Airtel, Nokia begin exchange of phones in Nigeria

Lagos – Leading telecommunications service provider, Airtel Nigeria and Nokia, have partnered to provide Nigerians the opportunity to exchange any of their current handsets for one of Nokia’s swank smartphones, the Lumia 520.

To qualify for the Airtel/Nokia phone upgrade programme, customers need visit any of Airtel shops with their old but functional device of any given brand and network, then pay an exchange fee of N23, 990, to own the Lumia 520.

The offer also gives customers who embrace it up to N10, 000 worth of value for exchanging their old devices for the new Lumia 520 as they stand to enjoy 6 months free airtime for on net calls and data worth N6, 000.

In addition, customers will also enjoy the device value discount worth more than N4, 000, based on the current market retail value of N28, 000.

Speaking on the offer, the Chief Sales Officer of Airtel Nigeria, Inusa Bello, said the initiative is another first by any operator in Nigeria, saying it will further provide telecoms value to Nigerians in line with its commitment to become the most loved brand in the daily lives of Nigerians.

Said he: “the phone upgrade programme is yet another unique initiative by Airtel and Nokia to provide Nigerians a rare opportunity to own smartphone devices, complete with innovative applications to enhance their communication experience.  Also, the additional value of free voice and data services is one more reason for consumers to port to Airtel.”

General Manager, Nokia West Africa, Mr. Chris Brown said Nokia was ecstatic that the Lumia 520 had been chosen as the smartphone of choice for consumers to get their first smartphone experience on. He also applauded Airtel for leading the way on a much requested upgrade opportunity which will offer consumers the best starter kit with the device discount and a fully loaded phone with free airtime and data for easy internet access.

BlackBerry Messenger for iPhone and Android launch page goes live briefly

Recent leaks have suggested that Android and iPhone users will be able to use BlackBerry Messenger very soon, and a brief appearance of the app’s landing page further confirms its imminent arrival

The landing page isn’t accessible anymore and instead redirects to a sign-up page for being notified about BBM’s official launch, but in the brief time it was up, it had a lot of placeholder graphics, along with not-working links to download the Android and iPhone apps.

The page also had links to the user guides for the app, the same ones which leaked on the company’s official website a few days ago. Something worth noting is that the landing page mentioned “BBM for iPhone” instead of iOS, so it is possible that iPad owners will be left out of the fun; Android tablets probably won’t be supported either, but since Android doesn’t differentiate between phone and tablet apps, that limitation likely won’t be visible unless someone visits the BBM Play Store page on an Android tablet.

Considering the leaked user guides, commencement of beta testing, and now the landing page, don’t be surprised if you wake up tomorrow and find BBM for Android and iPhone available for download on the respective app stores. Be sure to visit the source link and sign up to be notified of BBM’s cross-platform launch if you’re interested.

Read more: http://vr-zone.com/articles/blackberry-messenger-iphone-android-launch-page-goes-live-briefly/54004.html#ixzz2dRgCnIcI

Nokia takes on Android battle with Lumia windows phone

Things appear to be looking up for Nokia and its Lumia series of Windows Phone devices as its latest series, Lumia 925 marks the first time when the mobile device maker has used metal in its Lumia portfolio.

The latest series being a solid mix of hardware and software, the phone maker is banking on its camera state-of-art technology to give it the edge over other leading brands like Apple iPhone 5 , TECNO , Samsung Galaxy S4 among others.

The Lumia 925 is compatible with 3G and 4G networks.

Software
For phone geeks who seek the best in the mobile phone ecosystem, Lumia 925 series f Windows Phone 8 is the option. With its thinner design, high-resolution screen, and excellent camera capabilities , the Lumia 925 runs on Windows Phone 8 operating system and comes with what Nokia calls the Amber update on top.

The Lumia 925 introduces Nokia Smart Cam that takes a burst shot and then allows users do things like remove objects, add motion blur, change faces in a group shot to get the best face for every individual or create an action shot. Interestingly, this tools tools are user friendly, making it easy for users to play around with photos.

For one thing, the phone maker has packed Smart Camera application which includes an array of photo editing features, including the ability to choose between the best shot in a series of shots and the best facial expression after you’ve taken a group or portrait photo.

The Smart Camera app is a part of the forthcoming Amber update for the rest of Nokia’s Windows Phone 8-based smartphones, but Lumia 925 users have immediate access to these features and more.

The 925’s inclusion of extra apps for photo editing is a nice touch considering the mess that is the Windows Phone Marketplace, but some of the Smart Camera’s abilities will take a bit of adjusting to.

Key features
•The world’s most advanced lens technology and Nokia imaging software on the Nokia Lumia 925 delivers the best low light images.

•The new Nokia Smart Camera captures 10 high quality images at one click for powerful new creative possibilities, such as Best Shot, Action Shot, and Motion Focus

•Nokia Lumia 925 features a metal frame around the body for antenna functionality, appeal and robustness.

