The Nation Newspaper

Category: e-Business

  • ‘Bureaucracy delayed software incubation centre’

    Bureaucracy stalled the citing of the Lagos software incubation centre at the e-Learning Centre, Marina, it has been learnt.

    Project Manager, Information Technology Developers Entrepreneurship Accelerator (iDEA), Helen Anatogu, said the green light to use the Marina facility did not come on time, necessitating the search for a new venue. iDEA is a not-for-profit organisation set as a special purpose vehicle (SPV) to drive the success of the incubation centres nationwide.

    “When we started this journey, the initial proposition was to have the Lagos centre on Marina at the e-Learning Centre. However, what happened was that we found that there were some delays from the Lagos State government to actually make the decision to concession that e-Learning Centre to the manager. I don’t think that has been solved yet.

    “That venue was our first choice but when we saw that the venue was going to take even longer time to get off the ground, we started looking for a new place. So, that was why there was delay. At the time we got it, we agreed with the manager of the e-Learning Centre that we will need the place. We have got everything on ground to take off. But, unfortunately, that did not work out. We started running around for another space in Lagos,” she explained, adding that the new search led to where the centre is currently located in Yaba.

    According to her, the location is apt for the project as it is at the centre of tertiary institutions and it is popularly called Silicon Lagoon.

    “In a way, we were fortunate we got the centre (where it is presently), that is why I say delay is not denial. So, we are tapping into a very rich area for the success of the software ecosystem. There are many tertiary institutions there,” she said.

    The centre was established to stimulate local industry growth and employment by accelerating the success of technology entrepreneurs and early stage start-ups, Vice Chairman, iDEA Governing Board, Mr Pius Okigbo Jnr, said.According to him, the centres will help address the typical barriers to success – the lack of access to funding; the costs associated with acquiring technology, knowledge and expertise; and the limited ability to obtain broad exposure for creations and innovations.

    “iDEA is partnering with technology companies to offer training and access to software development tools across a number of platforms.

    “Entrepreneurs will also have access to guidance from our network of mentors. iDEA will engage the student community by getting them involved in many activities organised by the centres.

    “They will also attend low or no- cost technical training at the centres. iDEA will engage established local software development companies to build new innovations or assist in bridging the gaps preventing the companies from fully exploiting and commercialising existing innovations,” he said.

  • ‘Computer Society’s honours not for highest bidder’

    President of the Nigerian Computer Society (NCS) Sir Demola Aladekomo has said its honours and awards are not for the highest bidder. He said the honours and awards are given on merit and distinguished service to the industry and the nation.

    He spoke when the society inducted the Chairman of Visafone Communications Limited, Jim Ovia, into its hall of Fellows in Lagos.

    The Honorary Fellowship, he said, was bestowed on Ovia for his outstanding contributions to the development of the information communication technology (ICT) industry.

    According to him, as founder and pioneer group chief executive officer of Zenith Bank, Ovia deployed information technology (IT) tools in facilitating the bank’s operations.

    “As founder of Zenith Bank Plc and former group CEO of the bank, he introduced a great deal of technology-driven innovations into the banking industry. Being the first president of the Nigerian Internet Group (NIG), he is not only an avid IT promoter, but has also invested massively in Nigeria’s technology sector.

    “He is the promoter and founder of Visafone Communications Limited and has led several national IT -related initiatives, such as the Nigerian Software Development Initiative (NSDI), the National Information Technology Advisory Council (NITAC) and the National Broadband Committee. He is also the founder of Youth Empowerment through ICT,” he said.

    Responding, Ovia said he felt elated by the award, adding that he saw it more as a call to service. He pledged to promote and mentor the growth and development of the youth to assist them in using software and hardware, adding that nothing can be done without computer.

  • SIM registration: Operators kick against June deadline

    Ahead the June 30 official end to ongoing national registration of subscriber identification module (SIM) in the country, telecoms operators have kicked against the decision of the regulator, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to end the programme, arguing that it is like putting the cart before the horse.

    The Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) said they were not prepared to end the exercise.

