Wednesday, May 05, 2004
Telkom gives glimpse into its Africa strategy
By Guy Berger
Highway Africa News Agency
CAIRO: South African fixed line telephone company, Telkom, has provided a peep into its future growth strategy, during the Africa Telecom 2004 conference taking place in Egypt this week.
In a briefing for telecom operators from other countries on the continent, the company’s Chief Techical Officer, Reuben September, laid out what he called “a vision of connected Africa through networks.”
His colleague Wally Beelders, executive for International and Special Markets, disclosed that a detailed version of the strategy would be presented to the Telkom board later this month. The directors would be asked to approve the necessary resourcing to make it happen.
According to Beelders, Telkom was looking at offering some of its satellite and submarine capacity on a wholesale basis to potential partners around the continent.
September outlined the rationale for the strategy as being “the bigger the networks, the lower the costs.” For this reason, Telkom wanted to set up “strategic partnership arrangements” with other telecoms companies in Africa.
One benefit would be using collective power to address high costs of using satellites – a technology that was sitting with huge underused capacity.
The company seems set to follow in the footsteps of its compatriot mobile fellows, Vodacom and MTN, who now earn a significant portion of their revenues from services around the continent.
Pre-empting criticism of South African expansionism, he said Telkom was seeking a take-on-board, not a take-over.
As one of the few African telecoms institutions that have made the transformation from state bureaucracy to stock-exchange listed commercial success, the company is the strongest fixed-line actor on the continent.
September said that Telkom already had relationships with other African countries, through its undersea cables, which had been build with a vision of 25 years capacity, but where take up had reduced this to ten or twelve.
An Eastern Africa submarine cable system, as part of a New Partnership for Africa's Development (Nepad) project with several countries, was in the pipeline. A total of 24 African countries used Telkom’s satellite services for basic voice traffic, and VSAT facilities were also used by major customers around the continent.
September also outlined how Telkom acted as a clearing house for international Voice over Internet Protocol (Voip) for a number of African countries, a system that enabled telcos to save on cross-border calls.
What Africa needed, he argued, was much more co-operation, and Telkom stood ready to serve as an outsource partner for players around the continent. He told the briefing that the company could offer:
* Network management from a single centre – the National Network Operations Centre in Pretoria.
* Management of companies’ local and wide area networks through the same centre.
*Network architecture through IP technologies developed by Telkom in conjunction with its Centres of Excellence – university-based institutes that included partnerships with Telkom’s supplier companies.
September said that African operators needed a strategy that would integrate fixed and mobile connectivity. The continent also needed high speed connections between domestic and foreign platforms, on a large scale so as to drive down costs.
“African issues drive the need for broadband – such as for use in e-government, e-learning, telemedicine. If we have fixation on narrowband services, we will exclude ourselves from broadband,” he argued.
Broadband could be achieved through copper, satellite, optical fibre cable, and wireless such as Wifi and Wimax. “Presently, wired and fixed wireless are most appropriate for broadband. Huge data users are still better served through fixed networks through their capacity, quality and reach.”
September cautioned that without investment and growth in broadband fixed systems, there would be a limit to the amount of traffic carried on mobile telephone systems. “Fixed and mobile will be forced back to the table, to find an integrated backbone network so that both parties can benefit,” he said.
“Mobile growth is a huge revenue source for fixed line. We support and enable the growth because we benefit from it,” added September.
“A key consideration therefore is that African operators equip their networks with broadband capability, as narrowband will not on its own fuel the economic growth of Africa.”
Asked to respond to the argument that partnerships would not work if Telkom sought to get the higher margin in any deal, Beelders responded that margins in connectivity were declining. “Value will be in what you can offer the user, because connectivity itself will become dirt cheap,” he said.
It was important that Telkom was not seen as milking any relationship, but providing commercially competitive solutions, he said.
Telkom, it appears, is positioning to help modernise fixed line services in Africa. Yet, as a member of the audience observed at the briefing, it will take lots of money and a long-term view on investment returns, for the venture to succeed.
Highway Africa reports from Cairo are made possible with support from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. Editorial decisions are solely the responsibility of Highway Africa.
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By Guy Berger
Highway Africa News Agency
CAIRO: South African fixed line telephone company, Telkom, has provided a peep into its future growth strategy, during the Africa Telecom 2004 conference taking place in Egypt this week.
In a briefing for telecom operators from other countries on the continent, the company’s Chief Techical Officer, Reuben September, laid out what he called “a vision of connected Africa through networks.”
His colleague Wally Beelders, executive for International and Special Markets, disclosed that a detailed version of the strategy would be presented to the Telkom board later this month. The directors would be asked to approve the necessary resourcing to make it happen.
According to Beelders, Telkom was looking at offering some of its satellite and submarine capacity on a wholesale basis to potential partners around the continent.
September outlined the rationale for the strategy as being “the bigger the networks, the lower the costs.” For this reason, Telkom wanted to set up “strategic partnership arrangements” with other telecoms companies in Africa.
