Operators warm up for LTE battle

A new phase of war is brewing in the global telecommunications market-place with operators toasting equipment manufacturers to support their migration to the Long-Term Evolution (LTE) at various levels.

Experts described LTE as the next evolution in mobile network standards that offers superior user experience, enhancing applications such as mobile video, blogging, advanced gaming, rich multimedia telephony among other services and is known to interoperate with existing cellular systems, according to the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP).

Insight at the just concluded 2008 World Mobile Congress (WMC) in Barcelona, Spain indicated that several operators keen on raising the tally of contemporary networks invaded the four-day congress in search of reliable allies from equipment manufacturers such as Ericsson, Alcatel-Lucent, Nokia Siemens Networks to name a few, so as to commence talks or seal partnership deals.

This is coming as the organisers of WMC informed that LTE operators globally would be accommodated within the Global System for Mobile Association (GSMA), even as China Mobile announced at the end of events last weekend, that its commencing trial of LTE platform alongside Vodafone and Verizon Wireless.

According to the Chief Technology Officer of GSMA, Mr. Alex Sinclair, the emergence of LTE after the completion of its standardization by the 3GPP is a major landmark in deployment of high capacity mobile networks with capabilities of delivering very high speed and low latency services.

He explained that the conclusion of LTE standards proclaims the technical baseline for the GSM family of technologies.

“The GSMA is delighted to welcome LTE into the fold as the next step in the evolution of GSM,” he declared.

He also said that LTE specifications would pave the way for future roadmap for existing operator members to offer mobile broadband in form of High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA) cum Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) and Global System for Mobile communications (GSM).

Also at the congress, Ericsson announced its selection as Super Third Generation (Super 3G/LTE) vendor as it clinched deal with Japanese NTT DoCoMo.

Executive Vice President and Head, Business Unit Networks at Ericsson, Kurt Jofs said that the leading equipment vendor, has previously demonstrated LTE in Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) mode, with speeds of up to 160 Mega Bytes Per Second (Mbps) and for the first time established LTE in both FDD and Time Division Duplex (TDD) mode on the same base station platform.

Vice President, LTE Product Management at Alcatel-Lucent, Mr. Paul Larbey revealed that outcome of the congress was the alliance his firm formed with the mobile subsidiary of LG Electronics in efforts to deliver mobile broadband to end-users and expand their collaboration on the development, testing and commercialisation of LTE, especially on research and development as well as interoperability testing efforts in order to harmonise their contributions to 3GPP standards development with a team to support on-going customer trials.

Equally, Alcatel-Lucent was in another marriage with NEC Corporation to broaden collaboration to market what the alliance described as advanced end-to-end communications solutions, through a joint venture to further develop LTE wireless broadband access.

As at the time of filing this report, Nigerian operators, especially on GSM platform are battling the declining quality of service (QoS) and is even yet to optimise the so-called deployment of 3G, which made front pages in the last quarter.

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Wincor honours Computer Warehouse

Automated Teller Machine (ATM) giant, Wincor Nixdorf, has honoured the Computer Warehouse Limited (CWL), the hardware subsidiary of the Computer Warehouse Group (CWG), as its best new partner.

The Chief Operating Officer (COO), CWL, Mr. Phillip Obioha, while making this known said that the award fortnight ago was presented at a ceremony in Astoria Hotel Paderbon, Germany.

According to him, the award came CWL way based on a remarkable achievement in deployment and support for the acclaimed Wincor ATMs in the country.

Presenting the award, Managing Director, Wincor, Mr. Jorg Brinkmoller said that CWL achieved this by making sales worth $5 million within the year under review.

“The highest achieved by any new partner of Wincor,” he said.

Mr. Brinkmoller also commended CWL for the quality of support services offered in the region.

“Our customers have expressed high regard for your responsiveness and customer centric values. We trust that you shall keep up this outstanding performance in the coming year” he said.

Reacting to the award, Mr. Obioha, expressed thanks to the customers who have made this feat possible with their cherished patronage and the confidence reposed in CWL.

As said by him, “This award challenges us to continue to be responsive to our customers’ requests and stop at nothing to ensure outstanding service experience for all our customers.”

Champion Infotel recalls that CWL Infrastructure was appointed a Wincor partner in February 2007 to focus not only on sales but equally to use the wealth of experience garnered in the market to bring to bear on better after sales service to the customer.

He further disclosed that through the sister company, ExpertEdge Software, CWL shall bring more value to Wincor customers by customizing the Wincor software for better customer experience on their ATMs.

CWL Infrastructure specializes in the supply, installation and support of computer hardware and ancillary operating systems and middleware systems, as well as managed services on an outsourced basis for clients who chose to outsource their whole IT operations or a part thereof to CWL.

Relatively, Wincor Nixdorf is a market leader in the ATM business. Wincor stands for competitive processes and efficient workflow at bank branches and retail outlets. Banks tap Wincor Nixdorf expertise to strengthen branch network as important sales channel. Intelligent networks between store and headquarters raise efficiency levels in the retail industry.

