January 2014 - KICTANet

Fwd:Defamatory Blog Publication by Moses Kuria & Demand For Apology
by Grace Mutung'u (Bomu) 20 Apr '17

20 Apr '17

Dear all, the suit between Muite & Others versus Moses Kuria, which I understand is proceeding to court, should be a very interesting one to watch. Hopefully it shall give some insights on content control vs freedom of expression. See below. ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Ngunjiri <ngunjiri(a)kikuyusforchange.com> Date: Mon, 10 Oct 2011 16:05:07 +0300 Subject: {K4c} Defamatory Blog Publication by Moses Kuria & Demand For Apology To: KC4 <kikuyusforchange(a)googlegroups.com> This will most probably interest some of us, and help all of us be careful about what we write on our blogs. --- Ngunjiri [image: Issa & Co Advocates] Our Ref: M/058/001/L**** **** Tuesday, October 4, 2011**** **** Moses Kuria**** P. O. Box 1838-00200 ‘*Advance copy by email*’**** *NAIROBI***** **** Dear Sir,**** **** *RE: DEFAMATORY PUBLICATION ***** ------------------------------ We have been instructed by our clients, Wambugu Ngunjiri, Paul Muite, Ndung’u Wainaina, Maina Kiai and Hassan Omar.**** **** Our instructions are that you published in your widely read blog the following words of and concerning our clients.**** **** *‘I have said Ocampo has no case. All he has are fake witnesses coached by Hassan Omar, Wambugu Ngunjiri, Paul Muite, Ndungu Wainaina, Njonjo Mue and Maina Kiai.’***** **** Your insinuations are unfounded and baseless and our clients’ professional respective standings, characters and reputations have been severely tarnished by your publication.**** **** Our instructions are to demand a retraction, an apology and an admission of liability on your part for the publication of the defamatory words. This we hereby do. We shall address the issue of the damages payable to our clients upon receipt of your apology and admission.**** **** *NOTE* that if you do not publish an apology and retraction on your blog within the next *Seven (7) Days* of the receipt of this letter we shall proceed to the law for redress at your risk as to costs. **** **** Yours faithfully,**** *ISSA & COMPANY ADVOCATES***** **** **** *MANSUR M. ISSA***** **** cc. Clients**** **** *Issa & Co Advocates* <info(a)issadvocates.co.ke>**** ------------------------------ 5th Floor, City House, Wabera Street P.O. Box *24210 - 00100*, Nairobi, Kenya *ph*: *+ 254 20 340 150 · * *fx*: *+ 254 20 340 151* *em*: *info(a)issadvocates.co.ke · ***** ------------------------------ *CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE:* This email and any attachments may contain information that is confidential, legally privileged and protected by law. Access by the intended recipient is authorized. Any liability (in negligence or otherwise) arising from any third party acting, or refraining from acting, or any information contained in this email is hereby excluded. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender immediatelyand do not disclose the contents to any other person, use it for any purpose or store or copy the information in any medium.**** -- --- Fear makes men act even against their own interests- changing them from men of reason to blubbering fools. -- Grace L.N. Mutung'u (Bomu) Kenya Skype: gracebomu Twitter: GraceMutung'u (Bomu)

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Digital to Analog Conversion
by robert yawe 19 Jun '15

19 Jun '15

Hi, When the migration from analog to digital was initially raised fear was put into the public on how there would be no option but to throw away our analog TV sets and replace them with Digital. Now that digital transmission is finally here we need to look at how to make the migration as painless as possible while at the same time we do not disenfranchise any citizens. It has been mentioned that there are over 1 million TV sets in Kenya today, that means 1 million digital to analog converters will be required over the next 2-3 years. I believe this is a great opportunity for us to go into the electronic assembly business, I would like to propose that we 1st increase duty on converters from the current 35% to 250% so as to discourage the importation of the converters. Then exempt from duty and vat all assembly stations, test equipment and components for anyone who sets up a converter assembly plant, with a 3 year tax holiday. If you setup the plant more than 200 kilometers from Nairobi or Mombasa you receive an addition 2 years tax holiday. I believe this will sort out the issue of substandard converters and will also provide an opportunity for us to develop our electronic devices assembly skills. If you make a net profit of 1,000/- there is a clean 875,000,000/- to be made, close to what the government is spending on purchase of the Malili farm. This is assuming a standard device, there is still a market for those who want high end devices with recording, tuners, USB ports, etc which would mean that the returns could be much higher than projected above. So will we move away from juts being importers and retailers or do we have what it takes to do some value add? Regards Robert Yawe KAY System Technologies Ltd Phoenix House, 6th Floor P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 Kenya Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696

