ICANN terminates 40 registrars

In 7 Years Global Internet coordinating organization, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has sacked an estimated 40 registrars in the past seven years, with 2009 recording the highest figure.

Nigeria, ACCE and AU observer status

At the end of a recent four-day conference on Communication Education and Practice in Africa in Accra-Ghana, REMMY NWEKE reports that Nigeria is likely to drive the African Council on Communication Education (ACCE)’s desire for observer status at the African Union (AU).

As Nigeria made a mark into the Security Council of the United Nations, recently it brings to mind the role of Nigeria in the birth, rebirth and sustenance of several African visions including the African Council on Communication Education (ACCE) as well as its resuscitation in recent years.

ACCE is a professional Pan-African organization charged with the responsibility of promoting journalism, development of communication resources in Africa and creating awareness among African policy makers as well as planners on the role of communication in national development.

It is a non-profit-making, non-governmental organization and was formed since 1975 with funding and support from the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). Although at inception, ACCE acted as an association of Heads of Schools of Journalism and Communication on the African continent, but later transformed into the only regional organization of Africanist communication scholars and practitioners on the continent, with headquarters in Nairobi-Kenya, until the political crisis on the continent crept into its affairs.

Its activities over the years include communication research, training, workshops, seminars, documentation, in addition to publishing books, monographs, a journal (Africa Media Review), occasional papers, and on top of it a newsletter (Africom).

In July 1983, ACCE established the Institute for Communication Development and Research (ACCE/ICDR) whose main task is to implement the above activities.

However, at the 2009 conference of ACCE held at the University of Ghana, Legon, Accra, with the theme, “Communication Education and Practice in Africa – A social contract for the 21st century?” Nigeria assumed the centre stage once again, almost from all the speakers and participants generally. Precisely, in excess of 80 persons that took part in the weeklong conference, over 65 were Nigerians; made up of diaspora members and a bulk resident in the country.

Speaking at the forum, a Sierra Leonean communications scholar, Prof. Cecil Blake, who is of the Department of Africana Studies, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennyslvania, gave a footpath to the organization’s history in a piece, entitled “How we got to Accra, Ghana today from Abuja, the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

While full of eulogies for Nigerian chapter of ACCE for keeping the hope of the organization alive despite the seeming crisis that rocked it since 2003, noting that this resulted in a call for a framework that would create structures to seek redress for the increasing difficulties faced by the council at both the governing and operational levels.

“Thanks primarily to the Nigerian chapter of ACCE; the council has continued to function at the national level, preserving, at least, its name. Signs of a protracted crisis for the council were detected at the Abuja convention. To compound the problem, however, the host country Nigeria manifested an intergenerational rift that became so apparent that it nearly marred the convention. The intergenerational rift required immediate attention,” he declared.

In view of this, Prof. Blake said, a peace and reconciliation committee was organized and thanks to its diligent work, the rift did not result in the collapse of the council at the national level, in addition to a council of elders formed and presided by himself among others.

He, however, prayed that ACCE will rise up with the latest meeting and position itself as the harbinger of ‘good’ as in moral communication, as the on-going to engage the African development problems with a strong and firm emphasis on African ethos and agency.

Also, Prof. Blake, sought the manifestation of African governance, the reduction of blatant corruption grafts and personal aggrandizement, the rule of law which is neither absent nor strange in African tradition and culture, but required the collective robust attention of ACCE members, stressing that Africa has a rich and lofty tradition of core principles that surpass even those enunciated by some outside the continent who are using African brightest brains to detect how to govern Africa.

Equally, one unique point that arose from that conference was the call made by a Nigerian communications guru, Prof. Alfred Opubor, who canvassed for African Union (AU) to offer ACCE an observer status to further strengthen the professional group and African continent particularly.

Prof. Opubor who is the Secretary-General, West African News-media and Development Centre (WANAD), said in his address to the ACCE-09 at the, last weekend, Prof. Opubor, said that the group should seek for an observer status in the continental meet for African leaders.

Additionally, he advised, that ACCE should partner with the private sectors to boost its viability on the continent so as to contribute its quota in bridging the digital communication gap between professionals and the ordinary citizens. He pointed out that this would facilitate experts within ACCE membership to communicate and impress the essence of the group and on repositioning of Africa through qualitative communications education on the continent’s leadership.

