Committed to rolling out innovative products in the smart phone ecosystem, Microsoft devices on Monday announced the availability of the Lumia 640 XL in Nigeria.

Ericsson’s Media Vision 2020 research has predicted that by 2020, there will be 50 billion connected devices, and of these, more than 15 billion are expected to be video enabled.

Although online retail business is thriving in Nigeria, lack of clear defined regulatory policy is still affecting its growth. In this interview with Emeka Aginam, the Chief Executive Officer of phonekings.com.ng, one of the leading online retail stores in Nigeria, Tayo Olusanya said that passage of cyber security bill would boost online retail store. Because of the endless benefit of the online platform, he said that government should extend internet penetration in the rural area to further boost online retail business.

Committed to help Nigeria’s Microfinance Institutions (MFIs), to reach out better to unbanked and financially underserved population, MTN Business, the business-to-business unit of MTN Nigeria, has urged MFIs to embrace cost-effective and operationally efficient solutions in the management of their businesses.

The National Broadband Council, last week, approved the building of fibre optic cable landing points in four coastal states to ensure widespread penetration of high capacity internet bandwidths in the country. The project according to the Council, is expected to be financed by the Universal Service Provision Fund (USPF). The four states approved in the plan includes: Rivers, Bayelsa, Cross River and Ondo States as part of government’s effort to encourage telecommunication operators to establish cable landing points across the country.

Since the Global System for Mobile communications, GSM debuted in the country a decade and half ago, it has brought rapid developments in communications, business and social life However, the most amazing contributions of the GSM is its ability to transform other sectors other than communications. It is also shocking how it has established itself as growth determinant factor to technologies that had hitherto taken root before its arrival.

Despite heavy investments directed towards the provisions of social services in Africa, quality and access to service delivery remains disappointing.This is experienced more in the health sector. However, a recent study by Brookings Center for Technology Innovation, has pointed accusing fingers at the spending. The report, titled: ‘ Mobile technology and mHealth: The newest frontline in health care innovations in Africa’ says there was a large volume of empirical evidence showing that, for many developing countries, there is only a weak connection between spending on public services and service delivery outcomes.

Network video surveillance provider, Axis Communications has recently announced its first corner-mount fixed network camera. The new product features a stainless steel anti-grip casing. The device is said to impact resistant, supporting the IK10+ 50 joules rating as well as the IP66/NEMA 4X rating for water resistance.

Technology Distributions, TD, has unveiled plans to boost the operational capacity of Small and Medium ICT enterprises(SMEs) through a partnership programme which will provide access to a suite of business support initiatives for the beneficiaries. The support initiatives include financial management guide, mentoring sessions, business intelligence and credit facilities, among others.

Nigerian internet service provider, Spectranet 4G LTE, has launched a partnership with internet television provider, iROKOtv.com, to retain the loyalty of its customers. The internet service provider recently announced a 30- day free iROKOtv.com to its existing customers who renew their Spectranet account.