Abuja with 15% commisision for drivers

By Prince Osuagwu Fast growing ride-sharing platform, Taxify has brought its innovative taxi hailing app to  Abuja with hundreds of driver-partners that will pay only 15 percent commission .

This new trend is opposed to 25 percent known with its competitors in the industry. To celebrate its arrival in Abuja, Taxify is offering a 40 percent discount to riders during the month of November, as disclosed by Uche Okafor, Taxify’s Operations Manager.  ”Abuja is an exciting and thriving market with an outgoing population for private urban transport. We are very excited to launch here and have a solid team on ground. 

‘Digital transformation will create long term value for telecos, their customers’

Mr. Li Peng, the Huawei Southern African President has opined that Digital transformation will create long term value for Telecoms and their companies

He said this at the Telecoms Industry Operations Transformation Forum, tagged ‘AfricaCom’, which took place in Cape Town, South Africa, with the mindset that this should be geared towards creating long term strategic value both for the telecom and its customers. 

Mr. Li Peng said further, that “as global voice revenue and growth is declining, data and digital services are now driving revenue growth, digital operations transformation is crucial for operators’ business growth and evolution and digital operation transformation must return to the commercial nature, what specific problems to be solved and what value to be delivered. “ Huawei , as a leading ICT Company has identified three key elements for Digital Operations Transformation, these are: a set of Industry-based best practices and methodologies, open industry reference models and a series of executable targets. As a leading telecom service and solution provider, Huawei plans to invest 1 Billion USD in the next 3 years, to propel progress in digitization solution to build business and technical capabilities, and has already seen the benefits in R&D, supply chain and delivery. “Operators can maximize value and efficiency through digitization and it is ready to partner with our customers and third-party partners to walk this journey of digital Transformation together”. 

NCC, CBN threaten action against non transparent sale of 9mobile

By Prince Osuagwu There are indications that the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC and its counterpart in the banking sector, the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, are querying the decision of the Backlays Africa, to sell 9mobile without advertising “expression of interest”.

The two regulators, in a joint letter to the facility agent for 9mobile syndicated loan, GTBank, dated November 4, 2017, frowned that since the appointment of Backlays Africa as financial advisers, it appears to have jettisoned agreed processes of handing 9mobile over to prospective new bidders. 

NCC slams operators’call for price hike

To establish more emergencycentres next year By Prince Osuagwu

The Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission, Prof Umar Garba Danbatta, has revealed that telecom operators in the country were calling for tariff hike.

Danbatta who made the disclosure when a delegation of the National agency for prohibition of trafficking in persons, NAPTIP visited him in Abuja, however said the commission usually rebuffs those calls. He said that although Nigeria has one of the lowest telecom tariffs in the world, calls for tariff hike by operators were unnecessary. He also disclosed that the commission was working hard to ensure that more emergency centres are established in the country next year. Speaking while receiving a delegation of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) led by the Director-General, Bar Julie Okah- Donli, he said the projects of building and equipping the emergency centres in the 36 states of the federation and Abuja are currently at various stages of completion. “The Federal Government has mandated the commission to provide emergency communications centres in all states of the federation and Abuja. We already have 3 digit emergency line, 112, which is equivalent to 911 in other climes,” he pointed out.

Ericsson: Why African telcos must brace up for next level of growth

.LTE broadband growth in 2023 ‘ll be massive …310 LTE, 990 mobile subscriptions ‘ll trigger network evolution By Prince Osuagwu
African operators, including Nigeria’s four major telecom operators, MTN, Globacom, Airtel 9Mobile and other mobile broadband service providers, are put on alert over the massive growth that will hit the continent in the next six years.

The growth is expected to hit the continent from improvements in Long Term Evolution, LTE and mobile telecommunications subscriptions. Among several reports that have predicted Africa’s growth, the latest regional appendix to the Ericsson Mobility Report was more explicit. The report forecasts that there will be massive growth in LTE and mobile subscriptions between 2017 and 2023.

 The level of growth, according to Ericsson will trigger network evolution, meaning that in order not to be caught unawares or resort to playing catch up when the chips are down, operators should begin now to gradually optimize their networks. This warning concerns the Nigerian telecom operators the more, considering their places in African telecom revolution. Nigeria takes a major chunk of telecom growth in Africa after having an unprecedented telecom revolution which started in 2001.

 Since then, the country has remained a shining example of Africa’s telecom prowess. Although Nigeria ranked 14 out of 39 African countries rated in the 2016 world ICT development index, the country however recorded enviable strides in growth. Nigerian ICT sector recorded  2.72 per cent growth in 2016 as against 2.48 seen in 2015. In mobile-cellular telephony subscriptions per 100 inhabitants, there was 82.10 per cent coverage. For international Internet bandwidth per internet user (Bit/s), Nigeria spent N2,986.16 on each user. The per cent of households with computer in Nigeria was 9.84 per cent in 2016, whereas the percentage    of households with internet access in Nigeria was 11.40 in the same year. For individuals using the internet, Nigeria recorded 47.44 per cent in 2016. 