One benefit would be using collective power to address high costs of using satellites – a technology that was sitting with huge underused capacity.
The company seems set to follow in the footsteps of its compatriot mobile fellows, Vodacom and MTN, who now earn a significant portion of their revenues from services around the continent.
Pre-empting criticism of South African expansionism, he said Telkom was seeking a take-on-board, not a take-over.
As one of the few African telecoms institutions that have made the transformation from state bureaucracy to stock-exchange listed commercial success, the company is the strongest fixed-line actor on the continent.
September said that Telkom already had relationships with other African countries, through its undersea cables, which had been build with a vision of 25 years capacity, but where take up had reduced this to ten or twelve.
An Eastern Africa submarine cable system, as part of a New Partnership for Africa's Development (Nepad) project with several countries, was in the pipeline. A total of 24 African countries used Telkom’s satellite services for basic voice traffic, and VSAT facilities were also used by major customers around the continent.
September also outlined how Telkom acted as a clearing house for international Voice over Internet Protocol (Voip) for a number of African countries, a system that enabled telcos to save on cross-border calls.
What Africa needed, he argued, was much more co-operation, and Telkom stood ready to serve as an outsource partner for players around the continent. He told the briefing that the company could offer:
* Network management from a single centre – the National Network Operations Centre in Pretoria.
* Management of companies’ local and wide area networks through the same centre.
*Network architecture through IP technologies developed by Telkom in conjunction with its Centres of Excellence – university-based institutes that included partnerships with Telkom’s supplier companies.
September said that African operators needed a strategy that would integrate fixed and mobile connectivity. The continent also needed high speed connections between domestic and foreign platforms, on a large scale so as to drive down costs.
“African issues drive the need for broadband – such as for use in e-government, e-learning, telemedicine. If we have fixation on narrowband services, we will exclude ourselves from broadband,” he argued.
Broadband could be achieved through copper, satellite, optical fibre cable, and wireless such as Wifi and Wimax. “Presently, wired and fixed wireless are most appropriate for broadband. Huge data users are still better served through fixed networks through their capacity, quality and reach.”
September cautioned that without investment and growth in broadband fixed systems, there would be a limit to the amount of traffic carried on mobile telephone systems. “Fixed and mobile will be forced back to the table, to find an integrated backbone network so that both parties can benefit,” he said.
“Mobile growth is a huge revenue source for fixed line. We support and enable the growth because we benefit from it,” added September.
“A key consideration therefore is that African operators equip their networks with broadband capability, as narrowband will not on its own fuel the economic growth of Africa.”
Asked to respond to the argument that partnerships would not work if Telkom sought to get the higher margin in any deal, Beelders responded that margins in connectivity were declining. “Value will be in what you can offer the user, because connectivity itself will become dirt cheap,” he said.
It was important that Telkom was not seen as milking any relationship, but providing commercially competitive solutions, he said.
Telkom, it appears, is positioning to help modernise fixed line services in Africa. Yet, as a member of the audience observed at the briefing, it will take lots of money and a long-term view on investment returns, for the venture to succeed.
Highway Africa reports from Cairo are made possible with support from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. Editorial decisions are solely the responsibility of Highway Africa.
West African IT Pioneers
CAIRO:
By Thrishni Subramoney
Highway Africa News Agency
CAIRO: If you would like to rub shoulders with African IT pioneers, then the Nigerian Pavilion at the Telecom Africa 2004 conference in Cairo, Egypt is the place for you.
Tucked away at the back of the exhibition hall at the Cairo International Convention Centre, it's hardly the most hi-tech of the exhibits. There are no flashy giant LCD screens (and there are quite a few of those at this event) or expensive special effects.
What you will find in this vibrant spot - decorated with West African fabrics and art - is some stimulating conversation with entrepreneurs who are serious about taking their IT solutions all the way to the top of the market. If you're lucky, you'll also get some tasty Nigerian treats.
One of the hospitable stall holders, Florence Seriki, is the CEO of Omatek, which she says is the first Nigerian company to manufacture hard drive cases. While her designs have the conventional clear lines of most hard drive cases, Omatek's creations have an African flair with understated floral patterns and green shell colors. She says the market is an expensive one though, and her participation at this gathering is mainly to drum up support for her products.
"We opened a factory last year, to also install motherboards in our cases. We're getting our products from the same companies that supply equipment to Compaq. But we had to buy one thousand motherboards at a go, so I am here to try and sell this stuff," she says.
She says new regulations in the West African country have made it possible for her business to be profitable at home. The Nigerian government has passed a directive that only local products should be used in all public sector offices.
Another claimed Nigerian IT first at the Nigerian Pavilion is Zionix the first company in the country to manufacture hardware. Partnering with Mercer of South Africa for technological know-how and France's Alhenna Ventures for financial support, the company has manufactured PCs, laptops and monitors since 2001. Marketing Executive, Chizoba Akubiro says their products carry Microsoft software.
"We got Microsoft certification before we started, and because we were the first in the country, we're getting ahead of our competition. In a few years, we'll be like Mercer in South Africa," she says gesticulating with an air of dramatic optimism.
