Mobile network operators aren’t paying close attention to leverage DCB in mobile vertical markets. TeleResearch Labs examines many such hot opportunities in adjunct telecom markets for operators in its latest report: Vertical & Horizontal Worlds of Mobile.

As mobile payments is one of the broadest areas of horizontal potential, US-based telecom research company TeleResearch Labs strongly encourage operators to try incorporating direct carrier billing (DCB) – for physical goods. Though there are a few cases where it has started but operators have not yet focused on it. San Francisco-based company Boku, which specialises in direct carrier billing solutions, has entered into partnerships with the UK's three main telcos for supporting DCB payments for items such as magazines and bus tickets, and is looking for expanding into the food industry.

While operators do not foresee DCB in developed markets where the focus currently is on NFC/ mobile wallets, this payment method could be explored in emerging markets where millions of people don't possess credit/ debit cards and don't even have bank accounts. Telcos charge upwards of 25% of the cost of items purchased via DCB, and they could do worse than lowering this amount so as to expand scale of such payments. Moreover, this platform can also assist operators in competing with incumbent e-commerce/ m-commerce companies such as Amazon.

If only, mobile operators work with app developers facilitating DCB and the merchants to bring down the rates they charge, as has been done in South Korea, humongous revenues are in store as they would compete head-on with credit card companies. It would be additionally one more way to lure prepaid customers to sign up for postpaid contracts, especially in markets such as India, Pakistan, and countries in Africa.

For more strategical guidelines in mobile vertical markets, visit:
http://www.teleresearchlabs.com/view_document/73-vertical-a-horizontal-worlds-of-mobile
http://www.teleresearchlabs.com/
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Phone: +1   202-506-8078

International Data Corporation (IDC) today announced that more than 100 key ICT decision makers will be in attendance at its upcoming South Africa CIO Summit, to be held at The Maslow Hotel in Johannesburg on March 24 and 25 under the theme ‘IT Meets Business’. The global advisory services firm said that technology leaders from the private sector will join senior government advisors and a roster of highly influential CxOs at the event as some of the world’s most innovative technology vendors address the key issues facing organizations in today’s constantly evolving ICT environment.  

“Across the country, organizations are faced with the task of driving innovation and implementing emerging products and services while also trying to improve operational efficiency,” says Mark Walker, associate vice president of sub-Saharan Africa at IDC. “This will be a key topic of discussion during the two-day summit, as will the importance of closely aligning the strategies and goals of the organization’s IT and business functions.”  

Walker says that the CIO today is facing a number of different challenges which has forced them to change the way they operate within the organization. “They need to focus on business priorities rather than just a purely technical discussion, and are continuously tasked with ensuring that the technology they implement drive business priorities,” he says. “This means that in order for them to succeed, they will have to be able to exert influence within other parts of the business, translating technology terminology into business speak and showcasing the value that these solutions bring to the business as a whole.”  

IDC is also pleased to announce that it will be introducing a set of two unique, informative workshops, based on its IT Executive Programs. IDC’s IT Executive Programs consist of a series of research agendas aimed at helping today’s IT executives make more effective technology decisions. “Our IT Executive Programs are underpinned by accurate and timely fact-based research created to assist IT executives in mitigating technology risks, maximizing the effectiveness of IT investments, and identifying and capitalizing on new opportunities,” says Walker. “The aim is ultimately to enable IT executives to make decisions that drive innovation and agility across the organization while ensuring that IT and business objectives are fully aligned.”  

The CIO Summit presents an opportunity for CIOs and ICT professionals to gain insight from industry experts as well as CIOs on critical business and technology issues. IDC analysts along with numerous local and global ICT vendors will be on hand to present their unique insights into the trends that are shaping ICT adoption across the country, while a variety of senior line-of-business executives will offer that all-important non-IT perspective.  

For more information about IDC’s South Africa CIO Summit 2015 and to learn about the range of flexible partnership opportunities on offer, please contact Michelle Meldau, IDCs sales manager for Sub-Saharan Africa at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. You can also tweet about the summit using the hashtag #IDCSACIO or visit the dedicated event website at www.idcciosummit.com/johannesburg.  

About IDC

International Data Corporation (IDC) is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. IDC helps IT professionals, business executives, and the investment community make fact-based decisions on technology purchases and business strategy. More than 1,000 IDC analysts provide global, regional, and local expertise on technology and industry opportunities and trends in over 110 countries worldwide. For more than 51 years, IDC has provided strategic insights to help our clients achieve their key business objectives. IDC is a subsidiary of IDG, the world's leading technology media, research, and events company. You can learn more about IDC by visiting www.idc.com.  

