- KICTANet - KICTANet

Invitation and Registration Form -RCIP
by Judy kimiti 18 Jan '07

18 Jan '07

Dear Member, Aplologies for cross posting. ----- Forwarded Message ---- From: Judy kimiti <jkimiti01(a)yahoo.co.uk> To: kictanet(a)kictanet.or.ke Sent: Thursday, 18 January, 2007 4:05:31 PM Subject: Fw: [Kictanet] Monday forum please attend - Invitation and Registration Form Dear Member, Please find attached the Invite Letter, Agenda and Registration Form for the Regional Communications Infrastructure Program Workshop. Interested members are requested to return the completed registration form to rcip(a)worldbank.org or faxed on 315147 by Friday, 19 January 2007. Please submit one registration form for each person attending. Thank you. Yours Faithfully, Judy Kimiti KICTANet ----- Forwarded Message ---- From: Rebecca Wanjiku rebeccawanjiku(a)yahoo.com To: jkimiti01@yah oo.co.uk Sent: Thursday, 18 January, 2007 1:59:00 PM Subject: [Kictanet] Monday forum please attend PROPOSED REGIONAL COMMUNICATIONS INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAM (RCIP) STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION WORKSHOP Hope you are planning to attend the stakeholder workshop on the proposed regional Communication Infrastructure Program (RCIP) on Monday. The consultation workshop organized jointly by the ministry of Information and Communication and the World Bank. The forum will address issues relating to connectivity, lowering costs and the environmental implications of the infrastructure. The World Bank claims that Economic development in Eastern and Southern Africa (E&SA) is held back by prohibitive telecommunications and ICT costs due to incomplete liberalization and lack of infrastructure. The proposed Regional Communications Infrastructure Program (RCIP) is a joint World Bank Group effort to leverage private sector participation along side efforts by eight other development partners (AfDB, AFD, DBSA, DFID, EIB, EU, KfW and SIDA). It will be a chance for you to interrogate the project and find out what it will cost the country in terms of WB demands. The minister, the PS and other senior WB officials will be present to answer any questions regarding the project. It will also be a forum where stakeholders in the ICT industry can find out more about the position of the ICT bill and whether the priority should be making the process transparent or putting in place an Act that can safeguard against any excesses by procuring entities. The PS has forwarded the registration and background documents but if you require any assistance, just email me. alice(a)apc.org wrote: Dear All Becky Wanjiku, a journalist with Highway Africa, will be working with the KICTAnet to produce our monthly E-bulletins as well as working on other communication and events related tasks. These projects are supported by the Open Society Institute Eastern Africa (OSIEA), Wananchi online, KENET and the Embassy of Finland in Kenya. Thank you and best regards alice _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)kictanet.or.ke http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet Please unsubscribe or change your options at http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/rebeccawanjiku%40yahoo.com Rebecca Wanjiku, journalist, p.o box 33515, Nairobi.00600 Kenya. Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ The fish are biting. Get more visitors on your site using Yahoo! Search Marketing. _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)kictanet.or.ke http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet Please unsubscribe or change your options at http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/jkimiti01%40yahoo.co.uk What kind of emailer are you? Find out today - get a free analysis of your email personality. Take the quiz at the Yahoo! Mail Championship. ___________________________________________________________ What kind of emailer are you? Find out today - get a free analysis of your email personality. Take the quiz at the Yahoo! Mail Championship. http://uk.rd.yahoo.com/evt=44106/*http://mail.yahoo.net/uk

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Fw: Monday forum please attend - Invitation and Registration Form
by Judy kimiti 18 Jan '07

