eBusiness holds BTS confab

Lagos-based Information and Communication Technology (ICT) publication, eBusiness Life Communication has advanced plans to host a Base Transceiver Stations (BTS) conference in November.

Chief Executive Officer of eBusiness Life, Mrs. Ufuoma Emuophedaro, who disclosed this said that the environmental and health implications of Base Transceiver Stations (BTS), otherwise called Base Stations, have been a source of debate in the past and would be the topic of a conference.

The conference, she said, would hold on Thursday, November 17, 2011 in Lagos, would throw more light on the environmental implications of siting telecommunication base stations.

She noted that there is a need to bring to fore the contentions surrounding BTS siting, adding that the forum would be an opportunity to bring all stakeholders to a roundtable on the impacts on the health and psyche of Nigerians.

“With over 10,000 base stations around the country and more coming up, also with the issue of infrastructure co-location heating up in the industry, the need to find ways of reducing cost and improving services without necessarily endangering or compromising the health of Nigerians or environmental friendliness of the country should be our focus,” she said.

The forum which has as its theme, “BTS and Our Health and Environment” she said, would draw speakers from the Ministry of the Environment, telecom operators, regulatory agencies, engineering sector, service providers and health professionals among others.

According to Mrs. Emuopedaro, the main objective of the event is to demystify the effect of Base Stations and educate Nigerians about the BTS as regards the environment.

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Kewalram launches new range of Panasonic

Major distributor of Panasonic system solutions, Kewalram Nigeria, has launched a new range of world class office appliances to enhance performance and ease communication.

Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Kewalram Nigeria Ltd, Mr. Ajit Tyagi said at the launch that effective communication is key to the success of any business.

He said that the Panasonic range of products give ideas for life to provide a conducive work environment for its customers.

According to him, combining the benefits of traditional communication with the advantages of contemporary Internet Protocol (IP) technology, the Panasonic systems provide the features and flexibility to handle all corporate communication needs.

Also, he said, the solutions are a combination of wireless mobility which gives company executives the freedom to respond to important calls while away from their desk and advanced call centre functions using the hybrid IP-PBX System to easily distribute calls, manage agent handling calls, control internal use of phone systems thus enhancing effective communication for customers’ satisfaction.

“… We understand the challenges in today’s work environment and that is why we have come up with these ranges of world class system solutions. First our solutions will reduce stress and provide an effective communication system within and outside the office. Thus, wherever, whenever, you are communicating,” he said.

In addition, during the just ended West African International Telecommunication Exhibition Conference held in Lagos, Kewalram showcased these products at the Panasonic stand.

Customers at the Panasonic stand, he said, had opportunities to experience firsthand demonstrations of how the equipments add value to their businesses.

Mr. Tyagi further stated that with the launch of these products, Kewalram are continuing to deliver its promise of product excellence and technology innovations to esteemed customers.

“We believe these products also affirm our reputation as a dominant force in information technology - generating ideas for life” he said.

Yinka 'Sanya
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Visafone crashes int’l calls with two packages

Visafone has introduced two new exciting packages tagged Visa World Connect and Visa International Direct Dial (IDD) bundled minutes for both new and existing customers to make  international calls for as low as N6 per minute to 30 countries.

Head, Corporate Communications, Joseph Ushigiale who disclosed this, said that the package ensures that new customers who purchase Visa World Connect package would enjoy a bundled package of 500 minutes and a free handset with a year’s warranty to make international calls to their favorite destinations like United States (US), Canada, India, China, United Kingdom (UK) Fixed and 25 other fixed destinations upon activation and call for as low as N6/min to these destinations.

He explained that in the same vein, existing customers could also subscribe to Visa IDD Bundled Minutes by dialing the appropriate short code for packs of 100 minutes, 300 minutes or 500 minutes to call these destinations at the same rate.

Ushigiale also enlightened that the introduction of these exciting packages underscores the company’s commitment to offering reduced international tariffs to its customers.

The Managing Director of Visafone, Mr. Sailesh Iyer was quoted as saying that the CDMA leader in the country is mindful of the increasing need to keep in touch with friends, families, loved ones and business partners in key countries and have therefore created a truly affordable package that could address this need.

“An alternative to high international call rates is here! A new passport to reach the world has just been granted,” he said, stressing that to enjoy the IDD Bundled minutes customers are required to dial an access code with the bundled preference.

Remmy Nweke
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QoS: NCC warns MTN, Glo, Airtel, may sanction if ...

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has warned the trio of MTN, Glo and Airtel to improve the quality of services on their respective networks or face sanction.

The Commission also said that it may stop the three major mobile operators, from further sell of SIM Cards by end of November 2011, if they fail to meet with the Key Performance Indicators (KPI) set by NCC to improve quality of service with immediate effect.

Head, Media & Public Relations at NCC, Mr. Reuben Muoka, affirmed this Tuesday, saying that the three operators have been issued a 30-day deadline, effective from November 1, 2011, to reverse the trend.