IDC in the Middle East, Africa, and Turkey

For the Middle East, Africa, and Turkey region, IDC retains a coordinated network of offices in Riyadh, Casablanca, Nairobi, Lagos, Johannesburg, and Istanbul, with a regional center in Dubai.  Our coverage couples local insight with an international perspective to provide a comprehensive understanding of markets in these dynamic regions. Our market intelligence services are unparalleled in depth, consistency, scope, and accuracy. IDC Middle East, Africa, and Turkey currently fields over 130 analysts, consultants, and conference associates across the region.  

Contact for Media

Anulekha Shetty

Tel: +971 4 391 2741
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  

Techno Brain Expands IT Software Portfolio with Acquisition of Crown Agents’ Trips™ Suite 

Techno Brain, Africa’s leading software and IT services company, has signed an  agreement with Crown Agents Limited to acquire trips™, its suite of integrated customs and revenue software, implemented as the backbone of modern and efficient revenue systems for governments across the globe. 

Under this agreement the trips™ core development team of tax and customs software experts will transition to Techno Brain and form the nucleus of a new business unit of Techno Brain, headquartered in Sutton, U.K.

Crown Agents and Techno Brain have also signed a strategic partnership agreement to continue to serve existing customers and to promote and deliver the trips™ suite worldwide. This partnership will leverage Crown Agents’ considerable tax and customs domain expertise together with Techno Brain’s global technology delivery capability to deliver outstanding outcomes for revenue authorities across the world.

Crown Agents pioneered the development of trips™, having in mind that a modern customs agency must deliver agility, accuracy, security and transparency, using systems that empower rather than restrict. This technology supports change, reform and delivery of e-services to taxpayers and is a fully functional and highly configurable suite of dedicated and integrated products providing full customs, tax and single window solutions. Having established trips™ as one of the acknowledged leading products in the field, Crown Agents determined that the optimal route for future development was to enter into partnership with a specialist technology and software development company. 

“trips™ is a proven revenue solution that has transformed institutions around the world. Having nurtured and developed it over the years, we are pleased to find in Techno Brain an owner who will continue to build on its successes in the future. We are looking forward to continuing our involvement with trips™ as a partner of Techno Brain, using our experience and expertise to aid its implementation.” Ken Coveney, Crown Agents Chief Financial Officer.

“Customs is at the heart of the global trade network. Income from taxation and customs is the fuel for a country’s progress and wellbeing. Our goal is to have the broadest and best portfolio of solutions to improve trade facilitation and strengthen public financial management. The acquisition of trips™ is a perfect fit with that strategy.” Manoj Shanker, CEO at Techno Brain.

For more information, visit: www.technobraingroup

Techno Brain is Africa’s leading software and IT services company. It is headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya and employs 1,600 people in operations in more than 24 countries in Africa, Asia, USA, UK and UAE. Techno Brain is committed to delivering high quality, cost effective, off the shelf ICT solutions, ICT training and Business Process Outsourcing services to NGOs, governments and businesses around the world.

Crown Agents is an international development specialist headquartered in the UK with people and offices in Asia and Africa, as well as the US and Japan. It partners with governments, aid agencies, non-government organisations and companies in almost a hundred countries. Through consultancy, supply chain management and financial services, Crown Agents makes lasting change to the systems and organisations that are vital for people’s well-being and prosperity.

Dr Leon Grové believes it is the people in your business that will determine whether you survive and prosper through to 2020.

Leon is one of the four featured speakers – along with Bryce Biggs, Clive Coetzee, and Rob Smorfitt - at the Business 2020 workshops being presented by the Pietermaritzburg Chamber of Business workshops on the 24th and 25th of March. Leon is a registered clinical psychologist, as well as a consultant, trainer, facilitator, author, executive coach and mentor.

He writes, publishes (author of the book ABC of Stress), and consults to a wide range of corporate and government clients. He has a particular interest in the fields of leadership and personal development. This work ranges from working with senior level executives on emotional intelligence to schoolchildren making career choices.

He assists with the assessment of leadership effectiveness and emotional intelligence for the staff  in senior leadership positions. He also takes a keen interest in the development of younger people and assists with assessing and coaching young people in the selection of a career direction. Amongst his younger clients, he is known as “Doc Groovy”.