18 Jan '07

Dear Member, Please find attached the Invite Letter, Agenda and Registration Form for the Regional Communications Infrastructure Program Workshop. Interested members are requested to return the completed registration form to rcip(a)worldbank.org or faxed on 315147 by Friday, 19 January 2007. Please submit one registration form for each person attending. Thank you. Yours Faithfully, Judy Kimiti KICTANet ----- Forwarded Message ---- From: Rebecca Wanjiku rebeccawanjiku(a)yahoo.com To: jkimiti01@yah oo.co.uk Sent: Thursday, 18 January, 2007 1:59:00 PM Subject: [Kictanet] Monday forum please attend PROPOSED REGIONAL COMMUNICATIONS INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAM (RCIP) STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION WORKSHOP Hope you are planning to attend the stakeholder workshop on the proposed regional Communication Infrastructure Program (RCIP) on Monday. The consultation workshop organized jointly by the ministry of Information and Communication and the World Bank. The forum will address issues relating to connectivity, lowering costs and the environmental implications of the infrastructure. The World Bank claims that Economic development in Eastern and Southern Africa (E&SA) is held back by prohibitive telecommunications and ICT costs due to incomplete liberalization and lack of infrastructure. The proposed Regional Communications Infrastructure Program (RCIP) is a joint World Bank Group effort to leverage private sector participation along side efforts by eight other development partners (AfDB, AFD, DBSA, DFID, EIB, EU, KfW and SIDA). It will be a chance for you to interrogate the project and find out what it will cost the country in terms of WB demands. The minister, the PS and other senior WB officials will be present to answer any questions regarding the project. It will also be a forum where stakeholders in the ICT industry can find out more about the position of the ICT bill and whether the priority should be making the process transparent or putting in place an Act that can safeguard against any excesses by procuring entities. The PS has forwarded the registration and background documents but if you require any assistance, just email me. alice(a)apc.org wrote: Dear All Becky Wanjiku, a journalist with Highway Africa, will be working with the KICTAnet to produce our monthly E-bulletins as well as working on other communication and events related tasks. These projects are supported by the Open Society Institute Eastern Africa (OSIEA), Wananchi online, KENET and the Embassy of Finland in Kenya. Thank you and best regards alice _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)kictanet.or.ke http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet Please unsubscribe or change your options at http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/rebeccawanjiku%40yahoo.com Rebecca Wanjiku, journalist, p.o box 33515, Nairobi.00600 Kenya. Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ The fish are biting. Get more visitors on your site using Yahoo! Search Marketing. _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)kictanet.or.ke http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet Please unsubscribe or change your options at http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/jkimiti01%40yahoo.co.uk ___________________________________________________________ To help you stay safe and secure online, we've developed the all new Yahoo! Security Centre. http://uk.security.yahoo.com

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PROPOSED REGIONAL COMMUNICATIONS INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAM (RCIP) STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION WORKSHOP
by alice＠apc.org 18 Jan '07

18 Jan '07

Dear all For those who did not recive docs for the Ministry InfoCom and World Bank meeting, pelase find them attached. best alice ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PROPOSED REGIONAL COMMUNICATIONS INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAM (RCIP) STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION WORKSHOP Hope you are planning to attend the stakeholder workshop on the proposed regional Communication Infrastructure Program (RCIP) on Monday. The consultation workshop organized jointly by the ministry of Information and Communication and the World Bank. The forum will address issues relating to connectivity, lowering costs and the environmental implications of the infrastructure. The World Bank claims that Economic development in Eastern and Southern Africa (E&SA) is held back by prohibitive telecommunications and ICT costs due to incomplete liberalization and lack of infrastructure. The proposed Regional Communications Infrastructure Program (RCIP) is a joint World Bank Group effort to leverage private sector participation along side efforts by eight other development partners (AfDB, AFD, DBSA, DFID, EIB, EU, KfW and SIDA). It will be a chance for you to interrogate the project and find out what it will cost the country in terms of WB demands. The minister, the PS and other senior WB officials will be present to answer any questions regarding the project. It will also be a forum where stakeholders in the ICT industry can find out more about the position of the ICT bill and whether the priority should be making the process transparent or putting in place an Act that can safeguard against any excesses by procuring entities. The PS has forwarded the registration and background documents but if you require any assistance, just email me. _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)kictanet.or.ke http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet Rebecca Wanjiku, journalist, p.o box 33515, Nairobi.00600 Kenya. Tel. 254 720 318 925 ----- Original Message ----- From: <bitange(a)jambo.co.ke> To: <alice(a)apc.org> Sent: Friday, January 12, 2007 2:19 PM Subject: [Kictanet] World Bank/MOIC > > > > > > > Dear All, > Attached please find an invitation to a consultative breakfast meeting to > be held at the Jacaranda Hotel, Westlands. The meeting is to explore how > World Bank-financed Regional Communication Infrastructure Program > (RCIP)would fit into our existing programs. In a nut shell, they are > considering providing bandwidth subsidy to public institutions. We need > your participation. > > The Stakeholder consultation is open to civil society organizations, > private sector, academia, parliamentarians, Government and Local > Authorities. Registration Details can be found in the attached documents. > > > Regards > > > Bitange Ndemo. > ---------------------------------------------- > This message has been scanned for viruses and > dangerous content by Jambo MailScanner, and is > believed to be clean. > --------------------------------------------- > "easy access to the world" > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > _______________________________________________ > kictanet mailing list > kictanet(a)kictanet.or.ke > http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet > > Please unsubscribe or change your options at > http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/alice%40apc.org