In her presentation at the occasion, Head, Department, Mass Communications, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Anambra State, Dr. (Mrs) Kate Azuka Omenugha, warned that the usage of Information and Communication Technology (ICT), especially mobile phones’ value added service otherwise known as Short Messaging Service (SMS) may erode the effort at inculcating into Nigerian students the right spelling of English words.

Speaking at the event which took place at the Centre for Africa Wetlands auditorium, University of Accra, Legon-Ghana, whilst dwelling on “Nigerian students’ use of information and communication technology – A blessing or a curse?” she applauded the easy acceptance of the benefits of ICT’s value added service, especially the usage of SMS on mobile phones, but stressed that to a large extent, mobile phones have escalated the absolute disregard during written class works, more so for spellings.

According to her, the use of abbreviations has created an impression of a ‘generation in a hurry,’ with the attendant distracting looks of the students, emphasizing that this regard has assumed notorious dimension with the sounds of mobile phones either ringing or playing music during class engagements.

“This is quite distracting in the class and over the years we have set punitive measures to erring students,” she said, noting that some lecturers has complained of students ringing them as late as 1am in order to take advantage of the ‘free air time’ offered by some of the popular telecommunications networks in Nigeria.

Additionally, she noted that one of the lecturers recently had to contend with some explanation to convince his wife that there was no love-lust between him and a female student who had the courage to call him up at the ‘unholy’ hour because of free air time to make an inquiry.

Omenugha equally decried the attitude of some students who chose to play computer games in the class or listen to music using their ear piece while lectures are going on, just as she disclosed that some students record answers in their phones and play back using the ear piece, both cleverly concealed.

Further, she condemned the spread of students downloading information from the internet such as dictionary among others and using same in class work without authorization.

“Some students given home works would simply download materials from the Net and submit the same to the lecturer. They do not care for plagiarism; neither do they bother with the synthesis of any read work,” she lamented.

Cautioning Nigerian students of the negative use of ICT, she added that this was not to say that they do not make positive use of ICT tools, highlighting that examining some of the students’ answer scripts have shown that they seem very immersed in the ‘language’ of emails and text messaging which is reflected in their scripts very often than not.

As ACCE members await the outcome of the Accra Committee, who says Nigeria is not making progress and making Africa proud, especially at the international scene and use of ICT in 21st century.


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Excitement heralds Windows 7 launch

The latest unveiled Windows 7 has been drawing excitements across the world after its global launch including Nigeria, last week.

Speaking at a press briefing to herald the launch in Lagos, Country Manager, Microsoft Nigeria, Mr. Emmanuel Onyeje, said Windows 7 represents years of in-depth listening to customers and partners around the globe, and is the most well-researched, well-planned Windows release ever.

He said that with Windows 7, Microsoft has taken this level of improvement one step further.

“A billion Windows users worldwide gave Microsoft a great opportunity to listen and learn. That is how the company developed Windows 7. Eight million people took part in our Windows 7 beta testing programme worldwide, including Windows users from across the African continent. This input and feedback helped shape Windows 7 into a product that people really wanted.

“In fact, 91 per cent of Windows 7 Release Candidate testers told us they would recommend Windows 7 and we are incredibly excited and humbled at the response so far,” he said, noting that the new product has something for everyone.

“For consumers, Microsoft designed Windows 7 to be more reliable, more responsive, and to make the things customers do every day easier,” he declared.

Onyeje also said for small to medium sized businesses, Windows 7 is the best operating system for work, whether people work from their company office, from home or on the go, it enables the user to get more done and keeps work safe.

“For enterprises, Windows 7 was designed to meet the rigorous demands of the enterprise. It makes users productive anywhere, delivers enhanced security and control to reduce risk, and streamlines PC manageability to reduce costs,” Onyeje said.

He also said Microsoft has developed different versions of Windows 7 to cater to the different things people want to do with their PC.

On Windows 7 Starter and Windows 7 Home Basic, he said, these are ideal for first-time PC-buyers or those looking to purchase a PC loaded with Windows 7 on a budget.

