Wireless Federation

Cell C appoints Alan Knott-Craig as CEO (South Africa)

On 01.23.12, In Mobile, By Editor

South Africa based mobile operator Cell C has appointed Alan Knott-Craig as its CEO effective from 1 April 2012. Prior to this, Alan was the CEO for South Africa’s biggest telecom company, Vodacom.

According to company reports, Simon Duffy, non-executive Chairman, Cell C said that Alan is one of the most capable and experienced leaders in the industry and he is confident that his appointment will significantly enhance Cell C’s ability to provide an excellent service to its customers and to compete even more effectively for their business. Further, Cell C has carved out a strong position as an innovative alternative in the industry and, having made considerable progress over the past few years, is strategically well-positioned for growth.

Alan Knott Craig has said that after a break from the telecommunications industry, he is looking forward to being at the helm of Cell C. The mobile telecommunications sector is a highly innovative and disruptive industry, and he is excited about the challenge of making Cell C a more effective competitor to the dominant players. The company has benefited from considerable investment in the past few years, particularly in its network but also in many other areas of the business, and he is confident that he will be able to build on that investment to accelerate the company’s growth.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Alan Knott-Craig CEO • Cell C • Simon Duffy • South Africa • Vodacom

Bharti Airtel contemplates mobile service launch in South Africa and Cameroon (Africa)

On 01.02.12, In Mobile, By Editor

India’s leading telecommunications operator Bharti Airtel may be planning to expand its network in South Africa and Cameroon, as learned through industry sources. Airtel is a dominant player in the mobile industry with operations in 19 countries across Asia and Africa.

Mobile penetration has steadily been increasing in African countries, and with most of the global markets being saturated, emerging markets such as Africa provide mobile operators with new opportunities to increase their subscriber base and enhance their revenue.

Currently Airtel offers services in Nigeria, Burkina Faso, Chad, Congo Brazzaville, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Madagascar, Niger, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. By adding South Africa and Cameroon, two of Africa’s fastest growing mobile economies to the list, Airtel aims to strengthen its position in Africa.

Airtel is the leading mobile operator in India and is well known for its innovative and competitive tariff pricing. The operator’s entry into these new markets is expected to take the mobile industry by storm and introduce an unprecedented level of competition.

Airtel presently offers services in 15 cities in India and with the population of one Indian city being similar to that of one African country, South Africa and Cameroon have the potential to be extremely lucrative for Bharti Airtel.

Further, sources claim that rival operators currently offering services in these economies such as MTN, Vodacom and Orange are already working on strategies to maintain their market share and offer stiff competition to Airtel.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Bharti Airtel • Burkina Faso • Cameroon • Chad • Congo Brazzaville • Gabon • Ghana • India • Kenya • Madagascar • Malawi • MTN • Niger • Nigeria • Orange • Seychelles • Sierra Leone • South Africa • Tanzania • Uganda • Vodacom • Zambia

Vodacom Lesotho: More than just a leading brand (Africa)

On 06.24.11, In Mobile, By Editor

The Vodacom Group is a leading cellular communications company in Africa. Vodacom Lesotho started operating in 1996 with the Government of Lesotho as a shareholder through its stake in Lesotho Telecommunications Corporation.

According to company reports, the global partnership with Vodafone, which started in 2008, put the leading Lesotho network operator at the forefront of developments, and changed the face of the world’s communications landscape.

Refiloe Mohlotsane, brand manager, Vodafone Lesotho has reportedly said that Vodacom isn’t just the leading brand in Lesotho; it’s a lifestyle. She said that young and old people alike identify with the brand and are often spotted sporting a t-shirt or hat with the Vodacom logo. People just love Vodacom. It’s an amazing brand.

Mohlotsane also spoke about the Vodacom Community Builder, claiming it is a success story that seeks to uplift men and women who are making an impact in their lives and those of other people. She added that people feel engaged with the Vodacom Lesotho brand as they invest in the areas of sports, health, technology and community, as part of their corporate social responsibility.

Regarding the brand image of Vodacom Lesotho, Mohlotsane said that Vodacom has, through sponsorships and well-executed advertising, managed to achieve an iconic status in all markets in which it operates. Further, the radio and the print media in Lesotho have particularly been effective in promoting the Vodacom brand. Both have their advantages and disadvantages, but radio has certainly been the best medium locally since it enjoys a wider coverage around the country.

