Communications Africa 2 2013

Afrique

Issue 2 2013Édition 2 2013

SatelliteHow Africa’s debate on broadband

connectivity is changing

BillingInterconnect in the cloud, for better

wholesale partner management

CableConnecting Southern Africa

and South America

TechnologieAutour de l’éducation et de

l’apprentissage mobileEurope m15 - Kenya KSH300 - Nigeria N400 - South Africa R20 - UK £10 - USA $16.50

Watching the markets for solutions and services on content managementand provision

Africa

FEATURES: ● Internet ● Mobile ● InfrastructureREGULAR REPORTS: ● Bulletin - Agenda ● Equipment - Équipement

www.communicationsafrica.com

CAF 2 2013 Cover_Layout 1 12/04/2013 10:32 Page 1

S01 CAF 2 2013 Start_Layout 1 12/04/2013 12:28 Page 2

Communications Africa Issue 2 2013 3

Afrique

Issue 2 2013Édition 2 2013

SatelliteHow Africa’s debate on broadband

connectivity is changing

BillingInterconnect in the cloud, for better

wholesale partner management

CableConnecting Southern Africa

and South America

TechnologieAutour de l’éducation et de

l’apprentissage mobileEurope m15 - Kenya KSH300 - Nigeria N400 - South Africa R20 - UK £10 - USA $16.50

Watching the markets for solutions and services on content managementand provision

Africa

FEATURES: ● Internet ● Mobile ● InfrastructureREGULAR REPORTS: ● Bulletin - Agenda ● Equipment - Équipement


A note from the EditorTHE AFRICAN MOBILE market isincreasingly complex and competitive,and operators are compelled tocontinue to innovate. to look at newtechnologies and models to manageimplementation, connectivity, andrevenues. Page 18 of this issueaddresses interconnect billing, pages20 to 22 offer insights into satelliteconnectivity. Pages 26 and 27 show howinformation and communciationtechnologies (ICTs) are applied to servebusiness and society.

Une note du rédacteurLE MARCHÉ MOBILE africain est deplus en plus complexe etconcurrentiel, et les opérateurs sontobligés de continuer à innover. àregarder les nouvelles technologieset les modèles pour gérer la mise enœuvre, la connectivité et lesrevenus. Page 19 de ce numéroreprésente technologie pour unprogramme scolaire, page 25donnent texte sur la connectivitéInternet. Page 28 montre commentles technologies de l'information etde communication présentée (TIC)sont appliqués à servir lesentreprises et la société.

Bulletin 4

Events 8

Agenda 9

Equipment 29

FEATURES

Revenue 18How and why operators can innovate management of wholesale partner relations, with interconnect billing

Satellite 20Broadband connectivity is changing, becoming more affordable and more practical; support for deployment to create

sophisticated digital economies; and opportunities in the provision and management of content services

Commerce 24Across Africa, new payment solutions are being rolled out - including payment devices with biometrics for identity

authentication, and dual SIM and tri-comms systems

ICT 26Notes on the South Atlantic Cable System (SACS), which is designed to provide low latency routing between Africa,

Asia and the Americas; and business modelling for data connectivity

Bulletin 6

Agenda 17

Technologie 19Des idées sur les façons d’utiliser cette technologie et de l’intégrer dans un programme scolaire

Commerce 25Le réseau Internet at les téléphones portables transforment des perspectives de développement en Afrique

TIC 28Comment une plateforme informatique fait de révolutionner la gestion et la diffusion des données sur le continent

CONTENTS

Managing Editor: Andrew Croft - [email protected]

Editorial and Design team: Bob Adams, Prashant AP, Hiriyti Bairu, Lizzie Carroll, David Clancy,Ranganath GS, Kasturi Gupta, Rhonita Patnaik, Genaro Santos, Zsa Tebbit, Nicky Valsamakis and Ben Watts

Publisher: Nick Fordham

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Magazine Sales Manager: Steve Thomas - Tel: +44 (0) 20 7834 7676, Fax: +44 (0) 20 7973 0076, Email: [email protected]

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Head Office: Middle East Regional Office:Alain Charles Publishing Ltd Alain Charles Middle East FZ-LLCUniversity House Office 215, Loft 2A11-13 Lower Grosvenor Place PO Box 502207London SW1W 0EX, United Kingdom Dubai Media City, UAETelephone: +44 20 7834 7676 Telephone: +971 4 448 9260Fax: +44 20 7973 0076 Fax: +971 4 448 9261

Production: Donatella Moranelli, Nathanielle Kumar, Nick Salt, Jeremy Walters and Sophia White Email: [email protected]

Subscriptions: [email protected]: Derek FordhamPrinted by: Wyndeham Grange Ltd Communications Africa/Afrique is bi-monthly magazine ISSN: 0962 3841

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Communications Africa Issue 2 20134

BULLETIN

Huawei helps operators make multi-network synergyHUAWEI LAUNCHED ITS innovative single radio controller (SRC) solutionat Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2013, a solution designed to achievemulti-RAT network synergy, enhance network capacity and efficiency,and help operators build networks that provide a better mobilebroadband (MBB) experience; Wang Tao, president of Huawei WirelessNetworks, said, “SRC realises the industry’s first five-mode accesscontrol for GSM, UMTS, LTE FDD, LTE TDD and Wi-Fi. It is a milestonesolution for multinetwork convergence and coordinated resourcescheduling.”

Vodacom sets up solar arrayVODACOM RECENTLY UNVEILED the largest solar array of panels on asingle building in Africa at its offices in Century City, Cape Town, SouthAfrica, as part of its ongoing drive to help reduce the amount of energythe company consumes; the solar array is expected to provide up to 75per cent of all electricity power required by the building during peakproduction, with the electricity produced feeding into the two maindistribution boards - with a display panel, installed in the reception areaof the building, displaying instantaneous power produced (yield), energyyield and carbon emission savings.

ITU focuses on radical transformation in ICT industryUNDER THE THEME ‘Embracing Change in a Digital World’, ITU TelecomWorld 2013 is continuing the ‘one conversation that matters’ this yearin Bangkok, Thailand, from 19-22 November, supported by a newwebsite launched to complement the event’s focus on high qualitydiscussion and debate; the site at http://world2013.itu.int, isdesigned to deliver on ITU Telecom World’s promise of bringingtogether leaders from the entire spectrum of the information andcommunications technology sector, public and private, for dialogueand exchange that can deliver results.

Fibre-like capabilities for oilfield communicationsO3B NETWORKS NOW offers O3bEnergy, an offshore communicationssolution that delivers high-speed, fibre-like connectivity to offshoreinstallations and seismic survey vessels without the big upfront CAPEXinvestments, outage concerns, lack of mobility, lengthy ramp up times,and other fibre shortfalls - so oil and gas companies and systemsintegrators can leverage O3b’s high capacity, low latency satelliteportfolio to get far more from their enterprise systems and operationalbudgets; O3b’s Medium Earth Orbit fleet will enable oil and gascompanies to deliver the same level of sophisticated communicationscapabilities they count on at headquarters aboard their remote off-shore platforms, utilising sub-150 msec latency and fibre-like speedsto improve and elevate the full spectrum of off-shore communicationsfrom mission critical applications to enhance crew morale.

Reducing the complexity of mobile financial servicesVISA, INC HAS launched a new plug-and-play mobile money platform,recently, to make it easy and cost-efficient for mobile operators, banksand micro-lending organisations to offer mobile financial services toconsumers; unbanked consumers in Rwanda have been amongst thefirst to benefit from the service, as account holders at the Bank of Kigaliand Urwego Opportunity Bank gain access to a financial account that islinked to their mobile phone number.

SAP survey highlights the need for mobile commerceTHE FINDINGS OF SAP AG’s third consecutive GSMA Mobile WorldCongress survey indicates that 53 per cent of industry leaders believethat improving customers' retail experience would be essential tocreating a successful mobile payments scheme; the survey is aimed ataddressing top issues facing mobile commerce service providers andreflects the sentiments of mobile operators, fixed telecommunicationproviders, over-the-top (OTT) players and other mobile industryexecutives - with 60 per cent of respondents coming from Europe, theMiddle East and Africa.

TETRA gains image management for policingMOTOROLA SOLUTIONS, INC. has launched theworld´s first mission-critical imaging solution forfrontline officers - a combination of the new MTP6750Terrestrial Trunked Radio (TETRA) handheld radiofeaturing an integrated five megapixel camera andthe Photograph and Intelligence CommunicationsSystem (PICS) image management solution; throughPICS, images captured on the MTP6750 can bemanaged, authenticated and shared within a publicsafety organisation´s existing workflows, enablingverification of captured images at any point andreducing the chance of evidence being deemedunusable in a prosecution.

ICANN set to expand in AfricaTHE PRESIDENT OF the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names andNumbers (ICANN) is pressing ahead with plans to have six new ICANNrepresentatives on the African continent; “We will have ICANN staff, atleast one, in each of the 6 regions of Africa. North, South, East, West,Central and the Indian Ocean,” said Fadi Chehadé.

SEACOM upgrades submarine network capacityCOMMUNICATIONS SERVICE PROVIDER SEACOM has selected CienaCorporation’s 6500 Packet-Optical Platform and OneControl UnifiedManagement System for the upgrade of its submarine network acrossthe Southern and Eastern African coastlines; Ciena’s technology willenable us to cost-effectively scale our capacity to address this growingdemand for connectivity throughout the continent,” says ClaesSegelberg, chief technology officer at SEACOM.

Vodacom has installed solar array at its offices in Cape Town


Motorola’sMTP6750T E T R Ah a n d h e l dradio

Claes Segelberg, chief technology officer at SEACOM




BULLETIN

Safaricom selects Gemalto for KenyaSAFARICOM IS USING Gemalto’s LinqUs Cloud Backup solution to offermobile subscribers in Kenya a comprehensive back-up service forphonebook contacts; the solution ensures that Safaricom customers caneasily protect themselves against the disruption caused by phone theft,loss, damage or replacement, through saving all their contactsautomatically in the mobile operator’s cloud-based storage service.

Spreadtrum and Orange set up strategic partnership FABLESS SEMICONDUCTOR PROVIDER Spreadtrum Communications, Inchas established a strategic partnership with Orange to use low-costmobile platforms for the delivery of a broad portfolio of cost-effective,feature-rich mobile handsets and smartphones to consumers; with thiscollaboration, Orange aims to improve the affordability of smartphonesand other mobile handsets in these regions, contributing to Orange’sobjectives of making the mobile internet more accessible to consumers.

BFMA sponsored by MultichoiceSCHEDULED TO TAKE place in Nairobi, Kenya, over 26-27 June 2013, theBroadcast, Film and Music Africa (BFMA) conference is a popular creativecontent and electronic broadcasting event in East Africa that promotesknowledge sharing and networking among high-level electronic mediaprofessionals - with Multichoice Kenya taking up lead sponsorship forthe event; Danny Mucira- Multichoice Kenya general manager, said, "Weare committed to promoting local creative content and are supportingthis knowledge sharing and networking platform to ensure that theindustry continues to flourish and so that creative content creators cantake advantage of the great opportunities."

Opera Mini comes to the Botswanan marketORANGE IN BOTSWANA and Opera Software are set to provide the OperaMini web browser to more than one million mobile customers in thecountry, giving faster and less expensive web access through cellphonesand tablets on Orange’s network; like most African countries, mostpeople in Botswana do not have access to fixed-line Internet, so a mobiledevice will be their first, and often only, way to access the Internet - yet,Batswanans love the web and their current favourite mobile sites includeFacebook, Google, YouTube, Yahoo!, Wikipedia, Waptrick, Twitter,Blogger, BBC News, Dictionary.com and Answers.com.

Extended programme for telecoms and finance eventTMT FINANCE AND Investment Africa 2013, now in its fourth year, will takeplace in London, in the UK, on June 20, bringing together African telecomCEOs, CFOs and strategy heads with investment bankers, financiers,regulators and advisers, to assess investment opportunities andpartnerships; an expanded conference agenda features a series of

leadership panel discussions, keynote speeches and networkingsessions designed to facilitate knowledge exchange and newpartnerships between key financial decision-makers from Africantelecoms and the international finance and advisory community.

New cloud mail and archive service in SAINTERNET SOLUTIONS (IS) AND SYNAQ have launched a low cost,integrated, cloud mail and archive service - the first locally-hosted securemessaging collaboration suite, offering e-mail functionality,collaboration and archiving on a single platform; "As South Africanbusinesses are now at the main-stream stage of cloud adoption, wewanted to create a competitive offering that could meet specificrequirements in terms of compliance, and offer a compelling alternativeto other local and global email and management solutions,” explainedWayne Speechly, executive for communication services at IS.

La transformation radicale du secteur des TICITU TELECOM WORLD 2013 va poursuivre cette année en Thaïlande le"débat sur des questions de fond", sur le thème "Accueillir lechangement dans un monde numérique"; a cette fin, un nouveau siteweb est lancé - http://world2013.itu.int - en complément desdiscussions et débats de haute tenue qui seront au coeur de lamanifestation.

Au cœur d'une nouvelle technologie de commutationCISCO UNIFIED ACCESS est indispensable pour les entreprisesdésireuses d'exploiter le potentiel du « tout connecté » - une connexionintelligente entre les individus, les données, les processus et lessupports matériels, le tout de manière simplifiée, évolutive et efficace,sur des interfaces ouvertes parfaitement sécurisées; Rob Soderbery,Vice-président senior du Groupe Enterprise Networking chez Ciscoprécise, « Cisco Unified Access permet aux utilisateurs d'atteindre cesobjectifs en proposant une architecture unique qui leur ouvrira l'accès àun réseau intelligent, aux performances inégalées. »

Un écosystème pour des imprimantes multifonctionsXEROX A LANCÉ un système logiciel ConnectKey intégré à 5 nouvellesgammes d’imprimantes multifonctions ainsi qu’un ensemble desolutions et de services répondant aux besoins des collaborateurs deplus en plus nomades et des entreprises préoccupées par la sécurisationdes documents; les 5 nouvelles plateformes équipées de ConnectKey,parmi lesquelles les nouveaux WorkCentre 5800 et 7800, sont dotées dela toute première solution de sécurité intégrée McAfee.

Les possibilités de la mobilité d’entrepriseCITRIX A LANCÉ XenMobile MDM, une solution de gestion despériphériques mobiles (Mobile Device Mangement) d’entreprise qui offreaux utilisateurs le choix de leur périphérique et garantit aux directionsinformatiques le respect de leurs obligations de gestion et de conformité;XenMobile MDM vient s’ajouter à d’autres solutions Citrix, dont CitrixCloudGateway, Citrix NetScaler, Citrix XenDesktop, GoToMeeting,GoToAssist, Citrix ShareFile et Citrix Podio, pour former un portefeuillequi répond à l’ensemble des besoins de mobilité de l’entreprise.

Des solutions de paiement mobiles au GabonMAHINDRA COMVIVA A conclu un partenariat avec Gabon Telecom, filialede Maroc Telecom, par ailleurs plus grande entreprise detélécommunications au Gabon; avec ce partenariat, Comviva Mahindraaidera Gabon Telecom à introduire sur le marché les services depaiement mobiles Mobi Cash et de fidéliser davantage les clients del’opérateur grâce à mobiquity - une solution qui répond aux besoins desabonnés mobiles bancarisés, sous-bancarisés et non-bancarisés en leuroffrant un porte-monnaie électronique, la possibilité d’effectuer leurspaiements et d’avoir accès à des services de type bancaire.