One company at the Nigerian Pavilion that is positive about competition is Nigeria's first telecommunications provider, Nitel. Nitel has been the only telecommunications provider in the country until recently.
Deputy General Manager, Akin Ajayi says opening up the market has helped her company become more focused.
"We have become more customer orientated and we have re-structured in order to go beyond what we provided before,” she said.
While most of the business representatives at the Pavilion admit that the IT market in Nigeria is limited since many citizens can't afford PCs, much less Internet connections, there are some companies that are turning this state of affairs into an opportunity for expansion.
One such company, Startech, is offering start-up packages to people who want to set-up Internet cafes in Nigeria. Head of Marketing, Sonny Nwoko, says this helps grow the ICT market in their country, because such cafes are the only access that many Nigerians have to this type of technology.
"We are hampered by infrastructure problems. Sometimes the power supply to certain areas may not be very good; sometimes people can't afford our other ISP services. This way, we reach more people," he says.
Definitely one of the more popular exhibitions at this year’s conference – the Nigerian Pavilion with its colour and charisma, is certainly one to watch.
==========================
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CAIRO:
By Thrishni Subramoney
Highway Africa News Agency
CAIRO: If you would like to rub shoulders with African IT pioneers, then the Nigerian Pavilion at the Telecom Africa 2004 conference in Cairo, Egypt is the place for you.
Tucked away at the back of the exhibition hall at the Cairo International Convention Centre, it's hardly the most hi-tech of the exhibits. There are no flashy giant LCD screens (and there are quite a few of those at this event) or expensive special effects.
What you will find in this vibrant spot - decorated with West African fabrics and art - is some stimulating conversation with entrepreneurs who are serious about taking their IT solutions all the way to the top of the market. If you're lucky, you'll also get some tasty Nigerian treats.
One of the hospitable stall holders, Florence Seriki, is the CEO of Omatek, which she says is the first Nigerian company to manufacture hard drive cases. While her designs have the conventional clear lines of most hard drive cases, Omatek's creations have an African flair with understated floral patterns and green shell colors. She says the market is an expensive one though, and her participation at this gathering is mainly to drum up support for her products.
"We opened a factory last year, to also install motherboards in our cases. We're getting our products from the same companies that supply equipment to Compaq. But we had to buy one thousand motherboards at a go, so I am here to try and sell this stuff," she says.
She says new regulations in the West African country have made it possible for her business to be profitable at home. The Nigerian government has passed a directive that only local products should be used in all public sector offices.
Another claimed Nigerian IT first at the Nigerian Pavilion is Zionix the first company in the country to manufacture hardware. Partnering with Mercer of South Africa for technological know-how and France's Alhenna Ventures for financial support, the company has manufactured PCs, laptops and monitors since 2001. Marketing Executive, Chizoba Akubiro says their products carry Microsoft software.
"We got Microsoft certification before we started, and because we were the first in the country, we're getting ahead of our competition. In a few years, we'll be like Mercer in South Africa," she says gesticulating with an air of dramatic optimism.
One company at the Nigerian Pavilion that is positive about competition is Nigeria's first telecommunications provider, Nitel. Nitel has been the only telecommunications provider in the country until recently.
Deputy General Manager, Akin Ajayi says opening up the market has helped her company become more focused.
"We have become more customer orientated and we have re-structured in order to go beyond what we provided before,” she said.
While most of the business representatives at the Pavilion admit that the IT market in Nigeria is limited since many citizens can't afford PCs, much less Internet connections, there are some companies that are turning this state of affairs into an opportunity for expansion.
One such company, Startech, is offering start-up packages to people who want to set-up Internet cafes in Nigeria. Head of Marketing, Sonny Nwoko, says this helps grow the ICT market in their country, because such cafes are the only access that many Nigerians have to this type of technology.
"We are hampered by infrastructure problems. Sometimes the power supply to certain areas may not be very good; sometimes people can't afford our other ISP services. This way, we reach more people," he says.
Definitely one of the more popular exhibitions at this year’s conference – the Nigerian Pavilion with its colour and charisma, is certainly one to watch.
==========================
Telecoms growth is not the result of government policy – expert
CAIRO: Wednesday, 3rd May. 2004
By Guy Berger
Highway Africa News Agency
CAIRO- Africa’s rapid growth of cellphones is despite, not because of, policies adopted by governments, a South African expert told an international telecoms conference in Egypt yesterday.
Alison Gillwald of the LINK centre at Witwatersrand University called for a fundamental review of the past five years of policies, arguing that their assumptions were no longer valid. “Policy is only as good as its ability to impact on the development of the sector,” she argued.
Her intervention directly contrasted with the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), convenor of the conference. According to the ITU, “policy and regulatory reforms are the primary reason for this phenomenal growth.”
According to Gillwald, the high growth rate in cellphone lines needed to be seen against the backdrop of a very low base. Highly innovative regulations would be needed to take care of the huge remaining gap.
Enormous business and technical possibilities existed, but were constrained by present policy and regulatory constraints, she said.