In order to ensure that Vodacom remained a truly consumer-centric brand, Mohlotsane said that they adopted a more targeted approach on a market-by-market basis as well as ensured that they consistently delivered on brand values.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Brand • brand manager • Refiloe Mohlotsane • Vodacom • Vodacom Community Builder • Vodacom Lesotho

African mMoney revenue to grow to $3 bn in 2015

On 03.29.11, In Mobile, By Editor

A new study has revealed that in Africa, mMoney operator revenue as a percentage of total operator revenue will continue to rise to more than 5% in 2015, representing a nearly US$3 billion opportunity.

While Safaricom’s M-Pesa in Kenya has long been the lone success story in the mMoney universe, researcher can now see success being replicated in Uganda and Tanzania with similar mobile money offerings.

MTN Uganda’s MobileMoney service accounts for 3% of all airtime sold on its network, and Vodacom’s M-Pesa service in Tanzania currently has 6 million subscribers with exponential growth of 600% experienced in the past year alone.

From the beginning of March, mMoney offerings remain limited and are concentrated in just 22 of the more than 50 African countries.

Researchers believe that the African mobile money market has the potential to grow to a money-making market, but operators, banks and regulators need to work toward developing an enabling environment for business models that meet service providers’ revenue demands and offers needed by mMoney services to end users.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Africa • African mMoney revenue • Kenya • M-Pesa • mMoney • Mobile • MobileMoney service • MTN Uganda • Safaricom • Tanzania • Uganda • Vodacom

Vodacom and MTN cleared of price fixing charges (S Africa)

On 03.24.11, In Mobile, By Editor

South Africa’s Competition Commission has reportedly cleared Vodacom and MTN of price-fixing, collusion and setting interconnect fees unfairly high.

According to reports, this decision was made despite the Competition Commission finding that MTN and Vodacom had similar rates and admitting that it still had residual concerns about the companies’ high rates between 2004 and 2009.

The Competition Commission’s manager for advocacy and stakeholder relations, Oupa Bodibe stated that the commission completed the investigation at the end of last year, and it decided not to refer the matter to the Competition Tribunal.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Competition Commission • Competition Tribunal • interconnect fees • MTN • operators • Oupa Bodibe • price fixing • South Africa • Vodacom

Rwanda completes $95m fibre network

On 03.18.11, In Mobile, By Editor

Rwanda has reportedly completed construction of a 2,300 kilometre fibre optic network that links the country to undersea cables running along the east African coast.

The project which was commenced in October 2009 at a cost of $95 million, was set up to increase access to broadband services and attracts foreign investment through business process outsourcing.

According to Ignace Gatare, Minister of Information and Communication Technology, the fibre optic project will initially be operated by an independently-managed government entity on an open access model to accommodate infrastructure sharing with the private ICT services providers. The ultimate goal is to progressively transfer the business to a private business.

Rwanda is a land-locked country with Internet penetration of only 12%. However, Minister Gatare states that the ICT sector in the country generated revenues of US$143 million in 2009, rising by 12% in 2010.

The fibre network connects to undersea cable system at Mombasa in Kenya and Dar es Salam in Tanzania.

The Minister added that initiatives to activate the links have been launched and discussions between Rwanda telecommunication operators that include MTN Rwanda, Tigo Rwanda and Rwandatel and regional cable operators are ongoing.

At a Senate meeting, the minister was asked to increase the awareness to the population on the importance of the use of ICT and made several recommendations, including to extend ICT infrastructure, especially in rural areas; to put more effort in the use of ICT in all sectors and services; to sensitize the population on cyber security of individual data; and to emphasize the quality of education in ICT.

Elsewhere, Google has extended its Gmail SMS chat functionality to add three more African countries to its growing coverage list. Mobile users in Uganda, Tanzania and Malawi can now use Google’s email service via SMS texting.

Gmail users can send and receive SMS messages for free using the service. Non-Gmail users can reply via SMS for regular text charging rates. The networks supporting the service are MTN, Uganda Telecom and Orange (Uganda), Vodacom (Tanzania), and Airtel and TNM (Malawi).

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Airtel • east African coast • Google • ICT • Ignace Gatare • Kenya • Malawi • Minister of Information and Communication Technology • Mombasa • MTN • MTN Rwanda • Oerator • Orange • Rwanda • Rwandatel • Tanzania • Tigo Rwanda • TNM • Uganda • Uganda Telecom • undersea cables • Vodacom

Vodacom red to arrive in April (South Africa)

On 03.17.11, In Mobile, By Editor

Vodacom, South Africa is all set to unveil its new branding early next month and it is believed that the company will have a distinct Vodafone feel to it.

In May 2009, Vodafone increased its stake in Vodacom to 65%, giving the UK-based mobile giant control over Vodacom and removing Telkom as a shareholder. Since then, Vodacom has increasingly launched various Vodafone branded products, but to date the company kept its blue and green branding.