“The Windows 7 Home Premium the best edition for consumers, Windows 7 Home Premium provides the best gaming and entertainment experience on your PC

“Windows 7 Professional is ideal for the small to medium sized business user and has all the features you need to do your job, along with all the great media and entertainment features of Windows 7 Home Premium.

“Windows 7 Enterprise and Windows 7 Ultimate are the most versatile and powerful editions and are designed to address the needs of both enterprise customers and consumers who run high-end computers and want every feature of Windows 7,” he said.

Disclosing that Windows 7 is presently available in 14 languages, including English, French and Portuguese and 19 other languages would be available by 31 October. 

“Microsoft is working to ensure Windows 7 will be available in local African languages including Igbo, Hausa and Yoruba within 18 to 24 months. Windows 7 will be available on new computers and at certified Microsoft resellers including Office R us, Game, PC Outlet, Park ‘n’ Shop and Marquis from mid-November 2009, he said.

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MultiChoice slashes price with DSTv Access

Pay television services provider, MultiChoice Nigeria Limited, has launched a new bouquet, DStv Access, aimed at ensuring that every home that desires its services can afford, reports CHARLES OKOH.

Speaking at the official launch over the weekend in Lagos, Managing Director, MultiChoice, Mr. Joseph Hundah, said it has been the dream of the firm to make DStv accessible to all by providing bouquets that would be pocket friendly.

“It has always been my dream to make DStv accessible to all and at N1,500 monthly subscription and over 25 channels, this is the cheapest offer anywhere,” he declared.

Hundah said DStv is well known for being innovative and that in the coming year new channels will be added to increase the channels available to customers, just as the cost of the decoder would be further reduced.

Also commenting, the Head Marketing, MultiChoice, Mr. Donald Etim, said this is the minimum way to access DStv and that is in response to call for an affordable offer after the premium, compact and family bouquets.

“Nowhere in Africa can you get this offer and when you realize that it all amount to N50 a day, then you will appreciate the level we have gone to meet the demand of customers,” he said.

DStv Access, he explained offers 25 quality channels of family entertainment at the lowest and subscribers have an extensive choice of family entertainment, combining general entertainment, movies, documentaries, news, children’s programming, music, religion and sport.

Among other channels, DStv Access features BBC World, Aljazeera, National Geographic Wild, Fashion TV, Magic World and CNBC Africa.

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MTN, iWayAfrica to showcase @ Internet expo ‘09

Leading Global System for Mobile communications (GSM), MTN Nigeria Communications Limited, has finalized plans to showcase its Internet service products at the forthcoming forum on Internet Governance: Creating Opportunities for all Nigerians, which kicks off next month in Lagos.

This is coming as award winning continental Internet Service Provider (ISP), iWayAfrica Nigeria Limited, has concluded strategies to offer internet service at the forum for participants.

Disclosing this, the Corporate Service Executive, MTN Nigeria, Mr. Wale Goodluck said the forum has become imperative more so now that the mobile operator has attained data roaming services in over 55 countries across the world and with the MTN 3.5G mobile broadband service gaining momentum in the Nigerian market.

He noted that at the Internet Governance tagged the Nigeria Digital Sense forum and scheduled to hold at the Golden Gate Ikoyi-Lagos on November 5, MTN intends to showcase its Internet offering including data access for the Nigerian travelling public and the 3.5G mobile broadband.

“MTN GPRS network covers over 116 networks in 55 counties,” he declared.

He also said that MTN 3.5G mobile broadband service opens up a whole new dimension of fast and simple working and harnesses the advantages of mobility, taking internet access in Nigeria to new level.

“It helps you stay connected at almost any time, and makes your business and personal information and entertainment as mobile as you are, when you’re working within MTN’s coverage areas,” Goodluck said.

He further said that with 3.5G broadband service, MTN customers would benefit from downloading data as a speed up to 4-5 times faster than currently available in the market, hence, offering for the first time a mobile experience that could truly be described as broadband.

“Where 3G HSDPA coverage is not available, customers will be able to use MTN’s GPRS/EDGE network that already covers most of Nigeria,” he asserted.