•Comes with the world’s only fully integrated and true offline maps experience from the HERE location suite.

•Offers access to a world of music available to stream or download with Nokia Music.

• *Being made available as an update Nokia original accessories

•Camera: PureView 8.7 MP with Optical Image Stabilization (OIS), Autofocus, short pulse high power dual LED flash, most advanced lens technology, 1080p HD video at 30fps with OIS. Includes Nokia Smart Camera mode. Secondary camera: HD 1.2MP wide angle.

Five Africans to win $25 in Google’s Africa connected competition

The software giant, Google has flagged off Africa connected competition calling on entrepreneurs, creators, innovators and web-lovers in Nigeria and across Africa to share their stories of how the web has transformed their lives and work.

In the competition, Five successful entrants are expected to win  $25,000 each, and will also have the opportunity to work with a Google sponsor over a six-month period.

Google’s new initiative, ‘Africa Connected: Success stories powered by the web’, aims to gather the largest collection of inspiring stories about ventures established online by Africans, in Africa.

“Google wants to hear from young, spirited entrepreneurial web adopters in Nigeria and other countries in Sub-Saharan Africa who have a healthy disregard for the impossible and who are using the web and technology to do cool and extraordinary things to rise above their circumstances, change their world, and achieve success. We want to showcase the amazing achievements happening in the new Africa”, Affiong Osuchukwu, Google Lead for the Africa Connected initiative, said.

Aspiring filmmaker, cinematographer and editor Amuwa Oluseyi Asurf is one such example. This Nigerian videographer has gone from spending nights in internet cafes, so that he could watch YouTube to teach himself how to edit films, to running a successful film and video production company in Lagos, where he employs 10 people.

His company; Asurf Films is today courted by Nigerian celebrities such as Basket Mouth, Iyanya, Wizkid, Psquare and Bovi, to film their music/entertainment videos locally and internationally.

“My journey started with a passion to become a filmmaker. Unfortunately, even though I got admission to some good universities, I couldn’t afford to go. Luckily I was introduced to the internet and to YouTube. I discovered I could learn everything I needed to know online. It feels great to have some of the top celebrities in Nigeria inviting me to their projects. This inspires me to want to become even better. I am still on the journey to becoming one of the top names in African filmmaking, and I know the internet will still continue to play an important role.”

The owner and creator of Afrinolly, Chike Maduegbuna, based in Nigeria, is another online entrepreneur. Afrinolly is a popular mobile app which lets people across the continent watch short videos on their mobile devices.

This app has transformed Nigeria’s Nollywood film industry by creating a movie trailer platform for new audiences. With over 3 million downloads already since its launch in August 2011, Chike hopes this will create a platform that connects aspiring film professionals with global film industry veterans.

Nigerian judge and radio personality / fashion photographer Temilola Balogun commented, “The internet is truly helping to reshape the story of Africa, and Nigerians are some of those taking full advantage of its power.

|”Whether you are in technology, agriculture, energy, fashion, education, or entertainment, if the web has transformed your life, and you believe your venture can be scaled up, then the judging panel is looking forward to hearing your story”.

Categories for entries include Education; Entertainment/Arts/Sports; Technology; Community and NGOs; and Small Businesses. 20 semi-finalists will be selected from initial entries to take part in an interview and to produce a short promotional video. A judging panel made up of Googlers and external judges will then determine the 10 finalists. The 5 winners, in whose lives the web and Google have played a pivotal role, will then be selected by the online voting public. Submissions are open from August 27, 2013 to October 11, 2013. The competition will run until February 2014 when the winners will be announced.

In the next five years, 7 out of the world’s 10 fastest growing economies are predicted to be in Africa, and the Internet is playing an important part in this

The 15 Countries With the Highest Smartphone Penetration

Nearly three out of four people in the United Arab Emirates owns a smartphone, making it the country with the highest smartphone penetration in the world. Following the UAE are South Korea, Saudi Arabia and Singapore.

The United States doesn't even fall into the top 10, finishing at No. 13 with just 56.4% penetration, according to Google's Our Mobile Planet report from Q1 of 2013.

Statistic's chart, below, shows the 15 countries with the highest smartphone penetration in the world

Are you surprised by these rankings? 

— The next time you watch something on your Smart TV, beware, the television might be watching you too.

As in turns out, just like smartphones, Smart TVs can be hacked and compromised. On Thursday August 1,2013, at the Black hat security conference, researchers Aaron Grattafiori and Josh Yavor demonstrated how they found vulnerabilities in different 2012 models of Samsung Smart TVs that allowed them to turn on the camera, take control of social media apps like Facebook or Skype, and access files and basically any app on the set

“Because the TV only has a single user," Grattafiori explains that, "any type of compromise into an application or into Smart Hub, which is the operating system — the smarts of the TV — has the same permission as every user, which is, you can do everything and anything."