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Econet fails to stop new rival
by alice＠apc.org 18 Jan '07

18 Jan '07

Econet fails to stop new rival By Judy Ogutu ECONET Wireless Kenya Limited has lost an attempt to block Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) from issuing Vtel Consortium with a Second National Operator licence. The company had gone to court last December, asking for an injunction restraining CCK from issuing the licence to Vtel that won the SNO bid last October. Vtel won the bid at $169 million (about Sh11.8 billion). On Wednesday, High Court Judge, Justice Alnashir Visram said granting "would cause considerable harm to CCK, the Kenyan economy, consumer and people of Kenya." He added: "We would possibly lose $169m in immediate revenue from Vtel, we would send a dangerous signal to future investors that we do not believe in market economy and the freedom to make investment decisions without being stunted and stifled, and we would deny the Kenyan consumer the opportunity to benefit from competition in a free market economy." Econet had rushed to court saying CCK's intended to issue Vtel with the license this month. In its application, Econet argued that despite being licensed by CCK as the third mobile phone operator in October 2003, it had not been provided with frequencies to enable it roll out its network. Through lawyer Mr Paul Ogunde, Econet accused CCK of preventing it from entering the market. Ogunde told Justice Visram that it was unjust to have Vtel licensed. The company said it would continue to suffer huge losses because of CCK's unwillingness to provide it the means to enter the market, while at the same time issuing a license to another operator to do the same business. But CCK's lawyer, Prof Githu Muigai defended the commission, saying Econet had been unable to meet requirements for the award of the licence to operate as the third mobile service provider. Muigai argued Econet had not participated in the tender for the issue of the SNO licence and, therefore, had no locus standi. The judge ruled Econet's argument was not tenable in law. "Econet did not even bid for that licence. It is a total stranger to it, and whether it has the locus or ability to attack another person's successful bid is a huge question mark." The Judge said it was not fair for the company to ask CCK not to deal with any other party instead of demanding specific performance of its contract.

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Re: [Kictanet] Monday forum please attend
by joseph kihanya 18 Jan '07

