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Tag: Microsoft

How to get Africa online: ‘white space’

May 10, 2013 6:49pm by Eleanor Whitehead
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Africa has the lowest internet penetration rate globally, but some of the world’s tech giants think they may have touched a magic formula for the rollout of broadband on the continent.

The ‘white spaces’ technology being deployed by Microsoft could bring “almost 80 per cent of Kenya’s population online over the next three years,” according to Fernando de Sousa, who heads up the company’s 4Afrika initiative.

Bearing in mind that Kenya’s population has grown to just over 40m, that’s a fairly substantial number. Continue reading »

Tags: , , , Posted in Africa, Kenya, South Africa |

Microsoft enters smartphone war in Africa

Feb 5, 2013 12:01am by Eleanor Whitehead
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For technology companies, Africa looks a lot like the final frontier. Mobile operators, search providers and phone manufacturers have all been racing to secure their share of the continent’s famously fast growing market as new undersea data cables and soaring mobile phone subscriptions reshape the continent’s connectivity.

Microsoft might have been operating on the continent for two decades, but it is no different. The world’s largest software maker is launching a comprehensive new strategy to expand internet access in Africa, positioning it to grow its business on the continent. Continue reading »

Tags: , , Posted in Africa |

Indonesia IT: from piracy to profits

Oct 30, 2012 11:48am by Ben Bland
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Squeeze your way into the over-crowded Ambassador mall in central Jakarta and you will find countless shops openly selling cheap, pirated software in clear violation of Indonesia’s intellectual property laws. You can even get hundreds of apps downloaded onto your iPad or smartphone for just a few dollars.

But, although 86 per cent of Indonesian software is pirated, attitudes are starting to change, making the country Microsoft’s fastest growing market in Asia, according to Alvaro Celis, the US company’s vice president for the region. Continue reading »

Tags: , , Posted in Asia, Indonesia |

Microsoft: raising the stakes in China

Sep 6, 2012 1:04pm by Kathrin Hille
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When Microsoft’s top China executive talks about his host country, he is very diplomatic. “Germany has problems, China has opportunities,” Ralph Haupter, who took over as chief executive of Microsoft Greater China earlier this year after running the software company’s marketing in Germany, told reporters on Thursday.

But ‘opportunity’ is something a euphemism. In a country where there is a vibrant trade in pirated Microsoft software, it’s no easy task for Microsoft to make money. Continue reading »

Tags: , , Posted in Asia, China |

Chart of the week: how to sell smartphones in China

Apr 2, 2012 10:41am by Rob Minto
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If last week’s chief executives travel plans were anything to go by, mobile phone makers are getting serious about China.

So which models are selling in China and which way is the market going? Chart of the week takes a look. Continue reading »

Tags: , , , , , , , , , Posted in Asia, China |

Vietnam’s software pirates name and shame themselves

Oct 8, 2010 12:40pm by Ben Bland
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While other countries are battling the highest evolutionary form of computer virus, Vietnam is still learning to handle simpler enemies such as software piracy.

Despite regular clampdowns, software piracy remains rampant and now the authorities are fighting back with true Communist guile, encouraging miscreants to “self-criticise” and issue public apologies.  Continue reading »

Tags: Posted in Vietnam |

Microsoft backs black-owned South African software companies

Apr 26, 2010 3:20pm by Richard Lapper
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It may be a bit of a mouthful but “equity-linked broad based black economic empowerment” looks like a step in the right direction for South Africa. And it could be a good thing for investors too.

A new deal announced by Microsoft highlights the potential for more foreign investment in South Africa.
Continue reading »

Tags: Posted in Africa, South Africa |

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