Gillwald went on to assess what she called “four prongs” of African telecoms policy:
* Private sector driven growth had been one assumption, but the results had been depressing.
* The model’s main driver was seen as foreign investment in African telecoms, but inflows had been greatly reduced because of the international recession.
* A third leg had been part or whole privatisation of the state telecoms company. But this had often entailed maximising state assets for short-term financial reasons, or giving away spectrum rights without charging for their actual value.
* The fourth policy prong was protection of the incumbent operator, in the form of limiting competition through giving it a legalised monopoly on certain services. The aim, said Gillwald, had been to attract foreign investors and to roll out phones to poor and rural communities. But there had been an actual decline in the number of fixed line connections.
The four policy assumptions might work elsewhere, but Africa should adapt, not just adopt, foreign policies, she said.
Her main point was that the growth of mobile telephony on the continent had been an unintended outcome of the dominant policy model. It had originally been seen as a sideline servicing the elite who already had access to landline phones.
Gillwald said a new market structure with competitive incentives was needed, and it should be based on a fundamental review of how to increase investment in telecoms.
A similar theme was raised by other conference speakers who urged governments to renegotiate monopoly agreements they had made with incumbent operators.
Highway Africa reports from Cairo are made possible with support from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. Editorial decisions are solely the responsibility of Highway Africa.
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CAIRO: Wednesday, 3rd May. 2004
By Guy Berger
Highway Africa News Agency
CAIRO- Africa’s rapid growth of cellphones is despite, not because of, policies adopted by governments, a South African expert told an international telecoms conference in Egypt yesterday.
Alison Gillwald of the LINK centre at Witwatersrand University called for a fundamental review of the past five years of policies, arguing that their assumptions were no longer valid. “Policy is only as good as its ability to impact on the development of the sector,” she argued.
Her intervention directly contrasted with the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), convenor of the conference. According to the ITU, “policy and regulatory reforms are the primary reason for this phenomenal growth.”
According to Gillwald, the high growth rate in cellphone lines needed to be seen against the backdrop of a very low base. Highly innovative regulations would be needed to take care of the huge remaining gap.
Enormous business and technical possibilities existed, but were constrained by present policy and regulatory constraints, she said.
Gillwald went on to assess what she called “four prongs” of African telecoms policy:
* Private sector driven growth had been one assumption, but the results had been depressing.
* The model’s main driver was seen as foreign investment in African telecoms, but inflows had been greatly reduced because of the international recession.
* A third leg had been part or whole privatisation of the state telecoms company. But this had often entailed maximising state assets for short-term financial reasons, or giving away spectrum rights without charging for their actual value.
* The fourth policy prong was protection of the incumbent operator, in the form of limiting competition through giving it a legalised monopoly on certain services. The aim, said Gillwald, had been to attract foreign investors and to roll out phones to poor and rural communities. But there had been an actual decline in the number of fixed line connections.
The four policy assumptions might work elsewhere, but Africa should adapt, not just adopt, foreign policies, she said.
Her main point was that the growth of mobile telephony on the continent had been an unintended outcome of the dominant policy model. It had originally been seen as a sideline servicing the elite who already had access to landline phones.
Gillwald said a new market structure with competitive incentives was needed, and it should be based on a fundamental review of how to increase investment in telecoms.
A similar theme was raised by other conference speakers who urged governments to renegotiate monopoly agreements they had made with incumbent operators.
Highway Africa reports from Cairo are made possible with support from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. Editorial decisions are solely the responsibility of Highway Africa.
Public-Private partnerships will bridge the divide, says South African Minister
By Thrishni Subramoney
“We have the policy, we have the regulations, we have the legal framework, and yet we don’t get FDI (Foreign Direct Investment). But, why are we always looking outside? That’s the question that African countries need to ask themselves. We have the capacity here on the continent. We just need to harness it”
South African Information and Communications Minister, Dr. Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri was adamant on this point during her interview with Highway Africa at the Africa Telecom 2004 conference.
Chatting between plenary sessions on the first day of the gathering, the minister said the private sector needs to "get into gear" in order to sustain ICT growth in Africa. She stressed though, that co-operation between countries in the region is another critical aspect to Africa’s IT puzzle.
“There is much to be gained if the private sector came on board – they need to join with us to make this work. But also, countries in this region need to work between themselves to solve our problems.”
On the issue of South Africa’s much anticipated Second National Operator (SNO), Casaburri again places the blame squarely on the shoulders of the private sector. “The technical side has been dealt with, the policy is there, where is the private sector?” she asks with an edge of irritation in her voice.
She didn’t seem convinced that increasing incentives for investors – a route that a few African countries, like Egypt have taken in order to boost the growth of the industry - was the way to go.
“The (South African) Department of Trade and Industry does have incentives in place, but you have to be careful, that in the name of “incentivising” you don’t undermine your own growing industries.”
The latest ITU report that shows the burgeoning growth of cellphone networks in the region had caught her attention, but she says while it is a start, it’s not the ideal route for ICT growth to take.
