Author: Paul Adepoju

Music streaming service Spinlet has been appointed as the first International Standard Recording Code (ISRC) manager from Nigeria. This status which is conferred by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, IFPI, an organization representing the recording industry internationally enables Spinlet to assign unique ISRC codes to recordings on behalf…

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey has announced he is giving a third of his shares worth $200 million to employees. This amounts to about 1% of the company’s total equity base. Speaking on this development, Sotirios Paroutis, of Warwick Business School, is Associate Professor of Strategic Management and studies Twitter. Dr…

Ecommerce giant Jumia today (Friday) launched its newly redesigned website jumia.com to its entire African customers. From now on, jumia.com offers a cleaner vendor-friendly interface that improves the shopping experience across all platforms for its several million unique users in Africa. This very first step is part of a process…

Nigeria’s largest telecoms company MTN has said it disconnected a total of 5 millions following a directive by the Nigerian government ordering telecoms companies in the country to disconnect lines with incomplete registration details.\ According to Sifiso Dabengwa, chief executive, MTN Group, the company’s subscriber base in Nigeria fell marginally…

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is urging Nigeria to further devalue its currency amid uncertainty over the political and economic outlook for Africa’s biggest oil producer and economy a news agency has reported. The report quoted Antoinette Sayeh, the International Monetary Fund’s Africa Director who had alleged that restrictions placed…

Google has announced it is investing $40 million in Africa’s largest wind park, this follows the company’s $2 billion commitment to 22 clean energy projects, and broadening Google portfolio to include Africa. Rick Needham, Energy & Sustainability Director at Google said, “Since investing in the continent’s largest solar project, we’ve…

Twitter yesterday announced it is introducing polls on iOS, Android and desktop. “We’re excited to share that in the coming days, everyone will be able to create polls on Twitter. And, with just a couple of taps, people can weigh in on all the topics they care about,” Twitter said…

The South African government is planning to spend one billion rand on roll-out of broadband infrastructure and broadcast digital migration, as announced by the Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene. The minister made this known through the government’s medium term budget policy statement released on Wednesday. Along with addressing issues such as…

Microsoft has introduced the translation option for Swahili, a feat that was achieved in partnership with Tanslators Without Borders. The Swahili language is used by more than 150 million people in East and Central Africa, and is the first native African language to be supported by the company’s automatic translation…

The organizers of Social Media Week has announced the global theme for 2016. In a message sent to Innovation Village this afternoon, organizers said the theme for next year is: “The Invisible Hand: Hidden Forces of Technology (and How We Can Harness it for Good)” Toby Daniels is the Founder…

SlimTrader, the leading turn-key ecommerce solution provider for businesses in Sub-Saharan Africa, has received a US$1 million investment from Interswitch, an Africa-focused integrated digital payments and commerce company that facilitates the electronic circulation of money as well as the exchange of value between individuals and organisations on a timely and…

Cisco has re-certified Vodafone Group Plc as a Cisco Cloud and Managed Services Master Partner worldwide. This comes after Vodafone reaffirmed its capabilities of delivering cloud and managed services using Cisco technology. The certification rewards partners for their expertise and investments for building, selling and delivering cloud and managed services…

New research by the Web Foundation, established by Web inventor Sir Tim Berners-Lee, shows that the dramatic spread of mobile phones is not enough to get women online, or to achieve empowerment of women through technology. The study, based on a survey of thousands of poor urban men and women…

Scientists at South Africa’s Stellenbosch University have developed a biological sensor inside a nanochip that can detect bacterial infections within 10 to 15 minutes. The nanochip will become available in 2016. The device is currently being patented and the Technology Innovation Agency has funded a prototype in preparation for commercialisation…

MTN Group today announced that MTN Cameroon will receive US$100 000 to invest in community projects, as recognition of the outstanding and selfless work of employees in that country, during the Group’s annual employee volunteer programme. MTN Cameroon employees rallied together during the 21 Days of Y’ello Care campaign to…

Bharti Airtel has said it is no longer selling more than 3,500 towers it owns in six African countries, claiming that the deal has broken down. It would be recalled that in June, Innovation Village reported that the company cancelled the sale of its towers in Chad and Tanzania, claiming…

Nigeria’s financial sector regulator the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has revealed that about N815.47 billion has been transferred though the Nigerian mobile money system since its inception. The figures were revealed by Dipo Fatokun, director of Banking and Payment System at the CBN. Speaking in Ilorin on Monday at…

A new regional director has been appointed for Microsoft 4Afrika initiative, she is Amrote Abdella with effect from this month. Prior to her appointment, Abdella was 4Afrika’s director of Startup Engagement and Partnerships and will be taking over from Fernando de Sousa. Abdella will oversee Microsoft’s investments in Africa, deepen…

Tigo Rwanda, a subsidiary of Millicom, leader in telecommunications, mobile money and digital services, announced at the 2015 Transform Africa Summit in Kigali, the launch of 4G internet services accessible on all enabled smartphones. This positions Tigo as the first operator to offer its customers uninterrupted, on-the-go access to 4G…

Telecom companies dominated the just-released shortlist for AfricaCom 2015 Awards even as organisers claim the AfricaCom Awards continues to grow in strength and significance.  According to Adam Thompson, Head of Content at Com World Series, the 2015 applications were many and of an extremely high standard, and reinforced the importance…