AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2015 northern african Volume 14 Number 4 Forwireless comms professionals in north, west, east & central Africa COMMUNICATIONS ● Will LTE usher in a new age of VAS? ● Building the Internet of Things in Africa ● Why BSS is not just another managed service To see how IDT can help you reach out and grow your business, email [email protected] or visit idtcarrierservices.com wirelessnorthern african CONTENTS COMMUNICATIONS AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2015 northern african Volume 14 5 News review Number 4 AUGUST/ Forwireless comms professionals in north, west, east & central Africa COMMUNICATIONS SEPTEMBER 2015 > Africa has lowest broadband penetration > ATU supports no change to UHF and C-bands Volume 14 > RSCC launches second satellite for Africa Number 4 ● Will LTE usher in a > Eutelsat 8 West B promises vast coverage new age of VAS? ● Building the Internet of Things in Africa ● Why BSS is not just another managed > Liquid and MTN join forces for connectivity service 8 News > Quantis satcoms enhanced with Newtec To see how IDT can help you reach out and grow your business, email [email protected] or visit idtcarrierservices.com > Yahsat completes review of Al Yah 3 16 Wireless solutions > Vodafone Egypt saves with prefab exchange > Gilat offers HTS a year before Intelsat launch Because big is best. In a competitive > WACS gets fi rst upgrade world, size can be the difference between success and failure. 13 Wireless business > Row breaks out following LPTIC consolidation IDT Carrier Services is one of the largest global carriers of international voice traffi c, 16 Wireless solutions generating over 30 billion minutes last > Antenna capacity boosted by lens technology year. Under the BOSS Revolution brand, 18 VAS IDT Retail has a global distribution network serving foreign-born communities. IDT Features: Carrier Services represents these billions of outbound minutes, creating buy and 18 Value-added services sell opportunities throughout Africa. > The advent of LTE should boost VAS in Africa, as DAVE HOWELL discovers. To see how we can help you reach out and grow your global telecoms business, 23 Internet of Things email [email protected] or > Will IoT and machine-to-machine take-off visit idtcarrierservices.com. in Africa? RAHIEL NASIR fi nds out. Grow with us 27 Industry View > ALAM GILL explains what ‘Billing as a Turn to page 12 23 Internet of Things Service’ should really mean. to fi nd out more about IDT 33 World news 30 World news > Upgrade for biggest critical comms in SA > Advanced LTE with the help of ZTE > TETRA steps in after DMR disappoints > Bonded WAN on world’s longest ship > Tier IV data centre supports hybrid broadband > Vodacom’s unique data centre on wheels SUBSCRIPTIONS: of control can purchase an annual Northern African Wireless Communications is subscription at the cost of £110. a controlled circulation bi-monthly magazine. For more information and general enquiries Register now for your free subscription at please contact Suzanne Thomas at www.kadiumpublishing.com [email protected] Readers who do not qualify under the terms or call +44 (0) 1932 886 537. 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The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those shared by the publisher or the editor. E&OE. Printed in England by Polestar Stones NEWS Africa has world’s lowest The new satellite features C-, Ku-, and L-band transponders. broadband penetration RSCC’s SUBS. Broadband internet is failing to Guinea, Eritrea, Gabon and RANK ECONOMY PER 100 reach those who could benefit most, Guinea-Bissau all ranked at the Express-AM8 CAPITA according to the 2015 edition of the bottom with a zero or an estimated 25 Libya 80.6 ITU’s State of Broadband report. It says zero number of active mobile- now in orbit 59 Cape Verde 51.3 while broadband internet access is broadband subscriptions per capita. 67 Tunisia 47.6 reaching near saturation in the world’s The union says among the The Russian Satellite Communica- rich nations, it is not advancing fast in challenges that need to be overcome to tions Company (RSCC) has launched 74 Egypt 43.5 the developing world. expand web access is to create a truly another satellite aimed at Africa. 