“Well, cellphones are one more expensive route. But the market in South Africa has grown well beyond our expectations,” she said.
“However, the question is, how can we use this to bring in context. The challenge is that we need to develop content so that it can touch on local concerns,” she adds.
She immediately warms to the topic of local content. “There is such a rich cultural base in South Africa,” she enthuses, “There is a rich spirit that we need to put on to our systems, instead of always consuming foreign media.”
She says rich local content is one of the reasons that South Africa is forging close IT relations with Brazil and India. “Both these countries have made local content into a big business, and we have common ground with them. We have a sizeable Portuguese and Indian communities in South Africa. But it’s not just about common ground, it’s about sharing ideas and co-operation.”
She says ultimately, she would like to see countries in Southern Africa collectively create and share local content. “We have languages in common, and this material will be more meaningful to people living in this area. The big challenge there is that we need build the black capacity, we need educated black people who will stay in the country and build this sector.”
ITU Secretary General, Yoshio Utsumi, said at the opening session that one of the vital ingredients needed for growing the industry in Africa was an independent regulator with teeth.
Matsepe-Casaburri says the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) was working, but was not as strong as it could be.
“One problem with ICASA is that it lacks funding, the government is looking into making it a stronger body.”
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By Thrishni Subramoney
“We have the policy, we have the regulations, we have the legal framework, and yet we don’t get FDI (Foreign Direct Investment). But, why are we always looking outside? That’s the question that African countries need to ask themselves. We have the capacity here on the continent. We just need to harness it”
South African Information and Communications Minister, Dr. Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri was adamant on this point during her interview with Highway Africa at the Africa Telecom 2004 conference.
Chatting between plenary sessions on the first day of the gathering, the minister said the private sector needs to "get into gear" in order to sustain ICT growth in Africa. She stressed though, that co-operation between countries in the region is another critical aspect to Africa’s IT puzzle.
“There is much to be gained if the private sector came on board – they need to join with us to make this work. But also, countries in this region need to work between themselves to solve our problems.”
On the issue of South Africa’s much anticipated Second National Operator (SNO), Casaburri again places the blame squarely on the shoulders of the private sector. “The technical side has been dealt with, the policy is there, where is the private sector?” she asks with an edge of irritation in her voice.
She didn’t seem convinced that increasing incentives for investors – a route that a few African countries, like Egypt have taken in order to boost the growth of the industry - was the way to go.
“The (South African) Department of Trade and Industry does have incentives in place, but you have to be careful, that in the name of “incentivising” you don’t undermine your own growing industries.”
The latest ITU report that shows the burgeoning growth of cellphone networks in the region had caught her attention, but she says while it is a start, it’s not the ideal route for ICT growth to take.
“Well, cellphones are one more expensive route. But the market in South Africa has grown well beyond our expectations,” she said.
“However, the question is, how can we use this to bring in context. The challenge is that we need to develop content so that it can touch on local concerns,” she adds.
She immediately warms to the topic of local content. “There is such a rich cultural base in South Africa,” she enthuses, “There is a rich spirit that we need to put on to our systems, instead of always consuming foreign media.”
She says rich local content is one of the reasons that South Africa is forging close IT relations with Brazil and India. “Both these countries have made local content into a big business, and we have common ground with them. We have a sizeable Portuguese and Indian communities in South Africa. But it’s not just about common ground, it’s about sharing ideas and co-operation.”
She says ultimately, she would like to see countries in Southern Africa collectively create and share local content. “We have languages in common, and this material will be more meaningful to people living in this area. The big challenge there is that we need build the black capacity, we need educated black people who will stay in the country and build this sector.”
ITU Secretary General, Yoshio Utsumi, said at the opening session that one of the vital ingredients needed for growing the industry in Africa was an independent regulator with teeth.
Matsepe-Casaburri says the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) was working, but was not as strong as it could be.
“One problem with ICASA is that it lacks funding, the government is looking into making it a stronger body.”
Broadband must be Africa’s aim
By Guy Berger
Highway Africa News Agency
African governments and regulators need to create an environment conducive
to the growth of telecoms and very especially of broadband infrastructure in
order to build the Information Society.
This was the message to the Africa Telecom 2004 conference by Karl Socikwa,
CEO of South Africa’s parastatal Transtel. The company is part of a
consortium being licensed to operate South Africa’s second national
operator.
A broadband action plan was needed for the continent, and each country
needed one as well, he said.
Broadband meant, “a connection to each customer with enough bandwidth, and
it becomes possible to support a range of multiple, simultaneous combined
voice and data services.”
He quoted South Africa’s Convergence Bill as defining broadband as “a high
capacity link between end user and … suppliers, capable of supporting full
motion, interactive video applications”.
Socikwa complained that just as the WSIS final documents failed to include
reference to convergence, so South Africa’s Convergence Bill only mentioned
broadband once. He also noted that at present the highest broadband
connection a person could get in South Africa was 512 kilobytes, “a far cry
from the multi-megabits per second available elsewhere”.