Emphasizing that BlackBerry from MTN provides customers with email, calendar, personal contacts and tasks as well as allows them to stay connected with their offices while roaming.

iWayAfrica Nigeria Limited (INL), a subsidiary of AFSAT Communications Limited, providing three core services; iWay broadband, iWay Dedicated and iWay Corporate Networks, said its ready for the November 5 forum.

The company which in 2007, was acquired by MWEB Africa traded under MWEB Nigeria name before it changed to iWayAfrica Nigeria Ltd (INL) as part of the repositioning.

iWayAfrica Nigeria Ltd (INL) operates under the flagship brand ‘iWay’ and currently has over 1000 sites in Nigeria, even as the Very Small Aperture Terminals (VSAT) solutions eliminate the use of terrestrial infrastructure such as fixed cables or wireless masts, therefore reducing the possibility of multiple points of failure for the subscriber.

According to the General Manager, iWayAfrica Nigeria, Mr. John Ugbe, the ISP of note has a reseller network in most major towns nationwide, with five (5) channel partners in the geo-political zones, thereby having representation spread across the country.

“Our services target various sectors of the economy, including but not limited to corporate organizations, cyber café, schools, government, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), manufacturing industries and small and medium enterprises (SMEs),”he said.

In her comment, the Executive Director, Digital Sense Africa the organizers, Mrs. Nkemdilim Nweke, said that MTN’s range of coverage across several regions of the world gives the telco an unreserved advantage to deliver on customers’ data needs.

While applauding MTN for the choice of enlighten Nigerians more, especially on its Internet related products via the forum, she noted that MTN was the first to introduce prepaid Blackberry service in the country, thereby boosting Internet access among its teeming Nigerian subscribers.

She noted that participants at the forthcoming Digital Sense forum would witness the avalanche of offers from MTN and other participating companies, especially those exhibiting Internet services related products.

For iWayAfrica, Mrs. Nweke said the commitment of the Internet Service Provider has given proof to a highest standard services, thus paving the way for the company to redefine the internet market in Nigeria.

She expressed optimism that those visiting MTN and iWayAfrica stands at the forum would have reasons to smile home with good option of internet service offerings.

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Omatek expands franchise in West Africa

In an effort to improve its brand visibility and bring products and services closer to Nigerians, Omatek Computer Plc has expanded its franchise outlet in the South West and South South.

Omatek’s Group Managing Director, Mrs. Florence Seriki made this disclosure at the firm’s Resellers’ Forum recently in Lagos, saying Omatek franchisee retail outlets in the South West and South South regions have been expanded.

As said by her the deployment of the channel market would further boost the company’s market share and ensure that everyone has equal and unhindered access to procuring Omatek products nationwide.

“With this development, Omatek range of products such as desktop computers, laptops, car adaptors (chargers), Omatek Security smart phones, power inverters, UPS as well as home entertainment products such as home theatres, LCD screens, speaker sets to name a few, can now be accessed at franchisee show rooms in Uyo, Port Harcourt, Osogbo, Asaba, Abeokuta, Calabar, Lagos and some parts of the West Coast like Cotonou.

Additionally, she said, Omatek range of products are now available at these franchisee show-rooms which have been well branded, to serve as collation centres for the Omatek consumer scheme tagged Omatek e-Xpress initiative.

Omatek Group Head, Channel Marketing, Mr. Valentine Otiono said, the initiative was driven by the need to meet the aspiration of consumers for the brand thereby consolidating its position as Nigeria’s number one brand in ICT products and the first computer company to be listed on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

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Ghana takes over @ ITU Council

Ghana now holds the chairmanship of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) council for 2009-2010.

This was announced at the council’s annual session which began last week in Geneva. With this appointment, Ghana will take over from Bulgaria the steering of the council comprising of 56 members states across the world.

The Council will review and approve ITU’s biennial budget for 2010-2011 with focus on issues related to implementing the union’s strategic plan, with the objective of responding to the current demands of a dynamic, rapidly changing telecommunications and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) environment.

At the opening plenary meeting, Ghana’s Minister of Communications and Member of Parliament, Mr. Haruna Iddrisu said Ghana is committed to the ideals and values of ITU.