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Music Piracy in Kenya - Government can Help
by Bernard Kioko [Bernsoft Interactive Limited] 23 Mar '15

23 Mar '15

Bwana Daktari, The music industry in Kenya is unable to grow. Companies like mine and individuals are investing money in creating music but the same cannot be commercialized effectively. One of the main problems is organized piracy. Take for example the website WAPKID.COM, this website provides almost every Kenyan song FREE FOR DOWNLOAD. The website at the moment lists the following as popular tags - meaning these are the artists whose content is currently heavily being downloaded. I understand that this website is offering pirated content because Music works that is owned and copyright administered by myself is being offered for FREE here - the total investment I made for the songs on offer is Ksh. 5million over the last 2 years and now I have no way to recover my investment by sales since consumers can opt for free. John De Mathew - Nimwamenyire Muno Wangari Wa Kabera - Aciari Redsun - Shika Glasi Sam Kinuthia - Muiritu Wa Gikomba Onyi Papa Jey - Migingo Dhi Muigai Njoroge - Muti Utari Matunda Kamaru - Nairobi Iraguo Ki Kamande Wa Kioi - Kapusi Kakwa Salim - Kanyina Kanini Kamande Wa Kioi - Githukia Tombo It's possible that these artists and many more don't actually know that this exists BUT millions of Kenyans are downloading the music and who is benefiting? The Network Operators who charge money based on the data downloads. Infact, at one point, one of the mobile operators even sent SMS advertisements to their subscribers urging them to access content from WapKid.com As an industry, we are bleeding and desperately in need of government support to stop this organized piracy that is benefiting local and international organization at the expense of our content and therefore killing and local development of content. As we seek your assistance, we are also doing something on our part. We will be meeting next week Wednesday 3rd October 3pm at Panafric as a music industry (Record labels, Kenya Copyright Board and Music Copyright Society of Kenya) to discuss and work out strategies that can help us especially in creating a clear licensing framework. We will also be announcing an Anti-Piracy Campaign called "iCareforMusic" whose aim is to educate the consumer on the benefits of getting music from licensed partners. We believe that either the government or the courts can issue an order blocking WAPKID.COM, MP3RAID.COM and any other website offering local music from being accessed and this is fairly easy at the ISP level. Before we take to the court route, we wish to seek a diplomatic route first. If we can stop this organized piracy, investing in a song would be worth it for the Artist, the Record Label and/or the music publisher. And in overall, KRA would collect tax from all of us. Everybody wins! Who knows, it would be even worth having a music studio at Konza City. Bwana PS, how can you assist our music industry? Kind regards Bernard Kioko Chief Executive Officer, Bernsoft

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GSMA: Calls will remain high between African countries
by Grace Githaiga 02 May '14