At the workshop, Leon will address essential people aspects of your business –

-      how to successfully choose partners or staff

-      how to maximise benefits from your networks

-      how to keep your people engaged and committed

On the 24th, the four speakers will be focusing their input on start-ups and new businesses (concept, or start-up businesses, or those under three years since their establishment).

The workshop on the 25th will be focused around the needs of established SME businesses.

Bryce Biggs of Bryce Biggs Consulting is coordinating the Business 2020 workshops on behalf of the PCB. For more details on the workshops, which will take place at the Chamber offices in Pietermaritzburg, contact Lorna Jones on 033 345 2747 or at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Dr Rob Smorfitt, an authority on SMEs and their funding, is one of four featured speakers at the Pietermaritzburg Chamber of Business (PCB), Business 2020, workshops.

Two workshops are being held at the Chamber offices in Pietermaritzburg – one for start-ups on Tuesday 24 and a second for established businesses on Wednesday 25 March 2015.

Rob is a portfolio entrepreneur having owned and run a range of businesses over the years, spanning the telecommunications, IT and Internet fields as well as specialised education. He has lectured and administered programme for three universities and believes in “paying back” through the work he does in supervising students working on their PhD, Masters, and Honours-level theses.

Rob’s passion for small business is demonstrated through his involvement in funding fairs. In conjunction with KZN Provincial Treasury Rob is again presenting KZN SME Funding Fairs this year. There will be five this year with the first one being in Richards Bay with others to follow in Margate, Newcastle, Pietermaritzburg and Durban through 2015. These funding fairs are for businesses seeking between R1m and R30m in investment, in the form of debt, grant and/or equity finance.  

Rob will be speaking at Business 2020 on funding fairs and their potential role in assisting you to fund your business. He will also talk on other recent development in funding through crowdfunding platforms.  

The speakers on the 24th will be focusing their input on start-ups and new businesses (concept, or start-up businesses, or those under three years since their establishment). The workshop on the 25th will be focused around the needs of established SME businesses.  

Bryce Biggs of Bryce Biggs Consulting is coordinating the Business 2020 workshops on behalf of the PCB. For more details on the workshops, which will take place at the Chamber offices in Pietermaritzburg, contact Lorna Jones on 033 345 2747 or at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Event organiser Kinetic has confirmed that industry-giant Performanta has signed on as platinum sponsors for this year’s anticipated 6th edition of their successful flagship event; the IT Leaders Africa Summit.

The event, taking place from 18 - 19 March 2015 at The Maslow Hotel in Johannesburg, is set to go beyond your usual routine business conference, evolving to deliver on a more exciting, topical, trendy and current platform, utilising both the latest technologies coupled with the latest in conference trends internationally.

Together with Performanta, the event aims to deliver an expert-lead agenda that features an educational conference program backed by the latest in technology workshops and demonstrations. 

Performanta’s workshop; Safeguard your organisation now, your wallet will thank you later; focuses on measuring your organisation against the industry on 10 information security and privacy measures, derived from real-world assessments.

Performanta Consulting was established by Anthony Olivier 4 years ago, aligning information security consulting services to the Performanta Technology & Services stable. Performanta Consulting has provided services to primary South African banks, insurance companies, brokers, mining companies, service and retail organisations. Their key differentiator: senior, qualified, experienced consultants, integrated frameworks and fair pricing. Furthermore, the team has assisted in addressing security problems in seventeen African countries and has a thorough understanding of the continental landscape.

As thought-leaders in the industry, they are amongst the most active South African participants in industry conferences, blogs and podcasts.An expert-led advisory panel will lead the summit with industry giants Robert Sussman, co-founder and joint-CEO of Integr8; Hugo Timmerman, Head of IT Southern Africa at British American Tobacco; and Tunde Coker, MD of Rack Centre (A Jagal Group Company).

The event also features over 35 speakers, keynotes, panel discussions and numerous educational workshop sessions hosted by key industry providers, all sessions led by some of today’s most notable individuals who are shaping the IT landscape in South Africa and beyond.

Speakers, just to name a few, include; David Visser, CIO of Coca-Cola Southern Africa; Anthony Hlungwane, Group IT Director of Mr Price Group; Sal Laher, CIO Eskom; Rocky Gwewera, Global Head of Infrastructure Architecture at Sasol; Stephan Ekbergh, CEO and founder of Travelstart; and Sunil Joshi, MD and CEO of Neotel.