Also, there is tangible demand for Wincor Nixdorf expertise in other industries with branch structures.

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Expert advises corporations on Human Firewalls

FOR electronic businesses to thrive in this part of the world, corporate organisations must invest in ‘Human Firewalls’ according to the Managing Director, Digital Jewels, Mrs. Adedoyin Odunfa.

Human Firewalls are those professionals who are armed with enough information and training to prevent a security breach in their organisations as outlined by Odunfa.

Speaking in Lagos, Mrs. Odunfa said that this has become imperative now that most businesses are migrating and developing electronic platforms.

Mrs. Odunfa who also is the chief executive of the independent information technology (IT) consulting entity, said that with focus on development of knowledge economy across the continent and Nigeria precisely, there is need to channel energies into building sustainable human firewalls.

With eye on becoming the continental trusted numero uno in guiding knowledge economy, Mrs. Odunfa said that the biggest challenge for the development of e-business in emerging economies is the absence of highly skilled human capital.

Such professionals, she said, are in short supply in the country, adding that in order to reverse the trend, Digital Jewels is poised to apply the “TEA” approach to it by providing Training, Education and Awareness (TEA) for organisations that are eager to develop and maintain critical e-business approach.

“We use the acronym TEA. Through this we would train people to know what to do, educate them to understand the issues and continuously spread awareness such that everyone, from the teller in the bank; the front desk officer, the call centre agent, to the top management executive, everybody will know that information security is central to the success of their business,” she said.

Mrs. Odunfa, noted that many organisations are comfortable with physical business with little understanding of e-business.

“In some organisations, those who are at the helms of affairs are yet to understand the impact and implications of the digital revolution,” she decried.

She pointed out that her team at Digital Jewels has been able to take cursor look at the information value chain and the objective so as to see how they could add value, by helping organisations to improve their value and benefits derivable from the information within their organisations.

“We found out that many times, people understand tangible assets. The banks for instance, understand the need to secure their branches. However, many really do not appreciate the need to secure and take advantage, as well as benefit from intangible assets,” she informed, explaining that if one actually value assets across the organisations, it is possible to find out that information is perhaps the most valuable asset.

“Especially if you are in service business and even if you are not in service business; information is still a valuable asset to you,” Mrs. Odunfa said.

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SaveMyContacts to empower 1,000 Nigerians

MOBILE phonebook backup provider, SaveMyContacts has concluded plans to empower 1,000 Nigerians via a comprehensive Information and Communication Technology (ICT) programme that would lead to the award of International Computer Driving License (ICDL) certification.

Company spokes woman, Ms. Nkiruka Mordi said that this would be achieved in the next 10 years.

‘We’re doing this as a pure corporate social responsibility initiative,» she declared.

She explained that the eventual beneficiaries do not have to be subscribers to the firm’s backup services.

Although she noted that at N2,500 per annum, the backup is up for grab, even as the firm has decided to contribute its quota through development of human capital.

According to her, training estimated 100 students annually in the next 10 years, she said, is SaveMyContacts own small contribution to the society.

She added that ICDL is making significant concessions to support the initiative.

She also said that the ICDL suite of curricula has been thoroughly researched and developed to suit all levels of intending participants.

She further said that ICDL through the initiative would deliver training from the novice user point of view upto the expert users format.

While SaveMyContacts is expected to commence selection of candidates across the country based on criteria soon to be published on its website, www.savemycontactsng.com.

She further pointed out that SaveMyContacts service allows users to backup and access their contacts from anywhere in the world.

«Users can also backup, update and download to a new handset wirelessly across Global Packet Radio Service (GPRS),» she said.

Just as it has been adopted by the Federal Government of Nigeria in addition to its presence in 140 other countries as the minimum standards of computer proficiency for the public service.

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Managing NITEL as concession for Interstella?

LAST quarter, and precisely in the month of November 2007, a Federal High Court sitting in the Aba, Abia State gave judgment in favour of Interstella Communications Limited, over the loses caused by the Nigerian Telecommunications Plc (NiTEL) management and subsequently awarded damages in excess of N14 billion of InterStella.

The awards was as a result of NITEL’s refusal and failure to interconnect the company’s network since 2002, in spite of the fact that NITEL had collected several millions of Naira from the company for 36 switching E1s, 9 transmission E1s and one international half STM1 circuit on SAT-3 undersea cable.

Primarily, the news of the awards was shocking to a across session of the country and forced various agencies of the government to reconsider their arrogant attitudes towards members of the public and private business entities that they are supposed to service but who always treated them as colonized subjects.

An aspect of the judgment against NITEL based on its indebtedness to the like of Interstella, which often being missed amidst attention by industry analysts is that with effect from the date of that judgment, given the award of 25 per cent annual interest on the debt sums of N14 billion and $12,150,000.00, the sums inadvertently earn an interest of N9,589,041.00 and $8,321.92 every 24 hours.

Since that award, in excess of N14bn in favour of InterStella, documents have come to the public domains exposing how NITEL committed the management blunders that gave rise to the award.

