Author: Chris Anu

The European Commission does not think that imposing a network fee on big technology companies is a viable solution to the debate over who should fund the roll-out of 5G and broadband, a spokesman for the EU executive said on Thursday. The issue pits Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefónica and Telecom Italia against Google, Facebook, Netflix, Microsoft and Amazon. Europe’s major telecommunications operators have for years urged EU regulators to get Big Tech to bear some of the roll-out costs because they make up a huge part of internet traffic, calling it “fair share” funding. We have assessed and we believe…

Please Call Me inventor Nkosana Makate and Vodacom CEO Shameel Joosub. “Please Call Me” inventor Nkosana Makate will have to wait even longer for compensation from Vodacom.The Constitutional Court overturned a 2024 Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) ruling that ordered the company to pay him between 5% and 7.5% of revenue generated from the service over 18 years.The SCA ruling had followed Makate’s rejection of Vodacom’s R47 million settlement offer.The Please Call Me dispute dates back to 2000, when Makate, then a Vodacom employee, proposed a free messaging service to allow users without airtime to request a call back.Vodacom launched…

Nkosana Makate in the constitutional court last year The constitutional court has granted Vodacom leave to appeal in its ongoing legal battle with “please call me” inventor Nkosana Makate, meaning the case, which has been dragging on for the past 17 years, is yet to reach a conclusion. In a scathing judgment handed down by acting deputy chief justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga, the matter has been sent back to the supreme court of appeal, with the court ordering that it be heard by a different panel of judges. The court found that the supreme court failed in its “duty of proper…

John Browett to join Telness Tech Board of Directors Telness Tech, the rapidly growing tech company reinventing telecom for modern mobile operators, today announced the appointment of John Browett to its Board of Directors. Browett brings decades of leadership and governance experience from some of the world’s most prominent companies, including Octopus Group, Apple, and Tesco.This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250730862294/en/Browett currently serves as Chairman of Octopus Group, the company who founded Octopus Energy, whose Kraken Technologies platform has redefined how technology can transform traditional industries. He has also held executive leadership roles at Apple…

When Nedbank realised early last year that its mammoth core banking overhaul and modernisation programme was going awry, it turned to Marijke Guest for help. Guest, CIO of Nedbank Corporate and Investment Banking (CIB) and payments, and a veteran of the financial services group, tells TechCentral’s Meet the CIO about how the bank realised it was headed for trouble, and what it took to get the project back on track and delivered – all in little under a year. According to Nedbank, the project was thought to be 80% complete, but when it was reassessed in January 2024, it became…

Graham Turnbull Cyber attacks are proliferating in Africa, and organisations across the continent are finding it increasingly difficult to mitigate this risk.This is according to Graham Turnbull, Account Executive: Sub-Saharan Africa at Cloudflare, who was speaking during a webinar hosted by Cloudflare in partnership with ITWeb.Turnbull said: “A new Interpol report has warned of a sharp rise in cyber crime in Africa. In East and West Africa, more than 30% of all crime is cyber crime. In southern Africa, one-fifth of all crimes reported were cyber based, and AI-driven deepfakes surged in 2024. The key takeaway is that cyber security has…

South Africa is seeking proposals to shortlist bidders for a R390-billion grid expansion project to bolster the country’s energy security. The department of electricity & energy invited “experienced and committed” groups to participate in a pre-qualification process for transmission projects, it said in an advertisement. The plan is to build 14 218km of transmission lines over the next decade. “The private sector will design, finance, construct, operate and maintain” transmission lines and substations, it said. Bidders must have the “necessary technical expertise, financial capacity and proven experience required to deliver transmission capacity at significant scale and within accelerated timeframes”. The call…

Gauteng’s education department is working to resolve technical issues impacting its call centre number. The Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) says its 0800 000 789 call centre number is experiencing technical issues.This comes as the provincial education department is in the process of its 2026 online admissions application period for grades one and eight, which kicked-off last week. In a brief text message to parents, the GDE says its team is working to resolve the issues as soon as possible. The department did not provide details as to what caused the problem. “While the matter is receiving attention, you may…

The recent management buyout of Britehouse from NTT Data – previously Dimension Data – has put the software development house on a new trajectory. In this episode of the TechCentral Show, Duncan McLeod chats to Britehouse executive chairman Graham Parker about the MBO of Britehouse Mobility and what it means for the future of the business. Dimension Data acquired the 60% of Britehouse it didn’t already own in a 2015 transaction, buying out shareholders that included Remgro and Convergence Partners. The IT group had held a 40% stake since 2007 before buying out other shareholders eight years later. “Britehouse is…

KnowBe4, a cybersecurity platform that comprehensively addresses human risk management, today announced a new collaboration with Microsoft to integrate KnowBe4 SecurityCoach with the Microsoft Edge for Business browser. Browser security threats are increasing and global cybersecurity professionals should consider taking measures to reduce risk. A report by Menlo Security revealed a 140% increase in browser-based phishing attacks. The SecurityCoach and Microsoft Edge for Business integration leverages browser activity through native security signals to deliver valuable learning opportunities within seconds of detecting risky online behaviors. These risky activities include password reuse, visits to blocked sites or attempts to bypass security warnings.…