“Our major task is to bridge the digital divide. We must set the tone and agenda on how to strengthen regulatory practices, address issues related to convergence and ensure the smooth functioning of the Internet. We must also address the key challenges of our times, such as harnessing the power of ICTs to combat climate change,” he said.

Presently, he said ITU must focus on the issues affecting developing countries, how they could build capacity and attract investment in order to achieve the connectivity targets set by the World Summit on the Information Society and meet the 2015 Millennium Development Goals.

Also speaking, the outgoing chairman, Mr. Plamen Vatchkov of Bulgaria expressed his appreciation of the challenges addressed by ITU and its membership during his tenure.

“In the past year we addressed the challenges of strengthening cybersecurity, in particular protecting children online, as well as climate change and emergency communications. The year was marked by a severe economic downturn, but the ICT sector has weathered the storm well. I am confident that ITU, as the leading intergovernmental body for telecommunications and ICT, will continue to support all its stakeholders,” he said.

In his remark, ITU Secretary General, Dr. Hamadoun Toure, said this has been a very successful year in raising ITU’s profile on the international stage.

“ITU has demonstrated that information and communication technologies are vital and beneficial in addressing each and every one of the global issues faced today, particularly in the key areas of climate change, cybersecurity, and the financial crisis — areas where ICTs are now clearly recognized as being part of the solution, not part of the problem,” he said.

Dr. Touré added that next year “promises to be as exciting as ITU continues to drive and influence the rapidly changing ICT landscape”.

The ITU Council will be in session until 30 October.

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NCC supports DSA on Digital Sense forum

Nigeria’s telecom industry regulator, the Nigerian Communications Commission, has given support to Digital Sense Africa (DSA) on the convening of the Nigeria Digital Sense forum billed for Lagos on November 5, 2009.
The event scheduled for the Golden Gate, Ikoyi, Lagos, will offer stakeholders the needed platform to articulate a position on the upcoming Internet Governance Forum scheduled for Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt, from November 15 - 18, 2009. The theme of the Nigeria Digital Sense forum is `Internet Governance: Creating Opportunities for all Nigerians.’
Head, Public Affairs of NCC, Mr. Reuben Muoka, who confirmed the support of the Commission in hosting the preparatory forum in Nigeria, said the Commission is keen in ensuring that the country is well positioned on issues of Internet governance.
He expressed the hope that the forum would achieve the major objectives of enlightening Nigerians and galvanizing a common voice for the country at the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) which holds in Egypt.
“We think that the organizers have a good vision of creating a platform to aggregate expert opinions and positions regarding Internet Governance so that Nigeria will flow with the global community in arriving at a desirable position for the future of the Internet which is an incredible resource available to the whole world,” he said.
Executive Director, Operations at the Digital Sense Africa, Mrs. Nkemdilim Nweke, applauded NCC for its foresightedness in supporting the forum, mostly the Commission’s leadership for not only paving the way for ICT revolution in Nigeria but in addressing all aspects of ICT in such a way that the opinion of Nigeria is now respected globally mainly because of what the Commission has achieved and has continued to achieve.
She noted that the importance the Commission attaches to the availability of Internet across the country has made a bold statement about its full understanding of ICT and how to make the nation enjoy the most of this global resource.
She recalled that NCC has in the recent past remained the sole engine behind the Internet Governance agenda in Nigeria, mostly as a follow up after the former President, Olusegun Obasanjo directed the Commission and National IT Development Agency (NITDA) to work out modalities for cheaper internet access in the country.
Pointing out that before now, NCC has spurred the establishment of the Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria (IXPN) and Nigeria Internet Registration Association (NIRA) and has been very supportive in the sustenance of these organizations.
Most of this, she said, would form the highlights at the Digital Sense forum already backed by NiRA, IXPN, Nigeria Internet Group (NIG), and Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria (ATCON) to name a few.
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) is an award winning telecommunications regulator which has been championing the liberalization of telecom industry in Nigeria and spearheaded the telecom industry market revolution to over 68 million mobile user growth in the last eight years. While
Digital Sense Africa is an initiative of Remnek Kommunications Ventures; Information and Communication Technology (ICT) analysts, public relations consultancy, with continental media affiliates as part of its enlightenment strategies to engage Nigerians for sustainable deployment and utilization of technologies in order to make sense out of the revolution.