02 May '14

GSMA: Calls will remain high between African countries By Rebecca Wanjiku, Computerworld Kenya 29 Sep, 2011 The cost of telephone calls between African countries is likely to remain high and international call volumes will drop with the introduction of taxes, according to a report from the GSM Association. Senegal, Ghana, Congo Brazaville and Gabon have introduced taxes on incoming international calls, leading to higher costs for users and reduced revenue and call volumes for mobile operators. The taxes are also likely to reduce foreign direct investments because the costs of operating businesses such as call centers will probably go up. "The tax takes the form of an imposed fixed price that operators must charge for international inbound termination, of which the government takes a set amount," said the report, issued on the sidelines of the U.N. Internet Governance Forum in Nairobi. A private party measures international inbound minutes terminated by operators and bills them accordingly, it said. While the taxes are different in the four countries, the affect on the operators has been the same. In Senegal, call prices rose by 50 percent. In Ghana, prices rose by 58 percent while inbound traffic fell by 12 percent in the six months after the tax was introduced. In Congo Brazaville, the price of inbound calls rose by 111 percent while the volume fell by 36 percent. In Gabon, prices rose by 82 percent when the tax was introduced in August 2011. The report questioned the benefit of the tax on economies, given that half the money collected is shared with the third-party company that monitors the calls. "The main objective of this taxation is to raise revenues for governments, in this case by taxing users calling from abroad into the country, however, the government transfers approximately 50 percent of the revenue from the tax to the external call monitoring party," the report said. "This leakage should be taken into account when assessing the effectiveness and net benefit of this tax." The report projects that other African countries are likely to reciprocate by raising the cost of inbound calls. In Congo Brazaville, an operator reported that an operator in another African country raised call termination charges by 30 percent. while in Senegal, an operator reported that nine operators in other African countries raised rates by 23 to 80 percent, making the call costs very high. The GSMA further noted that many operators are not making profits because the cost of other services and maintaining rural telecoms infrastructure is high. In supporting its case to remove telecommunication taxes, the GSMA released another report that highlights the benefits that Kenya has gained since it zero-rated mobile handsets in June 2009. This year, the mobile communications industry will contribute US$300 million to the GDP and a further $100 million from intangible benefits to Kenyan consumers. The industry also employs 250,000 people in Kenya. "Since June 2009 when the tax was removed, handset purchases have increased by more than 200 percent and penetration rates have increased substantially from 50 percent to 70 percent, this successful policy confirms that consumption taxes can have a significant impact on consumer behavior in Kenya," said the report. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- If you have the strength to survive, you have the power to succeed. Life is all about choices we make depending upon the situation we are in. Go forth and rule the World!

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PUBLIC CONSULTATION ON LICENSING AND REGULATORY FRAMEWORK FOR DOT KE DOMAIN NAME REGISTRY SERVICE
by Ali Hussein 17 Feb '14

17 Feb '14

Dear listers We kick off the discussions today with 2 questions. 1. What do you think informed CCK's move towards a change in the way the .ke ccTLD is managed and do you think enough consultations (in the spirit of MultiStakeholderism) took place to arrive at this? 2. How in your opinion should any of the funds (after liquidation of KeNIC) be used? This question should also answer the question of surplus funds derived from the sale of .ke ccTLD domains? I suggest we take two days to discuss these questions in depth. We shall proceed to the next set of questions on Wednesday. Ali Hussein +254 0770 906375 / 0713 601113 "I fear the day technology will surpass human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots". ~ Albert Einstein Sent from my iPad

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Konza; a rethink
by robert yawe 09 Feb '14

09 Feb '14

http://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20131222161302-12560-giving-sili… Robert Yawe KAY System Technologies Ltd Phoenix House, 6th Floor P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 Kenya Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696

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Justification for wayleave charges
by robert yawe 05 Feb '14

05 Feb '14

Self explanatory Robert Yawe KAY System Technologies Ltd Phoenix House, 6th Floor P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200 Kenya Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696

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FW: MEDIA RELEASE ON PROPOSED CHANGES TO COMMERCIALIZE THE '.KE' INTERNET IDENTITY
by Wambua, Christopher 02 Feb '14

02 Feb '14

Dear Listers, As earlier communicated, the Communications Authority of Kenya (CAK) would like to clarify that the proposed licensing framework does not propose the dissolution of KENIC and thus the need for a re-delegation. If anything, the proposed framework seeks to strengthen the governance of KENIC by ensuring that the Board is representative of the local Internet community. The proposed licensing framework envisages an arrangement where KENIC remains as-is (a multi-stakeholder private public partnership) but with Government represented by another entity (Kenya ICT Authority). CAK will relinquish its positions in the KENIC Board and assume a regulatory oversight role. As far as commercialization is concerned, the CAK encourages a business model that will spur the growth of the Dot KE domain name space. It will be upon the new entity to devise such strategies. With regards to the transition, the relevant processes will be followed to ensure that the transition is not only smooth but within the law. I also wish to assure listers and stakeholders in general that CAK shall take into consideration all submissions made in respect to this public consultation. For an informed discussion, we request listers, and the public in general, to go through the draft licensing framework in detail in order to appreciate its context. Best regards, Christopher Wambua Manager – Communications Consumer and Public Affairs Department Communications Commission of Kenya P.O. Box 14448 NAIROBI 00800 Tel: +254 20 4242209 info(a)cck.go.ke<mailto:info@cck.go.ke> www.cck.go.ke<http://www.cck.go.ke>

