IT News Africa: Top Stories Of The Week.
This week was yet again filled with tech news stories that grabbed the headlines both across Africa and around the world.
It was a massive week in Zimbabwe where the military overthrew longtime president Robert Mugabe in a coup. Many people took to social media to express their reactions on a historical time for the Southern African country.
In South Africa, winners of the Da Vinci TT100 awards were announced on the 15th of November 2017 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
This past week one of our reporters was in Barcelona, Spain, covering the action at the Smart City Expo World Congress 2017.
From all of us at IT News Africa, have a great weekend. The top stories of the week can be found below.
News
South Africa: Da Vinci TT100 Award winners revealed
The Top Technology 100 Business Innovation Awards (TT100 Awards) that took place in Johannesburg, South Africa on Wednesday, 15 November 2017 saw South Africa’s most innovative companies recognised for being role models in the management of innovation and technology. These companies have demonstrated their excellence in co-creating new workplace realities. Read More.
Mauritius launches $191 million renewable energy project
On Friday 10 November in Port Louis, Mauritius, the Republic of Mauritius launched a US$191 million renewable energy project supported by the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The project aims to reduce fossil fuel imports and accelerate the nation’s shift to a low-carbon economy over a period of 20 years. Read More.
Nigeria: Vodacom Business wins 4 NTIT awards
On Saturday 11 November 2017 in Lagos, Nigeria Vodacom Business Nigeria won four awards at the 2017 Nigerian Technology Innovation and Telecoms Awards (NTIT) which included Internet of Things Provider of the Year, the Telecom Business of the year and the Enterprise Service Provider of the Year. The NTIT Awards is an industry celebration organised by the Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria, aimed at recognising organisations and individuals at the forefront of technology and innovation in the industry. Lanre Kolade, Managing Director of Vodacom Business Nigeria was also decorated with the Industry Personality of the year award. Read More.
Konnect Africa to launch SmartWiFi in Kenya
Konnect Africa, a satellite Internet solutions provider has announced the introduction of new public hotspots in Kenya. SmartWiFi service will be available in public area like schools, shops, hotel and healthcare centre in the country. According to the company, Internet access can be extended for wider reach using off-the-shelf WiFi repeaters. Read More.
MTN introduces industry-first biometric system
South African telecommunications company, MTN, has revealed that the company will introduce a new biometric system in an attempt to reduce consumer fraud and protect its customers. Read More.
Top Opinions & Features
Top 5 cyber safety tips to apply this Black Friday
South Africa’s shoppers are growing more comfortable with the idea of online shopping. But is our level of education about the associated risks keeping pace? Considering the rising trends of local data breaches and the number of consumers falling victim to cybercrime, it seems not. Read More.
Social media reacts to Zimbabwe military takeover: Mugabe’s whereabouts unknown
Zimbabwe’s army has taken control over the country. The military took over Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) state broadcaster in the early hours of Wednesday, 15 November 2017. Read More.
Huawei releases the “brain” of smart city at SCEWC 2017
ICT solutions provider, Huawei, at the Smart City Expo World Congress (SCEWC) on 14 November 2017 in Barcelona, Spain released their Intelligent Operation Center (IOC), a solution that functions as the “brain” of the Smart City, connecting the digital and physical worlds. Read More.
In Pictures: Smart City Expo World Congress 2017
The Smart City Expo World Congress 2017, which is being held in Barcelona, Spain, from 14-16 November 2017, drew in the masses as over 17 thousand people converged on the Spanish city to gain thoughtful insight from speakers and exhibitors of the leading players in the smart city scene. Read More.
Use Machine Learning to boost IoT efficacy says Forrester
A new report from Forrester, “Put Data to Work in the Industrial Internet of Things” advises CIOs to leverage machine learning to turn the tsunami of data obtained in Internet of Things (IoT) deployments into actionable insights. Successful companies in the industrial sector that are doing this are not only predicting problems and opportunities before they occur but are also developing new revenue streams during their digital transformation. Read More.
Gadgets and Gaming
Star Wars Battlefront II microtransactions taken offline
Star Wars Battlefront II has officially launched; however, after much controversy, publisher Electronic Arts (EA) has temporarily removed the ability to purchase Crystals – the sequel’s in-game currency for in-game microtransactions. Read More.
Call of Duty: WWII Review
Developed by Sledgehammer Games and published by Activision, Call of Duty: WWII is the latest Call of Duty title to hit the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC. This time around, the Call of Duty series has gone back to grassroots and ditched the futuristic theme for one that places the player right onto the battlefield of World War II. Read More.
Nokia 2 now available in South Africa
HMD Global, the home of Nokia phones, on Monday, 13 November 2017 announced that the Nokia 2 is available exclusively through Vodacom at retailers nationwide from R1,699.
Better security to drive increase in mobile holiday shopping
Shopping on mobile devices is expected to be strong during the 2017 Holiday Season, according to a new report from cybersecurity company Trustlook, which was released on 10 November 2017. Faster network speeds, slick shopping apps, and, perhaps most significantly, the feeling of security among device owners are helping to drive this expected uptick in mobile shopping. Read More.
Edited by Dean Workman
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