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Starcomms connects subscribers on Facebook, Twitter

Starcomms Plc has joined the operators connecting subscribers with Facebook, Twitter, Hi5 and MySpace through the creation of these social networking and micro-blogging services on its network.

The Chief Commercial Officer of Starcomms, Tushar Maheshwari, made this disclosure in Lagos, and said that even without a laptop or a personal computer and outside the comfort of the home or office, Starcomms subscribers could now use their mobile phones to send and receive tweets from their Twitter accounts for diverse purposes

“Using Twitter with Starcomms phone will change the way people tweet and communicate with friends and followers. They can receive Tweets via SMS when people they specify update on twitter website. They can also send updates to Twitter on the go,” Maheshwari said.

Additionally, Maheshwari noted that Starcomms subscribers who want to enjoy this service must register on the networking site of choice.

“To start accessing these websites subscriber would be required to pair their Starcomms phone to the preferred website. To make use of this service for Facebook, Starcomms subscribers have to send SMS F to a short code 33397 using Starcomms phones and then to access http://apps.facebook.com/mobisocialStarcomms subscribers can access twitter through a short code, 33399. They can then send REG (user name) (password) to the short code to register,” the officer said.

Pointing out that with this, they could add their phones to individual Twitter accounts and once the Starcomms phone is registered on the networking website the subscriber then could start enjoying Tweets on Twitter and SMS’s on other networking sites from their contacts or followers.

Similarly, Maheshwari said, for Facebook the subscriber could send and receive messages or invitations, receive notifications write on friend’s FB walls and on contact’s FB walls, update status and view friend’s profile via SMS.

“Users can search for the long lost contacts / acquaintances, accept an invitation or invite their friends / contacts via SMS on either of these networking websites,” he said.

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NCS institutes national merit awards

Spurred by stakeholders’ quest, the umbrella body of Information Technology professionals in the country, the Nigeria Computer Society (NCS), has instituted its National IT Merit Awards to reward deserving organizations, individuals and corporate bodies within the industry.

Addressing a press conference last week, NCS President, Prof. Charles Uwadia, said the award has been scheduled to hold on December 15 in Lagos.

He also said NCS can no longer fold its arms and watch non-professionals venturing into areas where they lack the competence.

Before now, he recalled that some of the awards have been on certificate of computer excellence to individuals, corporate and nongovernmental organizations and other eminent Nigerians without recourse to the NCS.

“Accusations that those events do not reflect the true situation of things, is because those behind these awards are not true professionals,” he said.

Prof. Uwadia further said the industry has become a mega industry and computers and ICT devices are now household names.

Stressing that the NCS was not out to discredit or antagonize any organization involved in any awards, but frowned at a situation where awards are given merely as reward for financial involvement.

“NCS is not going to stop others but we want to stamp our authority on IT awards because we are the body charged with that responsibility as professionals,” he said.

Prof. Uwadia said deserving recipients would be given awards in following categories; Computer Organization of the year, Software Provider in Human Resources (HR) services of the year, IT driven Bank of the year, Payment Solution Provider of the year, Best IT Media Reporter of the year, Best IT Airline of the year and Best Telecoms Company of the year that deploys IT.

While calling for sponsorship from interested parties, he said the Gold category which will cost N5 million will ensure that such company’s logo will be on NCS website for 12 months as well as feature in the its conference proceedings.

For the Silver sponsorship of N3.5 million, the company’s logo will be on NCS website for eight months as well as feature in its conference proceedings.

He equally said, for the Bronze category of N2.5 million, the company’s logo will be on its website for five months in addition to being on its conference proceedings.

Prof. Uwadia, who was accompanied by the first Vice President, Dr. David Adewumi Chairman, Publicity and Events Mr. Tajudeen Ejalonibu, Executive Secretary, Mr. Ejide Oladunmoye and its consultant Mr. Alexander Ofuonyeadi, said the process would be driven by IT through opinion poll via Short Messaging Service (SMS), newspapers and NCS website.

“It is our determination in the NCS to carry this award out now and for the first time to also, conduct a public survey by requesting Nigerians at home and in the diaspora to vote via the SMS and provide an unbiased verdict on who, or which individual or organization best deserves to be honoured,” Prof Uwadia said.