This is also as the active mobile broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants in Nigeria stood at 20.95 per cent also in the year under review. In internet users, Nigeria has maintained an impressive growth since 2005 when it ranked 40th in the world with 5.0 million users. In 2009 the country jumped to 9th with 44.0 million users and eventually became 8th in 2015 when it hit 67.0 million users. Today the country maintained number one position in Africa in terms of internet usage. 

The interesting thing about the ranking is that the majority of internet users in Nigeria do so through mobile phone and that is why Ericsson’s warning should be heeded more by Nigerian telcos. The report says that LTE subscription will expand by 47 percent from 30 million in 2017 to 310million by 2023 in Sub-Saharan Africa. The report also announced that mobile subscriptions in Sub-Saharan Africa are expected to grow by six percent, between 2017 and 2023, from 700 million mobile subscriptions in 2017 to 990 million subscriptions by 2023.

 Moreover, mobile traffic in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) will increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 49 percent while mobile subscriptions for the total MEA region are expected to grow at four percent CAGR between 2017 and 2023, from 1.59 billion in 2017 to 2.03 billion by 2023. 

This equates to three percent growth in the Middle East and North Africa, from 890 million mobile subscriptions to 1.04 billion subscriptions between 2017 and 2023. On the other hand, mobile broadband subscriptions are forecast to grow by 15% for the MEA region from 820 million in 2017 to 1.85 billion by 2023. 

This is broken down into a 13 percent increase for the Middle East and North Africa from 460 million mobile broadband subscriptions in 2017 to 980 million by 2023. Similarly, Sub-Saharan Africa mobile broadband subscriptions are foretasted to grow by 16 percent from 350 million in 2017 to 880 million by 2023. When it comes to LTE subscriptions, the MEA region is expected to grow by 29 percent from 190 million to 860 million by 2023. This means that LTE subscriptions in the Middle East and North Africa will grow by 23 percent from 160 million in 2017 to 570 million by 2023

Photo printer: HP Sprocket prints inkless

By Tare Youdeowei One of the world’s smallest photo printers, the Sprocket by Hewlett-Packard, HP, has debuted in Nigeria.

The inkless photo printer which is smaller than the average smart phone, 5 x 7.6 cm, can be carried around like an accessory to print photos from smart phones or tablet virtually anywhere via Bluetooth.

Speaking at the  launch of HP Sprocket at Hard Rock Cafe, Lagos, Managing Director, HP Central Africa, Mrs Ifeyinwa Afe, said; “Our promise is to continue to engineer technology that meets consumers’ need and amazes them, hence the HP Sprocket.

4 unusual ways to find Aa misplaced phone

Misplaced your phone? 4 unusual ways to help find a misplaced phone. Ask Your Phone to Find Itself
Yes this is in fact possible. By installing the Blare app on your Android device, you can ask your phone to find itself as long as it is on and within earshot. Once your phone hears whatever command you have set it to respond to when looking for your phone, a loud alarm will sound to help find the phone. For iOS, the app called Marco Polo can be used.

IT innovation: Nigeria spends $70bn to support start-ups

By Emmanuel Elebeke The Minister for Communications, Barr. Adebayo Shittu, has said that the only way Nigeria can get out of the economic woods is to embrace innovations in information and communications technology, ICT.

Shittu who was a guest at the just concluded ICT Start-up Ecosystem stakeholders meeting organized by National Information Technology Development Agency, NITDA, in Abuja, said that is why Nigeria has spent a total $70 billion to support IT start-ups since 2001. The Minister however said this culture has to be consistent and better improved for Nigeria to compete in the global stage. “Government has no option but to support the innovators and entrepreneurs in order to survive and create jobs to the teaming population.
The entire civil service is made up of only 1.5 million Nigerians, yet we have a population of about 180 million. That means that government has barely been able to provide one percent of direct jobs for the population. ‘‘Whether we like it or not, since government cannot provide jobs for everybody, government must create enabling environment for everybody to responsibly be engaged.
If we can appreciate what is happening in other climes, it means Nigeria’s government has a primary duty, not only to create the enabling environment for innovation and entrepreneurship to thrive, but we must amass positive support and collaboration for innovators and entrepreneurs to be properly engaged, so that they can contribute to national development.
That is why is imperative for us as a government to support your efforts in innovation and entrepreneurship. You can be rest assured that whatever you want to do, we as a government are ready to do it,’’ he said. In his presentation, Barrister Kasim Sodanji of the Office for Nigerian Content Development in ICT, ONC, an arm of NITDA, corroborated the minister’s claim that Nigeria has spent about $70 billion to support IT start-ups since 2001.