It is unthinkable that NITEL collected money for SAT-3 from Interstella, but failed to pay its dues to the SAT-3 cable administrators in South Africa, consequent upon which it could not provide the services.

But what actually sends wave of surprises is that in spite of this fact, NITEL made no effort to dialogue or communicate with the company, thereby forcing the company to reactivate a lawsuit earlier filed against the organisation.

This, industry observers said is very unfortunate and indicates what happens when a business arose out of government patronage or outright public ownership. It also goes to explain the behaviours and attitudes that cost NITEL its former position as the nation’s prime telephony services provider.

Most Nigerians may not be surprised by these findings, as they seemed contended with NICON hotel, oil and gas concessions and other politically facilitated deals of then President Olusegun Obasanjo era.

Therefore, there was no effort to change the government cum civil service management mindset in NITEL and replace it with serious private sector way of thinking. It also rationalizes why nobody in NITEL took the lawsuits serious. After all, why should an imperial government entity worry over the rights of a small entity like the plaintiffs, Interstella Communications Limited, and the Courts, which hitherto are no more than a tolerated nuisance?

Now, the NITEL’s self-inflicted wounds should be no one’s concern, yet some Nigerians and analysts to be precise would say that there is need to worry, even as others may insist the organization should be left to stew in its own urine.

But unfortunately, about 50 per cent of the company still belongs to the Nigerian public, although the exact percentage of NITEL acquired by Transcorp from the Obasanjo government remain a mystery. Thus, these factors create a legitimate condition for public concern over what is being done with NITEL.

With likely demise awaiting NITEL as its woes become a mountain of debt profile, it is necessary that government cum public shares in the telco is substantially public, hence it must be considered, protected and reflected in the actions taken to cure the entity. Thereby bringing to the fore the issue of its debts, particularly to Interstella Communications Limited, which is currently its single highest creditor, despite the revert of its sale by the Federal Government (FG) at the weekend.

And given the debt sum (N14bn) and the interests that are accruing to it on daily basis, some industry analysts are opting for a realistic way out of the woods by way of brokering an ownership structure whereby NITEL’s debts to the company could be converted to equity share while the company, Interstella takes over the management of NITEL on behalf of the government and other equity holders.

Although the aforementioned option may not just go down well with some industry observers, yet it seems to be the only way out of the crisis that has bedevilled NITEL and at least, for a given time pending when NITEL comes out of its drawing bath of debts, more so now it has gone back to the Bureau for Public Enterprise (BPE) for a fresh option.

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MWeb Nigeria launches SSP

MWEB Nigeria has launched its School Support Programme (SSP) to empower schools in the country to deal with ever changing evolution common with impacting knowledge through technology exploitation.

Mrs Muyiwa Esomojumi of MWeb Nigeria, informed that the launch of the SSP would give students at all levels including both public and private schools as well as from the university levels to primary schools.

According to her, the initiative would assist greatly in ameliorating challenges in impacting knowledge which encompasses the imperativeness that every school must equip itself, staff and students alike to be able to operate on a social, economic, technological and political concepts of the global village.

She pointed out that knowledge is power, and as such it is of utmost importance, especially to MWeb management that the preconceived beliefs about schools operational learning structures must be discarded to enable staff and students reenergize and refocus toward achieving an organizational structure based on proven research, internal development and growth that would create a positive impact in the society at large.

She emphasised that MWEB, the largest Pan African Very Small Aperture Terminal (VSAT) satellite provider, is concerned about the improvement of education by way of exploring technologies.

MWEB Nigeria is positioned to expand its market share through the delivery of world-class communication by providing clientele with effective, efficient, high quality and reliable service.

“We aim to partner educational institutions to take learning online and enable Nigerian children leapfrog into the digital age,” she said.

Hence, she said that MWeb has subsidized the cost of equipment, installation and subscription for schools at affordable prices.

“We currently partner over 120 schools including leading public and private schools, through the MTN School Connect, Schoolnet, and NEPAD to provide Internet access in schools,” she said.

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Lagos, EuroAfrica partner on ICT workshop

THE Lagos State Government is partnering the EuroAfrica Information and Communication Technology (EuroAfrica-ICT) Initiative on a two-day ICT workshop in the state, which begins today.

The workshop scheduled to hold at the Centre for Information Technology Systems (CITS) University of Lagos (UNILAG) is also supported by the National Centre for Technology Management (NACETEM).

Regional Coordinator, EuroAfrica ICT project, Mr. Ken Lohento disclosed that the workshop would have the Lagos State governor, Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) as special guest of honour alongside the Minister of Science and Technology, Chief (Mrs) Grace Ekpiwhre.

Also, the Trade and Economics Officer, Delegation of the European Commission to Nigeria, Mr. Ibi Ikpoki is expected to give an opening remark on the first day.

The workshop targeted at creating awareness and exchange, he said, is in support of the European Union ‘s Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) for Research and Technological Development is to develop and strengthen scientific and technological cooperation between the two regions of Europe and Africa.