Arguing that the information society could not exist without telecoms and
advanced telecoms services, the Transtel CEO said that the time to develop
broadband policies was now.
“Just as the growth of mobile is closing the gap between developing and
developed countries in basic telephony, so the lack of broadband access is
widening a new digital divide.”
Broadband was what made convergence a reality, said Socikwa. In turn,
convergence referred to the way that any content – whether voices or data –
could be represented in digital form and conveyed on any digital
infrastructure
Socikwa predicted that “broadband penetration will become the measure of
access to a wide range of services and information.” Tradition low-bandwidth
services such as the “plain old telephone” would become obsolete, and
multiple services the norm.
His current concern was that “it is regulation, and not simply technology,
that makes for convergence …”
South Africa’s draft convergence law would make for a competitive market
that would “blur the lines between all facilities players, fixed and mobile,
voice and data.”
Socikwa cautioned, however, that if this undermined the conditions of
existing licences, or changed the environment overnight, it could discourage
investment in the sector.
The speaker, whose own company will have a fixed line license that will
combine wired and wireless technologies, was sceptical about mobile
telephony providing adequate broadband access. “Despite all the hype about
3G mobile, true broadband access is, and will remain, a fixed network
phenomenon.”
Broadband was the primary driver of the growth in fixed line telecoms
networks, Socikwa said. The most successful broadband operators around the
world had taken a mass-market approach, making the service available and
affordable to a large percentage of their users.
The Transtel CEO stated that the growth of mobile services was no surprise
because “governments have typically allowed competition in mobile services
whiles clinging to control of monopoly fixed-line incumbents.”
He also noted that “incumbent operators are often the fiercest critics of
disruptive technologies and will often choose not to deploy appropriate
technologies for fear of eroding their existing revenue and infrastructure
base.
“In Africa, we cannot afford the luxury of this approach. Innovation must be
rewarded, rather than punished, and competition must not revolve around
protection of the incumbent, but of the interests of the user.”
Socikwa cited a prediction by a company called Ovum that there would be
1.8million broadband subscribers in South Africa by 2009. “Not only does
this number need to be greater, or the date earlier, but it needs to be
matched across the continent, if Africa is to have any hope of bridging this
new digital divide.”
Governments should consider subsidised access to broadband. There should
also be incentives to operators since “the long-term national benefits far
outweigh the short term infrastructure costs operators will have to bear.”
He pointed out that “the need for Internet and other data services requires
a level of sophistication only found in literate, or at least
computer-literate societies. Bridging this divide takes more than investment
in telecommunications, but also in education and other infrastructures.”
According to Socikwa, voice over internet protocol (VOIP) was not a miracle
technology for Africa, but “simply another tool that operators have that
allows them to build cost-effective multi-service networks.”
He praised Egypt for a very aggressive promotion of internet.
Highway Africa reports from Cairo are made possible with support from the
Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. Editorial decisions are solely
the responsibility of Highway Africa.
=============
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By Guy Berger
Highway Africa News Agency
African governments and regulators need to create an environment conducive
to the growth of telecoms and very especially of broadband infrastructure in
order to build the Information Society.
This was the message to the Africa Telecom 2004 conference by Karl Socikwa,
CEO of South Africa’s parastatal Transtel. The company is part of a
consortium being licensed to operate South Africa’s second national
operator.
A broadband action plan was needed for the continent, and each country
needed one as well, he said.
Broadband meant, “a connection to each customer with enough bandwidth, and
it becomes possible to support a range of multiple, simultaneous combined
voice and data services.”
He quoted South Africa’s Convergence Bill as defining broadband as “a high
capacity link between end user and … suppliers, capable of supporting full
motion, interactive video applications”.
Socikwa complained that just as the WSIS final documents failed to include
reference to convergence, so South Africa’s Convergence Bill only mentioned
broadband once. He also noted that at present the highest broadband
connection a person could get in South Africa was 512 kilobytes, “a far cry
from the multi-megabits per second available elsewhere”.
Arguing that the information society could not exist without telecoms and
advanced telecoms services, the Transtel CEO said that the time to develop
broadband policies was now.
“Just as the growth of mobile is closing the gap between developing and
developed countries in basic telephony, so the lack of broadband access is
widening a new digital divide.”
Broadband was what made convergence a reality, said Socikwa. In turn,
convergence referred to the way that any content – whether voices or data –
could be represented in digital form and conveyed on any digital
infrastructure
Socikwa predicted that “broadband penetration will become the measure of
access to a wide range of services and information.” Tradition low-bandwidth
services such as the “plain old telephone” would become obsolete, and
multiple services the norm.
His current concern was that “it is regulation, and not simply technology,
that makes for convergence …”
South Africa’s draft convergence law would make for a competitive market
that would “blur the lines between all facilities players, fixed and mobile,
voice and data.”
Socikwa cautioned, however, that if this undermined the conditions of
existing licences, or changed the environment overnight, it could discourage
investment in the sector.