According to Vodacom CEO Pieter Uys, the company plans a new marketing campaign in April, and it is no secret that the company will unveil a more Vodafone-centric brand. It is likely to include red replacing Vodacom’s traditional blue branding, starting to use the Vodafone’s inverted red comma and incorporating the “Power to you” slogan.

According to reports, 1st April seems to be the official launch date, with a big branding campaign likely to happen on 3rd April using the Sunday newspapers as a launch platform. Many of Vodacom’s partners have already been informed about the planned branding changes to give them time to align their offerings with the new Vodafone centric branding, but strict non-disclosure agreements are stopping these companies from revealing any details.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: CEO • new branding • operator • Pieter Uys • South Africa • Vodacom • Vodafone

NSN bags Vodacom Tanzania network deal

On 03.16.11, In Mobile, By Editor

Nokia Siemens Networks has won a five-year deal to manage telecom network of Vodacom Tanzania.

Financial details of the deal were not disclosed, but the companies stated that they are aiming to reduce operating costs, improve efficiency, save energy and offer competitive tariffs to customers of Vodacom Tanzania.

They added that as a part of the agreement, 124 Vodacom Tanzania employees will transfer to Nokia Siemens Networks.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Mobile • Network Deal • Nokia Siemens Networks • NSN • Tanzania • Vodacom • Vodacom Tanzania

Neotel cuts call rates by 23% (South Africa)

On 03.09.11, In Mobile, By Editor

South Africa’s second national operator, Neotel, has slashed the call rates to mobile phones by 23% in an effort to improve its market share.

The lower rates which were prompted by the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa’s (ICASA) ruling on termination fees last year came into effect on March 1.

According to Neotel’s Dr Angus Hay, Neotel continues to offer the most cost effective home phone service for consumers. For as little as US$14.4 per month rental, you can get a wireless phone – no copper wires, no waiting for installation – and these new rates make it even more compelling. Even the old landline number can be retained.

According to Neotel, calls to the MTN or Vodacom network will now cost US$0.013 (plus VAT) during peak hours, and US$0.012 (plus VAT) during off-peak hours. Calls to Cell C and 8ta will cost US$0.17 (plus VAT) during peak hours, and US$0.013(plus VAT) during off-peak hours.

Hay added that at standard rates, it is still cheaper to call a Telkom line from a Neotel phone than from a Telkom phone, and all calls between Neotel subscribers countrywide are free after hours. Now, Neotel is able to offer the best ever prices for calls to mobile phones as well.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: 8ta • Call Rates • Cell C • Dr Angus Hay • Icasa • Independent Communications Authority of South Africa • Mobile • MTN • Neotel • South Africa • VAT • Vodacom

Telecom Namibia Deploys Fiber-Optic Cable for High-Speed Broadband Connectivity

On 02.28.11, In Mobile, By Editor

Telecom Namibia is set to link the southern African country to the consortium submarine system called West African Cable System (WACS) that links Africa to Europe.

The undersea fiber-optic cable, which was installed along the West African coast, delivered higher broadband connectivity for Namibia and its neighboring cities.

The WACS consortium includes 12 companies. They are Vodacom, Togo Telecom, Telkom SA, Telecom Namibia, Tata Communications/Neotel, Portugal Telecom/Cabo Verde Telecom, Office Congolais des Postes et Telecommunications, MTN, Congo Telecom, Cable & Wireless, Broadband Infraco and Angola Cables.

It is anticipated that the high-speed fiber-optic cable will help in reducing the cost for internet users. The cable will also be expanded to Botswana. According to media reports, Telecom Namibia has installed the required infrastructure to connect its Swakopmund’s landing station to the domestic network. The cable, which is installed in Swakopmund beach, was developed by Alcatel-Lucent Submarine Networks and Telecom Namibia.

Telecom Namibia anticipates that the commercial operation will be initiated in the Q2 of 2011 and hopes that the country will benefit from direct access to worldwide network cable network.

Telecom Namibia’s Managing Director, Frans Ndoroma stated that the 14,900 km WACS will provide direct connectivity between the UK, West Africa and Namibia.

Filed under:Mobile Tagged with: Africa • Angola • Angola Cables • Botswana • Broadband Infraco • Cable & Wireless • Congo Telecom • Europe • Mobile • MTN • Namibia • Office Congolais des Postes et Telecommunications • Portugal • Portugal Telecom/Cabo Verde Telecom • Tata Communications/Neotel • Telecom Namibia • Telkom SA • Togo • Togo Telecom • UK • Vodacom • West African Cable System (WACS)