According to him, the workshop would feature experts in ICT industry including Ms. Francisca Onaolapo, lecturer at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka-Anambra State who would preside at the first session while the President, Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) and Director, CITS, Prof. Charles Uwadia is expected to deliver a paper on Research and Development in ICT field in West Africa-Constraints and Opportunities, even as the national coordinator, Corporative Information Network (COPINE), National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Dr. O.K. Yesufu would dwell on IT Penetration: Towards Development of Human Capacity.

Equally, Senior officer, eShekels Limited, Ms Jessica Akoh is billed to tackle ‘Nigeria ICT outlook and forecasts through eShekels experience,’ just as the President Nigeria Internet Group (NIG) and Managing Director, PiNet Informatics, Mr. Lanre Ajayi would address the occasion on R&D in ICT field on the continent, the private sector view.

President, Information Technology Industry Association of Nigeria (ITAN), Dr. Jimson Olufuye, it was gathered would preside over the afternoon session on the first day with Project Coordinator, Orionis at EuroAfrica-ICT, Ms Roseline Favresse taking participants on the EuroAfrica-ICT initiative, while chief executive, NACETEM, Dr. Willie Siyanbola, would take the floor on e-nnovate R&D in Nigeria-Creating a bi-directional flow between researchers and business, with the day rounded off with speaker from the Economic Commission for West African States (ECOWAS) secretariat.

In addition, Managing Director, NIGOMSAT Limited, Alhaji Ahmed Rufai would preside over another session where the ICT coordinator, NACETEM, Mr. Michael Awoleye, would be presenting paper on Modelling adoption of e-learning in Nigerian universities, among others.

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CBN honours eTranzactCBN honours eTranzact

THE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has honoured electronic payment solution provider, eTranzact for its innovation and ingenuity in the financial sector of the economy.

At the occasion attended by organisations in the financial sector and meant for recognition of their immense contribution to the sector’s growth and development, CBN named eTranzact as its Best Entrepreneur Most Innovative Product - Services.

Champion Infotel recalls that eTranzact prides itself as the nation’s foremost online real-time payment system that allows individuals and corporate account holders to pay for goods and services without stress.

Additionally, eTranzact also enables transfer of funds to any bank account or cell phone across the country, as well as payment of bills and order products online using their eTranzact cards.

At the event held in Sheraton Hotel, Abuja, CBN portrayed eTranzact as a unique service organization whose innovation is helping to drive the scheme of making Nigeria a cashless society.

The award, CBN officials said, is a testimony to eTranzact’s groundbreaking approach to resolving the nation’s banking and commercial challenges technologically.

“eTranzact is pioneering the Mobile Commerce (mCommerce) and the Mobile Banking culture in Nigeria and beyond. eTranzact solutions which won CBN attention and honour include eTranzact Payout let, mCommerce, eCommerce Services, eTranzact WebAccess, Business-to-Business (B2B) Services, Telco Services, and ATM Access,” the official said.

Chief executive, eTranzact, Mr. Valentine Obi, informed that even employers could pay their employees’ salary using the eTranzact platform and these services are genuinely creative and flexible for people to use.

He further said as a multi-channel payment platform, eTranzact enables people make payment for goods and services via different channels.

“It is possible, for instance, to pay for an airline ticket on Aero or Virgin Nigeria from the comfort of your desk in the office, without the need to rush to the frontline of the airline,” he said.

Enlightening that all eTranzact cardholder needs do afterwards “is to check in your luggage and board the aircraft,” adding that for parents and guardians who need to settle their children’s school fees, it might be cumbersome going through the rowdy banking hall and the protocols.

“But with eTranzact card, you just press some buttons on your mobile phone and the transaction is completed,” he said.

According to him, a major achievement is the possibility of Nigerian and Ghanaian eTranzact cardholders to withdraw cash from any ATM in Nigeria and Ghana and still have their accounts debited accordingly.

This service, he said, was designed for all categories of people who travel between Nigeria and Ghana, just as stakeholders commended the eTranzact’s partnership with Intercontinental Bank to bring this idea to fruition, which is known as iCash.

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Celtel boosts dealers with vehicles

PAN African mobile operator, Celtel at the weekend boosted its distribution in the country, with vehicles.

The vehicles comprising of brand new trucks include Toyota buses, motorbikes, home theatre, plasma television sets, laptops, generating sets and Laser Printers to name a few.

Many of the over 50 dealers rewarded at the yearly Celtel Trade Partners Awards ceremony held in Abuja, were those found to have performed exceptionally within the year under review.

In his address to the occasion, Managing Director, Celtel Nigeria, Mr. Bayo Ligali, said the act was aimed at rewarding trade partners for their support for the network, especially in distribution and sale of Celtel products and services in the year just ended, 2007.

He commended the dealers for their excellent performance, and assured them that at Celtel, they are always regarded as winners of the network.

“We regard every one of you as a winner, however, special recognitions go to those of you who recorded outstanding performance in the various categories. In line with the theme of this event, which is ‘Business Empowerment.’ The prizes have been carefully chosen to facilitate and enhance the performance of our esteemed trade partners,” he said.

Mr. Ligali also added that Celtel is not very mindful of the frustrations of the customers over the perceived substandard Quality of Service (QoS).

