The Independent Communications Authority of SA (Icasa) has withdrawn plans to hold a high-profile radio frequency spectrum auction. The spectrum, in the 2,6GHz and 3,5GHz bands, is ideally suited to providing the next generation of wireless broadband services. The decision to postpone the auctions follows a recent meeting between Icasa and communications minister Siphiwe Nyanda in which the minister is understood to have raised concerns that the auction process was not in line with government’s policy on spectrum management.
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When I arrived at Jeremy Ord’s office last Friday — the day after news that the group he cofounded and now chairs, Dimension Data, was being bought out for R24,4bn by a Japanese corporate giant — he was looking relaxed. Having just flown back from London that morning, Ord appeared a little tired but entirely laid-back in jeans, takkies and an old jumper. The TV in his office, tuned in to the British Open, had the attention of the 54- year-old golfing and cycling enthusiast.
There will soon be clarity on how hundreds of millions of rand in the Universal Service Fund will be spent. The money is meant to be used to facilitate the roll-out of telecommunications infrastructure in underserviced and rural parts of SA, but has remained largely untapped for years. Now Phineas Moleele, the newly appointed CEO at the Universal Service & Access Agency of SA (Usaasa), the government body established to administer the fund, is promising to start using the money in the fund.
The East African Submarine System, the second high-capacity fibre-optic cable along Africa’s east coast, is live. However, local Internet users will have to wait until at least August to enjoy any benefits. The West Indian Ocean Cable Company, the largest shareholder in Eassy, announced this week that the cable is ready to be tested by its owners.
The world’s largest chipmaker Intel has not turned its back on WiMax, saying the technology still has strong potential in Africa. New Intel SA country manager Videsha Proothveerajh says the company is still committed to the wireless technology despite its decision to shut down the WiMax programme office in Taiwan last month.
JSE-listed Pinnacle Technology Holdings has offered to buy distribution business Axiz Technology for R170m in a deal that could see it become the largest IT distributor in the country. In a statement to shareholders on Tuesday morning, Pinnacle revealed its decision to make the offer to Axiz, which is expected to merge with Pinnacle’s Workgroup business.
The fate of valuable broadband spectrum will be decided on Tuesday when the regulator, the Independent Communications Authority of SA, meets to discuss whether to go ahead with a planned auction. Industry insiders say the auction, for radio frequency spectrum in the 2,6GHz and 3,5GHz bands could be canned. The spectrum is ideal for providing the next generation of wireless broadband services.
When former head of the SA National Defence Force, Gen (Ret) Siphiwe Nyanda, was appointed as minister of communications last year, there was much grumbling. “What does a military man know about communications?” quickly became the general sentiment.
Choosing a database product to keep all your important data safe can be a very simple task, or a tremendously complicated and fractious ordeal. It is easy when you don’t have a choice. Many applications are written to work with only one database. When you choose the application, the database is chosen for you.
Episode 2 of TechCentral’s TalkCentral podcast is live. SA’s first business technology podcast is hosted by TechCentral editor Duncan McLeod and deputy editor Candice Jones and is a weekly wrap-up of the big technology stories we’ve covered over the past week. In our second episode — the show now has its own jingle — we talk about what was arguably the busiest news week on the tech front this year.