Sodanji, who spoke on National Start-up Innovation Fund, said government had intervened in many sectors of the economy, but has not made appreciable intervention in the IT sector. “Nigeria has less venture capital with less than 100 agent investors that get access in Nigeria. 

For this country to compete globally in the IT sector government must invest more to justify the objective. Nigeria has intervened in many sectors. The intervention Nigeria has had over the last 15 years is N1.7 trillion.  But this money has gone into various other areas of the economy.” We have not intervened in the ICT sector the way we should, despite the fact that ICT is the third in contribution to GDP. Millions of jobs are lost due to the poor intervention. 

‘‘For start-ups to survive, government must look for a way to catalyze private sector funds so that we can have funds for long term ICT funding for start-ups in Nigeria. This fund is one that must compete globally so that other people can comfortably key into it.’’ Director General, NITDA, Isa Pantami, during his address said the workshop is meant for ideas sharing among innovators and entrepreneurs because of the indispensability of IT in job creation. His words; “The ICT sector is a catalyst in addressing the needs and interests of many other sectors. The growth rate of tech innovators in ICT has accelerated dramatically and this encompasses more diverse players than ever before. 

Technology increases productivity, therefore, when people share access in form of collaboration they build stronger business strategy for establishing large successful firms in the business ecosystem.”

unique Leadership Conference

unique Leadership Conference 

THE FIRST FIVE STEPS YOU SHOULD TAKE IN A CYBER ATTACK

Technology is a wonderful thing. It has helped to connect the world and to make things far more convenient than ever before. People love this convenience, but they do not always realize that it brings with it a substantial amount of risk. Cyber-attacks are a serious threat, and it is vital that you understand what you need to do in order to protect your business from these problems.
If you have a relatively small business, then you might feel as though you don’t need to worry about your cyber security. That’s not the case at all. For most, even smaller businesses, it is only a matter of time before they become the victim of a cyber attack. The thing that separates you from a victim though will be the ability to deal with the attack. Let’s look at the first five steps that you need to take in the event this happens.

How to Secure Your Wireless (Wi-Fi) Home Network

Wireless Networking (Wi-Fi) has made it so easy for anyone to use Internet on your computer, mobile phones, tablets and other wireless devices anywhere in the house without the clutter of cables.
difficult for someone to steal your bandwidth but the big problem with wireless signals is that others can access the Internet using your broadband connection even while they are in a neighboring building or sitting in a car that’s parked outside your apartment.
This practice, also known as piggybacking, is bad for three reasons:
  It will increase your monthly Internet bill especially when you have to pay per byte of data transfer.   It will decrease your Internet access speed since you are now sharing the same internet connection with other users.

How to perform a clean installation of Windows

You can perform a clean installation of Windows 8.1 or Windows 8 using installation media, such as a DVD or USB flash drive. You don't need a previous version of Windows installed on your PC to perform a clean installation of Windows 8.1, but you do for Windows 8. If your PC doesn't have a version of Windows already installed, you'll need install a previous version of Windows or buy Windows 8.1 or a System Builder version of Windows 8 at a local retailer if it's available in your country or region.
To perform a clean installation using a DVD or USB flash drive
If you bought Windows 8.1 or Windows 8 on DVD from a participating retailer, or created a DVD or bootable USB flash drive when you downloaded Windows using Upgrade Assistant, follow these steps to perform a clean installation.

Keep Your Child Safe Online

Just what kind of trouble can your kids get into online? We'll lay out the problems for you and the solutions.

The Internet is absolutely loaded with content and activities that are entertaining and educational for children. Modern kids have access to resources vastly beyond what their parents had, and beyond what some grandparents even understand. You've surely heard, though, that you need to protect your kids from the Internet's dangers. Just what does that mean? Here are five ways they can get into trouble.

Nasty Websites. When home video players first came out, the porn industry roared right in to supply porn videos. Likewise, as soon as the Internet population reached critical mass, porn sites popped up like mushrooms. Young kids may encounter these by accident; hormone-crazed teens may seek them out deliberately. Gambling sites, sites promoting drugs or weapons, school cheating sites?there are a lot of places on the Internet your kids shouldn't go.

Growing your business through social media is easy

The advent of social media has made more Nigerian youths internet literate to a reasonable extent. They now access all necessary information via the internet using their mobile phone. The most visited websites by young people are social websites including LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter.
In the 21st century, you shouldn’t be ignorant of anything for more than 5 minutes because any information you want can be got from Google. Scientists in western world have proved that a kid in Africa in 2015, have access to almost all the intelligence of the world via his/her mobile phone. That’s a feat that even the president of the United States of America could not boast of 18 years ago.
We learn through social interactions. That’s how we are wired, and social media has raised the bar and revolutionized information creation, update and retrieval.