In other words, the hacker has your remote.

With Smart TVs getting more and more popular, 67 million models were sold in 2012, and that figure is expected to grow to 85 million this year, something like this can be a dangerous issue for many people and households.

The two researchers, who work for security firm iSEC Partners, started looking into these vulnerabilities in December of 2012, and reached out to Samsung in early January to alert it of the bugs. The company told CNN that it has issues patches that fix these holes, and it should now harder for hackers to compromise its Smart TVs.

Grattafiori and Yavor, however, believe that other other exploits could potentially be found to attack Samunsg as well as other vendor's Smart TVs.

The issue lies with the fact that apps on Samsung Smart TVs, like Skype or Facebook, are written in Javascript or HTML5 and vulnerable to traditional unsophisticated attacks that also take advantage of its APIs. It's using those bugs that Grattafiori and Yavor injected malicious code into chat messages or into the browser and remotely took control of the TV.

Once the TV is compromised, a hacker has full control and can spread its attack to the victim's contacts, effectively becoming a full-fledged Smart TV virus.

This is the first time that security researcher explain in detail how to compromise Smart TVs, although in December 2012, another group of researchers posted a video online showing how they got control of another model of Samsung Smart TV (these researchers didn't post the details of their exploit.)

Even if the security holes have been patched by Samsung, a consumer should still be careful, Grattafiori and Yavor said. The best way to avoid something like this is make sure to install all the updates, and avoid suspicious websites. If a consumer doesn't use any social media apps, but only uses his TV to passively consume apps like Netflix, according to Grattafiori, he or she should be relatively safe. Also, if the TV is completely unplugged from the Internet, there is no way in for an external attacker.

But sometimes, the best solution to avoid being spied on is an old-school, low-tech one.

"When in doubt," said Yavor, "there's always a piece of tape or a post it you can put on the camera."

Microsoft restates commitment to partner FG on ICT Development

Devices and Services giant, Microsoft Nigeria has reiterated the company’s commitment to collaborating with the Federal Government of Nigeria and other stakeholders in the IT industry to put structure in place to further aid ICT development in the country.

National Technology Officer, Microsoft Anglophone West Africa, Olayinka Oni said this last week at the Lagos Business School where he addressed the Executive MBA class as a guest speaker.

While delivering his keynote address titled ‘Nigeria in the Information Age: The role and capacity of Government’, Oni said that for Africa to improve its economic and global competitiveness, it is pertinent to place ICT at the nerve centre of its activities.

He drew example from advanced countries with an explanation that they enjoy their present status because of their technological advancement.

Oni commended the strides taken by the present administration in advancing ICT, one of which is the inauguration of the Broadband Council to drive the implementation of the recently-approved National Broadband Plan 2013-2018 by the Minister of Communication Technology, Mrs. Omobola Johnson.

Another noteworthy effort of the ministry is the funding of Incubation Centres created solely to foster innovation and the development of locally relevant apps by people with great ideas but without the wherewithal to execute.

According to him, Microsoft has over the years explored various ways at developing innovative products and services to improve the way Africans communicate at work, at home and on the go.  The most recent being the  generation of novel ideas which includes the 4Afrika initiative designed to empower African youth, entrepreneurs, developers, businesses and civic leaders to turn great ideas into a reality that can help their community, their country, the Continent, and beyond.

“Under the initiative, Microsoft will help place tens of millions of smart devices in the hands of young Africans, bring one million SMEs online by providing high-speed broadband using Super Wi-Fi technology, up-skill 100,000 members of Africa’s existing workforce, and help an additional 100,000 recent graduates develop skills for employability, 75 percent of which Microsoft will help place in jobs”, added Oni.

Explaining that cloud computing has the potential to transform the region, Olayinka noted that it enables global growth for businesses in emerging markets who are seeking to engage world markets in spite of lack of traditional infrastructure.

Concluding, Oni spoke about Microsoft’s recently launched initiative,  CityNext, an initiative that  Microsoft and her global partner ecosystem are uniquely positioned to enable a people-first approach through their end-to-end software, devices and services capabilities that meet a range of needs from the consumer-related demands of citizens to the mission-critical, enterprise demands of city operations.

In his words “No other company offers the broad portfolio of familiar, secure software, devices and services; the experienced network of hundreds of thousands of partners worldwide with relationships in nearly every major city around the globe; and the history of successful education and training programs, which collectively, propel cities toward what’s next”.

Earlier, in her welcome address, Faculty Director and IS Faculty, Lagos Business School, Dr. Olayinka David-West said, “the role of Government in the development of an IT-enabled environment is integral to private sectors adoption of IT”. She also emphasised that “the environment in which we operate and the strategies we want to adopt can either be aided or hindered by Government’s participation.”.

The Executive MBA (EMBA) class is made up of working professionals, with more than 7 years of experience working in different business sectors. The EMBA are management practitioners seeking to improve their managerial practices and leadership skills.