The speaker, whose own company will have a fixed line license that will
combine wired and wireless technologies, was sceptical about mobile
telephony providing adequate broadband access. “Despite all the hype about
3G mobile, true broadband access is, and will remain, a fixed network
phenomenon.”
Broadband was the primary driver of the growth in fixed line telecoms
networks, Socikwa said. The most successful broadband operators around the
world had taken a mass-market approach, making the service available and
affordable to a large percentage of their users.
The Transtel CEO stated that the growth of mobile services was no surprise
because “governments have typically allowed competition in mobile services
whiles clinging to control of monopoly fixed-line incumbents.”
He also noted that “incumbent operators are often the fiercest critics of
disruptive technologies and will often choose not to deploy appropriate
technologies for fear of eroding their existing revenue and infrastructure
base.
“In Africa, we cannot afford the luxury of this approach. Innovation must be
rewarded, rather than punished, and competition must not revolve around
protection of the incumbent, but of the interests of the user.”
Socikwa cited a prediction by a company called Ovum that there would be
1.8million broadband subscribers in South Africa by 2009. “Not only does
this number need to be greater, or the date earlier, but it needs to be
matched across the continent, if Africa is to have any hope of bridging this
new digital divide.”
Governments should consider subsidised access to broadband. There should
also be incentives to operators since “the long-term national benefits far
outweigh the short term infrastructure costs operators will have to bear.”
He pointed out that “the need for Internet and other data services requires
a level of sophistication only found in literate, or at least
computer-literate societies. Bridging this divide takes more than investment
in telecommunications, but also in education and other infrastructures.”
According to Socikwa, voice over internet protocol (VOIP) was not a miracle
technology for Africa, but “simply another tool that operators have that
allows them to build cost-effective multi-service networks.”
He praised Egypt for a very aggressive promotion of internet.
Highway Africa reports from Cairo are made possible with support from the
Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. Editorial decisions are solely
the responsibility of Highway Africa.
=============
And the verdict is?By Haru Mutasa
Imagine a remote African village far removed from the hustle and bustle of urban life. The inhabitants of this island barely have running water or electricity let alone a telephone.
Life is relatively simple and people go about their lives making ends meet in whatever way they know how. For one individual this is done through the community phone shop – the only form of regular communication with the outside world.
Stewart White, Vodafone Group Public Policy Director speaking at a panel discussion on the state of the telecommunications industry in Africa painted this picture in his mind's eye, "Perhaps bean farmers in Kenya could, before exporting their crop to London for sale, use this phone shop to call up their contacts in the UK and find out what the trading prices are like before shipping their cargo."
His scenario is probably true of what is possible on the continent thanks to the proliferation of phones, both fixed and mobile, that have gripped the continent and refused to let go. "Over 100 million minutes of calls are made every month from a community with just one community phone shop," he said, "and in the three years since Johannesburg (Telecom Africa 2001), mobiles have overtaken fixed lines significantly."
Telecom Egypt chairman Akil Hamed Beshir, echoing the general sentiment of delegates at the sixth International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Telecom Africa conference in Cairo Egypt said, "Africa has had its ups and downs when it comes to telecommunications. However for some time now figures of mobile users have been increasing when other countries around the world are seeing stagnation in subscribers. But there has not been enough investment and what we need to see are African operators entering partnerships and mergers with global companies."
As one foreign eager beaver itches to leap onto the band wagon, the future looks bright for Africa. "It is only through privatisation and deregulation that foreign direct investment and joint ventures between foreign and local investors can materialise," said Italian business man Stefano Mazzitelli of Telecom Italia Sparkle, "This will be good for the continent socially and economically encouraging competition which ultimately drives markets down."
Telecom Italia Sparkle is owned by the Telecom Italia Group, a leading Group in the ICT world Telecom Italia Sparkle in Italy. It provides telecommunications services to fixed and mobile operators, ISPs, and multinational companies.
"We want this done in a cooperative way – not a paternalistic one and we want to assist and support Africa in telecommunications advancement," he explained.
When asked why Italy is keen on investing in Africa his reply was short, sweet and to the point. "The high numbers speak for themselves so I will not elaborate on that," he said, "Internet is reasonably distributed across the continent and voice technology is showing interesting growth factors - all translating into economic growth and wealth for the continent."
With several African operators emerging as regional powerhouses with the ability to spread investment across the continent, a positive lucrative future seems inevitable for Africa if countries openly embrace offers from foreign companies – offers which could very well benefit Africa's ICT landscape.
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Imagine a remote African village far removed from the hustle and bustle of urban life. The inhabitants of this island barely have running water or electricity let alone a telephone.
Life is relatively simple and people go about their lives making ends meet in whatever way they know how. For one individual this is done through the community phone shop – the only form of regular communication with the outside world.
Stewart White, Vodafone Group Public Policy Director speaking at a panel discussion on the state of the telecommunications industry in Africa painted this picture in his mind's eye, "Perhaps bean farmers in Kenya could, before exporting their crop to London for sale, use this phone shop to call up their contacts in the UK and find out what the trading prices are like before shipping their cargo."