Gemalto’s LinqUs Cloud Backup is used by more than 140mn subscribersacross the world



S02 CAF 2 2013 Agenda 01_Layout 1 12/04/2013 12:29 Page 7


AGENDA

8

MAY/MAI13-14 LTE MENA Dubai, UAE www.lteconference.com

14-15 Cards and Payments Middle East Dubai, UAE www.terrapinn.com

15-16 Rwanda ICT Summit Kigali, Rwanda aitecafrica.com

21-22 Cloud Africa Johannesburg, South Africa cloudafricasummit.com

21-22 East Africa Com Nairobi, Kenya eaafrica.comworldseries.com

21-24 Critical Communications World Paris, France criticalcommunicationsworld.com

27-30 Broadcast Show Africa Johannesburg, South Africa www.terrapinn.com

27-30 IP Networks Show Africa Johannesburg, South Africa www.terrapinn.com

27-30 SatCom Africa Johannesburg, South Africa www.terrapinn.com

27-30 Submarine Networks World Johannesburg, South Africa www.terrapinn.com

JUNE/JUIN2-7 International Microwave Symposium Seattle, USA www.ims2013.org

3-4 Telecoms Risk Management Forum Dubai, UAE tavess.com

3-5 GISEC Dubai, UAE www.gisec.ae

4-6 Small Cells World Summit London, UK www.smallcellsworldsummit.com

9-13 IEEE ICC Budapest, Hungary www.ieee-icc.org

11-12 Connecting West Africa Dakar, Senegal www.comworldseries.com

17-18 Broadcast, Film & Music Africa Nairobi, Kenya aitecafrica.com

17-18 Africa Media & Business Exchange Nairobi, Kenya aitecafrica.com

20 TMT Finance & Investment Africa London, UK www.tmtfinance.com

26-27 Broadcast, Film & Music Africa Nairobi, Kenya aitecafrica.com

26-27 Cloud World Forum London, UK www.cloudwf.com

JULY/JUILLET4 Africa Media Business Exchange Nairobi, Kenya aitecafrica.com

8-9 M2M for the Oil and Gas Industry London, UK www.smi-online.co.uk

16-17 LTE Africa Johannesburg, South Africa africa.lteconference.com

17-19 Mediatech Africa Johannesburg, South Africa www.mediatech.co.za

22-25 Academy of World Finance, Banking, Cape Town, South Africa www.academyofworldfinance.comManagement and Information Technology

AUGUST/AOÛT21-23 Africa Print Johannesburg, South Africa www.africaprintexpo.com

21-23 Visual Communications Africa Johannesburg, South Africa www.viscomafricaexpo.com

SEPTEMBER/SEPTEMBRE3-5 Africa Peering and Interconnection Forum (AfPIF) Casablanca, Morocco www.internetsociety.org

11-12 Banking & Mobile Money COMESA Nairobi, Kenya aitecafrica.com

13-17 IBC Amsterdam, The Netherlands www.ibc.org

17-18 Capacity Africa Dar es Salaam, Tanzania www.capacityconferences.com

23-24 Middle East Com Dubai, UAE me.comworldseries.com

24-26 M2M Innovation World Congress Nice, France www.m2minnovationworldcongress.com

24-26 NFC World Congress Nice, France www.nfcworldcongress.com

Events/Événements 2013



TELIT WIRELESS SOLUTIONS(which provides high-qualitymachine-to-machine (M2M)solutions, products and services)and Powelectrics Ltd (a developerand manufacturer of customised,embedded electronic devices andsolutions for chemical,petrochemical, cryogenic gas andfood applications) arecollaborating in the wirelesstelemetry application market withPowelectrics’ Telit-based product,Metron2 - a multi-functioncellular-connected telemetrydevice capable of making remotefill-level readings in tankscontaining liquids and gases. Thedevice’s integral display allowsthe unit to be used also as a localgauge and for system setup andtesting. An optional pulse-counterboard allows the device to takeexternal metre readings.

A wide-area-network (WAN)

connected with the Telit GE864-QUAD V2 cellular module and self-powered from an internal batterymakes installation of the Metron2quick and easy to accomplish. Anintuitive user interface expeditesset-up and testing processes. TheMetron2 can be powered fromdifferent sources including aninternal battery or an external 6-24Vdc source. It is often noteconomically feasible to runpower to the site for remotetelemetry installations. One suchinstance is the cryogenic gasmonitoring segment, where it isimportant that the device be onand available to be polled anytime - day or night. For thismarket, Powelectrics developed asolar-powered telemetry system,which allows the unit to remain‘always on’ and connected to theGSM/GPRS network so the servercan make contact at any time withinstant reading requests.Equipped with the Metron2, atanker truck can be dispatched tobest matching customer locationsaccording to volume available inthe tanker and volume requiredby customers, efficientlyexhausting the tanker’s fullsupply of product instead oftransporting it back to basesaving fuel and removing the riskof the returned productcontaminating the storage orprocess facility.

The power to plan properlyKnowing how much product is inthe customer’s tanks makes itpossible to plan when and whichtruck should make deliveries.This translates into fewer milesdriven to deliver the sameamount of product and thereforea significant reduction in costs.There is also a dramaticreduction in CO2 emissions.There are also accompanyingoperational benefits, includingfewer emergency shipments,reduced customer serviceorganisation and reduced salesresources. These benefitstranslate into a balance sheetboasting reduced levels offinished goods and raw materialsinventory.Telit’s GE864-QUAD V2 ultra-compact, low-power, quad-bandGSM/GPRS 3GPP Release 4module integrated inPowelectrics’ Metron2 boastsone of the industry’s broadestcertification profiles in its classmaking it easily deployableanywhere in the global market.Modules in this family arecapable of data rates of 48KbpsGPRS Class 10 also supporting9.6Kpbs Circuit Switch Data(CSD) transfers ensuringconnectivity in poor coverageareas. The GE864-QUAD V2family features one of themarket’s most compact Ball Grid

Array (BGA) package measuring30 x 30 x 2.8 mm and anextended operating temperaturerange of -40°C to +85°C, making itthe perfect platform for outdoor-environment mobile applicationssuch as the Metron2.“It is rewarding to be a part ofproducts adding as much valueto business and society as thisone. We see the Metron2 as apowerful telemetry solution withthe potential to serve well a vastnumber of segments going waybeyond the chemical industry,”said Dominikus Hierl, chiefmarketing officer at Telit WirelessSolutions. “Powelectrics can nowbenefit from the flexibility ofglobal certifications to launchnew market efforts into almostany region in the world,safeguarding their originaldesign and certificationinvestments.”


AGENDA

9

Metron2 can be powered fromdifferent sources including aninternal battery or an external 6-24Vdc source

MIDDLE EASTERN TELECOMMUNICATIONS operator Etisalat Group has joined the M2MMulti-Operator Alliance - a coalition of companies that includes KPN, NTT DOCOMO,Rogers Communications, SingTel, Telefonica, Telstra and VimpelCom.“Etisalat Group looks forward to working with our global counterparts to help shapeM2M policy globally and to ensure enhanced development across the region,” saidKhalifa Al Shamsi, chief digital services officer at Etisalat Group. “We believe thisAlliance has great potential to create real value for our business customers, and welook forward to playing an active role alongside other global leaders.”M2M (machine-to-machine), a term for the exchange of data between machines andinformation technology infrastructure, has many industrial and commercialapplications. By 2021 there are expected to be more than two billion M2Mconnections. The M2M Multi-Operator Alliance aims to bring technology to marketthat would simplify the process of global M2M deployments. Multinationalcorporations planning to roll out connected devices worldwide face an array ofproblems, such as the limited local coverage of some mobile operators, fragmentednetwork landscapes and multiple SIM management platforms. The M2M Multi-Operator Alliance intends to build a market-driven M2M ecosystem that provides costefficient, multi-network M2M solutions for multi-national customers wishing tosimplify deployments in retail, healthcare, consumer electronics, transportation,automobiles and energy on a global scale.

M2M extends to the Middle East with Etisalat

Wireless telemetry improves efficiency and safety in chemicals industry


Khalifa Al Shamsi, the chief digital services officer at Etisalat Group andShane Rooney, the vice-president of machine-to-machine at EtisalatGroup, hosted the representatives of the M2M Multi-Operator Alliance atthe Etisalat stand at Mobile World Congress 2013

Equipped with Metron2, a tankertruck can be dispatched to customerlocations efficiently


CSG SYSTEMS INTERNATIONAL, Inc, which providessoftware and services-based business supportsolutions that help clients generate revenue andmaximise customer relationships, is expanding itsmanaged services programme, bringing together itsportfolio of solutions - including the Singleviewconvergent charging and billing platform, thewholesale billing platform Wholesale BusinessManagement Solution (WBMS), and the direct-to-consumer content monetisation platform ContentDirect - to address the need for communicationsservice providers (CSPs) to lower costs, transformoperations and create agile ways to support customers.

With this flexible delivery model, CSPs can rely onCSG to easily manage complex customer and revenuemanagement processes - including on-premise, off-siteat CSG’s facilities, offshore, and cloud-based options.

According to research conducted by InformaTelecoms & Media, 87 per cent of CSPs indicated thatthey already work with, or intend to work with, a BSSmanaged services provider in the next three years. Akey theme emerging from this research is that CSPs’expectations for the value that managed services willprovide has increased over previous years.

“The model of ‘we manage your mess for less’ is athing of the past. Domain expertise and anunderstanding of the CSP business are now asimportant to CSPs as cost,” said Kris Szaniawski,principle analyst at Informa Telecoms & Media. “CSPs

are faced with managing increasingly complicatedinfrastructure to support new devices and services. Asa consequence, CSPs are increasingly prepared to workclosely with trusted partners - with managed servicesproviders who have resources and expertise to managecomplex BSS structures in a way that brings productsand services to market faster and rationalises legacynetworks more effectively."

CSG’s managed services offering enables a CSP toevolve its business model rapidly, and/or transform itsexisting operations, in any combination or all of thefollowing IT areas:• Infrastructure management: including hardware,

application and environment management;capacity and availability management; disasterrecovery; and IT/network operations, backup andsecurity.

• Application configuration management: includingconfiguration development, release anddeployment; configuration support; datamanagement; knowledge management; usertraining; and project and service management.

• Business operations: including event collection,correlation and processing for next-generation IPnetwork services, voice and data network services,and content delivery networks; transaction andservice-level rating; revenue management; thirdparty settlement; enterprise contract management;and partner contract and dispute management.


AGENDA

10

SIEMON’S LC BLADEPATCHfibre optic duplex jumperrevolutionises high-densityfibre patching by eliminatingthe need to access a latchduring installation andremoval, avoiding anydisruption or damage toadjacent fibre connectors inthe tightest-fitting fibrepatching environments.

Important patent-pendingfeatures include the push-pull boot design, whichenables precise control of thelatch away from the point oftermination, enhancinginstallation and removal inthe highest densityapplications. The rotatinglatch eliminates potentialconnector and cable damageduring polarity changes,whilst clearly indicating thata polarity change has beenmade.

JUST AS M-PESA solved the problem of the ‘unbanked’in emerging markets, Bima (Swahili for ‘insurance’) isnow solving the problem of the ‘uninsured’.The penetration of life, health, property or personalaccident insurance in Africa is below five per cent.Kenya was in a similar position in the banking sectorwhen M-PESA launched in 2007, when less than 10 percent of the population had a bank account. Now, M-PESA has 14mn subscribers, or 35 per cent of theKenyan population, who send and receive moneythrough its ‘mobile bank accounts’.As a result of this low penetration of insurance, whena family member passes away, these householdssuffer a severe financial set-back. In many of thesemarkets the religious beliefs and cultural normsrequire elaborate funerals lasting as much as a week,which also means the mourners lose out on oneweek’s income. In Ghana, for example, it is commonfor the deceased to be put into elaborate ‘fantasycoffins’, coloured and shaped like an object, oftenportraying the persons occupation in life, such as afish, crab, boats, airplanes and even Coca Cola bottles.Nevertheless, low income households in emergingmarkets are not covered by insurance and this islargely due to four major obstacles; education,distribution, affordability and premium/claimscollection.This is where micro-insurance and mobile operatorscome in.Micro-insurance is the insurance solution for the

poor to overcome the obstacle of high fees intraditional insurance products. It is characterized bylow premiums (around US$0.50-5.00) and lowcoverage limits (US$150-1,000).However, micro-insurance has still struggled to reachall of the people in need because of the difficulty inmass distribution and education to the poor in allareas. Before an insurance company can sell itsproducts to some communities it must first educatethem on the concept and benefits of insurance.Premiums must still be paid to an agent who islocated in the neighbouring village and claims cancost as much to collect as they pay out, in lostincome and travel expenses.

Using mobile for micro-insuranceBima’s free model is a 30-day life insurance coveringa mobile operator’s customer and one familymember (that the customer registers), where coverlevel is based on airtime usage with the mobileoperator during the previous month. Once theminimum spend has been reached, a registeredsubscriber and his/her family member is covered andthe more that is spent per month, the greater theinsurance cover is.The customer earns insurance cover ranging fromUS$150-700, which is renewed every month and isbased on how much airtime was spent in theprevious month.A customer signs up over their handset with an agent

who talks them through the concept of insurance andthe product details. A customer must answer a seriesof short questions through a USSD menu on theirhandsets in the registration process (including nameand age of themselves and a family member andconfirmation that they are both in good health at thetime of registration) – revolutionary when you thinkabout the registration process for life insurance inthe Western World, which includes elaborate healthquestionnaires, interviews and beyond.Cover levels are then communicated to the customerthrough an SMS at the beginning of every month andthey make a claim by texting ‘CLAIM’ to a dedicatedclaims number and are called back by a Bima claimsagent.

Free short-term life insurance based on mobile phone usage

Innovation in high-density fibre patching

CSPs to get more agility, support and expertise from CSG


Customers sign up for insurance over their handsets





CÔTE D'IVOIRE TELECOM, Orange Côte d'Ivoire andOrange Cameroon, subsidiaries of France Telecom-Orange, have signed an agreement with IHS, a mobileinfrastructure operator in Africa, for the operation ofall the subsidiaries’ towers in Côte d'Ivoire andCameroon. The deal is expected to improve mobilenetworks in both countries. The agreement addressesmore than 2,000 sites in Côte d'Ivoire and Cameroon.

The towers will remain the property of the Orangesubsidiaries. IHS will operate the towers for Orange fora term of 15 years and bring specialist knowledge andskills to improve the customer experience whilstreducing Orange’s cost base. IHS' focus on the passiveinfrastructure will enable and accelerate furthernetwork modernisation, particularly in the areas ofefficient grid and diesel utilisation and the growing useof renewable energy to power the network.

Through IHS’ tower sharing model, available spaceon these towers will be marketed to other mobileoperators whilst Orange subsidiaries will benefit fromaccess to available slots on towers that IHS currentlyowns in both countries.

To further expand the network and meet localdemand, IHS has committed to building new hybridsolar and generator power sites, thereby cuttingdiesel consumption at these sites by up to 70 percent. Solar-only sites are favoured in rural areaswith low consumption where delivering diesel is

more expensive. Marc Rennard, executive directorin charge of Africa, Middle East and Asia for theOrange Group, said, “Sharing passive infrastructureis a compelling opportunity for Orange to offer abetter service to its customers in Africa and theMiddle East through improved network coverageand reliability. It also allows us to drive efficiencies,reduce costs and manage the particular conditionsin emerging markets such as the cost of energy andaccessibility of sites.”

“Placing tower infrastructure in the hands of mobiletower specialists benefits consumers, businesses andlocal economies, as well as the operators themselves,”said Issam Darwish, CEO and founder of IHS. “Our 12years’ experience in the market, coupled with strongrelationships with mobile network operators andequipment suppliers, allows us to bringimprovements right across the value chain.”


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GEMALTO, WHICH SPECIALISESin digital security, and mobileoperator Safaricom are usingGemalto’s LinqUs Cloud Backupsolution to offer mobilesubscribers in Kenya acomprehensive back-up servicefor phonebook contacts.Compatible with most handsetmodels, the solution ensuresthat Safaricom customers canprotect themselves against thedisruption caused by phonetheft, loss, damage orreplacement, through saving alltheir contacts automatically inthe mobile operator’s cloud-based storage service.

Gemalto’s LinqUs CloudBackup is already used by morethan 140mn subscribersglobally, and is relevant inAfrican markets, where manysmall businesses rely on theintegrity of their mobilephonebook contacts to operate.

THE OPEN MOBILE Alliance (OMA) showcased uniquedemonstrations from Huawei, Telecom Italia and othersrecently, in a four-hour session at the 2013 Mobile WorldCongress. With presentations and demonstrations fromleading vendors and operators, attendees gained anexclusive preview into up-and-coming technologiesacross the entire wireless value chain, some of whichare not yet commercially available.

Improving device experienceAugmented reality was addressed by Huawei andTelecom Italia, both showcasing the OMA MobAR(Mobile Augmented Reality) Enabler. Huawei showedits Smart Life software, which provides users withinformation in a 3D mode, using cameras rather thankeywords to search and find what they need. TelecomItalia demonstrated how its Augmented Reality appreceives information and content based on geo-location information and user preferences from aserver in the network, which can be displayed in real-time camera-view on the device.Huawei exhibited the OMA UVE (Unified VirtualExperience) Enabler for multi-screen sharing,through LiveShare. Currently not commerciallyavailable, this solution enables users to sharecontent and screen views across devices includingsmartphones, tablets and smart TVs, as wellcommunicating simultaneously with others.In support of the OMA draft standard VirMO(Virtualisation Management Object), Red BendSoftware showed how different entities can manage

each virtualised OS on a dual-persona smartphoneused for BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) environments.Using OMA DM-based management infrastructure,mobile operators can manage the consumer’spersonal phone, while enterprise IT administratorscan manage the consumer’s work phone.Gemalto demonstrated its Device ManagementExpert, enabling telecom operators to reduce costsand stimulate data usage, by being able tostandardize configuration and manage settings andapplication downloads on Android smartphones.