18 Jan '07

Dear Rebecca, I am yet to receive the documents in question. At what location and time is the meeting? J. Kihanya ----- Original Message ---- From: Rebecca Wanjiku <rebeccawanjiku(a)yahoo.com> To: kihanyajn(a)yahoo.com Sent: Thursday, January 18, 2007 1:59:00 PM Subject: [Kictanet] Monday forum please attend PROPOSED REGIONAL COMMUNICATIONS INFRASTRUCTURE PROGRAM (RCIP) STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATION WORKSHOP Hope you are planning to attend the stakeholder workshop on the proposed regional Communication Infrastructure Program (RCIP) on Monday. The consultation workshop organized jointly by the ministry of Information and Communication and the World Bank. The forum will address issues relating to connectivity, lowering costs and the environmental implications of the infrastructure. The World Bank claims that Economic development in Eastern and Southern Africa (E&SA) is held back by prohibitive telecommunications and ICT costs due to incomplete liberalization and lack of infrastructure. The proposed Regional Communications Infrastructure Program (RCIP) is a joint World Bank Group effort to leverage private sector participation along side efforts by eight other development partners (AfDB, AFD, DBSA, DFID, EIB, EU, KfW and SIDA). It will be a chance for you to interrogate the project and find out what it will cost the country in terms of WB demands. The minister, the PS and other senior WB officials will be present to answer any questions regarding the project. It will also be a forum where stakeholders in the ICT industry can find out more about the position of the ICT bill and whether the priority should be making the process transparent or putting in place an Act that can safeguard against any excesses by procuring entities. The PS has forwarded the registration and background documents but if you require any assistance, just email me. alice(a)apc.org wrote: Dear All Becky Wanjiku, a journalist with Highway Africa, will be working with the KICTAnet to produce our monthly E-bulletins as well as working on other communication and events related tasks. These projects are supported by the Open Society Institute Eastern Africa (OSIEA), Wananchi online, KENET and the Embassy of Finland in Kenya. Thank you and best regards alice _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)kictanet.or.ke http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet Please unsubscribe or change your options at http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/rebeccawanjiku%40yahoo.com Rebecca Wanjiku, journalist, p.o box 33515, Nairobi.00600 Kenya. Tel. 254 720 318 925 blog:http://beckyit.blogspot.com/ The fish are biting. Get more visitors on your site using Yahoo! Search Marketing. _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet(a)kictanet.or.ke http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet Please unsubscribe or change your options at http://kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/kihanyajn%40yahoo.com ____________________________________________________________________________________ Looking for earth-friendly autos? Browse Top Cars by "Green Rating" at Yahoo! Autos' Green Center. http://autos.yahoo.com/green_center/

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Safaricom must improve or lose to a better option
by Judy kimiti 16 Jan '07

16 Jan '07

Safaricom must improve or lose to a better option By Andrew Odete Dear Mr Michael Joseph, I tried calling you for a chat, but the network was down, so I fell back to the old ink and pen. It never lets you down, which is more than I can say for the postal service. That is why I have taken the liberty to write to you through the media, for which I beg your understanding and forgiveness. It is not because I am a cheapskate. Greetings from many readers who have asked me to relay their heartfelt congratulations to you for dragging Safaricom, biting and kicking, into the Sh12 billion-profit mark. The readers are also your subscribers and they have exhorted me to relay their concerns relating on your service to your doorstep. You are top in business First, your customers appreciate that achieving such an unprecedented subscription as you have in the proverbial blink of an eye is worthy of accolades. Many say, and rightly so, that you have come top of the business stakes in the region for listening to and understanding your customers. What is more impressive is that you achieved this in the hitherto unexplored terrain of mobile telephony in Kenya. However, your customers hope that this year, the company will outdo itself and improve on last year's performance. Oh yes, sir, they seem to believe that there is room for improvement on your part. Some even reckon that it is pretty easy to be the "Better Option" in a field where there are not too many service providers to challenge you on the quality of the product. Cheap but clogged While they appreciate that you have increased coverage in the country, they wish you could also increase the quality of telephone service. Clarity of phone calls and reliability of the service is all they want. For instance, when you so very kindly offered cheap calling rates during the festive season, the relentless crush of callers ensured that nobody could get through the network at various times of the day. Your network crashed, as happened increasingly often in the course of last year. Moreover, sir, you know we have such diverse accents and dialects that it helps to have a clear line; otherwise, we could as well be insulting one another over the phone. That would be uncivilised and, if I may say so, unChristmas! When Kananu calls from Imenti, Muli from Masinga or Jaoko from Mbita next to the lake, I want to hear the phonetic innocence of their respective dialects and interpret them accordingly. No reason to toast And when Akinyi jets back to Kenya, and tries out her full-on Texan- cum-Siaya drawl on my ears, it would help to, at least, hear some of her words. This year, Safaricom may need to ratchet it up a notch higher if your subscribers are to see the sense of continuing to top up so that you, in turn, may continue to top the profit league. I am sure you have the savoir-faire to remain the toast of East Africa. Already, your subscribers cannot stop thanking you for the reduced call charges. But I fear that unless you give your customers a new year present in the way of better quality services, an even better option might come along and make toast of you. And now that I cannot get through to you on the phone, sir, I take this opportunity to wish you a happy New Year and to request that you please call me back when the network is back to normal. Thank you. odeteac(a)yahoo.com http://www.eastandard.net/hm_news/news.php?articleid=1143963704 ___________________________________________________________ To help you stay safe and secure online, we've developed the all new Yahoo! Security Centre. http://uk.security.yahoo.com