Some sponsors and partners include; Telkom Business, HP, Performanta and Blue Coat Systems, SITA, Airwatch, Kofax, Dimension Data, Neotel, Meso Systems, Sage Pastel Accounting and ERP Africa, and Blackberry.

For more information on the event to register to attend or to sponsor, visit www.itleaders.co.za or contact the event organisers Kinetic on +27 21 180 4700.Follow the event and stay up to date on Twitter. @ITLeadersAfrica and join in on the conversation using #ITLAfrica.

Bryce Biggs is one of four speakers featured at the PCB workshop on Business 2020 that takes place on 24 and 25 March 2015. The workshop on the 24th is aimed at start-ups, while that that on the 25th is for established businesses.

Speakers (Dr Clive Coetzee, Dr Leon Grové, Dr Rob Smorfitt, and Bryce) will tailor their messages each day to meet the needs of the two audiences. On the 24th, Bryce will focus on business opportunities resulting from current digital disruption as well as on what you need to do to create a viable business model. On the 25th, he will focus on how one maximises the market/sale value of your business and whether or not your business model is likely to endure until 2020.  

Bryce says “The list of businesses and professions that is currently being disrupted or is about to be disrupted –often on a massive scale - is a long one. It includes education, health, manufacturing, retail, security, and transport. Two examples of disruption from the health field: In the USA one of the highest paid medical professions - anaesthesiology - is currently in the early stages of being replaced by machines (e.g. Sedasys from J&J). At present, this replacement is only in certain routine procedures. Also in the health field - a recent blood-testing innovation is set to disrupt a major (highly profitable) health service sector. The innovation comes from a business owned by a 31-year old who is the wealthiest self-made woman billionaire in the world (she is worth $4.5 billion according to Forbes). In both these cases of disruption, patients (and medical aids) stand to save significantly.

New business models are developing every day. Businesses that lock into previously tried and tested business models run the risk of being eliminated in the next 5 to 10 years”.  

The good news for small business according to Bryce? If you can survive the increasingly litigious and regulated business environment, you may be able to leap ahead of established competitors. This is because you are not emotionally, financially, and/or intellectually invested in an existing – often failing – business model.

Bryce Biggs of Bryce Biggs Consulting is coordinating the Business 2020 workshops on behalf of the PCB. For more details on the workshops, which will take place at the Chamber offices in Pietermaritzburg, contact Lorna Jones on 033 345 2747 or at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Dr Clive Coetzee, KZNs “go-to-guy” if you want to know where the economy is heading regionally or internationally will be speaking at two back-to-back Pietermaritzburg Chamber of Business (PCoB), Business 2020 workshops, on 24 and 245 March. Clive is General Manager:  Infrastructure Management and Economic Services for the KZN Provincial Treasury, a position he has held for the past seven years.

People interested in the shape of things to come eagerly await their monthly email from Clive where he provides a crisp and thoughtful analysis of the provincial economy and where it is heading. His PhD, published in 2012, clearly shows where his interests lie – “A Research Approach to Keeping Informed of and Monitoring Local Economic Conditions: A Kwazulu-Natal Case Study”.

Clive has lectured for three Universities and a number of private training institutions and is an in-demand speaker on topics related to the economy. He is a prolific writer on his topic with over 20 papers delivered at conferences and 30 working papers published.

Clive will be talking on likely growth areas and sectors in the first Business 2020 workshop on the 24th. This workshop is aimed at start-ups or recently established businesses. On the 25th, the workshop is aimed at established businesses. Here Clive will be placing greater emphasis on the economic climate existing businesses can expect to face moving forward to 2020.

Bryce Biggs of Bryce Biggs Consulting is coordinating the workshops on behalf of the PCoB. For more details on the workshops, which will take place at the Chamber offices in Pietermaritzburg, contact Lorna Jones on 033 345 2747 or at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Held on 18 February at Emperor’s Palace, Johannesburg, the Conference was attended by members of First National Bank, Nedbank, PASA, attorneys’ firms, the Consumer Profile Bureau and many others. Also in attendance were the Banking Ombudsman, Clive Pillay and Credit Intel Key Accounts Manager, Bennett Baloyi.

With each passing day, the debt collection industry awaits the promulgation of the notorious National Credit Amendment Bill; most notable for a proposed ban on the collection and sale of prescribed debt, which will see many debt collectors either close down completely or take significant financial knocks. Michael Shackleton spoke on the Bill and suggested that the proper implementation of the already existent National Credit Act would strike a fair balance between promoting the business of legal credit lenders and protecting debtors from unscrupulous lenders.