Machines and mobile connectionsM2M is a hot topic as the mobile industry looks at thegrowth of M2M device connections. This wasreflected in a session by Telecom Italia andTelecomunicazioni & Informatica, which presented asolution for home automation focused on integratingM2M devices into mobile operators’ networks, even ifthose devices aren’t natively able to do so. This demoused an OMA-DM M2M gateway, bringing to life anOMA-driven value chain. Smart Home applicationsover next-generation M2M was presented by theFraunhofer Institute for Open CommunicationSystems (FOKUS), showing the migration path foroperators from a human communication paradigmtowards machine type communication (MTC).Sensinode showed a complete device-to-cloudlightweight M2M asset management solution foroutdoor lighting control. The system demonstratesthe new OMA draft Lightweight M2M (LWM2M)

Enabler, giving the global marketplace an openstandard approach.

Locating and navigatingLocation-based Services (LBS) was demonstrated bytechnology from Invisitrack Inc that will evolvelocation awareness for enterprise, consumer andpublic safety that uses commonly available LTEsignals for positioning.CSR showcased SiRFusion location technology,offering accurate indoor and outdoor navigationcapability. The demonstration featured servicessuch as location based security and proximityawareness in addition to indoor navigation.Comverse, Inc. and Interop Technologies offered anoverview of two different rich communicationservices (RCS) and messaging solutions. TheComverse RCS/joyn and next-generation MultiVASdemonstrations showed how communicationsservice providers (CSPs) can make a smoothtransition to the digital era. This leverages theevolution to all-IP/4G to increase revenues byharnessing data growth, enriching services withomni-device capabilities, integration with Internetservices, and more – while reducing costs. InteropTechnologies demonstrated its RCS solution, whichincorporates IP multimedia subsystem (IMS)functions into the RCS server itself, allowingoperators to launch RCS with or without an IMScore, saving costs and complexity when deployingRCS in the network.

Vendors and operators demonstrate next-generation technologies

Safaricom sets up back-up services

Tower deal to improve networks in Côte d'Ivoire and Cameroon


The IHS’ tower sharing modelenables available space on Orange

towers to be marketed to othermobile operators whilst Orange

subsidiaries benefit from accessto slots on towers owned by IHS



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THE TRADEMARK CLEARINGHOUSE (TMCH), thefoundation mechanism for brands to protecttheir trademarks against potential infringement,opened recently, ahead of the entry of multiplegeneric Top-Level Domains (gTLDs) into theInternet later in 2013. The TMCH is a singledatabase of validated trademarks, and is theonly officially authorised solution from TheInternet Corporation for Assigned Names andNumbers (ICANN), the body that overseesdomain names on the Internet.

Online brand protection in the era of new domainsOperated by Deloitte, which performs theverification services, and IBM, as the databaseprovider, the TMCH provides two uniqueservices, and recording trademarks in theTMCH is the minimum requirement for brandsto benefit from these as new TLDs come tomarket. First, recording marks provides brandswith the pre-launch opportunity to proactivelyregister domain names which match theirtrademarks ahead of wider public availability,during the ‘sunrise’ period of every new TLD –something almost six out of ten of majorconsumer brands have expressed an interest indoing. Second, following the launch of eachnew web extension, for a period of 90 days,

trademark holders will receive a warning whenanyone else registers domain names thatmatch their marks. This Trademark ClaimsService is currently demanded by 60 per cent ofmajor consumer brands.

As the cornerstone of the rights protectionmechanism built into ICANN’s new gTLDprogram, the launch of the TMCH will provideassurance to the 96 per cent of majorconsumer brands that feel that the newdomains present a new level risk to IntellectualProperty (IP) online. In fact, almost nine out often of major consumer brands have statedthey are willing to submit their trademarks tothe TMCH. The results are revealed in anindependent survey, commissioned byDeloitte and conducted by Vanson Bourne, of200 global consumer-facing businesses with3,000-10,000+ employees – regarding their IPprovisions in light of the new domain initiative.

Mitigating risks and opening opportunitiesWhile new domains present both risks and newpossibilities for businesses, almost 8 out of 10of brands polled believe that the introduction ofthe TMCH will help protect their IP online acrossthe new gTLDs moving forward. The assurancethat the TMCH provides means that businesses

can now focus on the new opportunities thedomains offer, such as improved onlinemarketing opportunities and improvedcustomer engagement – a benefit outlined by 8out of 10 of the brands polled. The researchreveals that more than half of the brands (52 percent) are interested in securing domainsrelating to their trademarks for geographicdomains, such as .SCOTLAND or .AFRICA andthe opportunity to reach internationalcommunities via international domains(domains presented in foreign language scripts)are an attraction to 6 out of 10.

Jan Corstens, partner, Deloitte: “The resultsof the survey show that businesses aregearing up for the launch of the TLDs in orderto benefit from the advantages they offer,however they also need to ensure they haveadequate protections in place to defend theirbrand online. It is remarkable that one in fiveof top 200 brands still have little or noawareness of the new domains, which alsomeans they are unnecessarily exposingthemselves to trademark infringement.Recording marks into the TMCH is the mosteffective way to ensure that IP is appropriatelysafeguarded across all of the new webextensions that will go live this year.”

Brands to submit trademarks for domain protection

CARLSON WIRELESS AND Neul, Ltd.has launched a Google-led TV whitespace trial in South Africa. Google haschosen Carlson’s Rural Connectsolution, enabled by Neul Horizonsoftware, for rural connectivity - andthe Neul Operations and ManagementCentre (OMC), a cloud-basedmanagement system, in order toprovide the communicationsbackbone for the trial with ten schoolsin and around Cape Town.

The Carlson and Neul collaborationoffers the potential to improve Internetconnectivity. The joint collaboration involves pioneering technology totake advantage of ‘white space’ spectrum; which is available betweentelevision frequency channels. The advantage of white spaces is that lowfrequency signals can travel longer distances, making the technologywell suited to provide low cost connectivity to rural communities withpoor telecommunications infrastructure.

Supporting deployment of wireless broadbandLuke Mckend, Google South Africa country manager, commented, “Weare pleased to be part of this exciting new development – the first of itskind in South Africa – and look forward to opening discussions withpolicy makers around a regulatory framework that will support the wideruse of TVWS to deliver wireless broadband Internet across the country.”

Dr Ntsibane Ntlatlapa, CSIR Meraka Institute manager, networks and media competency area, added, “We believe that TVWS could help tobridge the digital divide; transmitting Internet data over long distancesand opening up access to underserved communities and rural areas.”

South Africa’s TV white space trial

Luke Mckend, Google South Africacountry manager



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SATELLITE EQUIPMENT SPECIALIST Newtec’s latestbroadband equipment is playing an important role infurther expanding SES Broadband Services’ serviceoffering. Newtec’s Ka-band VSAT technology is makingit possible for ISPs to access the SES Broadbandsatellite network and services provided by additionalKa-band hubs at the company headquarters inBetzdorf. This collaboration is a further step in the on-going development of SES Broadband service basedon the company’s ASTRA Ka-band capacity.

Newtec is planning to ship the first orders of theirlatest MDM2200 Ka consumer terminals which will bedelivered to various ISPs who distribute the SESBroadband service.

“We are delighted to be moving ahead with ourfirst operational Ka-band service on SES BroadbandServices’ network. Ka-band is vastly improving thebroadband experience for both consumers andenterprise users. Newtec’s equipment is designed toensure the best performance under any conditions,with a proven track record and at an affordable pricepoint,” said Serge Van Herck, CEO of Newtec.

The high-speed Newtec MDM2200 modems willfacilitate a wide range of applications on a singleplatform. The modem can work in both Ku- and Ka-band frequencies and supports download speedsof 22Mbit/s. Adaptive return link modulations,multiple channel bandwidths and optimal

availability and efficiency of DVB-S2 transmissionwith built-in FlexACM technology and CleanChannel Technology ensure the best possibleservice offering.

Since Newtec and SES Broadband Services startedtheir cooperation back in 2007, more than 120,000 ofits Ku-band VSAT terminals have been delivered foruse. These Ku-band terminals, already installed atmany customer premises, can be upgraded to Ka-band.

Patrick Biewer, managing director, SES BroadbandServices, said, “Next to the existing Newtec Ku-band hubs, we are now installing additional Ka-band hub systems at our teleport in Betzdorf. OurISPs can now also access our broadband servicethrough Newtec Ka-band equipment. This is anextension of the long partnership we have withNewtec and it is part of our strategy to furtherdevelop our Ka-band broadband service.”

THE WESTERN UNION Company, which offers globalpayment services, and Virtual Terminal Network(VTN) solutions, a Nigerian mobile paymentoperator, have launched a mobile money transferservice in Nigeria - giving Nigerians, for the firsttime, the choice to use their mobile phones to directWestern Union remittances into their electronic VTNVCASH account. VCASH subscribers can use this

convenient service 24/7 to directly transferindividual Western Union remittances they receive,up to US$300, and combined daily remittances up toUS$800, into their accounts.Monies in their VCASH account can be sent on toother VCASH users, known as a person to person(P2P) transfer, or be used to pay bills and purchasegoods or services.

WITH MORE THAN 5.5mn activeFacebook users in South Africaaccounting for almost 90 per cent ofthe online population, socialnetworking is here to stay. And withthat, comes the need to share contentwith each other using a myriad ofmobile devices. This has seenSamsung Electronics South Africarecently introduce the concept of‘Smart Camera 2.0’ that lets usersupload their favourite photographsand videos directly to a number ofsocial networks via built-in Wi-Fidirectly from their cameras. “While people have been takingphotographs and sharing them onlinevia their smartphones for a while, thededicated features of a digital cameraprovide functionality not normallyavailable on mobile phones. However,camera users have often been leftfrustrated having to wait until theyget back home before they can startsharing their memories to their socialnetworks of choice,” says MatthewThackrah, deputy MD and director of ITSolutions and Consumer Electronicsat Samsung South Africa.Smart Camera 2.0 enables directuploading to Facebook, Picasa,YouTube, Photobucket, and SkyDrive,once the user is in range of a wirelesshotspot. Additionally, it also lets usersshare photos and videos to their emailcontacts directly from the camera.“With this growing use of socialnetworks like Facebook, South Africansare sharing more content betweenthemselves than ever before. Thiscontent ranges from the usual textupdates to photographs and video clipsfrom special occasions like birthdays,family get-togethers, and the like. WithSmart Camera 2.0, we want to make iteven easier for people to share high-quality content with their family andfriends online – through not only lowerend devices but across our productrange,” says Thackrah.Once a camera that boasts Smartfunctionality is in range of a wirelessnetwork, the user simply chooses theSocial Sharing icon and selects thesocial networking service to be used.A prompt will appear for the user IDand password for the site and as soonas the person is logged in, he or shewill be able to browse through thefiles on the camera and select theones to be uploaded.

Newtec’s IP Broadband Hub and IP Satellite Terminal

Being smart aboutphoto sharing

MANY PEOPLE ARE discussing the latest attacks that have beencausing intermittent outages all over the Internet. Unfortunately,distributed denial of service (DDoS) causes massive congestion; andwithout something upstream close to the attacking machines inquestion, it can be very difficult to stop the attack.One thing that Robert Hansen, director of product management atWhiteHat Security, finds is that many organisations simply have no ideawhat to do when they are faced with a denial of service attack (DoS), orwith it’s big bad brother, the distributed denial of service attack (DDoS).He says, “I created a DDoS Runbook that can be used by companiesin advance of any attacks to help them organise how they are to dealwith the attack if and when it does occur.“The last thing you want to do in the midst of a crisis is try to figureout who runs the infrastructure that’s under attack, or be formulatinga last minute crisis management news-letter from scratch.”Mr Hansen encourages companies to download the book, and makeit their own. He advises them to modify what makes sense to modify,add or delete what’s missing or doesn’t apply and make sure that companies ensure it is available to refer to.“It’s nice to be able to break glass in case of emergency and have a good plan in place,” he says.

Mobile money transfer in Nigeria

Ka-band technology supports broadband services expansion

Checklist to prepare for DDoS attacks

Robert Hansen’s DDoS Runbookisavailable at:http://blog.whitehatsec.com/wp-content/uploads/DDoS-RunBook.docx�



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BLOOMBERG MEDIA GROUP, une division deBloomberg LP, a annoncé un accord de partenariatpluriannuel avec le distributeur de l’information baséau Nigéria, Optima Media Group, ce qui renforce laposition de Bloomberg en tant que fournisseur depremier plan des informations télévisuelles dans ledomaine des affaires et des finances dans l’ensembledu continent africain. Ce partenariat établira unenouvelle entité – Bloomberg Television Africa.

Optima Media Group produira trois à quatreheures de programmes d’affaires par jour qui serontmis à la disposition des téléspectateurs africainsdans tout le continent par l’intermédiaire de une

chaine en langue anglaise consacré à la région del’Europe, Moyen Orient et Afrique. Optima MediaGroup utilisera ses chaines de diffusion del’information existantes pour compléter lesinformations et les analyses internationales enlangue anglaise de Bloomberg dans toute l’Afrique.

Des affaires et des financièresAndy Lack, PDG de Bloomberg Media Group, adéclaré, “L’accord avec Optima Media Groupaccélèrera considérablement la présence et lacouverture de la télévision Bloomberg en Afrique”. Il aajouté, « c’est le composant le plus récent de notrestratégie mondiale visant à établir des partenariatsavec les distributeurs de premier plan dans desmarchés disposant d’une histoire captivante decroissance économique. Ceci nous a poussé à établirdes partenariats similaires en Inde, en Turquie, enMongolie et au Moyen Orient. Nous sommes capablesen agissant de la sorte de fournir aux téléspectateurs,les perspectives d’affaires et des financièresinternationales les plus pertinentes ainsi que del’information localisée et spécifique au marché ».

De son côté, Rotimi Pedro, PDG du groupe OptimaMedia Group Ltd, a déclaré, « Bloomberg TelevisionAfrica fournira un contexte dynamique et pertinentpour la couverture de l’information financière danstout le continent.

GEMALTO, QUI DÉVELOPPEdes logiciels embarqués etdes produits sécurisés, aannonce que l’IndustryClassification Benchmark(ICB) a récemment modifié saclassification du secteur“Industries – Equipementsélectroniques” au secteur“Technologie - Logiciels”.L’Industry ClassificationBenchmark (ICB) est lesystème mondial deréférence qui classifie plusde 70 000 sociétés et plus de75 000 valeurs mobilièresdans le monde. Olivier Piou,Directeur Général de Gemaltoa déclaré: “Nous sommesidéalement positionnés aucœur du monde numérique etsans fil et nous aidons nosclients à offrir des servicesnumériques de confiance,faciles d’utilisation à desmilliards de personnes.”

INNOPATH SOFTWARE A lancé mobileMD, une solution complète à appliquer leconcept de maintenance préventive aux dispositifs intelligents.mobileMD permet aux clients mobiles de diagnostiquer et de résoudre lesproblèmes de leur propre dispositif en cliquant sur un bouton, ce qui réduit parconséquent les coûts de maintenance mobile pour l'opérateur tout en améliorantl'expérience de l'abonné. En outre, mobileMD comprend toutes lesfonctionnalités nécessaires pour un centre d'appel mobile complet, dontnotamment : des mises à jour en mode sans fil (Over-The-Air - OTA), desdiagnostics en temps réel, une analyse du côté agent et une analyse desapplications mobiles grâce à un nouveau partenariat avec Symantec.

La maintenance intelligente des smartphones« Les centres d'appels actuels ne sont pas conçus pour des dispositifsintelligents. Il en découle des temps d'attente plus longs et des appels de supportexaspérants. L'objectif de mobileMD est de fournir une plateforme prenant encharge la maintenance intelligente des smartphones et offrant aux abonnés uneexpérience exceptionnelle qui les rapproche réellement de leurs prestataires deservice, tout en réduisant quand même les coûts », a déclaré John Fazio,président et directeur exécutif d'innoPath.innoPath a formé un partenariat avec Symantec pour aider ses clients à protégerleurs dispositifs Android. Symantec va fournir une technologie d'analysed'application mobile dorsale pour la suite mobileMD et recommander desproduits mobiles Norton, tels que Norton Mobile Security et Norton MobileUtilities pour aider les utilisateurs à protéger et à gérer leurs dispositifs.« Les dispositifs mobiles sont plus importants que jamais dans la vie quotidiennedes consommateurs, et si un dispositif est compromis par une menace desécurité, les informations sensibles qu'il contient risquent de tomber entre demauvaises mains », a déclaré Dave Cole, vice-président en gestion de produitschez Symantec.