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Interesting trend with African-led ICT investments
by Brian Longwe 15 Jan '07

15 Jan '07

I am extremely impressed and encouraged to see Wananchi online's bid to takeover African Lakes and all their holdings which include all of Africa Online's branches as well as a number of infrastructure and internet licenses across the continent. Could this be the emergence of a truly African Mega-ISP? Considering the attrition that the ISP industry is facing continent- wide, which was very aptly commented on by Russell Southwood in his article "The African ISP is dead - Long live the African ISP" where he spoke of the encroachment of the mobile operators into internet services and the threat that this posed to the ISP as we know it today. In this article he clearly indicated some of the survival strategies that ISPs would have to consider, including consolidation, divestiture into other revenue generating areas e.g. content production and regional expansion. It is interesting to note that Wananchi seem to have taken the prescription wholesale and are aiming to act on almost all of these areas. For me on a personal basis I am very happy to see an indigenous African-led transaction of such magnitude in the ICT sector - which has in the past been dominated by "foreigners" who didn't really understand african markets. I can't wait to see what else Wananchi have up their sleeves! Regards, Brian Begin forwarded message: > From: Joseph Mucheru <mucheru(a)wananchi.com> > Date: January 15, 2007 9:23:47 AM GMT+03:00 > To: "brian(a)inhand.co.ke" <brian(a)inhand.co.ke> > Subject: FW: Press Announcement > > From: Wananchi Online Ltd <announcements(a)wananchi.com> > Date: Mon, 15 Jan 2007 00:42:06 +0300 > To: <All_Wananchi_Online_Ltd_Customers(a)wananchi.com> > Subject: Press Announcement > > > Wananchi Online creates a new Group Structure > > On 28th December 2006, Wananchi Online together with a group of > Kenyan, > British and American investors announced its intention to acquire the > entire issued and to be issued share capital of the African Lakes > Corporation (TALC). TALC is the holding company of Africa Online > Limited > and UUNET Africa. The success of the acquisition will see the creation > of Africa's largest consumer broadband company and goes a long way in > achieving Wananchi's vision of being "Africa's leading Internet > Communications Provider". The bid is being made through a special > purpose vehicle registered for this purpose in the UK, The African > Telecoms Company Limited. > > The full text of the announcement can be found at this url: > > Short Url: > http://urlx.org/londonstockexchange.co.uk/fd1e5 > > Long URL: > http://www.londonstockexchange.co.uk/LSECWS/IFSPages/ > MarketNewsPopup.aspx?id > =1372930&source=RNS > > The conclusion of the transaction will see the creation of a group > holding company of which I shall become Chairman and Joseph Mucheru > will become Deputy CEO. We will be joined on the board by amongst > others Mark Schneider, a seasoned American Media Entrepreneur who will > become Vice Chairman and Richard Bell, a seasoned East African ICT > Entrepreneur who will become Chief Executive Officer. Going forward > the company will implement a strategy to create the largest wireless > ADSL broadband network in Africa delivering consumer broadband > services > to Wananchi across the continent. > > As part of this process and in order to allow Joseph to focus on this > ambitious project, we are restructuring elements of the existing > Wananchi > Online operations to align them with this strategy. To this end I am > pleased to announce that with immediate effect Sandeep Mangat will be > taking over the day to day operations of Wananchi Online and Hamish > Govani > will be assisting him as Chief Financial Officer. > > I am also pleased to inform you that Richard Bell has been > appointed to > the board of Wananchi Online to assist in making sure that the > companies > strategies are aligned with the bigger picture which I have already > outlined. Richard is a former director of TALC, founder of Swift > Global > Kenya and Uganda, founder of Kenya Data Networks, founding Chairman of > TESPOK, KIXP and KENIC. He is currently the Managing Partner of > East Africa > Capital Partners a private equity firm which specializes in > Technology, > Media and Telecoms investments. He became a Sloan Fellow of the London > Business School in 2005. > > We are please to tell you that limited broadband coverage is already > available in parts of Nairobi and Mombassa and we will be providing > special > offers and a limited amount of free equipment to existing customers > when > the full rollout begins. So I do encourage you to renew your dial- > up and/or > email subscriptions now so that you can take advantage of these > offers when > the time comes. Those whose subscriptions have lapsed or who fail to > become WOL customers in time will be time barred from these special > customer > loyalty offers. > > We will continue to keep you informed as our plans develop. For > further > information you can contact Sandeep Mangat on 020 329 2000 or email > sunny.mangat(a)wananchi.com > > -- > > James Gachui, > Chairman > Wananchi Online Limited > >