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Re: [kictanet] KENIC Board Statement on dot.KE
by Consumers Federation of Kenya (COFEK) 01 Feb '14

01 Feb '14

Dear Mr Hussein, Thank you sir for the insights. Clearly, the answer to your question can be found in Wikipedia’s definition you have generously availed. What you didn’t address yourself to, however, is the quality of service levels, pricing, among other aspects in the case of a single-seller of an essential service. They are certainly uncompetitive and anti-consumer. Ask yourself, for instance, must KENIC’s customers in this day and age pay through a registrar who gobbles up some commission adding to the consumers’ woes? Can those security fears, if real, be addressed in a different way? Why can’t people pay online for instance: http://www.101domain.com/domain_registration_joburg.htm Fair trade and competition policy may not necessarily be universal but it is about making principles of fairness and decency mean something in the marketplace especially for the goods/services we buy. Essentially, it offers a way for all of us to identify products that meet our values – principally so we can make choices that have a positive impact to the world around us. Retaining KENIC as a single-seller where multiple-sellers can compete favourably and profitably won’t be in the consumer/KENIC’s own interest. Just imagine, for a second, that a company like Safaricom, Airtel or AccessKenya ISP has a Yahoo/Gmail address. Or put this way, which Kenyan company or individual wouldn’t die for a Dot Ke address for his or her business if they can afford? These domains uniquely define “Kenyan-ness” and a sense of patriotism – why must they be made expensive and a preserve of Ali Hussein (sorry and others) who can afford a “me.ke”? And how can they be made cheaper would be the salient question – open up the space to other sellers. Sound macro-economists will tell you, for free, that you don’t protect KENIC market share by locking competitors out especially knowing that they have been there for a while. They possibly are only exploiting less than 5% of their market potential. Imagine if all Kenya “emailers” could dump the insecure Yahoo/Gmails for a Dot Ke … that would be big business for KENIC and her competitors! As you rightly put it, the captains at KENIC must know the market thus : “3. In today's hyper competitive world there are few monopolies left.” Kind regards, Japheth Ogutu www.cofek.co.ke From: Ali Hussein [mailto:ali@hussein.me.ke] Sent: Friday, January 31, 2014 5:28 PM To: Consumers Federation of Kenya (COFEK) Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions Subject: [***SPAM*** Score/Req: 07.40/5.0] Re: [kictanet] KENIC Board Statement on dot.KE Japheth How do you define a monopoly? In my opinion KeNIC is far from a monopoly. Let me just refresh ourselves here. According to Wikipedia:- <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monopoly#cite_note-2> [Monopolies are characterized by a lack of economic <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Competition> competition to produce the <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_(economics)> good or <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Service_(economics)> service and a lack of viable <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Substitute_good> substitute goods. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monopoly#cite_note-3> [3] The verb "monopolize" refers to the process by which a company gains the ability to raise prices or exclude competitors. In economics, a monopoly is a single seller. In law, a monopoly is a business entity that has significant market power, that is, the power to charge high prices. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monopoly#cite_note-Orbach.26Campbell-4> [4] Although monopolies may be big businesses, size is not a characteristic of a monopoly. A small business may still have the power to raise prices in a small industry (or market). <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monopoly#cite_note-Orbach.26Campbell-4> [4] So to put this in context. 1. If I'm unable to buy a .ke does it mean that I will not be able to have an email address, access the Internet, have a domain name? 2. Kenya Power is a monopoly that basically doesn't have a substitute here in Kenya. 3. In today's hyper competitive world there are few monopolies left. As the consumer watchdog it would auger well for COFEK to deeply understand the regulatory and competitive framework that informs the domain space in general and the ccTLD space in particular. Ali Hussein +254 0770 906375 / 0713 601113 "I fear the day technology will surpass human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots". ~ Albert Einstein Sent from my iPad On Jan 31, 2014, at 1:37 PM, "Consumers Federation of Kenya $COFEK$" <hotline(a)cofek.co.ke> wrote: Dear Sir/Madam, Thanks for sharing. On what basis does the Chairman of KENIC claim that "KENIC is the best suited entity to continue operating and managing ...."? Who was this consultant and how was he or she sourced? Was he or she paid and if yes by whom? When KENIC says it is the "best" who are the lesser ones that were being compared to it? KENIC is a monopoly under Cap 504, Competition Act and must be declared as such. It is also single-sourced in an opaque manner. KENIC should opened to a regulated competition. CAK and Government must get out of KENIC fast and swift in the consumer interest. Kind regards, Japheth Japheth Ogutu Program Officer Consumers Federation of Kenya (COFEK) Meky Place, Block F-45 Ngong Road/Ring Rd Kilimani Junction P.O Box 28053-00200, City Square, NAIROBI, Kenya Tel. 254-20-2615496, 2300859 Fax. 254-20-3861719; Cell phones: 0715555550, 0770700007 E-mail: hotline(a)cofek.co.ke Website: www.cofek.co.ke Facebook: "Consumers Federation of Kenya (Cofek)" Twitter: @ConsumersKenya YouTube: "ConsumersKenya" 13th December 2012 - President Kibaki assents to the Consumer Protection Act, 2012 Read it here: http://www.cofek.co.ke/Consumers%20Protection%20Act%202012.pdf -----Original Message----- From: kictanet [mailto:kictanet-bounces+hotline=cofek.co.ke@lists.kictanet.or.ke] On Behalf Of Walubengo J Sent: Friday, January 31, 2014 12:23 PM To: The Consumers Federation of Kenya (Cofek) Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions Subject: [kictanet] KENIC Board Statement on dot.KE Find attached. Ofcourse I am just being a messenger here, not necessarily the owner of the message since I do not have the privilege to sit on the KENIC board :-) walu. _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)lists.kictanet.or.ke https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet Unsubscribe or change your options at https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/info%40alyhussein.com The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development. KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.