“I make bold to say that our investments this year, be it in generators, backbone, base stations and switches, are solely geared towards ensuring that we not only meet local challenges of Quality of Service, but to meet international standards that will put us way ahead of the market,” he noted.

Assuring the trade partners that in spite of the harsh operating environment, Celtel expects a better business result in 2008, pointing out that the time to start making the push is now.

“On our part, we shall take all necessary steps to give you good reason to remain in business with us by providing you excellent services and above all by building a world class network that will meet all the standards of Quality of Service,” he declared.

Celtel business philosophy, he said, is making life better, and the telco does not intend to disappoint its customers in spite of the daunting operational and environmental challenges we are facing.

Some of the dealers that received prizes at the occasion included Hiro-Oje Investment Limited, Plus Limited, Allennsar Infinity Company Nigeria Limited, LYNQ Communication Limited, Stanqueen Investment Limited, Servisys Limited, Royal Serve wireless Limited, Glovic Nigeria Limited, Seaman Ventures Nigeria Limited, Suleiko Communications Limited, Sonite Communications Limited, Glaceo Investment Limited, Upper Room Limited, Remglory Ventures Limited, Teleputers System, Mars Communication Nigeria Limited, Sainana Resources Nigeria Limited, Tun Communications Limited, Helpline Telecom (Nigeria) Limited and Bliss Telecommunications Limited.

Others included Hankstrad Limited, Al-Miftah Limited, Osade Investment, Flexmore (Gateway Bank Plc), Ephybrand Nigeria Limited, Gracelink Limited, First Option Technologies, Kasido Nigeria Limited, Toluque Nigeria Limited, Aliam Nigeria Limited, Ozb Communications Limited, Unique Joe International Communication, Abuma Technical Coy Limited, Mgw Investments Limited, Richtalk Communication Limited, and Anyanwu John Chinedum Telecoms

Also, the following Trade Partners received various prizes Emma Pete Nig Limited, Sonite Communication Limited, Chagyah Enterprises Services, Wavelink Concept Limited, Chibless Business Link Limited, El-Bera Investment Int’l Limited, Mazska Nigeria Limited, Rapid Enterprises Limited, Samack Industries Company Limited, Zigma Consult Limited, Citi Mobile Limited, Mastel Nigeria Limited, Franex Investment Limited, Sufi Enterprises Limited, New Millennium Resources Nigeria, Jihab Global Services Limited, Terry Okwute Nigeria Limited, Mgw Investments Limited, and Fricc Communications Limited.

Additionally, Celtel doled out prizes to the following Rural Distributors: Chinedu Nwala, Kelvin Okamgba, Azuka Nwabueze, Akpabio Ekom, and Chief Ibeneme Festus.

Also speaking at the ceremony, Chief Commercial Officer, Michael Foley, said Celtel will continue to delight its dealers and provide adequate support for them to enable them succeed in their business.

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ATCON rebrands NICOMM to ComBIT Expo

Umbrella body of telecommunications companies in the country, the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), has finally rebranded its annual Nigeria International Communication (NICOMM) exhibition and conference to Communications, Business and Information Technology (ComBIT) Expo.

This is coming as ATCON plans its Annual General Meeting (AGM) in the month of April, this year.

National President, ATCON, Dr. Emmanuel Ekuwem who disclosed this to newsmen in Lagos, said the 13-year old event would henceforth be known as ComBIT beginning with this year’s edition.

This, he said, has become necessary as part of the repositioning of the organisation and its related activities which began since the commencement of his leadership over two years ago.

He also said that the annual international exhibition would equally have its own web portal to be launched soon.

He stressed that the rebranding would bring about change in the brand, refocus and develop a new product that would attract the right calibre of national, regional and international participants, adding that the transformation going on in ATCON was not only in the name.

“But more so in the style, planning, organization, management and execution of the event,” he said.

While decrying the absence of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the country, Dr. Ekuwem promised that ComBIT has been structured to have international appeal.

According to him, ComBIT would become an event that the whole world looks forward to every year in Nigeria, affirming that ATCON has been propelled by the need to stage a pan-industry event that would bring the global ICT market to the country annually.

The way forward, he said, is the bold step of building a new brand ComBIT Expo, which will be more attractive and rewarding to participants.

As said by him, ComBIT, came about after intensive and extensive consultations with players and other stakeholders in the Nigerian ICT sector.

ATCON’s desire, he said, has been to ensure it comes out with an all-inclusive global appeal.

“It took us some time, but we are happy that the efforts have actually paid off,” Dr. Ekuwem, asserted, adding that his so-called globetrotting last year was a strategy to reposition the nation’s expo for greater international participation.

“ATCON has therefore, taken into serious consideration all the observations and comments made by would-be participants from across the world and will endeavour to reflect on them in the planning, management and execution of the event,” he said.

ATCON’s planning committee for ComBIT 2008 has been drawn with members’ cutting-across the ICT sector in the country, emphasising that ComBIT is not just an ATCON affair.