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Postponed to Next Mon 22nd: Re: What Model for EASsy, TEAMS, et al?-(2weeks Online Discussion)
by John Walubengo 15 Jan '07

15 Jan '07

Apologies to all, This session has had to be postponed and will commence next week...any inconviniences highly regreted but we shall be on air next monday 22nd starting from 12:00GMT. walu. --- John Walubengo <jwalu(a)yahoo.com> wrote: > Greetings all, > > I have been given the un-enviable task by KICTAnet to > lead > an online discussion on the type of model we in East > Africa > would prefer for our long awaited submarine fiber > cable(s). > > The task is un-enviable because it is not only regional > and > complicated and but probably belated as well. However, > it > is worth reviewing for purposes of bringing everyone upto > speed with the importance and the issues surrounding > fiber-optic connectivity to the global super-highway > (internet). > > I will basically be taking us through what I gather are > the > issues as per the questions/themes below: > > The Questions/Issues > 1) Why do we need International Optical Fiber > Connectivity? > (1day) > 2) What are the existing (and possible) > Business/Financial > models for Optical Fiber Submarine Cables?(2days) > 3) What are the existing (and possible) Regulatory models > for Optical Fiber Submarine Cables?(2days) > 4) What would be the ideal model for East Africans? > (2days) > 5) How will this (ideal) model impact on the existing > stakeholders(Consumers, Operators, Regulators,etc)(2days) > 6) How can conflicting stakeholder interest be > resolved?(2days) > > And hope that you guys can interject with your comments, > objections and clarifications. Your comments would be > highly appreciated because you are the operators, the > regulators, the private sector investors, the Govt, etc. > I > shall only set the tone, you shall give the views. > > So get ready, starting next Monday 15th Jan - Sat 27th > Jan > to participate in this very important discussion. > > walu. > > > > > ____________________________________________________________________________________ > Need a quick answer? Get one in minutes from people who > know. > Ask your question on www.Answers.yahoo.com > ____________________________________________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Everyone is raving about the all-new Yahoo! Mail beta. http://new.mail.yahoo.com

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Fw: EASSy Project Dispute Takes New Twist
by alice＠apc.org 12 Jan '07