This deadline follows a dismal performance by the three operators on quality of service from the result of an independent monitoring exercise carried out by the Commission across the country which showed that all the three operators failed to meet with four key performance indicators that are crucial for quality of service improvements as set by the Commission.

“Consequently, the Commission has notified the three operators of its intention to issue a direction that with effect from November 30, 2011, any of the operators that fail to meet the targets will be barred from further sale of its SIM Cards or addition of any new subscriber to its network,” he said.

Muoka also disclosed that any new SIM card sold or additional subscriber added to the network in contravention of the direction, will attract a penalty of N1,000,000 (One Million Naira) per subscriber added.

The Commission, he said, had in a notice of intention to issue the direction to the operators, made available to the same indicated that after the expiration of the 30-day deadline, it will strictly enforce the impending direction whose contravention will attract a penalty of N5,000,000 (Five Million Naira), and additional N500,000( Five Hundred Thousand Naira) per day that such contravention persists.

In addition to the above, failure of any of the operators to meet the quality of service targets from November 30, 2011 will attract a fine of N500,000 (Five Hundred Thousand Naira) for every month of failure.

Part of the direction read: “It is not in doubt that the customer experience on your network has been far from satisfactory, especially as the Commission has been inundated with complaints from various subscribers on this matter,” it said in the correspondence to the three respective operators in which it expressed concerns that the operators are not doing enough to reverse the trend of unacceptable quality of service which has persisted for too long.

Muoka underscored the fact that the Key Performance indicators measured by the Commission included Call Set Up Success Rate, Call Completion Rate, Stand Alone Dedicated Control Channel and Handover Success Rate.

Remmy Nweke:

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Interswitch unveils reloaded Verve promo

Interswitch has unveiled its reloaded Verve promo which is on its second year to encourage migration of Nigerians to the promised cashless system by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Disclosing this at a media launch at the weekend, Director, Payment Solutions and Business at Interswitch, Mr. Charles Ifedi, said the promo which commences today, October 24 would last till December 16, this year.

Ifedi who was accompanied by some management staff comprising Divisional Head, Marketing, Ms Enyioma Anaba, her counterpart in Verve Business, Mrs. Oluwatobi Boshoro and Chief Technology Officer, Mr. Ikem Emelieze, noted that the promo has been structured in a way to encourage the adaption of electronic payment system by the populace.

Also, he said, the nation-wide consumer promo would give confidence to the existing cardholders while the focus of the promo would be on new cardholders, who are yet to obtain their Verve cards to embrace the cashless culture prior to the commencement of the CBN’s cashless policy.

He pointed out that last year, Verve promo was for the existing and new cardholders while the present “Verve Get ‘N’ Win’ is for those who are yet to request and pick up their cards from the partnering 19 banks currently.

Also speaking, Head, Verve Business, Mrs. Oluwatobi Boshoro, said the idea is for the category of people who are yet to imbibe the spirit of cashless system to go to their various banks branches and ask for Verve cards, followed by picking such cards up and get rewarded.

She also noted that the participating 19 banks currently in the Verve promo include Ecobank, Enterprise Bank, Equatorial Trust Bank, First City Monumental Bank, Fidelity Bank, Finbank and First Bank.

She listed others to comprise Intercontinental Bank, Keystone Bank, Mainstreet Bank, Oceanic Bank, Skye Bank, Stanbic IBTC, Sterling Bank, United Bank for Africa, Union Bank, Unity Bank, Wema Bank and Zenith Bank.

She explained that during the promo participants are required to request for their cards from the various participating banks, activate these cards at the nearest Automated Teller Machines (ATM) and thus earn instant gift items such as branded pens, card wallets, t-shirts, MP3 players, flash drives and notebook jotters at the bank branches.

Ms Anaba in her comment said that there would be media campaign on print, radio and televisions, even as some of the prizes include iPads, Deep Freezers, Generating sets, 32’ LCD television sets and Blackberry smart phones.

Equally, the chief technology officer, Mr. Emelieze assured Nigerians of the security of their transactions on Interswitch, especially during this promo as plans have been put in place to ensure that the promo remain a success like that of last year or even surpass the first edition.

A raffle pick was later conducted for members of the media who have their Verve card at the venue.

Remmy Nweke

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‘Visafone is best CDMA’

Leading Code Division and Multiple Access (CDMA) network in the country, Visafone Communications Limited, has been named the Best CDMA network nationwide.

The award ceremony which coincided with the Insider Magazine’s 10-year anniversary which held in Abuja, also witnessed the conferment of other awards to Governors Babatunde Fashola of Lagos; Ibrahim Idris of Kogi and Delta State’s Emmanuel Uduaghan and Business mogul, Alhaji Aliko Dangote.

While conferring the award on Visafone, Senator Ben Obi said “the Insider Weekly Magazine Merit Award presented to Visafone is in recognition of the network’s outstanding services and contributions to the society.

Speaking to newsmen afterwards, the Chief Operating Officer (COO) Srinivasa K.V said the awards the network has been receiving this year are a strong statement buttressing the leadership role the company is taking in providing voice clarity and data.