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Zinox launches phase 2 of 750,000 PC promo

Computerize Nigeria Project (CNP), has launched the second phase of its 750,000 Computer Ownership promo.

According to the Head, Computerize Nigeria Project, Mrs. Loretta Agbakoba, this step
is to further the ideals of the digital knowledge democracy.

She explained that the promo is another milestone in the roadmap of the CNP to give Nigerians the opportunity to bridge the digital divide personally, at family and corporate levels.

“It is primarily targeted at governments at all levels, educational institutions, and all stakeholders in the Nigerian nation,” she said, stressing that based on the success of the first phase, CNP has been in direct negotiations with major Original
Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) in the country like Zinox, Hewlett Packard (HP), Toshiba, Dell, and Acer to secure discounted prices especially for Nigerians in a bid to accelerate access to the IT tools that would catalyze a knowledge driven nation.

The Phase 2 of 750,000 Computer Ownership promo, she said, has been embedded with incredible benefits of a Zinox e learning suite worth N62, 000 free for one year and a free Zinox digi lamp to enhance reading in a country where blackouts have become a norm.

The e-learning suite, which Zinox developed in partnership with World e-library, she noted, is currently number 1 in Africa and contains 750,000 e-books downloadable in any PC; 59,000 medical e- documents and e-books; 11,000 classic literature e-books; 1,000 Chemistry e-books, 500 Mathematics e-books; 250 Physics e-books; and 680,000 e-books more.

“The suite also contains Physics simulation tools, Creative, Observation, and Skills Development Tools, Teacher Lessons Plans, Worksheets, and Classroom Articles. The e learning suite holds a lot of promise for educational institutions who want to be rated among the world’s best and Governments who wish to accelerate the pace towards the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals and the vision 20/ 2020,” Mrs. Agbakoba said.

The Head CNP, said that participation is open to all Nigerians and employers may take advantage of the promo to computerize their staff simply by issuing an employer’s guaranty.

“No bank guarantees are required. All the frustrating documentation that hitherto made computer ownership schemes tedious and unpleasant have been clipped off,” she said.

Emphasizing that all a prospect needs do is to decide whether to pay the very low cash prices or subscribe to the 12 months installment option.
Mrs. Agbakoba explained that the e-learning suites would be automatic to the 1st 100,000 laptops purchased.

“All products would enjoy immediate delivery and the respective manufacturer warranty of the OEMs. She said that the CNP and her OEM Partners would deliver on all their promises. She reiterated that the total package pricing is not available to any other company in Africa and that the CNP would make a refund if better prices were found elsewhere,” she said.

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Emergency centres ready by Dec - NCC

The Federal Government will take delivery of some Emergency Communications Centers (ECC) at the end of the year, according to the Nigerian Communications Commission(NCC), Dr. Ernest Ndukwe.

He told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Abuja that work had reached advanced stage on the centers, which contract was approved by the Federal Executive Council in February this year.

“Work is progressing on the buildings, and the electronic system has been ordered. Those supplying them will soon start delivering them. By God’s grace, by the end of the year, we will inaugurate some of the centers, because all over the country, we did not have the benefit of having land, and the response from state governments was not as fast as we had expected,” he said.

Ndukwe said that some of the centres will be achieved before the others, “but by the first quarter of next year, nearly all locations would have been covered.’’

NAN reports that FEC had approved contracts worth more than N2.4 billion for the construction of buildings for emergency communications centers in all the 36 states and FCT.

The centers are to receive emergency calls, through a dedicated 3-digit toll-free number from any of the national telecommunications networks.

The contract for the supply and installation of communications infrastructure at the 37 centers was awarded to Messrs Huawei Technologies Ltd at $13.5 million.

The project is expected to improve security in the country.

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ICANN, UPU finalise negotiation on .Post

Global Internet coordinating agency, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) and the Universal Postal Union (UPU) have finalized deal for the UPU sponsored .POST Top-Level Domain.

Officials of ICANN made this disclosure at the weekend, said that final approval of the agreement is subject to ICANN’s public comment process, which will commence after the conclusion of ICANN’s conference in the city of Seoul on 30 October 2009, in addition to the final approval of the Board of Directors. ITRealms Online recalls that UPU is in-charge of setting the rules for the universal network of international postal mail exchanges.