Changent un modèle de maintenance pour des dispositifs intelligents

ALORS QU'ELLE S'APPRÊTE à lancer sa constellation satellite deprochaine génération, O3b Networks a annoncé un accord de capacitémajeur à long terme prévoyant une capacité hautement résiliente etabordable au plus grand FSI en République Démocratique du Congo.

Le contrat prévoira plus de 500 mégaoctets de capacité à latencesultra-faibles pour fournir des services à bande passante haut débit àl'ensemble de la République Démocratique du Congo (RDC), un pays quicompte plus de 70 millions de personnes, dont 10 millions concentrésdans la capitale, Kinshasa.

Dans le cadre du contrat, la solution de nouvelle génération deliaisons IP d'O3b sera déployée en vue de fournir une capacitéinternationale en plus d'offrir des services de liaison mobile pour relierles centres urbains et les villages ruraux grâce à une bande passanteultra-haut débit et des latences et coûts ultra-faibles. L'offre innovanteest une avancée technologie longuement attendue dans une régiondésavantagée par son propre isolement, enclavée dans le continentafricain et dépendante de solutions satellites patrimoniales limitées etonéreuses. Dans le cadre de ce contrat, O3b Networks fournira unnouveau niveau de connectivité, d'une vitesse et d'une qualité similairesà la fibre, offrant des latences inférieures à 150 millisecondes ainsi quedes prix bas et une fiabilité défiant toute concurrence.

« Kinshasa et sa voisine Brazzaville comptent plus de 12 millionsde personnes qui jusqu'à présent n'ont pas eu accès à uneconnectivité haut débit », a déclaré Omar Trujillo, Vice-président pourl'Afrique chez O3b Networks. « En offrant une bande passante trèsabordable et omniprésente dotée des performances et de la vitessede la fibre, la RDC sortira instantanément de sa position de paysparmi les moins bien connectés pour faire partie de ceux qui sont lesmieux connectés sur la Planète, propulsant un développementéconomique et social rapide dans la région ».

L’ICB et le secteurTechnologie – Logiciels

Un accord pour diffuser des informations sur les affaires africaines

D’une connectivité haut débit à travers la RépubliqueDémocratique du Congo

« Nous anticipons unecollaboration étroite avec

Bloomberg Television afin deréunir les meilleurs PDG, les

décideurs politiques et lesleaders d’opinion et les pousser

à explorer ce qui stimulera lacroissance africaine »

- Rotimi Pedro, PDG, OptimaMedia Group Ltd



It is essential for operators to look at new ways to manage wholesale partner relations,and interconnect billing is an area constantly being examined more closely

Moving interconnectprocesses to the cloud

REVENUE BSS/OSS

IT IS NO secret that the African market isconsidered a major hotbed for futuremobile industry growth, despite havinglower levels of mobile data penetration

than more developed markets. The continent’smobile subscriber base has increased bynearly 30 per cent each year for the last fiveyears, according to a 2011 GSMA report.

Yet, since the African mobile market isbecoming more complex and competitive thanever before, it is now essential for operators onthe continent to look at new ways to effectivelymanage wholesale partner management, justas their Western counterparts have.

Examining revenuesInterconnect billing in particular is an areaconstantly being examined more closely byoperators as it typically generates between 30per cent and 60 per cent of overall revenues. Itcan also account for up to 30 per cent ofoperating costs due to lengthy and riskyimplementation projects.

Flexibility and adaptability are fast becomingkey requirements associated with interconnect

business processes, which means operators inall markets are asking if it remains logical toown and maintain an in-house interconnectbilling system. The increasing complexity andcompetition in the telecoms market means thatin-house models are often too costly tomaintain. As a result, moving processes likeinterconnect billing to a cloud-based managedservice model is a more realistic and indeedeffective option than ever before.

Improving processesManaged services today offer both flexibility anduser control. The availability of online userportals, near realtime reporting and Web-baseddashboards are key technologies. This meansthat exactly the same or even better levels ofcontrol can be given to operators through amanaged service proposition compared to an in-house solution. The billing functions which canbe outsourced include event processing, rating,error correction, duplicate checking, reportingand financial settlement.

This frees up operators to focus on thecommercial relations with their interconnect,

roaming and content partners, ensuring they cancontinue to offer the best rates and the bestroutes to their customers, while continuing toachieve revenue and margin objectives.

Moving processes to a cloud basedmanaged service model also enablesoperators to bring interconnect billing, roamingand partner settlement to market faster due tothe fact these systems simply have to beactivated instead of built from the bottom up,in-house. Less time also needs be spenttraining and re-training in house staff on how tomanage new systems as well as on otherprocesses too, such as acquiring softwaretools via a licence for each system.

By embracing the managed servicesapproach, African operators will effectively beable to meet the growing needs andexpectations of their entire subscriber baseand simultaneously capitalise on roamingopportunities. Such a level of outsourcing willliberate the operator to focus on developingand delivering the services required tomaintain a competitive edge in what is likely tobecome an ever more crowded African marketplace. After all, why manage multiple, costly in-house systems when you can enjoy theeconomies of scale and expertise of aspecialist managed service provider? ✆

Joseph George, director, revenue protectionand interconnect, MACH

Interconnect billing typically generates between 30 percent and 60 per cent of overall revenues - and can

account for up to 30 per cent of operating costs due tolengthy and risky implementation projects


A RECENT STUDY by Tecnotree, which examinedconsumer loyalty to mobile operators acrosseight countries, indicated that Nigerianrespondents were the most loyal. Using datacompiled from Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, theUK, Spain, Germany, Brazil and Mexico, Tecnotreefound that 97 per cent of Nigerian respondentsclaimed they were loyal, closely followed bySouth Africa (96.7 per cent) and the UK (96.3 percent). Germany was shown to be the least loyal,with 89 per cent claiming to be loyal. According tothe study, 50 per cent of mobile consumers hadbeen with their existing mobile operator for morethan two years and 26 per cent claimed to havebeen with their operator for more than five years.Of the total respondents, 94 per cent said theybelieved they were a loyal customer to their

mobile operator. However, 36 per cent ofrespondents said they had changed mobileoperator in the last 12 months and 23 per centsaid they had changed in the last six months. Theresearch suggested that this was mainly due toother operators offering cheaper tariffs (24 percent) followed by better devices (21 per cent).A national breakdown revealed that Nigerianumbered among the highest for churn levels in the

last six months, despite most of the Nigerianrespondents saying they were loyal. Nevertheless,more than 50 per cent of total respondents did notintend to change operator within the next sixmonths, suggesting that once consumers do changeoperator, they are likely to stay with that operatorfor a reasonable period of time. The study alsosuggested that there was a discrepancy betweenoperators and consumers in terms of what theythought encouraged loyalty. The majority ofoperators (55 per cent) thought that consumerswere attracted to multiple components, consistingof the device, tariff, and content. While this wasapplicable to a quarter of the consumerrespondents, more than half of consumers in factidentified a single component as the primary factorthat made them loyal to their mobile operator.

Nigerian consumers most loyal to mobile operators, says study

S04 CAF 2 2013 Report 01_Layout 1 12/04/2013 12:32 Page 18


Des écoles primaires qui vont soutenir l’enseignement et améliorer lesrésultats en mathématiques et en sciences grâce à un nouveau projet TIC

Les mathématiquesmobiles au Sénégal

TECHNOLOGIEApprentissage

LES ÉCOLES PRIMAIRES des régions dePikine et de Diourbel, au Sénégal vontprochainement bénéficier detechnologies mobiles qui vont

soutenir l’enseignement et améliorer lesrésultats en mathématiques et en sciencesgrâce à un nouveau projet UNESCO/NOKIAréalisé en partenariat avec le Réseau africaind’apprentissage à distance (RESAFAD).

Lancée en mars 2012, l’initiative –Renforcement de l’enseignement et del’apprentissage des mathématiques et dessciences grâce à l’utilisation de téléphonesmobiles – a commencé entrer dans sa phasepilote de six mois, dans les classes, enjanvier 2013.

Autour de l’éducation et l’apprentissage mobileLe premier groupe d’enseignants de Pikine etl’équipe de mise en œuvre ont été formés dansle cadre d’un atelier de trois jours – à Dakar, auSénégal, en octobre 2012 – consacré auxMathématiques mobiles Nokia, la technologie

utilisée pour le projet. Des spécialistes del’éducation et de l’apprentissage mobile, lesenseignants et les membres de l’équipe localeont exploré comment associer les technologiesmobiles au développement professionnel,d’un point de vue à la fois pédagogique ettechnique. Ils ont également planifié lesprochaines étapes, notamment les stratégiesde suivi et d’évaluation du projet.

D’un programme scolaireLes participants ont fait part de leurscommentaires et de leurs idées sur les façonsd’utiliser cette technologie et de l’intégrer dansle programme scolaire.

L’UNESCO a également visité certainesdes écoles pilotes et a rencontré desreprésentants de Sonatel-Orange afin dediscuter d’une partenariat éventuel quipourrait déboucher sur une prise en chargedu service par l'opérateur local pour lesélèves et enseignants du projet.

Le formation VCTAuparavant, un forum des enseignantsinnovant a été l’une des activités phare duprogramme Partners in Learning (PIL)sponsorisé par Microsoft. Les forums étaissentdes événements annuels de partage quiidentifient et récompensent les enseignants

innovants qui ont adoptés les outils etcompétences pédagogiques du 21e siècledans leurs salles de classe.

Chaque année, les enseignants ayantdéveloppé les projets les plus innovants sontchoisis par leurs écoles pour participer à unforum national.

Ensuite, les enseignants les plus innovantssont choisis pour participer au forum africainpuis au forum mondial. Pour unereprésentation de qualité aux forumsinternationaux, un forum national a organiséau Sénégal en 2010 pour choisir les meilleursprojets qui compétiront au forum sousrégional puis africain.

En prélude à ces joutes internationalesMicrosoft Sénégal en partenariat avec leRESAFAD Sénégal a organisé une formation surl’outil de diffusion qui a été le VirtualClassroom Tour « VCT » et sur la structurationde contenus pédagogiques médiatisés. ✆

Le Resafad participe à ladiffusion de l’utilisation des

TIC dans le SystèmeEducatif Sénégalaise


Les participants ont fait part de leurscommentaires et de leurs idées sur les façonsd’utiliser cette technologie

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AFRICA’S DEBATE ON satellite broadband connectivity ischanging. Until now, satellites have been deemed anexpensive and impractical alternative to fibre optic cable orterrestrial broadband delivery. The activation of the Avanti

HYLAS 2 satellite in October, however, promising 100 Gb/sconnectivity, is slowly beginning to change this perception.

Africa has long been plagued by issues of high latency, high cost andlow bandwidth when it comes to broadband. But, thanks to the hyper-connected world in which we now live, reliable Internett connectivity ismore important than ever, particularly for economic growth. As a result,several attempts have already been made to bring high-capacity Internett connectivity to the continent.

For example, the construction of underwater fibre optic cables,connecting West Africa with Europe, began in 2009, with manydescribing this submerged cable network as the dawn of Internettaccess for the continent. However, while these cables provide a high-capacity backhaul solution, last mile connectivity has been left largelyunfulfilled due to a lack of infrastructure and concerns over operationalcosts. Furthermore, the availability of fibre optic broadband from Europehas done little to lower the price for end-users, with many Africans unable toafford it. In 2010, fixed-line access costas much as 2038 per cent of theaverage monthly income in Malawi.Consumers and businesses in Africahave been turning towards cheapermobile networks for theirincreasingly important broadbandneeds.

Making matters worse, in February 2012 four underwater cables weresevered, one by a ship’s anchor and three under rumours of corruption andsabotage. The resulting outage took three weeks to rectify, affectingconnectivity in Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania and Ethiopia.And there are several regions of Africa without Internett access at all.Despite the notable benefits these underwater cables provide, there arestill clear limitations.

The satellite solutionSatellites like the Avanti’s HYLAS 2 can help fill these gaps and arecapable of delivering reliable Internett connectivity without thecomplications or risks associated with fibre cabling. Satellite broadbanddoes not not require pre-existing infrastructure and can be setup in afraction of the time. Yet the availability of the actual satellite is only onepart of the overall solution. The hardware used to connect to this serviceand provide coverage when and where it’s needed is just as, if not more,important. It’s this technology, after all, that really holds the potential tobridging Africa’s digital divide.

Satellite hardware now exists that is extremely mobile, versatile andeasy to use, designed to operate in high temperatures or inhospitableconditions. These satellite data terminals can also be deployed withinminutes to deliver high bandwidth voice, video and broadband datacommunications.

Much smaller than previous iterations some satellite data terminals,like Vislink’s Mantis MSAT, weigh as little as 12.5kgs and can be carried

and deployed by just one man, making them ideal for use in remoteareas where the fixed line infrastructure doesn’t reach. Due to these

significant technological developments satellite is increasinglybecoming a viable alternative in situations where a fixed-line

Africa’s debate on satellite broadband connectivity is changing, with the promise of 100Gb/s connectivity, with operation of the Avanti HYLAS 2 satellite, beginning to changeperceptions on cost and practicality

Capabilities forconnecting rural Africa

SATELLITE Infrastucture

Satellitebroadband offersimmediacy andreliability

Communications Africa Issue 2 201320 www.communicationsafrica.com



SATELLITEInfrastucture

connection isn’t possible, or would be tooexpensive to deploy.

Capacity and capabilitySatellite broadband offers additionalbenefits in relation to immediacy andreliability and is not affected by theconstant threat of sabotage orcorruption that currently plagues Africa.

It could take up to three years toestablish a cross-border fibreconnection, whereas a satellite dataterminal could be deployed withinminutes. This technology can providea lifeline to those remote areas ofAfrica that are still without Internettaccess. Capable of being deployedanywhere and built to withstand eventhe most testing of conditions, modernsatellite data terminals can deliver significant

benefits for emergency services and ruralmedicine, where an immediate response couldbe the difference between life and death.Beyond this, satellite connectivity is a benefitfor natural resource monitoring, or any otherorganisation that requires a reliable yetportable broadband connection. A high-speed,high-bandwidth data terminal is alsoparticularly advantageous to both the militaryand disaster recovery services.

If users cannot connect to the Internett bothquickly and reliably, the digital divide in Africa

will continue to grow.Thanks to theunpredictable nature offibre optic cables laidunderwater, satellite

broadband connectivity isevidently the best solution

for tackling Africa’s digitalconundrum. Not affected by

the issues that plagueexpensive fibre optic cables,

satellite holds the unrivalled potential todeliver Internett services to both remote andurban areas of the continent. The onlyrestriction is coverage. ✆

Ali Zarkesh, business development directorof Satcom Solutions at Vislink


THE RECENT ATTEMPTS to sabotage the fibre opticcable off Alexandria and the subsequent loss ofcapacity to parts of Africa garnered mediaattention across the globe and sparked debatesabout the vulnerability of the world’s underseacomms cables. However, despite periodichiccups (remember the damage caused by aship’s anchor in 2012), and the practicalimpossibility of patrolling and monitoringmillions of miles of cable, the arrival of submarinecables has changed the face of communicationsand none of us would wish to turn the clock back.

The sub-sea fibre is complemented by thelaying of fibre inland by a number of companiesbut, of course, to provide broadbandconnectivity via fibre across the majority of thecontinent will take years and millions of dollars.

Pragmatic and proactiveSo, satellite will continue to play a key role inboth plugging the massive rural and semi-ruralgaps where fibre has yet to reach and also inproviding reliable backup for the fibre. Thephrase ‘together we’re stronger’ definitely

applies in the African market. Most carriers (andcarriers’ carriers) today are extremely pragmaticand combine the use of fibre and satellite toachieve reliable and cost-effective connectivity.And many newcomers to the industry aresurprised by how often satellite and fibrecompanies in Africa work together buying andselling capacity to get connectivity into certainareas. There has been significant investmentrecently in new satellites, the price of VSATequipment is coming down and there have been

technical innovations - including improvementsto Ku band, which previously suffered fromservice interruption in severe weather. Indeedany carrier or enterprise using Ku band shouldensure that it is getting 99.9 per cent availabilityat the highest capacity in all conditions.