“We are in the forefront of providing quality of service and superfast data in this business and we are capping that with a clear customer experience reinforced through our 83 retails shops spread across 26 states and 71 cities nationwide,” he said.

It will be recalled that, only a fortnight ago, Visafone also won the Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC) award for the network with the widest spread in terms of retail outlets, shop and consumer experience and friendly initiatives.

ITRealms Online recalls that Visafone had previously won several awards like ICT company of the year award at the 2009 ThisDay awards; Leadership CDMA Operator of the Year 2008.

Equally in 2009, Visafone was named CDMA Company of the Year at the Titans of Tech ICT Merit Awards and the Founder of the company, JIM OVIA, was also inducted into the ICT Hall of Fame.

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MTN’s Idea forum debuts for Apps

The largest mobile network in the country, MTN Nigeria, has launched Ideas forum to boost development of mobile applications by Nigerians, just as the operator partners, Nokia, Google and Samsung.

Chief Marketing Officer, MTN Nigeria, Mr. Bola Akingbade while launching this forum in Lagos, said that it’s for enriching the lives of its customers via the promotion of their passions and delivering of everyday solution that makes life richer.

The MTN Ideas Forum, he said, is a networking and idea generation forum that enables MTN connect with the local applications developers community as well as other stakeholders in the value chain.

MTN Nigeria, he said, is therefore leaving no stone unturned in its innovation quest to touch lives most positively, irrespective of gender or social status.

Pointing out that the Nigeria’s mobile market is changing at an increasing pace, even as learning, entertainment, social networking, health services, financial services are going mobile. “Applications have emerged as a fundamental driver of enabling lifestyle and productivity as consumers want to access relevant content from PCs, laptops, phones and even in-car systems,” he said.

Akingbade also said that the increasing popularity of mobile applications has driven a need for operators to start focusing on reducing the barriers to adoption.

Research, he said, has indicated that there is a yearning for relevant local and international mobile applications from an application store that guarantees ease of access especially by the Trendies who desire a modern and progressive rhythm of life.

According to him, market survey carried out by MTN shows that apps create an exciting and elevating feeling of unconstrained sense of belongingness and being in touch with the world.

“Mobile handsets are getting smarter and more accessible because of increasing availability of  Ultra low cost Smartphones with improved user interface. Data usage is going up. Bringing more of the African population online primarily via the mobile screen,” he said, stressing however, there is very limited local mobile-content in the country, describing it as a massive opportunity, and a challenge.

MTN is keen on becoming a frontline player in the Application Development space by introducing The MTN Ideas Forum, a Networking and idea generation forum that enables MTN connect with the local applications developers community as well as other stakeholders in the value chain (Local developers, Google, Nokia, Samsung, e.tc). This is because within the Telemedia value chain, no single entity can run alone. There is therefore the need for partnership. We also understand that fast-growing portfolios of mobile apps would be fuelled by an efficient developer ecosystem.

Remmy Nweke
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NOTAP boss tasks African media on S & T

The Director-General, National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion (NOTAP), Dr. Umar Bindir, has tasked African media practitioners to be innovative in reporting Science and Technology for Sustainable Development.

Bindir in his keynote to the two-day West African regional workshop with the theme “Making Science and Technology Information More Accessible for Africa’s Development,” while dwelling on “Global STI Trends in Africa – The Role of Journalists” noted that media practitioners on the continent of Africa have been given the arduous task of disseminating information to enhance public awareness on the relevance of Science, Technology and Innovation (STI).

This, he said, is expected to accelerate the regional socio-economic development with their reportage.

Also, Dr. Bindir said that because of the peculiar challenges facing African countries her media practitioners, especially those covering scientific events on the continent could not effectively communicate science and technology so as to achieve social change and sustainable development.

As said by him, sustainable development in Africa has to be science-led and driven by an unprecedented transfer of technology and acquisition of knowledge.

In addition, he said that science journalists could set the agenda for ensuring that every scientific endeavour leads to technology, every technology leads to innovation and every innovation leads to a product.

Bindir further enjoined science media practitioners to embellish their reports with accurate data; be strategic and innovative with their reports in order to proffer solutions were necessary as part of the new model for communicating science for the achievement of socio-economic transformation.

According to him, Africa must not be associated with hunger and starvation, disease and avoidable deaths, poverty and underdevelopment if its rich endowments in human, material and natural resources were properly harnessed for the benefits of the citizenry.

“This scenario demands that the science journalists should think out of the box and communicate Science and Technology based on the critical need for addressing issues such as job creation, disease control, food security, crime control, entrepreneurship, energy, health service delivery, housing, education, transportation, climate change and economic stability,” he said.

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), he decried, were unattainable by any African country by the year 2015.

The workshop was jointly organised for science journalists by the United Nations, Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Scientific, Technical and Research Commission (STRC) of the African Union Commission (AUC), at Abuja.

Remmy Nweke

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