By Prince Osuagwu

FROM its technical disposition, technology seems to be all work and no play. This apparently described why it was so hard to permeate the Nigerian culture until GSM debuted in 2001.

Even at that, every other thing besides the ‘hello’ aspect of making and receiving calls seemed so techie to the average Nigerian. Even the write ups on technology were just a mere flip through for average Nigerians except those deeply involved in the sector.

But now things are changing. The average rural dweller may not talk technology that much but can illustrate it to a better understanding. This is courtesy of the mobile operators who have infused entertainment into their businesses to oil their engines and to also keep customers.

Perhaps, this is the scenario that TDMobile an affiliate company to the Zinox technologies group is trying to re-create in the core computer distribution market. This genre of technology business used to be an end to end business which thrives mostly at the back end. But today, Zinox is bringing it to the front burner, infusing pomp and pageantry.

This manifested clearly at the weekend, when the group unveiled TDMobile at the Eko Hotels. It was a night of blitz and razzmatazz, one which witnessed a huge milestone in the expansion of access to mobile technology for millions of Nigerians.

The epoch-making event, held at the Expo Centre of the prestigious Eko Hotels in The event attracted dignitaries from corporate Nigeria led by the CEO of Etisalat, Mr Mathew Willsher, GMDs of UBA, Fidelity Bank and ACCESS bank including partner organizations.

It also witnessed a number of entertaining performances from A-list artistes such as Naeto C, JMartins, Inyanya, Teckno Emma Nyra and a host of others.

In her welcome address, Business Manager of TD-Mobile, Mrs Gozy Ijogun declared that every Nigerian company must cultivate the desire to further expand the frontiers of internet access, saying it was the motivation behind the launch of TDMobile.

According to her, “we are well aware that despite the increasing growth rate in the ICT industry, over sixty percent of Nigerians still have limited access to the internet.

“TDMobile is the window to the world of access. Our aim is to bridge the divides between the rich and the poor, between the young and the old, between East and West and between North and South through the distribution of a range of smart devices such as Phones, Phablets, Tablets, Laptops, Mobile Printers and devices. We are focused on distribution of genuine Mobile devices through our hundreds of Partners that will radically change the way we live and do business.”

She however confessed that TD has partnered like minds, including HP, Nokia, Toshiba, Dell, Lenovo, IBM, among others that would help achieve the dream.

In a goodwill message, Managing Director of HP Computers, Mr Ime Umoh, said that the launch of TDMobile was a timely response to the dynamic and changing face of the industry.

He said: “We are living in a technology-mediated world; one in which the customers demand more and more innovative solutions not only in the area of pervasive devices but in other modes as well”

Also, Chief Executive Officer of Etisalat Nigeria, Mr. Matthew Wilsher added:

“I have been in this country for only about 18 months but I have been impressed about a number of things with this country.

The most striking is the people. Nigerians are a resilient, vibrant people who love to take on new challenges and this is crystallized in the launch of new companies as the one we are witnessing today.

“It’s not an easy task but it is a similar story to ours at Etisalat as we are just six years old but we are proud to be associated with TDMobile as major partners. I am optimistic that the launch of TDMobile signifies the beginning of a new dawn in the area of access to technology for Nigerians and we are glad to be a part of that.”

Tracing the history of the new Organisation, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the Zinox Group, Mr. Leo-Stan Ekeh, said that the launch of TDMobile gives insight to what the future looks like.

“We are keen to expand the market and move from being the biggest ICT distributor in Sub-Saharan Africa to the number one position in Africa and this we intend to achieve in the next 18months”.

Ekeh revealed that Technology Distributions Ltd will split into three arms: TD-Mobile, TD- Mainstream and TD Solutions and Services distributions, adding that the group has raised N18B for expansion.

According to him, the group’s financiers want the fund invest a percentage to expand TDGroup while a reasonable percentage goes to Research, Development and local capacity building,in support of the new local content policy of the federal government in the ICT sector.