Whilst latency will always be an inherentissue over Geo synchronous satellite links, thelatest HTTP acceleration and cache solutionscan effectively mitigate latency effects. Some ofthe more advanced satellite operators are alsodeploying Xiplink HTTP acceleration solutionwhich utilises three core elements to optimiseInternet over satellite: transport layer TCPAcceleration and optimisation, HTTPAcceleration with prefetching as well as highratio data compression. Engineered together,these technologies deliver a superior DSL-likeuser experience while making more efficientand effective use of available bandwidth.

Wider market acceptance of advanced ACMtechnology combined with Inclined Orbitsatellites will further reduce costs and allow highcapacity provision to ISPs at near fibre prices.The satellite industry in Africa is extremelyhealthy. With demand for high speed broadbandservices continuing to increase, satellite willcontinue to play a key role in Africa’s telecomsinfrastructure development.

Dan Zajicek, CEO of Gilat Satcom

There has been significant investment recently inthe African satellite ecosystem

Satellite – still a key part of Africa’s communications mix

Satellite hardware is nowmobile, versatile and easy

to use, and designed tooperate in high

temperatures orinhospitable condition™

The satellite industry in Africa is extremely healthy and,with demand for high speed broadband services continuingto increase, will continue to play a key role in development

of Africa’s telecoms infrastructure



Ringed by submarine cabling and with increased access to wireless technologies, Africais in well-poised to make vast strides in its digital economies - and satellite offersessential support

Africa's 'digital economy'requires satellite solutions

SATELLITE Infrastucture

WITH THE LAUNCH of the WestAfrican Cable System (WACS),the coast of Africa is furtherenhanced for broadband and

Internet connections with the rest of theworld. It is the fifth high capacity, super-fastfibre connection for South Africa. Thefoundations have been laid to bring highquality communications to African cities,homes and businesses. The days ofterrestrial communications infrastructure sopoor that it takes three days to send an emailshould be coming to an end.

Not a moment too soon. The demand forvideo, data and Internet services throughoutAfrica is growing rapidly. But, for all theinvestment in fibre, the technology by itselfcannot answer Africa's communications needs.In the longer term, it is likely to provide a highlystable, high performance infrastructure to urbanareas that could rival other regions of the world.In the short term, many urban centres are stillpoorly served by terrestrial infrastructure. Visitcities such as Nairobi, Kampala and Lagos andyou'll find a skyline of VSAT antennae.

A series of catastrophic events has alsoshown the vulnerability of relying on asubmarine backbone by itself. Earlier this year, aship dropping anchor in a Kenyan harbour wasjointly responsible for virtually severing Internet

connections in nine African countries. For thesake of continuous operation alone there is aneed for some alternative redundant path thatcan act as a fail-over should the worst occur.Satellite – the previous internationalconnectivity method – has to be complementarywith fibre provision to create an infrastructureupon which African businesses can rely.

Delivering capacity for coverageThe development of wireless technologies islikely to provide a good alternative to fibre orsatellite. It requires little infrastructure, it is cost-effective and quick to deploy, and wirelessdelivers coverage over extended areas. However,it is still a local area solution and requiresbackhaul facilities to international connections.That's where satellite comes in – in urban areasand, more importantly, for rural communities.

Africa has a population in excess of 700mn.Around 72 per cent of these people live in ruralareas. The rural communities are amongst thepoorest in Africa. They are also the most poorlyserved by the communication infrastructure sodesperately needed to stimulate ruraleconomies. Some industry estimates suggestthat even with the best efforts of terrestrialproviders – including mobile operators –around 10mn people will still have no access tocommunications.

Connecting communitiesThe only viable means to connect ruralcommunities will continue to include satellite.However, it may not be the only technologyinvolved. In combination with wirelesssystems, providers are able to create excellentlast mile connectivity into rural communities

with satellite links used to deliver inter-community, national and internationalconnectivity. Satellite can also be used toprovide the connection between the wirelessnetwork and the international fibre backbone.

However, satellite communicationsprovides an end-to-end solution for ruralcommunities by itself. As the cost of spacesegment reduces and capacity grows, itbecomes easier to focus on the groundsegment. Satellite equipment is cost-effective,easy and quick to deploy and robust. It alsoprovides significant bandwidth over a widecoverage area – and this is important becausecontent is becoming as important asconnectivity for rural communications.

Analysts suggest that applications such ase-learning and e-health will be key drivers forrural connectivity within Africa. The securepoint-to-multi-point broadcast capabilities ofsatellite offers a means to bring this type ofvital content to distributed and isolatedcommunities at a cost that is unlike to bepossible using alternative technologies.

The exciting prospect is that Africa now hasan armoury of communications technologiesfrom which it can select. A lack of terrestrialinfrastructure does not necessary need to be ahuge handicap where cost-effective and readilyavailable satellite and wireless alternatives arepresent. Today, it is possible to create 'best ofbreed' infrastructure based on the needs ofcommunities and business. Who would havebelieved that was possible in Africa only adecade ago? ✆

Bernie Branfield, general manager of DatasatCommunications

Satellite communicationtechnology offers an end-

to-end solution for ruralcommunities


SIGNALHORN GROUP OF Companies, a provider of managedcommunication solutions and services, has been awarded three newlocations in Libya requiring robust communications solutions, from anonshore and offshore drilling and engineering contractor. Signalhorn’ssatellite and terrestrial communications solutions have enabled allcustomers to operate in some of the world's most demandingenvironments - geographically as well as politically - such as in Libya whereSignalhorn recently expanded its services to include five additional sites.

The two companies achieved this expansion objective in spite ofnew infrastructure and political challenges. In these critical conditions,customers require a service provider who not only can provide the

communication solution, but also has the expertise and skillset totackle unique and difficult conditions. For 40 years, Signalhorn hasbeen offering services that also include special license acquisitions,pertinent security and risk measures, as well as necessaryqualifications and training to ensure uninterrupted connectivity forcustomers regardless of their location or situation.

"In Libya we face unique challenges. Both our customer and Signalhornmust pay particular attention and care to equipment delivery, security,travel, and support efforts," says Jürgen Schreiber, Signalhorn VP Oil & GasSales. "We work closely with all our customers to develop the best solutionand to strategically combine resources to streamline operations."

Signalhorn connects drilling operator in Libya


Why the key potential opportunities in provision of content services areincreasingly digital and rural

The African marketfor satellite services

SATELLITEMarkets

THE AFRICAN MARKET for satellite communications has experienced a feeding frenzy over the last few years as international players vie for the

lion’s share of a market that has undergoneliberalisation and is attracting massiveinterest from external investors. This articlewill provide a bird’s eye view of the emergingtrends in the satellite broadcast market andexamine some of the remaining challenges toovercome for the African broadcast industry.However the momentum is already underwayas liberalised regulatory regimes haveopened up markets in Africa that previouslyposed significant challenges for operatorsand service providers and the African market,the second largest continent in the worldafter Asia, is open for business.

The honey pot that is attracting all thisattention is the vast potential of a relativelyuntapped market which until recentlyexperienced a shortage of satellite capacity. TheAfrican satellite market is estimated to havegrown in the last few years by more than doublethe global average of six-seven per cent and allthe signs point to a further escalation in thecoming decade. According to Digital TV’s subSaharan Africa report, households (whichnumbered 148mn at the end of 2011) will rise by20mn over the next six years bringing it close to

the total number of Western Europeanhouseholds. Currently only a quarter of homesown a TV, but the number of householdsowning a TV is set to increase to 50mn by 2017,representing 30 per cent of all households.

Move to digitalCertain regions like Nigeria and South Africawill make up a disproportionately highpercentage of the region’s TV households,posed to represent a quarter and 15 per cent ofthe total respectively by 2017. Other salientfactors include the predominance of analogueTVs, which currently comprise three-quarters ofhouseholds. This percentage is due to dropover time as digital TV begins to take off; with ameteoric rise predicted over the next few years,rising from a quarter to 54 per cent of homes by2017. This trend will undoubtedly be spurredon by the undertaking from all African states tomove to digital by June 2015, yet the reality isthat - with a few exceptions, such as Ghana,Guinea and Nigeria who are blazing a trail inthis area - most other countries are deterred bythe cost and many have yet to even begin thepolicy work required to facilitate the transition.

Another key opportunity for broadcasters isthe anticipated growth of Pay TV, as Pay TVsubscribers are expected to increase from7.2mn today to 14.1mn by 2017, with DTH

comprising 8.2mn and pay DTT (pay and FTAcombined) 5.2mn. Within this figure SouthAfrica and Nigeria will have adisproportionately high share of the Pay TVmarket, as South African Pay TV penetrationwill rise from four million in 2011 to 5.1mn in2017 and Nigeria will climb from 1.2mn in 2011to 3.1mn in 2017.

For independent teleports like SatLink,which offer playout and satellite services forglobal content distribution, the African marketoffers three key opportunities: firstly, the abilityto deliver International TV channels fromaround the world to the African market;secondly, the chance to help Africanbroadcasters expand coverage to ruralcommunities and into other African countries.The third opportunity is to bring channels out ofAfrica to deliver them to the diaspora of Africansliving and working abroad. Early in 2012 SatLinklaunched its AMOS-5 Satellite platforms on Kuband for DTH and contribution, allowingbroadcasters to reach the African home vieweror their satellite/cable/DTT/IPTV's Pay TVpartners in land. The two separate Ku-Bandplatforms on 17o East are also allowingbroadcasters to distribute video content easilyin the French speaking and English/Portuguesespeaking central African regions, maximisingSatLink’s own playout centre to adapt theprogrammes to suit local market demandswhile distributing their content to emergingbroadcast markets like Nigeria, Kenya,Tanzania, Ghana, DRC (Democratic Republic ofCongo), Mozambique and Uganda.

Offering transmission services also via thepan-African C-Band on AMOS 5, SatLink isalready allowing several major broadcasters toprovide an array of entertainment, religious,news and sports channels to Africa’s Pay TVusers and local distributors. ✆

Arie Vered, sales director for Africa forSatLink Communications

Communications Africa Issue 2 2013 23www.communicationsafrica.com

Arie Vered, sales director for Africa at SatLinkCommunications

The African satellite market isestimated to have grown in the lastfew years by more than double the

global average of six-seven per cent


The fast-growing market with huge opportunities for international retailers, localmerchants and trading communities who are able to offer customers the right way to pay

How mobile and NFCunlocks payments for Africa

ICT Commerce

WITH LARGE POPULATIONS, a highproportion of young adults,abundant natural resources andwell-established local trade and

international links, Africa represents a fast-growing market with huge opportunities forthose international retailers, local merchantsand trading communities who are able tooffer customers the right way to pay.

Throughout Africa, retailers continue to bechallenged by basic payment infrastructure,limited electronic channels, stratified populationdemographics and a large proportion ofpayments still flowing through cash.

Our own extensive experience in progressivemarkets shows that developed paymentsystems have a positive impact on themovement of goods, services and consumers.As long as local economies remain cash-orientated then they will have difficulty fulfillingtheir full commercial potential – particularlywhen it comes to cross-border trade.

No surprise then that governments andfinancial institutions have been increasinglychampioning new payment initiatives andmobile platforms to join the financial dotsacross Africa. An increasingly supportivebanking infrastructure, coupled with thecontinued penetration of wireless and mobilesystems into rural communities, is at lastbringing the connectivity required to facilitatetransactions and enable electronic paymentsto previously disenfranchised populations.

In mature markets like South Africa, we arenow seeing the development of contactlesstransport and ticketing systems asgovernment seeks to exploit new paymenttechnology to speed throughput and bettermanage their systems.

And of course, the widespread availability ofmobile devices and coverage is opening up newopportunities through mobile payments andmicrofinance - particularly in West Africa throughschemes such as m-Pesa.

A growing retail market Making it easier for people to pay is now a keypriority for those with goods or services to sell.As Africa’s socio-economic power grows – sodoes its demand for far reaching paymentinfrastructure to fuel retail growth.

Within the 56 countries that make up Africathere are one billion people, 14 per cent of the

world’s population. According to Deloitte,Africa has fast growing economies, young andgrowing populations and fragmented retailsectors. In Algeria, 70 per cent of thepopulation is aged between 15-64, whilst 25per cent are 14 years old or younger. Morocco isa relatively stable, high growth economy withclose economic ties to Western Europe, whilstKenya is leading a number of sub-Saharancountries in generating significant growth andincreasing consumer spending power.

Deloitte also confirms that the continent’seconomic powerhouse, South Africa, is likely toremain the first market international retailersventure into as they embark on an Africanstrategy. With a per capita income similar to thatof Turkey, it is a relatively affluent market amongemerging countries. Its consumer spending, at61 per cent of GDP, is high relative to otheremerging countries and is likely to remain so formany years to come. Consumer spending inSouth Africa is also boosted by foreign visitors.

In addition, recent UN figures highlight thatin South Africa 64.3 per cent of the populationis expected to be economically active by 2015,while the proportion of those in the 20-44 agerange crucial for retail sales, is forecast to reach38 per cent in the same time frame.

Paying with mobile and NFC As well as growing retail markets, the number ofmobile phone subscribers in Africa is also on theincrease and is expected to reach 735mn by theend of 2012. Similarly, the total value of mobilemoney transfers in Africa is expected to exceed

$200 billion by 2015 representing 18 per cent ofthe continents GDP. In Kenya close to 18mnKenyans currently use their mobiles as a bankaccount for storing and moving value.

With increasing prevalence of mobile basedelectronic funds, many African nations areeager to exploit new peer-to-peer mobilepayments systems to overcome lack oftraditional electronic transaction infrastructure,particularly in rural communities. NFC will play acrucial part in this process.

By allowing simple, tap and pay, NFC has thepotential to offer a practical and convenientsolution. One that connects mobile users in abroader payment context – to retailers, services,trading points and transportation - withoutrelying on cash. In addition, the low valuetransactions covered by NFC suits Africa’sspending profile perfectly - giving its populationa practical solution to their payments issues. ✆

Alan Moss, VP of Marketing, VeriFone,Western Europe, Middle East and Africa

Across Africa, VeriFone hasbeen involved in rolling out

new payment solutions,including payment devices

with biometrics for identityauthentication - and dual

SIM and tri-comms solutions


A NEW TREND has emerged in recent times wheremobile operators, instead of being staunchadversaries, are presenting a united front againstthe onslaught of the OTT army. Yann Chevalier,CEO of Intersec, a provider of innovative servicesplatforms, has witnessed this change first handthrough his dealings with Tier One operators, andoffers his thoughts on its longer term implicationsfor the mobile industry.According to Mr Chevalier, “There has been afundamental shift by operators to turn to eachother to present a united front against theconsiderable might of the OTT players as well ascompetition from broadcasters and ISPs who are

all gunning for the mobile users. Trends such asthe mainstream adoption of NFC and M-Payments,the increasing adoption of M2M applications aswell the dawning realisation that location basedservices and mobile advertising work better if thebrand owners can deal with a single entity ratherthan multiple different operators, have allprompted the need to work together.”Yann Chevalier believes in the imperative forthis cooperation to continue and believes thatwe will see further examples of this type ofcooperation as it holds the best chance formobile operators to claim the lion’s share of theexploding mobile market.

How operators are joining forces to combat the OTT players


Les technologies de l'information et des communications sont en train de révolutionnerle développement en Afrique

Des innovations etdes solutions endogènes

TICCommerce

EN AFRIQUE, DES innovations dans ledomaine des TIC donnent naissanceà des solutions endogènes quitransforment les entreprises et

dynamisent l'entrepreneuriat et la croissanceéconomique. C'est le constat d'un rapportconjoint publié par la Banque mondiale et laBanque africaine de développement (BAD),avec l'appui de l'Union africaine.

Des perspectives de développement en AfriqueCe rapport, intitulé ‘eTransform Africa: TheTransformational Use of Information andCommunication Technologies in Africa’,présente de nouvelles données sur larévolution technologique en Afrique qui est entrain de transformer sur le développement ducontinent. Au début de 2012, on comptaitenviron 650 millions d'abonnements à latéléphonie mobile, chiffre qui fait de l'Afriqueun marché plus important que celui de l'UE oudes États-Unis dans ce secteur. Quelque 68000 km de câbles sous-marins et plus de 615000 km de réseaux de dorsales nationales ontété installés, augmentant considérablement laconnectivité sur le continent africain. La bandepassante ouverte à plus de un milliard decitoyens africains est 20 fois plus largeaujourd'hui qu'en 2008.