105 Sudan 27.2 The report reveals that 57 per cent multilingual, multicultural internet, Following lift-off from the 106 Morocco 26.8 of the world’s population remains and make services and devices more Baikonur Cosmodrome on 14 108 Côte d’Ivoire 24.6 offline. The situation in the 48 affordable. The cost-effective rollout September, a Proton-M/Block DM-03 110 Senegal 23.7 UN-designated ‘Least Developed of networks into remote and rural rocket successfully placed Express- 112 Algeria 20.8 Countries’ – which mostly include areas is also a key obstacle. AM8 into a geostationary orbit. The 120 Uganda 14.7 African nations – is particularly The ITU says one factor spacecraft is now under the control of critical, with more than 90 per contributing to the slowing of RSCC specialists who are checking its 122 Mauritania 14.4* cent of people without any kind of internet growth is that the business functionality, testing all systems and 125 Sierra Leone 13.0* internet connectivity. case for service providers is less deploying onboard equipment before 130 Nigeria 11.7 The lowest levels of internet access compelling for the areas in which commissioning it for operations. 131 Mali 11.3 are mostly found in sub-Saharan the remaining 57 per cent of Express-AM8 will be stationed 135 Congo (Rep.) 10.8* Africa, with internet available to less unconnected people live. in geostationary orbit at 14˚W to São Tomé & than two per cent of the population It cites the World Bank which provide what RSCC describes as 138 9.8* Príncipe in Guinea, Somalia, Burundi, Timor calls for the private sector to take “state-of-the-art” communications 139 Burkina Faso 9.6 Leste and Eritrea. the lead in providing internet and broadcasting services to users 142 Kenya 9.1 In its table of 189 member states infrastructure and services, but in European Russia, Europe, with active mobile-broadband notes that public investment or Africa, the Middle East and Latin 143 Gambia 8.0 subscriptions per 100 inhabitants, intervention is sometimes justified America. The satellite is equipped 146 Liberia 7.6 the ITU ranks the top three where the private sector is unable to with 24 C-, 16 Ku-, and two L- band 147 Ethiopia 7.5 countries as Macao (China) provide affordable access. transponders, and has been designed 162 Malawi 4.1 Singapore and Kuwait, respectively. The union also recommends with an operational life of 15 years. 164 Djibouti 3.2* Libya is the first African nation levies on operators to finance USFs, RSCC CEO Yuri Prokhorov 168 Benin 2.8 to appear in the table (see left). mandatory infrastructure-sharing, says: “Express-AM8 paves the way for 169 Guinea 2.2* Cameroon, Chad, Equatorial and government-led national RSCC to the regional market of Latin 171 South Sudan 1.3 strategies. Research conducted for America, and provides additional the UN’s Broadband Commission in opportunities to develop business in 173 Somalia 1.0* Active mobile-broadband subscriptions 2013 suggested that the introduction Africa, Europe and the Middle East.” 175 Niger 0.9* per 100 inhabitants in northern or adoption of a broadband plan is The operator’s first satellite for 177 Burundi 0.5* equatorial African ITU member states, associated with an average 7.4 per Africa was Express-AM6 which was Central African 178 0.3* 2014. *ITU estimate. cent increase in mobile broadband launched in October 2014 (News, Republic SOURCE: STATE OF BROADBAND REPORT, ITU, SEPTEMBER 2015 penetration. Oct-Nov 2014). ATU supports “no change” position for UHF and C bands The African Telecommunications also support this “no change” position. secure adequate spectrum for the way for people to access the internet.” Union (ATU) will reject proposed Europe – which is in ITU Region broadcasting industry.” Giusti said the L-band for mobile changes to certain spectrum 1 along with Africa, the Middle East But the ATU did agree that the has the potential for widespread allocations that will be discussed at the west of the Persian Gulf including L-band (1452-1492MHz) should be global support at WRC-15, driving ITU’s World Radiocommunication Iraq, the former Soviet Union and allocated to mobile services, a move economies of scale that will benefit Conference 2015 (WRC-15) in Geneva Mongolia – is also against any welcomed by the GSMA’s deputy consumers in Africa and elsewhere. this November. changes to the spectra. chief regulatory officer John Giusti. But he warned that more work At their final preparatory meeting Simon Fell, director of technology “WRC-15 will determine what still needs to be done to ensure there held in July in Kenya, ATU members and innovation at the European spectrum bands will be allocated is sufficient spectrum allocated for agreed a common position which Broadcasting Union, said: “We are for mobile services.