12 Jan '07

----- Original Message ----- From: "Binaifer Nowrojee" <bnowrojee(a)osiea.org> Eassy Project Dispute Takes New Twist by Elias Biryabarema 729 words Kampala, Jan 09, 2007 (The Monitor/All Africa Global Media via COMTEX) -- THE protracted wrangle between the NEPAD's e-Africa Commission and a consortium of companies that initially conceived the Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System (EASSy) project now looks set to result in the construction of two competing submarine cables, Daily Monitor has learnt. What is still unclear is to what extent this new development will affect the pace of development of the cable project and how it will impact its ability to meet its overriding objectives, mainly bringing down the costs of communication and spurring the Information, Communication and Information (ICT) industry in the region. EASSy is an ambitious initiative to connect countries of eastern Africa via a high bandwidth fibre optic cable system to the rest of the world. It was first mooted by a group of about 15 telecom companies meeting in Nairobi, Kenya in 2003. They included Uganda's MTN and UTL, Telecom S. Africa, Kenya Telecom and others. They planned to lay a fibre optic cable along the East African coast that would offer a direct connection to the world's information superhighway. It was to enable the region have access to a broadband network which would permit ultra-fast transmission of digital traffic and at cheaper prices. Mr Donald Nyakairu, UTL's Legal Counsel and Chairman of EASSy Finance committee asserted in a recent interview that the e-Africa Commission's hijacking of the cable was unfair and opportunistic and that its actions were being totally disregarded. The consortium has repeatedly rebuffed entreaties from the commission to stop their plans and join in the NEPAD project. "While the e-Commission is busy making everybody believe that they're in charge of the project, for us we are advancing pretty fast and real construction is starting soon," Mr Nyakairu said. He said the original companies that conceived the idea later signed an understanding and constituted themselves into a consortium that was supposed to develop, own and operate the cable. The e-Commission was invited in the subsequent meetings, as an observer but to the astonishment of the consortium, it soon started to show deep interest in the project's details and even demanded active involvement. "We thought they were attending to see the progress, but all of a sudden they started to make demands which shocked us," Nyakairu said. Right now, the e-Commission is pursuing its own project in concert with the World Bank, the African Development Bank and the governments of South Africa, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, DR Congo, Rwanda and others which are also signatories to the EASSy protocol. The conflict between the two sides principally stems from the mode of the project implementation. NEPAD e-Africa Commission insists that a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) develops, owns, and operates the cable while the consortium wants companies to take charge exclusively. Mr Nyakairu said if the commission wants to construct a parallel cable, then it must find its own name and stop encroaching on the intellectual property of the consortium (EASSy). However, the Commission's regulatory advisor, Dr Edmund Katiti dismissed claims that it was hijacking the EASSy name. "The regional network is currently referred to as the NEPAD ICT Broadband Infrastructure Network" he said, adding that it consists of two interconnected segments - a submarine cable and a terrestrial network (intra-country cable). He said the shareholders in the SPVs are the ones who will decide what name(s) to give to the network and its segments. As a way of attempting to defuse the differences and accommodate the concerns of the Commission, Mr Nyakairu said the Consortium members had decided to also have an SPV that would act as a collective investment vehicle for all smaller telecom concerns in the region. This SPV will then buy shares in the cable as a single investor. "We really think we have done everything to address all these accusations," he said. Even then, the two sides seem to be far from striking any agreement. Dr Katiti said the Nepad ICT Broadband Infrastructure Network Protocol is scheduled to go into effect in the first quarter of 2007, which would also mark the commencement of construction. On the other hand, the consortium has already awarded the construction contract to Alcatel and work is beginning early this year.

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Apple "reinvents the phone," unveils iPhone
by Brian Longwe 12 Jan '07