Jamal Saghir, directeur du Développementdurable de la Banque mondiale pour la régionAfrique, explique : « Le réseau Internet et lestéléphones portables transforment lesperspectives de développement en Afrique. Ils

introduisent un nouveau dynamisme dans dessecteurs clés. Le défi désormais consiste à fairepasser ces innovations et ces réussites àl'échelle supérieure afin qu'elles exercent unimpact social et économique plus visible sur lecontinent au cours des dix prochaines années. »

Le rapport eTransform Africa insiste sur lanécessité de bâtir un secteur des TICsuffisamment concurrentiel pour promouvoirl'innovation, créer des emplois et dynamiser lepotentiel d'exportation des sociétés africaines. Ilénumère les pratiques exemplaires d'utilisationdes TIC dans huit secteurs clés. Par exemple :• Agriculture : au Kenya, le programme Kilimo

Salama est un programme d'assurance descultures qui tire parti du système de transfertd'argent par téléphone M PESA et permet auxexploitants agricoles de mieux gérer lesrisques naturels tels que les sécheresses oula surabondance de précipitations.

• Adaptation au changement climatique : auMalawi, un projet de déforestation forme lescommunautés locales, à l'établissement derelevés des villages sur GPS et àl'élaboration de stratégies d'adaptation enfonction de leurs besoins.

• Services financiers : au Sénégal, l'opérateurSONATEL (filiale d'Orange) a lancérécemment un service d'envoi de fonds,permettant à ses 200 000 abonnésd'envoyer et de recevoir de l'argent par lebiais de leur téléphone portable.

• Santé : au Mali, la télémédecine contribue àpallier le manque de travailleurs et de

spécialistes de la santé dans les zonesrurales, grâce notamment au programme detélé-radiologie IKON.

Des espaces de collaboration, d'innovation, etde formation« Ce rapport présente la voie dans laquellel'Afrique s'est engagée et encourage l'espritcréatif concernant la manière d'utiliser les TICau profit du plus grand nombre », expliqueGilbert Mbesherubusa, vice-présidentsuppléant des opérations de la Banqueafricaine de développement.

Le rapport décrit de quelle manière des payscomme le Kenya et le Sénégal mettent enœuvre des initiatives de facilitation ducommerce grâce aux TIC. Il précise aussi le rôleprépondérant que les communautéséconomiques régionales peuvent jouer enfavorisant une plus grande intégrationrégionale à laquelle arrimer la croissanceéconomique à coût réduit.

Le rapport eTransform Africa fournitégalement des informations sur ledéveloppement des centres technologiques enAfrique - tels que iHub et NaiLab au Kenya, HiveCoLab et AppLab en Ouganda, Activspaces auCameroun, BantaLabs au Sénégal, Kinu enTanzanie ou infoDev’s mLabs au Kenya et enAfrique du Sud. Ces centres créent de nouveauxespaces de collaboration, d'innovation, deformation, de développement d'applications etde contenu et de pré-incubation des entreprisesafricaines de demain. ✆


UNE RÉUNION DE concertation autour du nouveau Projet CodeNumérique s’est tenue 29 Mars au siège de l'APEBI avec pour objectifl'enrichissement des remarques qui seront soumises au MCINT.

Le projet de Code numérique élaboré par le ministère del’Industrie, du commerce et des nouvelles technologies est structuréen six titres distincts traitant des domaines de l’administrationélectronique, des communications numériques, des contrats conclusà distance, de la protection des mineurs en ligne, de la publicité et dumarketing électroniques ainsi que de la sécurité des systèmesd’information. Le projet de Code numérique ambitionne de s’inscrireefficacement dans le paysage des technologies de l’information et dela confiance numérique au Maroc.

Ce projet, porté par la Commission Net Economie de l’APEBI, aregroupé plusieurs e-marchands venus débattre et échanger sur lesdispositions de ce projet surfacturant pour le secteur.

Le secteur des Télécommunications du Maroc se distingue par sonleadership en Afrique. Il est même considéré comme un modèle pard’autres pays du continent.

L'évolution du marché des télécommunications s’explique par l’essordes offres 3G qui offrent plusieurs avantages aux consommateurs àsavoir : accessibilité; absence d’engagement; mobilité totale; ettéléphonie Fixe (source ANRT).

A fin 2011, la téléphonie fixe comptait 3.56 millions d’abonnés contre3.75 millions en 2010, soit un recul de 5% sur une année. Le taux depénétration de la téléphonie s’inscrit également en recul 11.08% à fin2011 contre 11.9% une année auparavant. Le nombre d’abonnés mobilea atteint près de 36.5 millions à fin 2011 contre 32 millions à fin 2010, soitune croissance annuelle de 14.3%. Pour le taux de pénétration de latéléphonie mobile, il a gagné 12 points en une année pour s’établir à113.5% à fin 2011.

Le nouveau projet code numérique au Maroc


Growing advisory capacity and a fresh impetus on sales in one of the world’s fastest-growing telecommunications markets

Supporting new underseafibre network connections

ICT Cable

LATE IN 2012, telecom consulting andservice company APTelecom wasengaged by Angola Cables to serve asoverall international sales manager in

the creation of a new submarine cablesystem - SACS - joining Africa and SouthAmerica. The cable will contain four fibrepairs, each capable of transmitting 100wavelengths and initial speeds of 40 Gbps,with provision to upgrade to 100 Gbps astechnologies are proven up. The SACS cableis planned to go live in 2014. As part of theoverall programme management, APTelecom isproviding Angola Cables with specialists in thevarious commercial aspects of system design,procurement and the sales strategy behindleveraging the capabilities and reach of theirnetwork.

The cable connecting southern Africa andSouth AmericaSACS is totally innovative and unique to thesubsea cable industry as it provides uniquesecure low latency routing avoiding currentbottleneck locations routing via Africa and Asiato the United States and Europe. This new routewill provide the global carrier community,content players, and ultra-low latency sensitivecustomers security through a diverse route viathe Southern Hemisphere.

"We are honoured to be a part of such animportant project in one of the world's fastest-growing telecom markets and working withinthe SACS Cable team to bring their plans tofruition," said John Hibbard, Board Member ofAPTelecom and President of the PacificTelecommunications Council (PTC) (Emeritus).

"We are pleased to play a major role in thedevelopment of this new connection ofsouthern Africa to South America affording aroll-out of the applications needed to meetcarriers' voracious demands for bandwidthover the next decade."

Corporate structures geared towardscorporate growthAngola Cables operates fibre optictelecommunication cables. The company wasformed in 2009 and is owned by a number ofnational telecommunication companies -namely: Angola Telecom with 51 per cent of thecapital; Unitel with 31 per cent; MSTelcom withnine per cent; Movicel with six per cent; andStartel with three per cent.

APTelecom specialises in globalconnectivity, cloud solutions and emergingmarket advisory-based solutions - with an aimto improve networks, facilitate growth, andmanage change for its clients in the call centre,business process optimisation (BPO), andInternet service provision (ISP) spaces.Companies seeking to expand their globalreach rely on APTelecom's comprehensiveexpertise and knowledge of regulatoryenvironments, as well as its ability to providehigh-quality products and solutions at low

cost, helping businesses achieve intelligent,sustainable growth. APTelecom differentiatesitself through quality, integrity, and innovationacross its entire suite of products and servicesin emerging markets.

Specialists in submarine systems, supportingAngolan connectivityIn support of its work in Angola, APTelecomrecently appointed telecommunicationsindustry veterans Jean Devos and PaulMcCann to its advisory board. Mr Devos wasone of the founders and a board member ofAxiom SA, a company specialising insubmarine systems projects study andmanagement. However, Mr Devos’experience stretches back to involvement inthe submarine cable industry in 1961 as acable engineer in Calais, France. Mr McCannalso has immense industry experience -covering four decades of network planningand development in both international anddomestic telecommunications arenas. MrMcCann’s specialties include both wire lineand wireless connectivity supporting globaldata services. He is currently Secretary andMember of the Board of Governors of thePacific Telecommunications Council, aregional industry body. ✆

The South Atlantic CableSystem (SACS) is designed

to provide low latencyrouting between Africa, Asia

and the Americas - andensure data traffic between

Angola and Brazil will nolonger have to pass through

Europe and the USA



Why and how existing policy and charging infrastructure can support increased adoptionof data connectivity

Mobile data uptakedemands a creative approach

ICTData

“In five years, most Africans will havesmartphones.”

That bold claim, made in a Tech Crunchcolumn earlier this year may have beenprovocative but was backed by convincing stats.It showed that the climb in number of smartdevices is growing ever steeper, particularly ascheaper Android devices gain in popularity.

Is hard not to be excited, as massive smartdevice penetration could promise a similar risein Internet use – an economic boon not just tocommunities but also to operators facing adecline in voice and SMS revenues. However, areality check is needed: today not all mobileoperators are seeing cellular data usage orrevenues rising in line with this growth. Manysmartphones are often only used with Wi-Fihotspots. So how do operators reconcile thissituation and convince consumers to embracemobile data? Broadly speaking, uptake isbeing inhibited by two consumer issues, pricesensitivity and perception of value.

Mobile data consumption does not lenditself easily to straightforward pricing (whatdoes 100MB mean in subjective terms?) -especially true of smartphones that canconsume network data without the consumer’sknowledge or consent. Historically, the easiestway to overcome these issues was with all-you-can-eat data plans, but operators who havegone down this route are typically moving backto alternative models in an attempt to protecttheir network against over-use, and to addflexibility to their customer offerings.

So data is a challenging sell, and the signsare that the business models that drove highpenetration in other regions won’t be asustainable route for Africa’s operators. Butthere are the alternatives. Innovative operatorsare already showing that it can be done, andoften using existing policy and charginginfrastructure to create attractive data offers.

Giving customers control over spendMost operators already have the facility toimplement caps and notifications, but why notmake them a part of the offer? Capping theamount of data specific spend on a daily basis,along with a text message notification is thesimplest way to give spend control to theconsumer. This most basic form of “service pass”should be coupled with a release mechanism to

allow the user to increase their allowance in data,time based, or financial terms - more megabytes,more time, or an extra dollar’s worth. Obviously,the committed expenditure will need to increasein line with the additional data.

The key to data caps and notifications is realtime measurement. This gives the customer anunderstanding of the data impact of theirdevice, which should benefit both parties inthe long run. Real-time info will also minimisethe need for any customer care interaction.Customers will be blocked off when they hittheir pre-arranged/agreed limits, and will havedirectly agreed to any further spend.

Start with what consumers knowConvincing a customer who has neverexperienced mobile Internet of its value is notalways easy, but many operators are takingadvantage of services that are familiar, andoffering these for free as a way to encouragemobile data use. Axis in Indonesia offers freetext-based Facebook to all of its subscribers.Other operators, such as 8ta in South Africa,do the same with Google services. If a

customer is familiar with a service on a PC,they will likely appreciate the ability to accesslive updates from anywhere. But there ismore. Facebook in particular is typicallypacked with links to the broader internet.Once the customer begins to associate themobile experience to the PC one, they willbecome more likely to click on these links,especially if you have already implementedan effective cap and notifications system.

Flexible pricing tariffsData is offered as a component in manysubscriptions but there is much room toinnovate, particular if you stop perceiving allInternet access as being equal. Time of day canbe used to dictate pricing, as seen with 8ta’snight surfer offer that provides low price mobiledata between the hours of 11pm and 5am.Tiered offers can be used too: For example,data packages can be structured to includemobile access to certain apps on a tiered basis,where the higher value customers receivefurther free app access.

Personalising offers Understanding the usage profile of yourcustomers is a great way to deliver tailoredoffers that will make them feel they are gettingbetter value. Here’s a hypothetical example ofusing usage data to sell app specific access. Anoperator realises that one in five of theirconsumers is using WhatsApp, spending onaverage 40 cents daily on data for this service.However, to avoid the occasional risk ofconsuming data in excess of their allowancethese consumers are given the option to buyunlimited mobile access to WhatsApp for US$1per day. A number of operators, including 3Hong Kong, have recently launched an appspecific data service pass on this basis.

This use case can be extended to any app,and can be tailored to the specific dataharvested from an operator’s customer base.

Implementing these controls and offers is allpossible using existing policy and chargingtechnology and will maximise the likelihood ofcustomers trying, and continuing to use mobiledata. Unlike the all-you-can-eat approach, asAfrica’s data use grows these methods will allowoperators to retain control as data use grows. ✆

Barry Marron, marketing manager, Openet

Different mobile operators are experiencing differentrates of growth of cellular data usage and revenues

Data is offered as acomponent in manysubscriptions - but thereis room to innovate



Comment une plateforme informatique fait de révolutionner la gestion et la diffusion desdonnées sur le continent

L’autoroute del’information en Afrique

TIC Économie

LA BANQUE AFRICAINE dedéveloppement (BAD) a lancé unambitieux programme, qui vise àaméliorer de façon substantielle la

gestion et la diffusion des données en Afrique.Objectif ultime de ce programme : favoriser unplus large accès du public aux statistiquesofficielles. Lancé en novembre 2012, dans lecadre d’une initiative plus vaste de la BADvisant à renforcer les capacités statistiques enAfrique, ce programme entend aussi appuyerles pays du continent dans les efforts qu’ilsdéploient pour améliorer la qualité et ladiffusion des données, tout en facilitantl’élaboration, le suivi et l’évaluation despolitiques à l’œuvre.

Les plateformes informatiquesLes travaux, poursuivis simultanément dansplusieurs pays et institutions africains, ont étéparachevés dans treize pays (Cap-Vert,République démocratique du Congo, Cameroun,Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibie, Rwanda,Soudan du Sud, Tanzanie, Tunisie, Zimbabwe,Zambie), ainsi qu’au sein d’une institutionpanafricaine - la Commission de l'Unionafricaine. Le programme prévoit la création deplateformes informatiques communes avec lamise en place de portails de données dansl’ensemble des 54 pays du continent et de 16organisations régionales et sous-régionalesafricaines, d'ici à la fin juillet 2013.

L'objectif est double : établir, en temps réel,des liens directs sur les données, entre la BAD etles agences nationales de statistiques, lesbanques centrales et les ministères de tutelledes pays africains, d’une part ; et associer lespays les uns aux autres, ainsi qu’aux partenairesau développement extérieurs, d’autre part.

Voilà qui facilitera les échanges, lavalidation, l'analyse et la diffusion desdonnées. Cette approche, qui s’appuiera surles normes et directives internationales,permettra, non seulement de faciliter l'accèsaux données et métadonnées statistiques despays africains, mais aussi d’améliorer laqualité des données nationales afin qu’ellespuissent se prêter à comparaison. Ainsiharmonisées, plus adéquates, celles-cis’avéreront, in fine, plus fructueuses à l’usage.

L'accès aux donnéesLa plateforme informatique en cours dedéploiement en Afrique dispose également d'unoutil de présentation qui favorise un transfertfluide des données nationales vers le portailstatistique de la BAD. Pour ce faire, ledépartement des statistiques de la BAD a

collaboré avec celui du FMI, en vue d’aider lespays à rédiger leurs pages nationales de donnéessynthétiques, dans le cadre de leur préparation àl’adhésion aux Normes spéciales de diffusion desdonnées renforcées (NSDD-Plus).

La Banque a également noué un partenariatavec l'Union européenne, dans le but defaciliter l'accès aux données et aux outilspermettant de simuler diverses politiquesagricoles alternatives. L'outil de présentationdes données fera de la BAD le dépositaire desdonnées clés sur le développement en Afrique,et la plaque tournante de l'échange dedonnées avec les partenaires internationauxau développement. Autre avantage : la chargede travail liée à la collecte des données despays africains sera considérablement réduite,car il suffira désormais de télécharger en unefois les données dans le système de la BADpuis de les partager avec les différentspartenaires au développement.

Cette initiative de la BAD offre aux paysafricains l’opportunité, unique, de prendre lesdevants dans la mise en œuvre de normesstatistiques à l’échelle régionale, tout enfacilitant l’accès à leurs données respectivesvia une plateforme commune. Outre le fait derévolutionner la gestion et la diffusion desdonnées sur le continent, ce programmepermettra à l’Afrique de participer plusefficacement à l'économie mondiale del'information. ✆

Cette initiative visant àrenforcer les capacitésstatistiques en Afrique


DR BOCAR TOURE, Directeur du Département Renforcement desSystèmes et Services de Santé du Bureau régional de l’OMS pourl’Afrique, a mis l’accent sur la nécessité de traduire les résultats de larecherche au plan des politiques et de la prise de décision par la miseen place de mécanismes et de structures appropriées pour desinterventions de santé publique basées sur l’évidence.