    The group’s Chairman, Gbenga Adebayo, said: “Given the reality of what we face today, you know we have had significant disruption in our activities in some parts of the country, which has also affected the movement of persons and business activities. So, circumstances in the last three or four months haven’t really helped situation as it were. Therefore, readiness, as we have today, I can say to you is not 100 per cent.”

    According to him, disconnecting subscribers on the network is improper, adding that the regulator should show leadership and direction by first coming clean with information about the integrity of the data it gathered too in the course of the exercise.

    “I think what the NCC itself should do is to provide a direction of the data base it has registered. Recall that we did some part and NCC also did some part. So, if NCC is putting the deadline of 30th of June, I think also situation demand that NCC should give a declaration of the readiness or integrity of the data it has recorded over the period before putting a blanket disconnection order on service providers.

    ‘’So, for me, I think before we go out to say subscribers that are unregistered should be disconnected, I think we should embark on data clean up where there will be integration of data registered by the operators and those registered by the regulator and after the outcome of that, we can take a decision either to disconnect or not. But as it is today, it will appear that NCC is sitting on its own data, no one knows the integrity of the data it has collated. We haven’t done harmonisation of the data collected by them and by us and (the NCC) is coming to give June deadline, I think there is need to review the decision again,” he said.

    On what the operators have invested in the exercise, he said it was premature to begin to speak on the exercise that gave a whopping National Assembly budgetary approval of N6.1 billion to the NCC.

    “May be when we come to the end of the exercise will be the time to talk about how much we have spent. Don’t forget that works are still ongoing,” he said.

    But the NCC has said total number of registered subscribers will only be available when the exercise ends this month end. Director, Public Affairs, NCC, Tony Ojobo, told The Nation that all the operators are expected to forward their data to the NCC. “NCC ha stopped SIM reg but the operators are still doing it.

    They are still compiling data which they will send to the NCC at the end of the exercise,” he said.

    South Africa, the home of MTN, spent $119 million on SIM reg that ended June 30, 2011. While the MTN Group spent 250 million rand (about $37.10 million) on marketing and news staff, Vodacom and Cell C spent between 300 and 400 rands.

  • $2m for digital hubs

    THE British Council and Microsoft Nigeria have earmarked $2million (about N326.2 million) to set up digital hubs that will promote IT adoption in Nigeria and some other parts of the continent.

    Speaking at the inauguration of one of the projects at Oregun Senior High School, Ikeja, Lagos, the Country Manager, British Council, Mr. David Higgs, said the United Kingdom organisation decided to partner Microsoft, which supplied the computer facilities, because of the desire to promote education using modern ICT tools.

    “We like the approach of collaboration between British Council and Microsoft. Future will be more of collaborations between orgainsations in building institutions for common goods and to build education, our collaboration has become a reality today,” he said.

    He noted that so far, British Council had deployed 90 digital bubs in six countries across the sub-Sahara Africa, stressing that as one of the largest economies in Africa, Nigeria cannot afford to delay in infusing ICT in its educational development.

    “There is a very large population of young people in Nigeria and this means there is a great potential. We need to give the youths ICT tools to compete economically in the 21st century. Today, life is increasingly depending on ICT to drive quality education,” he said.

    Higgs said with the inauguration of the facilities, which will later be maintained by the Lagos State Government through the Ministry of Education, students would have the opportunity to access academic materials from anywhere in the world as well as collaborate with their peers in other countries.

  • Agency explains why Glo’s base station was shut

    THE National Environmental Standards Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) has explained why it shut a base transmission station (BTS) belonging to Globacom.

    The BTS was shut because Glo failed to comply with the procedures for the BTS erection, NESREA said.

    A NESREA official said in a telephone interview with The Nation, that the agency took the decision as a last resort. It said it had in the last three months warned the operator to produce a site-specific Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) in line with the provisions of the EIA ACT of 1992, but the operator refused. The affected BTS is located in Dandur in Lantang North Local Government Area of Plateau State.

    “The agency also issued Abatement Notice to Glo, but the telco failed to respond. We were also receiving complaints from people living in the area, so we have no choice but to move and shut down the BTS. We intervened to protect the residents of the area,” he said.

