All the latest technology news from South Africa and around the world.
New call rates between cellphone networks aimed at stimulating competition resulted from a “half-baked experiment”, the high court in Johannesburg heard on Tuesday. Frank Snyckers SC, for Vodacom, argued that communications regulator Icasa’s 2014 regulations for call rates, set to be introduced next month, should have taken into account the structural
President Jacob Zuma has signed a proclamation ordering the Special Investing Unit to investigate the perennially troubled Universal Service & Access Agency of South Africa (Usaasa), his office said on Tuesday evening. Zuma wants a probe of allegations “in respect of affairs” of the agency, which collects revenue from licensed telecoms
Cellphone network operators MTN and Vodacom took their fight against the introduction of new call termination rates to the high court in Johannesburg on Tuesday. The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) has conceded there are problems with its proposed model for mobile termination rates. These are the
Naspers-owned comparison shopping site PriceCheck has inked a deal with MTN that will see the release of a co-branded version of the site’s mobile application in South Africa. The two companies claim the deal is the country’s first between a mobile operator and an e-commerce company. The co-branded app will feature
Day 15 of Oscar Pistorius’s murder trial began with a technical explanation of how a police cellphone analyst downloaded data from the paralympic athlete’s cellphone. Captain Francois Moller explained in the high court in Pretoria on Tuesday how he
Tony Howard has been appointed as Independent Newspapers’ deputy executive chairman, the company said on Tuesday. The position of group CEO would fall away immediately as a result of Howard’s appointment, executive chairman Iqbal Survé said in a statement. Howard was the
On the eve of an historic court battle between Icasa and mobile operators MTN and Vodacom, the communications regulator has revealed in papers filed at the high court in Johannesburg that it intends reconsidering its proposed cuts to call termination rates. In an answering affidavit submitted to the high court, Icasa says it has
The humble video store isn’t dead, provided it adapts to the times by taking advantage of modern technology, says Barry Hilton. The South African comedian has an idea he thinks can save the DVD rental industry. And he’s not joking. Hilton, known for his comedic sketches that poke fun at South African society, says video stores have
South African game developer Thoopid, of Snailboy fame, has released a new game called Tap the Coin. It is available for iOS (iPhone and iPad) and is free to download. An Android version has also just been launched. Tap the Coin requires the player to tap coins while bouncing forward to progress. It gets challenging when coins, which are
Gijima executive chairman Robert Gumede wanted to buy Independent News & Media South Africa but withdrew for what he has termed “sound commercial reasons”, he has revealed through his lawyers. Gumede, who has threatened to sue the newspaper publishing company over an article that appeared a fortnight ago in its flagship Sunday