‘’EVIPNET a pour mission de promouvoir un réseau de partenariat auxniveau national, régional et mondial entre chercheurs, décideurspolitiques et autres parties prenantes pour renforcer les systèmes de santéet améliorer les résultats sanitaires’’, a ajouté en substance le Directeur duDépartement Renforcement des Systèmes et Services de Santé.

Les représentants de quatorze pays de la Région africaine, despartenaires et des experts de l’OMS participent aux travaux. La réuniona pour objectifs de faire le point sur le fonctionnement d’EVIPNET dansles pays, d’identifier les facteurs qui ont contribué au succès et àl’échec de l’action de ses équipes ainsi que les domaines afférents aurenforcement des capaciés. Les participants à la réunion initieront

également le processus qui mènera à la création d’au moins sept autreséquipes d’EVIPNET dans la Région africaine de l’OMS, discuteront de lapérenité d’EVIPNET aux niveaux national et régional, et feront dessuggestions sur les priorités de la nouvelle Stratégie Régionale sur laRecherche en Santé.

Citant le Dr Luis Gomes Sambo, Directeur régional de l’OMS pourl’Afrique, le Dr TOURE a indiqué qu’il y a une déficience en matière detechnologies de l’information et de la communication, et en terme deconnexion de masse à Internet, qui limite les capacité des systèmesnationaux de gestion de l’information à générer, analyser et disséminerl’information pour son exploitation dans le domaine de la prise de decision.

‘’Ces défis ne pourront être relevés que par le biais de lacollaboration multisectorielle, d’approches novatrices et del’engagement de toutes les parties prenantes’’, a souligné le Dr TOURE.Il a félicité sept équipes d’EVIPNET qui ont développé des politiques etouvert le dialogue sur la thérapie combinée à base d’artémisinine pourtraiter les formes simples du paludisme.

La recherche pour améliorer la santé



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BROADCAST SYSTEMS INTEGRATOR VSC Design has been appointed tosupply and install the new broadcast infrastructure for TV Zimbo whichis to undergo construction of a new broadcasting centre at itsheadquarters in Luanda, Angola.

TV Zimbo was Angola's first independent TV channel and first startedbroadcasting in December 2008. VSC Design was key to the launch ofthe channel back then and has since provided on-going technicalsupport for TV Zimbo.

Building for broadcastThese new facilities represent a considerable expansion and upgrade forTV Zimbo with the broadcaster moving to HD and tapeless operation and

provision of facilities for a future second channel. The new broadcastcentre will include a comprehensive newsroom with a NCRS, twostudios, post production and continuity.

The work also includes a post installation support contract, with VSCproviding technical support both locally and from their UK base inTeddington, London.

VSC Design managing director Martyn Hales said, “We are verypleased to have been awarded this contract. This is a significant upgradeand expansion of the current facilities and we look forward to workingwith TV Zimbo on this exciting new project.”

Angolan broadcaster rebuilds major facilities with VSC products


GL COMMUNICATIONS INC. recentlyreleased its enhanced T3 (DS3) E3Analyzer with DS3 Subrate and

Scrambling feature. Speaking to reporters, MrVijay Kulkarni, CEO of the company, said, “GL'sT3 (DS3) E3 Analyzer Pod is one of the smallestand lightest (weighing only 1.75 lbs) analyzerunits in the world. The pod when connected toNotebook PC is capable of capturing two full T3

(DS3) / E3 data streams, dropping and insertingT1 or E1, and Analysis of HDLC, ATM, FrameRelay, and PPP Protocols.”

He added, “GL's T3 (DS3) E3 Analyzer is nowenhanced with scrambling and subrate features.Sub rate allows DSU manufacturers to controlbandwidth from service provider end and selluser specific bandwidth. Data Service Unit (DSU)Subrate feature in T3 (DS3) E3 Analyzer allows to

configure the DS3 networks for the followingDSU vendors' algorithms for T3 interface: DigitalLink, Larscom, Verilink, and Adtran.”

Mr.Kulkarni further added, “The analyzerallows to choose scrambling in each DSU mode.Scrambling was implemented to addressvarious 0s-density when used in WAN interface.User can monitor such communications usingGL's USB T3 E3 Analyzer.”

GL offers support for DS3 Subrate and Scrambling

Data Descrambler • After the data is descrambled, the data descrambler block is used

to descramble incoming data using a configured polynomial. • The scrambler can be turned off for data not using descrambling. • This block uses a normal descrambling serial polynomial which

can be configured for multiple polynomials

Data Filter• The Data filter uses a multi-framed aligned block RAM. • By enabling or disabling the incoming data, software can configure

the incoming data to support the different DS3 DSU vendor subrates.

Filter Descrambler• Some Vendors only support scrambled data of the subrate. The

unused payload is left unscrambled.• This block descrambles the data using a similar polynomial

descrambler as the first descrambler block but only on theincoming filtered bandwidth data.

Key features offered by GL are as follows:

• One of the smallest and lightest T3 (DS3)/E3 analysis platforms.• Interfaces for analysis (T3 (DS3)/E3, T1/E1 and Ethernet) and control (USB

and Ethernet).• Plug and play through USB 2.0 control interface.• Software selectable T3 (DS3)/E3 interface, with T1 (DS1) and E1 Drop and

Insert. • Dual T3/E3 Receivers/Transmitters for non-intrusive and intrusive testing.• General T3 (DS3)/E3 signal testing capabilities• Channeliseed (Structured) Testing• Unchannelised (Unstructured) Testing• Simultaneously record/playback the entire T3 (DS3)/E3 in framed or

unframed modes up to hard disk capacity. • Flexible clocking - internal, recovered (from T3 (DS3)/E3, T1 (DS1) or

E1) and external. • Scripting and Automation through GL’s well-known Windows Client Server

(WCS) approach. • Monitor/Manage the Analyzer remotely via Ethernet port.

Other features of T3 (DS3) E3 Analyzer include:

Contact: Shelley Sharma T: 301-670-4784 ext. 114 E: [email protected] W: www.gl.com

TV Zimbo’s current production studio

TV Zimbo’s currentproduction studio

S08 CAF 2 2013 Equipment 01_Layout 1 12/04/2013 12:38 Page 29


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GLOBAL SUPPLIER OF satellite networkingtechnology, solutions, and services Gilat SatelliteNetworks showcased its new lightweight integratedairborne satellite communications solution forUAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) recently.Weighing only 22 lb (10.5 kg) and capable oftransmitting 1Mbps of IP-based data, Gilat's UAVsolution is comprised of a ruggedised spreadspectrum satellite modem; a two-way, on-the-move,flat panel tracking antenna; and a compact 40W Ku-band block up-converter (BUC) and power amplifier.The tightly integrated solution provides alightweight, compact and low-power terminal thatis ideal for airborne applications - and can be

tailored to meet varied end-user specifications andrequirements. The miniature dimensions of thesolution allow BLoS (Beyond Line of Sight)operations for very small UAV platforms.According to Gidi Talmor, RVP Defense InternationalSales at Gilat, "The UAVs being used for Intelligence,Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR), as well asCustoms and Border Protection (CBP), are becomingincreasingly smaller in order to enable easiernavigation and longer flight times. As such, theyrequire the smallest, lightest, and lowest possiblepower consuming communications solutions."

www.gilat.com

HUAWEI HAS LAUNCHED a new SingleEPCsolution, recently, which utilises ultra-broadband, six-mode atom-level convergenceand a multi-service engine to optimise mobilebroadband (MBB) service experience enablinga smooth evolution to cloud-based telecomnetworks. The next-generation SingleEPCsolution offers ultra-broadband advantagesand is the only solution featuring six-modeatom-level convergence to support aconvergent PS core for multiple radio accessmodes, including GPRS, UMTS, LTE-FDD, LTE-TDD, CDMA and Wi-Fi. The solution supports thedynamic implementation of traffic models for 6-mode access technologies and optimisespacket switch (PS) core network resources.

The SingleEPC solution enables 64 timesmore signaling overload control than theprevious generation. The most importantinnovation for this solution is the Multi-ServiceEngine, an innovative engine for Web andvideo acceleration optimisation, which isintegrated directly into the PS core for greaterflexibility of deployment. The solution alsoprovides an LTE voice solution that is set to becommercialised this year. Huawei’s LTE voicesolution provides a superior voice experiencewith low setup latency, clear HD voice quality,and highly reliable voice connections.Huawei’s SingleEPC solution providesoperators with a number of technicaladvantages which is why so many leadingoperators have deployed it. For instance,during the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca in SaudiArabia, PS traffic has been shown to increase24 times more than the average daily traffic,forcing a local Saudi operator to migrate usersfrom other vendor’s PS core onto Huawei’sSingleEPC solution to maintain seamlesscontinuity of data services. That operator hassuccessfully utilised Huawei’s SingleEPCsolution for eight consecutive years.

www.huawei.com

Gilat’s lightweight compact satellite communications solution for UAVs

A next-gener ation SingleEPC solution


Lightweight integrated airborne satellitecommunications solution for UAVs by GilatSatellite

FABLESS SEMICONDUCTOR PROVIDER SpreadtrumCommunications, Inc. has introduced dual-core1.2GHz smartphone chipsets for TD-SCDMA (SC8825)and EDGE (SC6825), following the successfulqualification of its platform by China Mobile."With our new dual-core chipsets,Spreadtrum has leveraged our expertisein system design to deliver the lowest-costdual-core platform in combination with highend graphics performance for the TD-SCDMA andEDGE markets," said Dr. Leo Li, chairman and CEO ofSpreadtrum. "This combination of low-costarchitecture, standout graphics performance, andbest-in-class TD-SCDMA technology providessmartphone designers with unprecedented value inbringing high end features to low-cost devices."

Cost and performanceSpreadtrum's SC8825, which supports dual-modeTD-SCDMA/HSPA & EDGE/GPRS/GSM and theSC6825, which supports EDGE/GPRS/GSM, arebased on a highly efficient multi-core architecturedelivering the lowest cost platform available fordual-core TD-SCDMA and EDGE smartphoneproducts. The single-chip chipsets integrate adual-core 1.2GHz Cortex-A5 core processor, a dual-core Mali 400 graphics processor and multimediaand hardware accelerators for differentiatedperformance and user experience. Both chipsetsare further paired with a single-chip mutimode RFtransceiver for a high level of integration and arepin-to-pin compatible, enabling handset makers toleverage a common handset development effort

for products shipping to China as well as toemerging markets.In addition to their high level of integration and low-cost architecture, Spreadtrum's chipsets furtherdeliver standout graphics performance. Thesolutions' powerful graphics processing capabilityenhances the user experience for games and othergraphics-rich applications, and enables Spreadtrumto bring high end features such as the larger screensizes more commonly found in premiumsmartphones to low-cost devices."The benchmark results we are achieving for ourdual-core solution, measured by popularbenchmark programs such as AnTuTu andGLBenchmark 2.5, significantly outperform othercommercial dual-core products," added Dr. Li."This powerful processing capability provides ourcustomers with an even more cost-effective andpower-efficient way to deliver high end features inlow-cost smartphones."Other features of Spreadtrum's SC8825 and SC6825chipsets include support for HD 1280x720 LCDdisplay, H.264 720p video playback, up to 8

megapixel RGB camera and dual-SIM, dual-standby capability. The chipsets ship withturnkey Android and systems software,

reducing the engineering time and resourcesrequired by handset makers to bring devices to

market, with reference implementations availablefor both 4-layer and 6-layer PCB layouts.

www.spreadtrum.com

Dual-core smartphone chipsets for TD-SCDMA and EDGE



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THE ENTERPRISE EDITION Platformdeveloped by Visa Inc company andspecialist mobile financial service providerFundamo has won the Best MobilePayment Product of the Year at The Cardand ePayment Africa Awards 2013 - anannual award programme recognisingexcellence and achievement in the cardand ePayment space.

The judging panel comprised leadingindustry experts from the card andelectronic payment services sector inAfrica. The awards are designed to honourthe most outstanding and innovativeindustry practitioners and products thatdemonstrate clear and tangible success.

Expertise, experience and evolution“We feel honoured that our platform hasbeen selected by such a respected panel ofjudges as the best mobile payment productin Africa,” said Aletha Ling, COO atFundamo, a Visa Inc company.

“We have invested twelve years ofexpertise and experience into a platformwhich continues to evolve through in-depth and on-going collaboration withclients, partners and the wider industry. As

a result the platform is the most widelydeployed in the world and new supports 27mobile money services in 19 countriesacross Africa alone. We look forward tohelping our clients meet the growingdemand for mobile financial servicesdriven by the needs of millions ofconsumers in Africa that do not have aformal bank account.”

Removing financial risksFundamo launched the first emergingmarket mobile financial service in 2002with Celpay in Zambia, powered by its firstgeneration platform release. The launchwas made in partnership with six majorbanks, to provide a secure and convenientmethod to transfer money. Celpay enabledinstantaneous payments via the mobilephone, and in doing so, removed the risksassociated with cash and chequepayments in Zambia.

Fundamo now powers over 50 of the 160live services across the globe (GSMA,2012) making it one of the largest mobilefinancial services provider in the world.

www.fundamo.com

IN A PROJECT by Vestergaard Frandsen, Carbon for Water - aimed at providing over 91per cent of Kenya’s west province population with fresh drinking water through thesupply of LifeStraw water filters - Samsung Electronics Africa supplied the companywith 4,000 Samsung smartphone devices to monitor the programme, to manage theactivities of the programme and to conduct essential health impact research. Togetherthe initiation of the project and the support of the technology devices has positivelyaffected about 900,000 households and about 4.5mn Kenyans in a community whereclean water was previously scarce. Devastating figures from research into the global water crisis indicated that 884 millionpeople are deprived of satisfactory sources of drinking water - of which 37 percent is based in sub-Saharan Africa. And the consequences are astounding- there are four billion annual cases of diarrheal illness, 1.8mn lives losteach year due to diarrheal disease, 117mn disability adjusted life yearslost annually due to diarrheal and 443 school days lost each year fromwater-related illness. Further to this, families were using firewood to boilwater where high deforestation has become a major concern.It is through these findings that Vestergaard Frandsen, Samsung Africa andthe Kenyan government through The Ministry of Public Health and Sanitationcame together to not only drive awareness around the importance ofclean water - but to implement a solution to positively impact thelives of the affected community.The programme required 4,000 community health workers anddrivers to reach 877,505 households in 25 and a half days - toinstall LifeStraw water filters, train the residents andperiodically monitor the impact of the solutions. In addition, itrequired effective monitoring of the programme andmanagement of the activities through a reliable technologyframework.

Living with safe water supplyThis was all done through Samsung smartphones installed

with an application used to measure the usage of the LifeStraw and consumption ofsafe drinking water. It was also used for managing ongoing programme activitiesincluding; community use and repair and replacement, stock and inventory.Furthermore, all Health Impact Data is collected from the Provincial General Hospitaland clinics to measure the impact of LifeStraw on children under five and peopleliving with HIV and AIDS, using this application.“As a business we are constantly finding new ways to use our technology in betteringthe lives of as many people within our local communities and empowering thesuccess of life altering projects - and this project is another way we are able to do

just this,” says Robert Ngeru, Commercial Director for Samsung Electronics Eastand Central Africa. “Through the use of mobile technology not only was theteam able to generate 50 records per minute, which was transferred back to

the servers for immediate analysis, but so too did this information transferinto valuable information used to ensure optimal use of the equipment for

better results.”Statistical information demonstrates that The Carbon for Water Programme

impacted 877,505 households and 4.5mn Kenyans. In addition, onanalysing the research collected via the mobile devices.

This health improvement project, assisted by Samsungtechnology, makes it the biggest carbon reductionproject in the world - reducing CO2 by two milliontons per year.“We are proud to have been a part of such aphenomenal programme - using our technology tocontribute to changing lives and delivering basicneeds to communities that so desperatelyrequire them. It is projects like this that enable usthe opportunity to demonstrate our value as abrand, not only from a sales perspective, but inour ability to deliver real solutions for

communities in need,” concludes Ngeru.Robert Ngeru, Commercial Director for SamsungElectronics East and Central Africa

Technology to promote healthier environments

Fundamo acknowledged at the Card and ePayment Africa Awards


Aletha Ling, COO at Fundamo



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ERICSSON IS COMMITTED to theacquisition of Microsoft’s TV solutionMediaroom business. This will makeEricsson the leading provider of IPTVand multi-screen solutions with amarket share of over 25 per cent.Closing expected during the secondhalf of 2013. Mediaroom is situated inMountain View, California and employsmore than 400 people worldwide.