“It is an event for the entire Nigerian ICT sector and so the planning committee has to be inclusive of all service sub-sectors that make up our ICT industry,” Dr. Ekuwem said.

In addition, he said, ComBIT 2008 will have local as well as international organizing cum marketing agencies to add professionalism in the handling of the event.

Equally speaking, the Executive Secretary, ATCON, Mr. Godwin Morgan, informed that the association’s AGM has been scheduled to hold in April 2008.

Peak on the agenda for the AGM, he said, are presentation of the annual reports and 2007 audited accounts as well as election of new officers into the National Executive Council (NEC).

Champion Infotel recalls that the two-year tenure of the present NEC would terminate in April, shortly before the election of new NEC at the approaching AGM.

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Starcomms unveils dual SIM phone

Major player in the nation’s Third Generation (3G) Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) in the country, Starcomms Limited, has unveiled into the telecom market, its dual SIM phones.

Chief executive, Starcomms, Mr. Maher Qubain, said the dual SIM phones are aimed at converging users of multiple networks to one single phone.

He said the new phones on offer by the telco is customized for Starcomms subscribers and still avails them the chance of simultaneously using both CDMA and GSM SIM cards on the phone.

This, he noted, affords subscribers to enjoy benefits of cheaper outgoing calls by using, Starcomms network while they could still continue to use their existing GSM network SIM card in the same phone.

Mr. Qubain said, the phone is available in all Starcomms coverage cities across the country and goes for N30,500 with a N3,000 airtime in addition to a one year warranty.

Produced as a fully customized product for Starcomms by one of the leading CDMA phone manufacturers, HiSense D 806 is a compact, multifunction, large screen, colour, data enabled CDMA as well as GPRS multimedia phone equipped with a 1.3 mega pixel camera, Multimedia player and a T- Flash slot for extra memory to load songs, pictures and favourite videos.

The phone package includes a hands free kit, two batteries, 1 charger, extra battery charger cradle, USB cable and CD and 128 MBSD card free.

In addition to D 806 model, Starcomms is also planning to launch more handsets under the World Phone series to provide customers with multiple options that will appeal to various segments of users.

The launch of this series comes as a special package to celebrate the 1 million subscriber base mark of Starcomms and is available on the 07028 series.

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Our CSR is robust , says Oyagbola

Executive Director, MTN Foundation, Mrs Amina Oyagbola, has declared that the telco’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme is robust.

Speaking at the CSR roundtable with the theme: The Vital Nexus Between CSR and Return on Investment (ROI) held in Lagos and organised by M2, acclaimed premium Marketing and Management entity, Mrs. Oyagbola said that there exist a thin line between CSR and ROI, stating that historically, there is a correlation between business ethics, socio-economic contributions and the long term sustainability of companies.

In line with MTN corporate reputation built through ethical business practices, and alignment with the needs and aspirations of the communities in which it operates, she said noting that the telco’s model of CSR hinges on understanding of the value of investing in the environment in where it operates.

This, she pointed out is in order to meet its present and future business objectives, stressing that that was why the company adopted a robust three-pronged strategy based on “Corporate Governance, Adding Value to Society and Corporate Social Investment.”

This approach, as said by her made it certain for institutionalised ethical behaviour, and contributing to national economic growth by their presence, products and services.

She also said that through the MTN Foundation, the company has consistently given back to the society, by way of contributing to the socio-economic development and creating a viable market in the long run.

Mrs. Oyagbola disclosed that 49 schools across 12 states of the federation including the Federal Capital Territory have so far benefited from MTN model focusing on education, health and economic empowerment under the MTN Foundation.

The benefits, she said, included equipping of these schools with Information and Communication Technology (ICT) facilities, while under its Universities Connect, University of Lagos and Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, have also top the list of beneficiaries.

Earlier in his remarks, Prof. Oyebode noted that though capitalism has given rise to several discussions, the players in the economy must add value to the lives of Nigerians.

“We should no longer accept the ugly face of capitalism, capitalism must now present a human face to the world,” he asserted.

Prof. Oyebode also charged corporate players to buy into the nation’s Millennium Development Goals so as to make the Vision 2020 a reality.

Equally commenting, chief executive of M2, Mr Akin Adeoya, while appreciating participants said that the Brandwagon, which is second in the series, has provided a veritable platform for professionals and stakeholders in the marketing communication to discuss burning issues in the economy, and proffers solutions to them through cross fertilisation of ideas.

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Ericsson toasts mobile operators with RBS 6000

TELECOMMUNICATIONS equipment manufacturer, LM Ericsson, at the just concluded World Mobile Congress (WMC) in Barcelona, Spain, was a toast of mobile operators with the launch of its new generation Radio Base Station (RBS) 6000 series.

Speaking at the world media session, Ericsson´s President and chief executive, Mr. Carl Henric Svanberg, said his company has greater percentage of the world´s 174 networks globally that have deployed or eager at enthroning HSPA across 86 countries, including Nigeria with 180 million subscriptions.

According to him, HSPA is the technology extension of the existing Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) cum Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) networks, which is about 85 per cent of the global existing wireless networks.