    Asked if the development will not further compound the poor service in the industry, he said NESREA should not be held responsible for any further decline in service quality, adding that the operators were having problems with service quality because they had bitten more than they could chew.

    On whether the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) was carried before swooping on the site, he said the two agencies were working together.

    But an official of the NCC, who spoke on condition of anonymity, denied knowledge of NESREA’s action. The official, who refused to be named, said the agency should be contacted for comments.

    President of the National Association of Telecoms Subscribers (NATCOMS), Deolu Ogunbanjo, had alleged that NESREA took the laws into its hands by swooping on the facility.

    “NESREA is also over exploiting the humility of both the Minister of Communication Technology and the President, he said.

    “The NCC is the regulatory body by law, charged with the responsibility of regulating telecommunications & ICT in Nigeria and should be left alone to do its job.

  • Samsung unveils S9 UHD TV

    Samsung Electronics West Africa has introduced its latest Ultra High Definition (UHD) TV, the S9, into the Nigerian market. The product was unveiled to the media Thursday in Lagos.

    The TV set is housed within a minimal, freestanding metal frame that allows it to rotate freely and appear to float in mid-air. The 85-inch S9 is the world’s largest UHD TV and offers four times the pixels available on other smart TVs in the market. The product is already on sale at Samsung stores and accredited dealers nationwide.

    Speaking at the formal unveiling, Managing Director, Samsung Electronics West Africa, Mr. Brovo Kim, said, “Picture quality, advanced features and modern design are all areas in which consumers are steadily demanding more from their TVs. At Samsung, we are meeting these demands with our 2013 Smart TVs, which offer effortless and intuitive ways for our consumers to discover and share more of the content they love. The S9 comes complete with features to ensure the best picture quality possible, regardless of video source, towards creating the ultimate lean back experience for our consumers.”

    He also unveiled its innovative kitchen technology, the Samsung T9000 Refrigerator, a 32-cubic feet capacity four-door refrigerator that can be switched from fridge to freezer mode whenever the need arises. The T9000 refrigerator features a 19.4 cubic feet capacity french-door refrigerator compartment on top, and a 6.1 cubic feet compartment on the lower right side, providing an extraordinary 25 cubic feet of fresh food storage.

  • Operators reject NCC’s June 30 deadline for sim registration

    Telecoms operators have kicked against the plan of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to stop the registration of subscriber identification module (Sim) cards on June 30.

    They claimed that the deadline amounts to putting the cart before the horse.

    The Association of Licensed Telecoms Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) said it would not end the exercise.

    The group’s Chairman, Gbenga Adebayo, said: “Given the reality of what we face today, you know we have had significant disruption in our activities in some parts of the country, which has also affected the movement of persons and business activities. So, circumstances in the last three or four months haven’t really helped situation as it were. Therefore, readiness, as we have today, I can say to you is not 100 per cent.”

    According to him, disconnecting subscribers on the network is improper, adding that the regulator should show leadership and direction by first coming clean with information about the integrity of the data it gathered too in the course of the exercise.

    “I think what the NCC itself should do is to provide a direction of the data base it has registered. Recall that we did some part and NCC also did some part. So, if NCC is putting the deadline of 30th of June, I think also situation demand that NCC should give a declaration of the readiness or integrity of the data it has recorded over the period before putting a blanket disconnection order on service providers.

    ‘’So, for me, I think before we go out to say subscribers that are unregistered should be disconnected, I think we should embark on data clean up where there will be integration of data registered by the operators and those registered by the regulator and after the outcome of that, we can take a decision either to disconnect or not. But as it is today, it will appear that NCC is sitting on its own data, no one knows the integrity of the data it has collated. We haven’t done harmonisation of the data collected by them and by us and (the NCC) is coming to give June deadline, I think there is need to review the decision again,” he said.

    On what the operators have invested in the exercise, he said it was premature to begin to speak on the exercise that gave a whopping National Assembly budgetary approval of N6.1 billion to the NCC.

    “May be when we come to the end of the exercise will be the time to talk about how much we have spent. Don’t forget that works are still ongoing,” he said.