Shackleton also indicated that the NCAB will create greater regulation under which credit providers will have to operate, at a time when reduced regulation and the cutting of bureaucratic red tape is necessary to reduce unemployment and to cause small companies to thrive. Small companies are the engine of job creation in Gauteng.

Marina Short, CEO of the Consumer Profile Bureau, delivered an outstanding speech on regulatory data and the credit market. She is somewhat of an authority regarding credit and she genuinely provided valuable insights to all the attendees.

FutureSoft CEO, Peter Rafferty, spoke on the prescription of debt whilst advocate Hannelie Gray talked on emolument attachment orders.

Thav Reddy, Head of Compliance at Nedbank’s MFC division, educated attendees on how to manage the implementation of the Protection of Personal Information Act.

Marie Smit, Compliance Manager at PASA, suggested measures on how to increase the security of payments, something which is surely on the mind of all, considering the technological developments of the present day and the so-called “scam artists” living by fraudulent means within the Republic of South Africa.

Leon Townsend delivered an incredible and interactive speech concerning strategies to limit fraud. He is Executive Director at Censeo and a Certified Fraud Examiner. His organisation assists credit providers to assess which debtors to provide loans to by determining which prospective debtors are the most prone to commit fraud.

The conference was chaired by Credit Intel Senior Legal Executive Michael Shackleton, who is well known as a leading attorney in debt collection.

It was a highly educational and thought provoking Conference which Credit Intel was glad to be part of. Credit Intel prides itself on professional service and seeks to become the authoritative voice on debt collection in South Africa. Being invited to present and give inputs at Conferences such as these indicates that many people are turning to Credit Intel as an authority on debt collection.

South African businesses must tailor their mobility strategies to meet wider business needs  

If an organization truly wishes to succeed in today's ultra-competitive environment, it must invest in an integrated mobility architecture that directly addresses its business needs. That's the view of George Kalebaila, senior research manager for telecommunications and media at IDC South Africa. To date, many South African businesses have employed a minimalistic approach to enterprise mobility, focusing more on the provision of corporate-owned smart devices and VPN connectivity to corporate resources.  

This tactic has ultimately hampered the benefits and added value that organizations should be reaping, but a shift in attitude may be on the horizon. "Over the medium to long term, I expect many businesses in the country to overcome this reticence as they formalize their mobility strategies and employ a more holistic approach," says Kalebaila. "However, this move could still be inhibited by key areas of concern around the need to protect corporate data, manage multiple device types and operating systems, integrate with existing applications, uphold corporate network security, and work within the scope of limited IT budgets."  

Such considerations will feature prominently at IDC's upcoming South Africa CIO Summit 2015, with the issue of security coming into particularly sharp focus given the perceived threat posed by the explosion of consumer apps that IT departments have no control over. "Data-security concerns and the difficulty of separating personal and enterprise data on smart devices are among the top priorities for South African enterprises today," explains Kalebaila. "Furthermore, the introduction of bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policies inevitably means that IT departments will be tasked with managing a range of different platforms that all require different configurations, thereby adding even more complexity to IT environments that are already far from straightforward."  

"Given these inherent challenges, it is clear that organizations need to take a holistic approach to enabling enterprise mobility, and formulate strategies that not only meet business needs but also closely align with the overarching goals of the organization," continues Kalebaila. "They also need to formulate security policies that address the challenges posed by enterprise mobility and adopt a phased approach towards its implementation, focusing first on mobilizing the processes that are most critical to the organization and likely to deliver the greatest value. Equally as critical is the need to secure help from a trusted partner capable of successfully navigating the complex mobility ecosystem."  

There are numerous issues that organizations must bear in mind when developing a coherent enterprise mobility strategy. They must begin by assessing their true mobility needs and weighing these up against the preferences of their employees. Security and device management requirements must also be taken into account, as should the need for any new mobile solutions to integrate seamlessly with existing applications and systems. Vendor selection is key in this regard, and special attention should be given to those providers that can offer end-to-end support across the entire mobility ecosystem.  

"The benefits of rolling out a robust, secure enterprise mobility strategy are clear to see," concludes Kalebaila. "Mobility can be a critical source of differentiation, and it most certainly facilitates the agility required to respond quickly to a rapidly changing business environment. It also increases productivity, drives the efficient use of corporate resources, and enhances employee flexibility and quality of life. And on top of all this, it allows for more informed management decisions, drives a reduction in procedural delays, and improves the effectiveness of the sales force by providing real-time access to customer information."