12 Jan '07

Talk about convergence! This phone is a real handheld computer! View this article at: http://www.macnn.com/articles/07/01/09/ apple.unveils.iphone/ Tuesday, January 9,2007 @ 12:55pm Apple "reinvents the phone," unveils iPhone [u] Apple today unveiled the iPhone (site not updated), a wide-screen iPod with touch controls that also functions as a mobile phone and an internet communication device. The company chief Steve Jobs revealed the new device during his keynote speech at the Macworld Conference & Expo in San Francisco. "This is a day I've been looking forward to for two and a half years," Jobs said on stage in front of the keynote attendees. "Every once in a while a product comes along to change the industry. Apple has been fortunate to introduce a few of these: the Mac in 1984; the iPod in 2001. Apple will introduce three revolutionary products of this class. Wide-screen iPod with touch controls. The second is a mobile phone. The third is a break-through internet communication device. All of those in a single device. Not separate devices, but a single device called iPhone. Apple reinvents the phone." [updated] iPhone development began with a revolutionary user interface that leverages hardware as well as software, overcoming the problem of fixed controls that cannot change as applications change. The iPhone utilizes a touch sensitive screen with "multi-touch" technology that does not require a stylus pen to operate, and is far more accurate than other touch displays, according to Jobs. The touch pad allows multi-finger gestures that Jobs says is "at least five years ahead of any other." The iPhone runs Mac OS X with power management, networking, security, applications, Core Animation, and audio/video support. Users can also create desktop-class applications, according to Apple's chief. The iPhone includes a 3.5-inch screen with 160 pixels per inch, as well as a single "home" button. The phone is thinner than any other phone at 11.6mm, and offers volume controls alongside a two megapixel camera built-in on the back. The phone also features a 3.5mm headphone jack, a sleep/wake button on top, a speaker microphone, and an iPod connector on the bottom. A proximity sensor turns off the screen as well as the touch sensor when the phone passes close to the head, and an ambient light sensor turns down the screen brightness as necessary. An accelerometer determines whether to capture a landscape or portrait orientation when taking photos, and the phone includes coverflow technology similar to that used in the company's iTunes software. Apple's iPhone has a dashboard- like interface to each module and function, allowing users to scroll using a finger. The home button returns users back to the dashboard, and the coveflow technology supports scrolling through album art with the touch of a finger. Jobs demonstrated the iPhone's video capability by playing "The Office" TV show, and began playing a wide- screen movie using on-screen controls. The iPhone -- which includes more than 200 patents for inventions used in the device -- offers visual voicemail that allows random access voicemail for direct access, and functions as a quad-band GSM/Edge phone. iPhone includes WiFi and Bluetooth 2.0 connectivity, providing users with SMS functionality alongside various applications such as a calendar, contacts, and more. An iChat-like interface enables users to send as well as receive SMS messages, and the iPhone supports error correction via a visual keyboard that allows users to type messages. The phone includes built-in photo management that can scroll through photos with the touch of a finger, and a 'pinch' motion zooms in or out while viewing images. Further iPhone features include rich HTML email capability that works with any POP/IMAP email service, and a fully usable copy of Apple's Safari Web browser with support for Google Maps. The phone includes widgets for weather and stocks, and automatically locates WiFi networks when they are available -- switching to the network to maintain internet connectivity. Additionally, Yahoo is offering all iPhone users free push IMAP email service with inline photos and rich text email support. Apple's iPhone also automatically parses out phone numbers with a simple touch-to-call option. Finger gestures navigate Web pages in Safari when browsing the Web, and pinching gestures zoom in on a particular area of a page. Double tapping on a page zooms to that area, while a Cingular menubar displays an AirPort-like signal indicator for WiFi strength. Users can also quickly move to portions of a Web page before it is finished downloading. Steve Jobs introduced Cingular Wireless CEO, saying that features like visual voicemail required help from the carrier. Cingular entered into a multiyear exclusive contract with Apple without ever having seen the phone. Jobs said Apple hopes to grab 1 percent market share (10 million units) in 2008 following the iPhone's introduction into the existing mobile phone market, which consists of nearly 1 billion phones. iPhone accessories include standard headphones that feature a button to answer calls, as well as a new Bluetooth headset with a single button that automatically goes to sleep. Jobs promises five hours of battery life for talking time or video playback, as well as 16 hours of audio playback time. The iPhone will ship in June for $499 (4GB model) and $599 (8GB model), both with a 2 year contract. Copyright ©1995-2005 Macintosh News Network, Inc. All rights reserved.

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