Thus, it has the potential to be readily available to a large number of wireless users through mass market for mobile broadband.

In the next two years, 2010, he projected that 71 per cent of the mobile broadband connections will be on HSPA based networks.

Unveiling the new radio base stations (RBS) 6000, Vice President, Product and Portfolio Management, Business Unit Networks at Ericsson, Mr. Mikael Back, said that the telco has remained a leader in the development of global mass market broadband both in the fixed and mobile broadband.

According to him, this latest radio base station is compatible with most of its existing radio base stations in the market and was introduced to further spur the market for telecommunications operators.

He added that RBS 6000 is the smallest energy-efficient site solution on the market and supports GSM/ Enhanced Data rate for GSM Evolution (EDGE), WCDMA/HSPA and Long Term Evolution (LTE) in a single package.

Equally speaking on the RBS 6000, Vice President and Head of Product Area Radio at Ericsson, Mr. Ulf Ewaldsson, pointed out that its customers (operators) face increasingly complex challenges in terms of operational costs, multiple radio technologies and sustainability concerns.

He explained that the RBS 6000 series is a truly multi-standard system that gives operators what they need for the smooth evolution of their radio access.

“This means we take the risk out of the investment. Customers know that when they choose Ericsson we deliver technology for tomorrow, today,” he said.

Mr. Ewaldsson added that RBS 6000 series products are available in indoor, outdoor and main-remote packages, stressing that the compact design requires only 25 per cent of the space used by previous generations while at the same time doubling capacity.

“The RBS 6000 series reduces power consumption by 20 to 65 per cent, compared with existing Ericsson radio base stations, and offers a simple, energy-efficient site solution that helps operators reduce costs across all areas of ownership,” he said.

Just as he informed that commercial launch has been set for any time from now, emphasizing that bringing base station, site and transmission functionality together, Ericsson has created a solution that suits all profiles and caters to immediate and long-term needs.

“The one-cabinet, temperature-controlled solution requires less maintenance and training, and is easier to transport, install and run, thus significantly reducing operating costs,” he said,

Mr. Ewaldsson further said that RBS 6000 series facilitate low-cost migration, since it re-uses equipment already deployed and could be installed on existing sites, which makes it compact in size also easy to deploy in new sites.

Ericsson prides itself as a world-leading provider of telecommunications equipment and related services to mobile and fixed network operators globally as well as one of the few companies worldwide that could offer end-to-end solutions for all major mobile communication standards.

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Globacom goes to Kaduna fair

SECOND National Operator, Globacom, has concluded arrangements to play a major role at the 2008 Kaduna International Trade Fair, which begins this week Friday, at the Permanent Trade Fair ground along Zaria Road , Kaduna .

Zonal Manager at Globacom, Mr. Femi Ogunlusi, said that the telco’s full participation in the Fair is to make available to the people of Kaduna and its environs the array of products and services in its basket.

Ogunlusi also noted that the Fair, being organized by the Kaduna Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (KADCCIMA) is another connect opportunity for Globacom and its teeming subscribers and new customers not only within Kaduna State but also around the neighbouring states.

“Kaduna holds a very strategic position in the business equation of Globacom, and we are going to the Fair in Kaduna to replicate the magic that has made us the network of choice across the length and breadth of this country,” he said.

He disclosed the preparedness of the network to play a major role in ensuring that its customers and visitors at the Fair have access to the best of telecommunications products and value adding services.

He reaffirmed Globacom’s commitment to making seamless and affordable communication available to all at all times.

Globacom in the past four years, he said, had demonstrated its firm belief in empowering the people and had confirmed this commitment through poverty alleviation schemes, which provide business opportunities for young school leavers and unemployed youths to own commercial telephone services nationwide.

Recently, Globacom launched the 3G Plus services which is to be available to subscribers in Lagos , Abuja and Port Harcourt in the first instance and subsequently in other key cities across the country.

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MEF gets new board for EMEA

THE Mobile Entertainment Forum (MEF) at the weekend elected new board members for its Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), at a meeting held as part of the just concluded 2008 World Mobile Congress (WMC) in Barcelona, Spain.

At a general meeting on Monday, February in Barcelona, members of MEF elected a six-man board of trustees to manage its affairs.

They include Messrs Alberto Ciarniello of Telecom Italia Mobile, Thomas Current of Publicis, Ian Henderson of SonyBMG, Emma Kaye of Gate 7, Berna Samiloglu Acar of Turkcell and Raghu Venkataraman of du.

The expanded geographical coverage of the board reflected the chapter’s extended remit, which now includes the Middle East and Africa for the first time.

While Mr. Gerard Grech of Orange and Gerrit-Jan Konijnenberg of Comsys were both re-elected as Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the board some new members came on board.

MEF took the opportunity at the meeting to acknowledge that, while the industry is poised for further growth, there is room for improvement in the areas of user experience, consumer trust and metrics. These three themes were highlighted at the EMEA general meeting.

A press statement made available to Champion Infotel informed that MEF’s regulatory work has been focusing on the consumer: the publication of the first industry-wide frameworks on participation TV, agreed in both the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States, represents a milestone in industry collaboration to retain consumer trust and safeguard the future of interactive TV.