Also, a specialized agency of the United Nations, the UPU was established in 1874 and is one of the world’s oldest intergovernmental organizations (IGOs).

And despite ICANN’s relative youth, the internet coordinating agency and UPU have some resemblances, including active participation by representatives of geographically diverse governments and constituencies.

Confirming this, ICANN President, Mr. Rod Beckstrom, noted that both his organization and UPU are governed by a bottom-up process.

“The UPU by its member countries and ICANN by the global Internet community and both organizations serve billions of people globally,” he said. Beckstrom stressed that the agreement brought to conclusion the negotiation that enables both organizations to recognize one another’s traditional autonomy, mission, and core values.

“The agreement represents a significant accomplishment for the UPU, ICANN, and the global Internet community. This validates the ICANN model for fostering expansion of and innovation in the domain name space,” he said.

Additionally, ICANN boss pointed out that UPU has helped mark out a path for other IGOs to sponsor their own top-level domains and helps in expansion of the multi-stakeholder relationships in the IGO field.

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IMT advances 4G mobile wireless broadband

New International Telecommunication Union (ITU) radio interface standards to revolutionize mobile communication, has announced the receipt of six candidate technology submissions for the global 4G mobile wireless broadband technology known as IMT-Advanced, report REMMY NWEKE & CHARLES OKOH.

Chief, Media Relations and Public Information at ITU, Mr. Sanjay Acharya said that the selected technologies are expected to be accorded the official designation of IMT-Advanced - to qualify as true 4G technologies by October 2010. The submissions were made in Dresden, Germany at the meeting of ITU’s Radiocommunication Sector (ITU-R) Working Party 5D in response to an open invitation in March 2008.

The meeting was held 14-21 October 2009.The six proposals aligned around the 3GPP LTE Release 10 and beyond (LTE-Advanced) technology and the IEEE 802.16m technology, will be assessed against ITU-R requirements using a defined evaluation process.

This rigorous assessment over the next year will be supported by the work of independent external evaluation groups that have been established around the world and will take place under the direction of ITU-R Working Party 5D. In conjunction with the Dresden meeting, the third Workshop on IMT-Advanced provided an opportunity to technology proponents and evaluation groups to interact.

As a jump-start to the assessment phase, fourteen evaluation groups registered with ITU-R, representing the whole gamut of stakeholders, including equipment manufacturers, technology developers, network operators and service providers, market and user organizations, universities, research institutions and national administrations.

He quoted the ITU Secretary-General, Dr. Hamadoun Touré, expressed her appreciation for this worldwide effort.

“We note with excitement that the technology developments in wireless communication continue to expand their reach and application to enrich the lives of people around the world,” Touré said. “ITU has a rich history of more than 25 years in coordinating and advancing global broadband multimedia international mobile telecommunications systems.

IMT-Advanced continues this tradition by not only leading with a strategic vision, but also in translating the vision into practical reality in this challenging ICT environment.”

Equally speaking, Director of ITU Radiocommunication Bureau, Mr. Valery Timofeev, congratulated all the players from government, regulators and industry who have been actively involved in the evaluation process of IMT-Advanced for successfully reaching this important milestone in the choice of radio interface technology.

Stephen Blust, Director of Radio Standards, AT&T and Chairman of Working Party 5D, offers this viewpoint: “In 2002 when the strategic vision for 4G - which we designated as IMT-Advanced - was laid out in anticipation of the longer term future needs of the marketplace, it established a new level of expectation for the capabilities and performance of global mobile wireless broadband systems that many thought at the time was something that could not be reached in this decade.

When ITU-R established the detailed performance requirements of IMT-Advanced in 2008, it truly raised the bar for mobile wireless. It is gratifying to note that the stakeholders in the mobile wireless industry have risen to the challenge.

And we have every expectation that with these proposals the vision can indeed be achieved in the near term.”The close partnership between the ITU-R members and the global wireless industry in the work on IMT-Advanced builds upon the success of the ITU-defined IMT-2000 system (3G) that continues to be enhanced following the demands of the marketplace.

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