    But the NCC has said total number of registered subscribers will only be available when the exercise ends this month end. Director, Public Affairs, NCC, Tony Ojobo, told The Nation that all the operators are expected to forward their data to the NCC. “NCC ha stopped SIM reg but the operators are still doing it.

    They are still compiling data which they will send to the NCC at the end of the exercise,” he said.

    South Africa, the home of MTN, spent $119 million on SIM reg that ended June 30, 2011. While the MTN Group spent 250 million rand (about $37.10 million) on marketing and news staff, Vodacom and Cell C spent between 300 and 400 rands.

  • Agency explains why Glo’s base station was shut

    THE National Environmental Standards Regulations Enforcement Agency (NESREA) has explained why it shut a base transmission station (BTS) belonging to Globacom.

    The BTS was shut because Glo failed to comply with the procedures for the BTS erection, NESREA said.

    A NESREA official said in a telephone interview with The Nation, that the agency took the decision as a last resort. It said it had in the last three months warned the operator to produce a site-specific Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) in line with the provisions of the EIA ACT of 1992, but the operator refused. The affected BTS is located in Dandur in Lantang North Local Government Area of Plateau State.

    “The agency also issued Abatement Notice to Glo, but the telco failed to respond. We were also receiving complaints from people living in the area, so we have no choice but to move and shut down the BTS. We intervened to protect the residents of the area,” he said.

    Asked if the development will not further compound the poor service in the industry, he said NESREA should not be held responsible for any further decline in service quality, adding that the operators were having problems with service quality because they had bitten more than they could chew.

    On whether the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) was carried before swooping on the site, he said the two agencies were working together.

    But an official of the NCC, who spoke on condition of anonymity, denied knowledge of NESREA’s action. The official, who refused to be named, said the agency should be contacted for comments.

    President of the National Association of Telecoms Subscribers (NATCOMS), Deolu Ogunbanjo, had alleged that NESREA took the laws into its hands by swooping on the facility.

    “NESREA is also over exploiting the humility of both the Minister of Communication Technology and the President, he said.

    “The NCC is the regulatory body by law, charged with the responsibility of regulating telecommunications & ICT in Nigeria and should be left alone to do its job.

  • ‘Computer Society’s honours not for highest bidder’

    President of the Nigerian Computer Society (NCS) Sir Demola Aladekomo has said its honours and awards are not for the highest bidder. He said the honours and awards are given on merit and distinguished service to the industry and the nation.

    He spoke when the society inducted the Chairman of Visafone Communications Limited, Jim Ovia, into its hall of Fellows in Lagos.

    The Honorary Fellowship, he said, was bestowed on Ovia for his outstanding contributions to the development of the information communication technology (ICT) industry.

    According to him, as founder and pioneer group chief executive officer of Zenith Bank, Ovia deployed information technology (IT) tools in facilitating the bank’s operations.

    “As founder of Zenith Bank Plc and former group CEO of the bank, he introduced a great deal of technology-driven innovations into the banking industry. Being the first president of the Nigerian Internet Group (NIG), he is not only an avid IT promoter, but has also invested massively in Nigeria’s technology sector.

    “He is the promoter and founder of Visafone Communications Limited and has led several national IT -related initiatives, such as the Nigerian Software Development Initiative (NSDI), the National Information Technology Advisory Council (NITAC) and the National Broadband Committee. He is also the founder of Youth Empowerment through ICT,” he said.

    Responding, Ovia said he felt elated by the award, adding that he saw it more as a call to service. He pledged to promote and mentor the growth and development of the youth to assist them in using software and hardware, adding that nothing can be done without computer.

  • Firm unfolds roadmap for IT market

    Cyberoam has unfolded its strategy for expansion.

    The firm organised a forum attended by its partners and was a mix of leading VARs, Resellers and MSSPs.

    The event included educational keynote, expert presentations and award ceremonies followed by a dinner. Partners were cited for their valuable and consistent contribution.

    While highlighting last year’s successful growth figures and the new market acquisition, Cyberoam said it will strengthen its footprints with an inclusive roadmap strategy for expansion in view of emerging business opportunities.