Among other policy and regulatory activities, MEF has responded to several European consultations on the issue of protecting minors from inappropriate content.

According to the MEF’s 2007 survey only one in every four users in the US and UK were satisfied with their mobile content services and warned that revenues were at risk from a substandard experience.

The group said that the next step for MEF’s initiative on quality of experience is to identify areas of improvement and establish industry-wide key performance indicators (KPIs).

Content Sales Reporting, according to the group is a newly launched initiative aimed at improving the quality of reporting in the mobile entertainment industry, they said, is critical to cut down the estimated 10 per cent revenue leakage and to help foster new business models such as Ad-Funded Mobile Entertainment (AFME), where the advertising industry is calling for improved metrics.

A new MEF report on AFME, which was previewed at the meeting, contains statistics on the UK mobile entertainment market and revenue forecasts up to 2012.

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Seven bags GSMA award

THE 2008 Mobile World Congress ended recently in Barcelona, Spain with Seven, a push email alternative, bagging the Global System for Mobile Association (GSMA) award as the Best Mobile Messaging Service platform, especially on its System Seven 7.0.

SEVEN 7.0 is a suite of products that are united by SEVEN’s simple, easy interface and signature push email technology that include Consumer Edition, Enterprise Edition, Workgroup Edition, and Out of Office.

System SEVEN 7.0 is the culmination of years of experience and research to make carrier grade mobile email accessible to everyone.

SEVEN 7.0 is the most flexible mobile email solution on the market today, available on more than 115 carriers worldwide and 240 mobile phones globally.

Commenting on the award, the managing director of Race Telecom, SEVEN representative in the country, Mr. Raph Manafa, noted that the platform supports all major device platforms including: J2ME, BREW, Symbian, Palm and Microsoft Windows Mobile devices, and provides instant push email from work and consumer accounts including Lotus Domino, Microsoft Exchange, AOL, Google, Hotmail, Windows Live and Yahoo! to name a few.

He added that SEVEN’s simplicity comes with widespread compatibility and reliability that have made it a favourite among users.

However, in a press statement made available to Champion Infotel, the telco quoted the judges as saying, “If you want e-mail on your phone and you want to keep the phone of your choice, System Seven 7 is what you’ve been waiting for.”

Equally speaking, President and chief executive, Seven, Mr. Ross Bott, said they are excited with this honour by GSMA.

“We are very excited to receive this high honour from the GSM Association,” he said adding that System SEVEN 7.0 was made with the end-user in mind.

“Our customers realize the need to deliver a world-class solution to their subscribers. SEVEN’s dedication to providing the highest-level quality of service has been unmatched. This honour underscores our commitment to the industry and we thank the GSMA for its recognition,” he said.

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MultiChoice crashes Pay-Tv price with EasyView

THE leading pay-Television (TV) operator in the country, MultiChoice Nigeria, has launched a mass-market bouquet code named the DSTv EasyView.

Managing Director, MultiChoice Nigeria, Mr. Collins Khumalo said that this significant contribution to the country’s digital future is embodied in DStv EasyView.

He described the DStv EasyView bouquet as coming into the market at a rock-bottom subscription cost of N 3,600 per year, thus making it the cheapest bouquet offering ever in the history of pay-TV business in Nigeria.

He pointed out that the company, which has established a world-class reputation for innovative offerings and pioneering technology, has now launched its record-breaking new product DStv EasyView into the market to encourage more Nigerians to enjoy the digital TV series in the bouquet.

With a super-affordable annual subscription fee of N 3,600 per year, he said, DStv EasyView will be available to interested members of the public across all the geographical divides of the country, adding that the DStv EasyView is destined to positively transform the landscape of the pay-TV in the country, affording a wide pool of citizens the much-desired opportunity to join the DStv family.

The offer which would be available from next month, March, he said, will effectively make pay-TV accessible to millions of viewers in the country, allowing them to share in a world of news, music, movies, sport and more.

Mr. Khumalo also said that the latest product launch is a result of the company’s ongoing aim to deliver relevant product options that meet the viewing and budget needs of a wide range of consumers:

“We’re incredibly proud that MultiChoice is the first to offer this service. DStv EasyView is a product designed specifically to offer the benefits of digital information, education and entertainment to a wide new community of subscribers. Further, we’ve always believed that the country’s success is our success. Therefore it’s of great importance to us that we play a significant role in assisting Nigeria to bridge the digital divide while also growing our business,” he said.

This launch, he pointed out, has afforded DSTv the chance of increasingly becoming a household name in the country.

“DStv EasyView will now complement the existing Premium, DStv compact, DStv Family bouquets bringing to four, the total number of bouquets available to DStv subscribers in Nigeria,” he said.

The new package will contain channels such as the headline-driven Al Jazeera, the all-action SuperSport Update, the educational Mindset Learn and the M-Net packaged MagicWorld channel among others.

He explained that DStv EasyView combines high value, affordable pricing and great programming.

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