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Re: [kictanet] KENIC Board Statement on dot.KE
by Consumers Federation of Kenya (COFEK) 31 Jan '14

31 Jan '14

Dear Sir/Madam, Thanks for sharing. On what basis does the Chairman of KENIC claim that "KENIC is the best suited entity to continue operating and managing ...."? Who was this consultant and how was he or she sourced? Was he or she paid and if yes by whom? When KENIC says it is the "best" who are the lesser ones that were being compared to it? KENIC is a monopoly under Cap 504, Competition Act and must be declared as such. It is also single-sourced in an opaque manner. KENIC should opened to a regulated competition. CAK and Government must get out of KENIC fast and swift in the consumer interest. Kind regards, Japheth Japheth Ogutu Program Officer Consumers Federation of Kenya (COFEK) Meky Place, Block F-45 Ngong Road/Ring Rd Kilimani Junction P.O Box 28053-00200, City Square, NAIROBI, Kenya Tel. 254-20-2615496, 2300859 Fax. 254-20-3861719; Cell phones: 0715555550, 0770700007 E-mail: hotline(a)cofek.co.ke Website: www.cofek.co.ke Facebook: "Consumers Federation of Kenya (Cofek)" Twitter: @ConsumersKenya YouTube: "ConsumersKenya" 13th December 2012 - President Kibaki assents to the Consumer Protection Act, 2012 Read it here: http://www.cofek.co.ke/Consumers%20Protection%20Act%202012.pdf -----Original Message----- From: kictanet [mailto:kictanet-bounces+hotline=cofek.co.ke@lists.kictanet.or.ke] On Behalf Of Walubengo J Sent: Friday, January 31, 2014 12:23 PM To: The Consumers Federation of Kenya (Cofek) Cc: KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions Subject: [kictanet] KENIC Board Statement on dot.KE Find attached. Ofcourse I am just being a messenger here, not necessarily the owner of the message since I do not have the privilege to sit on the KENIC board :-) walu.

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