Author: Paul Adepoju

Ecommerce platform Payporte yesterday announced sponsorship of 100,000 days of free internet every month for six months in partnership with Opera Software. However, the service is only available to subscribers on Airtel network. During the period, subscribers will enjoy no-cost internet access via Opera browser and this campaign will be…

The Global Commission on Internet Governance (GCIG) has concluded its meeting on August 26 in Accra, Ghana. Chaired by former Swedish Prime Minister Carl Bildt, the GCIG is a two-year initiative launched in January 2014 by the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) and Chatham House. The Commission’s work will…

NIC Bank Group is planning to be Kenya’s first bank to launch an innovative social media banking platform, dubbed NIC KONNECT which offer bank customers secure access to banking services via social media platforms. The mobile banking product will be available through Whatsapp, Facebook, Twitter and Telegram. According to the…

Alan Knott-Craig Jr, former CEO of Mxit has launched a new Wireless Internet Service Provider (WISP) that would wireless broadband to homes and offices. The service called HeroTel  will consolidate the local WISP space (which currently has more than 200 providers) and provide a viable last-mile broadband alternative across the…

In a move aimed at developing Africa’s private sector and stimulating innovation across Africa, former Nigerian President, Olusegun Obasanjo, and Africa’s richest man Aliko Dangote are teaming up with the Duke of York to launch the African Entrepreneurship Programme (AEP). AEP is a joint initiative of the Duke of York’s…

A total of 320 submissions were received for this year’s Safaricom Appwiz Challenge which is the third edition. Following the closure of entry submissions, the submitted solutions are now being reviewed by a panel of industry experts, although organizers revealed that majority of the submissions are mobile and are targeting…

The Nigerian edition of International Breweries’ Kickstart Entrepreneurship programme is currently receiving applications. Nigeria is the latest country where the programme will be launched following South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland and Tanzania. Nigerians between age 18 and 35 are eligible to apply. Applications are open until September 6 and the…

Organizers of MobileMoneyAfrica have announced they will be hosting the RemitAfrica conference on Nov 04 – 05 in Lagos, Nigeria. The conference is expected to be attended by remittance providers and stakeholders such as money transfer operators, financial services providers, financial technology providers, vendors, agent network operators, mobile financial services…

Customers of MTN Group and Liquid Telecom are set to benefit from a larger connectivity footprint across Africa. This follows an announcement today that the two companies have partnered to jointly offer customers access to the largest fixed and wireless footprint across the continent. The partnership, which covers wholesale, carrier-to-carrier,…

Google has revealed that about 10 million Nigerians used the  internet for the first time last year 2014. Speaking in Lagos, Caesar Sengupta, vice president, Product Management at Google, said that globally, there are 3 billion people connected online and the number is expected to surpass 4 billion by 2017.…

97 per cent of satellites hovering above and covering the African continent are owned by non-African nations and organisations, according to the Director General of the National Space Research and Development Agency (NASRDA), Prof. Seidu Onailo Mohammed. Mohammed said foreign companies are the ones that have realised the colossal financial…

Search engine giant Google has launched a new platform that would allow artists in Kenya to showcase their products. Google has launched a cultural institute dedicated to showcasing local talent and it will make local art and cultural arts especially music, plays, poems and books as well as hand made…

Huawei, a leading global information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider, has been awarded ‘European Consumer Smartphone 2015 – 2016’ by the European Imaging and Sound Association (EISA) for its latest flagship smartphone, Huawei P8. This is the third consecutive year that Huawei has been recognized by EISA in this…

Uber has decided to make the cash payment option it piloted for two months in Kenya a permanent feature following the embracement of the option Nairobi residents. Uber said after a successful two-month pilot, the option brought a five-fold growth in sign-ups and referrals. This development makes Nairobi the only…

Samsung Electronics has launched into the Nigerian market its newest flagship device, the Galaxy S6 Edge Plus. The device, which is the most attractive in its category in the market, has sleek ergonomic edge design, and a stylish, slim and light body made from metal and glass. It was unveiled…

The Nigerian Broadcasting Commission (NBC) has banned some of the most popular songs in Nigeria. The list includes Olamide’s Shakiti Bobo, Davido’s hit song Fans Mi which also featured American rapper Meek Mill. The list also include Gift, a song by Iyanya featuring Don Jazzy. According to the NBC, the…

4-year old Kenya Open Data portal has been viewed over 44 million times  since it was launched about 4 years ago, according to Linet Kwamboka , Open Data Project Coordinator. The announcement is in line with the celebrations marking the platform’s fourth anniversary. There is also the launch of the…

For the umpteenth time, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has debunked claims that masts and towers are harmful and could cause serious health problems. Speaking in Kaduna, Deputy Director, Consumer Affairs at the NCC, Femi Atoyebi, said it important to disabuse peoples’ minds on the negative insinuations about telecom masts…

ZA Central Registry (ZACR), the body that manages the co.za, web.za, org.za, net.za domains as well as the recently launched city top level domains (cTLDs) of .capetown, .joburg and .durban, yesterday (Wednesday) announced the number of co.za domain names registered has hit and surpassed the one million mark. ZACR announced…

Plans have been concluded by Africa’s largest retailer Shoprite to open more outlets across Africa. The company is opening a new store in the Town of Tete, Mozambique later this year and Property development company, Terrace Africa confirmed Shoprite as their anchor tenant and indicated that the new shopping centre…