His scenario is probably true of what is possible on the continent thanks to the proliferation of phones, both fixed and mobile, that have gripped the continent and refused to let go. "Over 100 million minutes of calls are made every month from a community with just one community phone shop," he said, "and in the three years since Johannesburg (Telecom Africa 2001), mobiles have overtaken fixed lines significantly."
Telecom Egypt chairman Akil Hamed Beshir, echoing the general sentiment of delegates at the sixth International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Telecom Africa conference in Cairo Egypt said, "Africa has had its ups and downs when it comes to telecommunications. However for some time now figures of mobile users have been increasing when other countries around the world are seeing stagnation in subscribers. But there has not been enough investment and what we need to see are African operators entering partnerships and mergers with global companies."
As one foreign eager beaver itches to leap onto the band wagon, the future looks bright for Africa. "It is only through privatisation and deregulation that foreign direct investment and joint ventures between foreign and local investors can materialise," said Italian business man Stefano Mazzitelli of Telecom Italia Sparkle, "This will be good for the continent socially and economically encouraging competition which ultimately drives markets down."
Telecom Italia Sparkle is owned by the Telecom Italia Group, a leading Group in the ICT world Telecom Italia Sparkle in Italy. It provides telecommunications services to fixed and mobile operators, ISPs, and multinational companies.
"We want this done in a cooperative way – not a paternalistic one and we want to assist and support Africa in telecommunications advancement," he explained.
When asked why Italy is keen on investing in Africa his reply was short, sweet and to the point. "The high numbers speak for themselves so I will not elaborate on that," he said, "Internet is reasonably distributed across the continent and voice technology is showing interesting growth factors - all translating into economic growth and wealth for the continent."
With several African operators emerging as regional powerhouses with the ability to spread investment across the continent, a positive lucrative future seems inevitable for Africa if countries openly embrace offers from foreign companies – offers which could very well benefit Africa's ICT landscape.
==================================
Egypt and China tie the knotBy Haru Mutasa
ZTE, China's largest listed telecommunications equipment manufacturer was awarded the contract to construct a CDMA Wireless Local Loop (CDMA WLL) network for Telecom Egypt.
CDMA (Code-Division Multiple Access) refers to any of several protocols used in so-called second-generation (2G) and third-generation (3G) wireless communications. It allows numerous signals to occupy a single transmission channel, maximising the use of available bandwidth.
CDMA is by no means new development in the world of telecommunications. Originally a military technology, it was first used during World War II by the English allies to foil German attempts at jamming transmissions. The allies did this by transmitting over several frequencies, instead of one, making it difficult for the Germans to pick up the complete signal.
This is how it works. Audio input is first digitised into binary elements. The frequency of the transmitted signal is then made to vary according to a defined pattern or code. This means it can only be intercepted by a receiver whose frequency response is programmed with the same code. The vast number of possible frequency-sequencing codes enhances privacy and makes cloning difficult.
The ZTE contract, signed at the sixth International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Telecom Africa conference in Cairo Egypt, commits ZTE to implementing a CDMA WLL wireless access system to the richest and most populous communities in the Nile River Delta with a total capacity of 60 000 subscriber lines.
Africa and the Middle East, according to statistics from the CDMA Development Group, show the second highest growth rate even though together they are a relatively smaller market in terms of total subscriber numbers. This comes as no surprise when one considers the benefits of this emerging telecommunications technology.
With its capacity to offer an affordable wireless alternative to fixed line voice and Internet access services, CDMA WLL seems set to enjoy a long life on the African continent.
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ZTE, China's largest listed telecommunications equipment manufacturer was awarded the contract to construct a CDMA Wireless Local Loop (CDMA WLL) network for Telecom Egypt.
CDMA (Code-Division Multiple Access) refers to any of several protocols used in so-called second-generation (2G) and third-generation (3G) wireless communications. It allows numerous signals to occupy a single transmission channel, maximising the use of available bandwidth.
CDMA is by no means new development in the world of telecommunications. Originally a military technology, it was first used during World War II by the English allies to foil German attempts at jamming transmissions. The allies did this by transmitting over several frequencies, instead of one, making it difficult for the Germans to pick up the complete signal.
This is how it works. Audio input is first digitised into binary elements. The frequency of the transmitted signal is then made to vary according to a defined pattern or code. This means it can only be intercepted by a receiver whose frequency response is programmed with the same code. The vast number of possible frequency-sequencing codes enhances privacy and makes cloning difficult.
The ZTE contract, signed at the sixth International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Telecom Africa conference in Cairo Egypt, commits ZTE to implementing a CDMA WLL wireless access system to the richest and most populous communities in the Nile River Delta with a total capacity of 60 000 subscriber lines.
Africa and the Middle East, according to statistics from the CDMA Development Group, show the second highest growth rate even though together they are a relatively smaller market in terms of total subscriber numbers. This comes as no surprise when one considers the benefits of this emerging telecommunications technology.
With its capacity to offer an affordable wireless alternative to fixed line voice and Internet access services, CDMA WLL seems set to enjoy a long life on the African continent.