Per Borgklint, senior vice presidentand head of business unit support solutions at Ericsson said, "Ericsson'svision of the Networked Societyforesees 50 billion devices to beconnected via broadband, mobility andcloud. Future video distribution willhave a similar impact on consumerbehavior and consumption as mobilevoice has had. This acquisitioncontributes to a leading position forEricsson with more than 40customers, serving over 11mnsubscriber households. In addition,Ericsson will be powered with seniorcompetence and some of the mosttalented people within the field ofIPTV distribution."

The global IPTV market isestimated to reach 76mn subscribersin 2013 with revenues of 32 BUSD,growing to 105mn subscribers and45 BUSD in 2015.

"Mediaroom is the leadingplatform for video distribution

deployed with the world's largestIPTV operators. This strategicacquisition positions Ericsson as anindustry leader thanks to the skillsand experiences of the talentedpeople of Mediaroom combined withEricsson's end to end servicecapabilities" Borgklint concluded.

The total media solution portfolioof Ericsson in the TV and video spacecombined with a further increasedfocus on consumer needs will be thefoundation for providing services toend users. The importance of videodistribution capabilities for thecustomers and their consumers willbe increasing as more and more LTEnetworks are deployed and filledwith smartphone users.

"We are proud of the number oneIPTV market position that we haveachieved with Mediaroom. Ericsson'scomplementary portfolio of TV andnetworking services will help drivethe future growth and developmentof Mediaroom," said Tom Gibbons,Corporate Vice President ofMicrosoft Corporation. "Ericsson is

positioned to be a valuable strategicpartner for operators and TV serviceproviders around the world as theIPTV market evolves."

Microsoft Mediaroom is the TVtechnology behind many of theworld's leading television serviceproviders like AT&T U-verse®,Entertain of Deutsche Telekom,Telefonica, TELUS Optik TV(TM) andSwisscom. Mediaroom-powered TVservices are offered on more than22mn set top boxes deployedthroughout the Americas, EMEA andAPAC.

Ericsson already sees that theever-changing behaviors of TVconsumers are evolving faster thanever. Speed of innovation andintelligent solutions drive consumerpropositions in TV anywhere. Thisdevelopment will continue to fuelthe industry as convergencebecomes reality. The developmentrequires content owners,broadcasters, TV service providersand operators to re-think theirpropositions.

AFRICA HAS MORE telecommunications infrastructurethan ever before. And the demand for additionalinfrastructure grows exponentially every year ascontent and device end users move progressivelymore of their work and lifestyles to mobile unifiedcommunications and collaboration technologies.Infrastructure growth is also being fuelled at anunprecedented rate by the relentlessly dynamicevolution of connectivity technologies.This has moved the need for robust, reliable, scalable,and future-proofed infrastructure to the heart ofstrategic considerations for telecommunicationsoperators and content and service providers. You can’tgrow market share if you can’t deliver content andservices at the highest levels of quality and reliability.The high demand for world class infrastructure hasalso escalated the amount of executive effort andattention that needs to be expended on the design,building, and maintenance of infrastructure. Thisdetracts from the executive effort and time thatshould be spent on growing and consolidating enduser market share.

Your solutions providerPlessey has been designing, building, and supportingtelecommunications infrastructure on the Africancontinent for 50 years. The company has moreexperience, across more types of locations,technologies, industry sectors, and operatorbusiness strategies than any other organisation onthe continent. It has always succeeded where othershave failed – in theoretically impossible terrain andextremely challenging political environments. Experienced climbers struggle to get their backpacksto the summit. Plessey got concrete for the plinth,steel girders for the tower, security and powerequipment, and all necessary transceivingtechnologies to the summit.Plessey has laid more than 15,000kms of optical fibreon schedule and on budget, helping to put cablethieves behind bars while we’re at it as well asmeeting stringent health and safety andenvironmental criteria at all times. For instance, thecable Plessey laid connecting the West Africa CableSystem to Cape Town runs through the WesternCape’s extremely sensitive fynbos biome as well as anumber of historical sites. Not only did we managethe environmental impact assessments but also allcommunity liaison and completed the 140kminstallation in record time without damage to theenvironment or any historical site.Infrastructure provision and management is adeceptively challenging business, in that,superficially, it seems to be about digging trenches

and throwing concrete. In fact, it requiresspecialisation in an extraordinarily diverse set ofdisciplines, from site assessment and evaluation,negotiations with local and regional governments,civil engineering, and physical security, to sub-contractor selection and training, health and safetyexpertise, community capacity building,establishment and maintenance of relationships withtechnology vendors, environmental custodianship,power management, project management, andsupply chain management.It’s rare for any telecommunications operator orvoice and data provider to have, in-house, just afew of these skills. Because Plessey has them all, ithas been able, by way of example, to build andcommission 290 base transceiver stations in asingle month.Plessey has become the continent’s premierturnkey infrastructure solutions provider – able,through its four business units (Optical Solutions,Wireless Solutions, Intelligent Infrastructure, andManaged Services), to tailor its offerings to meetthe strategic business needs of its clients.

Infrastructure and your business

Ericsson acquires video distribution solution


Per Borgklint, senior vice presidentand head of business unit support solutions at Ericsson



EQUIPMENT

33

AVEC SON SERVICE Cloud Office 365 pour lesentreprises, Microsoft propose désormais unservice encore plus complet grâce à denouvelles fonctionnalités et des offresadaptées aux besoins et aux budgets desorganisations quelle que soit leur taille : TPE,PME, grandes entreprises. En plus debénéficier des versions 2013 enrichies de LyncOnline, Exchange Online et SharePoint Online,les utilisateurs professionnels accéderontdésormais à l’ensemble des logiciels Office,mis à jour en permanence grâce au Cloud,qu’ils pourront installer sur un maximum de 5PC, Mac ou tablettes Windows. En matière deSocial, Office 365 continue d’enrichir son offregrâce à SharePoint et Yammer disponibles dèsaujourd’hui, et en juin la fédération Lync-Skypesur les aspects messagerie instantanée,disponibilité et voix.

« Avec Office 365, n’importe quelleentreprise, y compris les TPE, accède aux outilsde communication et de collaboration les plusprofessionnels tout en restant accessiblesmême aux structures sans responsableinformatique », explique Nicolas Petit, DirecteurMarketing & Opérations chez Microsoft France. «Avec Yammer et Skype, Office 365 est unvéritable réseau social, sans équivalent sur le

marché, ouvrant des scénarios de travailcollaboratif comme la possibilité d’interagir avecdes millions d’utilisateurs Skype. »

Une offre sur mesure pour chaque enterpriseOffice 365 ProPlus inclut la version la plusrécente et la plus complète d’Office donnantaccès à Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote,Outlook, Publisher, InfoPath, Access et Lync.Cette offre inclut également :• La possibilité de l’installer sur un maximum

de 5 PC, Mac ou tablettes Windows.• Un accès à Office 365 depuis n'importe quel

écran pour retrouver ses paramètrespersonnalisés, ses documents récents etmême reprendre une lecture à l’endroitprécis où elle s’était interrompue.

• Des outils de contrôle et de gestion pour leséquipes informatiques comme par exempleles mises à jour des utilisateurs et lapossibilité d’installer Office 365 ProPlus àcôté d’autres versions d'Office.

Office 365 Moyenne Entreprise est conçu pour lesentreprises de 10 à 250 salariés. L’offre inclut :• Office 365 ProPlus ainsi que les outils de

communication et de collaboration ExchangeOnline, Lync Online et SharePoint Online.

• Des outils informatiques simplifiés pour assurerun contrôle tout en réduisant la complexité.

• L’intégration à l’Active Directory, uneconsole d'administration web et uneassistance téléphonique.

Office 365 Petite Entreprise Premium est conçupour les petites entreprises de 1 à 10 salariésCe service facile à gérer sans expertiseinformatique, comprend :• L'ensemble des applications Office en

client riche.• Un service de messagerie professionnelle et de

partage de calendriers avec Exchange Online.• Des outils de création de site Web et de site

d’équipe pour partager des documents.• La visioconférence en haute définition avec

Lync Online.

La nouvelle génération des services CloudOffice 365 est également disponible :• Pour le monde de l’éducation au travers de

l’offre Office 365 pour l’Education.• Dès aujourd'hui dans 69 pays et en 17 langues.• Dès le deuxième trimestre dans 20 pays et

en 16 langues supplémentaires.

www.microsoft.com

ALCATEL-LUCENT ET TUNISIE Telecom, principalopérateur télécoms de Tunisie, transforment l’essailors de tests du ultrahaut débit avec la technologieavancée de vectorisation VDSL2 d’Alcatel-Lucent.Ces tests marquent une étape majeure dans leprogramme de Tunisie Telecom visant à améliorerl’offre de services haut débit à travers tout le pays.Grâce à la vectorisation, l’opérateur pourra – surson réseau actuel d’accès sur cuivre – proposer auxparticuliers et aux entreprises des vitessesatteignant les 100 mégabits par seconde (Mbits/s)en liaison descendante.

Faits marquantsTunisie Telecom a testé la technologie devectorisation VDSL2 dans le but de déterminer si,compte tenu d’une telle modification, son réseauactuel était en mesure d’offrir le ultrahaut débitdemandé par ses clients pour des applications tellesque la vidéo à la demande et les jeux en ligne.Des débits de 100 Mbits/s ont été atteints enliaison descendante sur 600 mètres, biensupérieurs aux vitesses qu’autorise latechnologie DSL standard, et en liaison montante,

les débits ont atteint les 40 Mbits/s.La vectorisation VDSL2 autorise de tels résultatssur les lignes cuivre existantes grâce à unetechnologie de suppression du bruit qui élimine lesinterférences entre plusieurs lignes d’un mêmegroupe de câbles, de sorte que chacune ait unfonctionnement optimal et assure le débit le plusélevé possible.Les premiers essais ont été réalisés en décembre2012 chez Tunisie Telecom, en conditions réelles età l’aide d’une plateforme ISAM 7302 (IntelligentServices Access Manager, gestionnaire d’accèsintelligent) d’Alcatel-Lucent installée sur le réseaucuivre de l’opérateur.Nizar Bouguila, Directeur Central Technique deTunisie Telecom, a déclaré : « La technologie devectorisation VDSL2 nous permettra de fournirrapidement des services haut débit de pointe à nosclients toujours à l’affût de services innovants,plus diversifiés et de meilleure qualité. Lesrésultats des essais sont extrêmementencourageants : nous nous en réjouissons, tout enremerciant Alcatel-Lucent pour son précieuxsupport »

Les innovations réalisées par Alcatel-Lucent sontrégulièrement saluées par les grandesorganisations internationales pour leur influencepositive sur la société. En 2012 et pour la deuxièmeannée consécutive, Alcatel-Lucent a figuré auclassement des 100 entreprises les plus innovantesau monde publié par Thomson Reuters ; unereconnaissance venue souligner ses effortspermanents pour enrichir l’un des plus vastesportefeuilles de brevets du marché.Faical Haffoudhi, Directeur General d’Alcatel-Lucenten Tunisie, Maroc et Mauritanie a ajouté : « Latechnologie de vectorisation VDSL2 tient vraimentses promesses en termes de vitesses haut débit.Tunisie Telecom est clairement engagé à offrir à saclientèle le haut débit le plus rapide possible. Lestests de notre solution de vectorisation VDSL2montrent que nous disposons des technologiesrequises pour répondre à la demande croissante enhaut débit à travers la Tunisie. »

www.alcatel-lucent.com

La technologie de vectorisation VDSL2 Alcatel-Lucent autorise des débits de 100 Mbits/s

Office 365 pour les entreprises


Tunisie Telecom s'adresse au Grand public qu'auxentreprises et opérateurs tiers avec une offre adaptée; en

Tunisie, il est le seul opérateur offrant des servicesd’interconnexion nationale

Tunisie Telecom et Alcatel-Lucent franchissent une

étape majeure dans ledéploiement du ultrahaut

débit en Tunisie



EQUIPMENT

34

EUTELSAT COMMUNICATIONS ET OneAccess,fabricant de routeurs multiservices et de dispositifsd'accès Ethernet pour les opérateurs, se sontassociés pour développer la première plateformepermettant d'exploiter sur le satellite KA-SAT desréseaux privés virtuels à de très hauts niveaux deperformance dans des environnements sécurisés.Lancée en mars 2013, cette nouvelle gamme deservices sera immédiatement disponible surl'intégralité de la zone de couverture du satelliteKA-SAT d'Eutelsat. Offrant des services similaires àceux de l'ADSL à des prix également comparables àceux de l'ADSL, elle constitue une avancée majeureen rendant l'usage des communicationssatellitaires accessible aux entreprises exploitantdes réseaux privés sécurisés.

Depuis 2011, le satellite KA-SAT d'Eutelsat aradicalement transformé les marchésprofessionnels et grand public de l'accès au hautdébit par satellite en Europe, Afrique du Nord etMoyen-Orient. Joignant leurs expertises,OneAccess et Eutelsat ont franchi une nouvelleétape qui accroit significativement lesperformances et étend les usages des services auxentreprises exploités sur KA-SAT avec ledéveloppement d'un nouveau routeur satellite

dédié, One1520. Intégrant des fonctionsd'accélération du trafic, de routage IP et detransport sécurisé IP-VPN, ce routeur est enmesure de porter à 20 Mbps en réception et 6 Mbpsen émission les débits des liaisons satellite enenvironnement sécurisé. Réunissant l'ensemble deces fonctions dans un équipement unique, lerouteur One1520 permet également de réduireconsidérablement le coût total d'équipement desutilisateurs comme des opérateurs. Les servicesexploités sur cette nouvelle plateforme visent enparticulier le marché des entreprises multi-sites quisouhaitent doter leurs sites distants d'accèsInternet à haut débit tout en préservant un espacede travail entièrement sécurisé entreétablissements. Désormais, les communicationssatellitaires sont en mesure de satisfaire les usagesde très haut débit les plus exigeants, y comprisdans des environnements hautement sécurisés,comme par exemple le passage rapide à unesolution de secours satellite en cas de défaillanced'un réseau privé ou le délestage de trafic enpériode de pointe.

Pour Jean-François Fenech, Directeur général dela Business Unit Eutelsat Broadband : « Exploitantl'architecture technologique innovante de KA-SAT,

nous avons démontré notre capacité à offrir auxentreprises un accès au haut débit avec un niveau dequalité et de ressources inégalés sur la zone decouverture étendue de ce satellite multifaisceaux. Lepartenariat formé par Eutelsat et OneAccess nouspermet de franchir une nouvelle étape avec unesolution VPN totalement nouvelle qui associe à laperformance de notre satellite KA-SAT lestechnologies de routeurs innovantes de OneAccess ».

Bertrand Meis, Président-directeur général deOneAccess a ajouté : « Ce partenariat est unique etmarquera une étape majeure dans le secteur desservices de télécommunication. Nos routeurs dualcore spécifiquement adaptés, qui intègrent desfonctions d'optimisation pour les réseaux étenduset des outils logiciels conformes aux normes lesplus avancées de sécurité, permettent de réduire lalatence et d'accélérer la dynamique du trafic. LeOne1520 est une solution totalement intégréeconjuguant accessibilité, transparence etperformance. Associé à la puissance de KA-SAT, lerésultat est une solution tout-en-un pour lesentreprises et un service sécurisé de haute qualitéqui constitue un complément efficace à tous lesréseaux professionnels DSL en opérationaujourd'hui.»

Une solution innovante pour étendre les services aux entreprises exploités sur le satellite KA-SAT

Company .................................................................................... page

ArabSat ..............................................................................................9

F G Wilson Engineering Ltd. ..............................................................2

GL Communications ........................................................................19

Harmonic ............................................................................................5

IFAD International Fund for Agricultural Development ..................15

Informa Telecoms & Media (East AfricaCom 2013) ..........................7

Intelsat ..............................................................................................11

Kirloskar Oil Engines Ltd. ................................................................36

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LIQUID TELECOM HAS made significant improvements to its fibrenetwork along the East African coast, to reduce congestion, improveconnectivity and deliver the lowest latency rates on the Africancontinent. Liquid Telecom has also commissioned a gigabit circuit between Kenyaand South Africa from SEACOM and supports the many East African IPaddress prefixes at the Johannesburg Internet Exchange (JINX) went liverecently. The key benefit of this is that traffic between South Africa andEast Africa, including Kenya, will no longer need to be routed via Europe.As a result, traffic on Liquid Telecom’s networks in Kenya, Uganda andRwanda is already much faster with the lowest latency rates on thecontinent (down from over 400ms to nearer 50ms). Customers benefitinginclude ISPs, carriers and businesses of all sizes across Eastern andSouthern Africa.

Liquid Telecom speeds up East African Internet


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Communications Africa 2 2013