Tecno Mobile release Phantom A3 in Nigeria

Tecno Mobile has introduced the Phantom A3 android smartphone in Nigeria. It comes with 500 MB of free data per month for 12 months from Etisalat Nigeria. It is an upgraded version of the Techno Phantom A+, which came out a few months ago. The Phantom A3 has a sleek body and bigger screen than that of its predecessor; it comes with 6-inch HD touchscreen, 4.2 Android operating system, and 3.75g network capability, with a 1.5 GHz quad core processor. It is equipped with 16 GB ROM plus 1 GB RAM, a 13 megapixel rear camera and 8 megapixel front camera.

It also comes as an upgraded version of the Phantom A+ with a dual SIM capability, bigger HD touch screen at 6-inches and a much slimmer body at 8.4mm.  Arif Chowdhury, vice president of Tecno Group, said: “The device is designed with a passion to give everybody access to innovation and its affordable for everyone. It is part of Tecno’s unwavering effort in expanding its offering.”

The device also comes preloaded with the BlackBerry messaging service BBM which is available through a new partnership with BlackBerry, allowing Tecno devices to come preloaded with the application.

“Most people now access the internet through their mobile phones as opposed to PCs. We will be launching more internet series mobile phones to serve the growing demand of our customers,” said Chowdhury. The Phantom AIII will be available to customers in the country with free monthly data of 500MB for a period of 12 months on purchase and is being made available by Etisalat Nigeria.

It is note worthy that Tecno came into the Nigerian market with a goal to reduce the entry barrier, making accessibility possible for the lower cadre of the society. They offered mobile devices that function like other tech-enabled phones and can even receive broadcast signal for radio and television.

This definitely increased the number of phone users and SIM subscriptions since some of the phones came with a dual SIM option. The story doesn’t end there. Although Tecno is arguably the preferred mobile device of the masses, it isn’t the toast of metropolitan actors who define style and acceptable elements of social aesthetics with the type of mobile device you clutch.

Aviat Networks gets New Nigerian Office…pledge enhanced service delivery

Aviat Networks Limited, one of the leading microwave backhaul and communication infrastructure brands in the world, recently commissioned its new office complex in Lagos, to mark a major breakthrough in establishing itself in the Nigerian market. Citing proximity and ease of integration as reasons why the firm moved from its previous location on Ajose Adeogun street of Victoria Island Lagos to its present location at Ahmed Onibudo, still in Victoria Island – the sales director of the Nigerian office, Benjamin Udeze used the event to promise better service delivery to its existing clients.

Fielding questions from journalists at the event, the Senior Vice President and Chief Sales Officer Aviat Heinz Stumpe, who was on a routine visit to Nigeria, said this visit was to enable him maintain physical communication with the Nigerian office of Aviat Networks. “It is aimed at reviewing the market and as well as interact with our Nigerian customers on service delivery and expectations” he said. He continued, “One of the things we are doing in the market is to source new grounds in the viable sectors of the economy as well as technically support our existing customers”. 

He said that Aviat networks’ growth rate in the last ten years, has shown significant improvement which to him is quite impressive. With growth rate of about 20%, that translates to over 100 million Dollars the one thing Aviat is trying to do also is to improve on the spectrum of technical operations ability they already have acquired, to give better platform to their major customers to thrive on.

In the area of service delivery, Heinz Stumpe explained that to maintain an edge over fibre optics using microwave, Aviat networks is investing hugely into the wireless band and the TDM which is also mixed mode and is often preferred to the wired technology. Brian Jakins, Senior Director, Sales and Services Africa, in his own remarks explained that Aviat Networks continues to be strong in terms of branding activities through their customers who spread the efficiency of the company by the strong technical supports that Aviat brings to the table while operating optimally from behind the scene. 

Dr. Sanni Bello, Director of Technical Standards NCC who was also at the event, said that NCC is partnering with network infrastructure companies like Aviat Networks to enable them provide logistics support to the operators on a level playing field. He said some of the core challenges facing the commission so far are the challenge of product security and the issue of multiple taxation. 

Signal Alliance MD, Collins Onuegbu, makes finalist in E&Y Entrepreneur of the Year award

The managing director of frontline Nigerian IT Solutions Company Signal Alliance, Mr. Collins Onuegbu has emerged as this year’s finalist in the just concluded Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award 2013 in the Master Category for the Nigeria and West African sub-region. Speaking at the award ceremony held penultimate week at the prestigious Eko Hotel Lagos, the Minister of Trade, Olusegun Aganga, elaborated on the many benefits of events such as the Ernst and Young World Entrepreneur of the Year Award and the need to celebrate entrepreneurs as they boost the economy by their business initiatives which provide employment amongst many other.

Ernst & Young’s Regional Managing Partner for West Africa, Mr. Henry Egbiki, who described the award as “the most prestigious award that recognizes entrepreneurs across the world,” said finalists and winners of the award emerged after an extensive and intensive process.

Nominated alongside two other leading lights in the emerging entrepreneur category, Collins Onuegbu who narrowly lost to the eventual winner Engr. Femi Akintunde of Alpha Mead Facilities & Management Services Ltd, is among the very few entrepreneurs in the indigenous ICT sector to be so nominated.

Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Nominees are reviewed by an independent judging panel composed of several distinguished business leaders and previous award recipients using various criteria in Entrepreneurial Spirit, Financial Performance, Corporate Strategic Direction, Local/Global  Impact, Innovation, Personal Integrity and Influence. Reacting to the news of his nomination for the award, Mr. Onuegbu enthused that it was a most humbling manifestation of the giant strides made by the company over the years.

Signal Alliance has, for the past 17years continued to set records in performance and growth in the area of information technology business process solutions and consultancy in all sectors of the nation’s economy. Using its strategic partnerships with global OEMs in the IT market like SAP, Microsoft, Cisco, CA amongst others, Signal Alliance has been able to leverage on its expertise to redefine the aspect of enterprise IT solutions in the sub-region. Collins Onuegbu, a graduate of University of Nigeria Nsukka, has been the CEO of the company since inception.

Marketing World Awards 2013: Konga.com gets four Nominations

One of Nigeria’s Largest Online Malls, Konga.com has been nominated in four categories in this year’s Marketing World Awards. The Award ceremony night which takes place on November 8, 2013 at the Intercontinental Hotel, Victoria Island is a platform for the Marketing Industry to demonstrate and celebrate advances made in the key areas of digital, experiential, media, stewardship, efficiency, innovation, corporate social responsibility and creativity. 

MWA 2013 tagged “Celebrating brands that work passionately & timelessly” will celebrate brands like Konga.com, Etisalat, Guinesss, Samsung, Techno, Toyota, etc that have powered marketing innovations in Nigeria. Konga.com has been nominated in the following categories;

·                     Online Retailer of the year.

·                     Best Use of Social Media

·                     Best Company in Customer Care.

·                     Emerging Brand of the Year(Fastest growing brand)

This is coming on the heels of the launch, penultimate month, of Konga’s unveiling of its 120,000 sqr feet fulfillment centre, the biggest of any single online retailer in Africa.

Konga.com, an online retailer which launched in July 2012 is gradually becoming “the everything store” with its wide selection of products via its marketplace and fulfillment by Konga platforms, giving Nigerian businesses the opportunity to come online and consumers the opportunity to shop online.

In just one year of operations, KONGA has laid solid foundations of a retail, technology and logistics company, building a system by which buyers and sellers can find each other, providing unprecedented levels of retail convenience, choice and customer satisfaction.

A statement from Ifeanyi Abraham, Public Relations Strategist at KONGA says; “This is all about our customers as they are the reason why we are number one in Nigeria today. Logistics is the bedrock of any successful retailer, and today marks a turning point in our business and for Nigeria as a whole.  With this new distribution centre we are demonstrating our commitment ‎to powering retail in Nigeria by building a company that Nigerians will be proud to use and associate with around the world. We are also creating new jobs, introducing new skill sets and exposing Nigerians to a new way of life.

The last twelve months have been a roller coaster year for Team Konga, with the online retailer achieving several milestone achievements, celebrating its one year anniversary, getting verified by Facebook and twitter, etc.

Nokia Goes Full Blast; launch multiple Windows RT-Based Products

Nokia last week ran its first Nokia World event since Microsoft made public its intention to acquire the company. During the event, held in Abu Dhabi, Nokia announced the launch of six new devices: the Lumia 2520, a Windows RT-based tablet; the Lumia 1520 and 1320, two Windows 8 smartphones with six-inch screens on the 'phablet' form factor; and the Asha 500, 502 and 503, three new touchscreen devices using the Asha software platform.

According to IDC, the pace at which Nokia has developed and launched new devices since adopting the Windows Phone platform continues to impress. Nokia's strategy regarding its Lumia range of Windows-based devices is becoming increasingly clear: it is all about the range. Firstly, build a wide range of devices. Secondly, introduce technological innovations at the high end, and then disseminate those innovations down through the range.

Until very recently, Nokia's Lumia range had not encompassed two of the fastest-growing form factors in today's device market: phablets and tablets. With last week's announcements, those gaps have been filled – in the case of phablets with two very distinct devices. "The Lumia 1520 is an attractive-looking phablet with high-end specifications," says Adriana Rangel, research director for systems and infrastructure solutions at IDC Middle East, Africa, and Turkey. "However, it will be competing head-on with Samsung's Galaxy Note 3, and we see no obvious standout feature that looks likely to persuade large numbers of people who are in the market for a Note 3 to change their minds and choose a  Lumia 1520 instead."

"Nokia's lower-priced phablet, the Lumia 1320, is a more intriguing proposition," continues Rangel. "As an LTE device with a screen big and sharp enough to watch a whole movie in comfort for $339 (excluding taxes and subsidies), it has the potential to make a lot of phablet buyers look twice. This particular device could be an especially good fit for the Middle East market as many operators now offer LTE coverage and will be interested in an LTE-compatible device that is capable of providing a good video-streaming experience at a mid-range price point."

Nokia's first tablet based on Windows RT, the Lumia 2520, is certainly a distinctive entrant to the tablet market in terms of its looks, its software platform, and its built-in LTE connectivity. But it is a little on the heavy side, especially with the addition of its cover accessory – although since the extra weight is largely due to the additional battery, there is at least a clear trade-off between comfort and utility. In this guise, at $650 including the cover, the Lumia 2520 could be well positioned as a PC replacement, so long as the Microsoft Office applications perform well enough on top of the Windows RT platform.

Although a clear breakthrough remains elusive, sales volumes of Lumia devices are building up steadily, and these new devices will further contribute to the momentum – especially if they are positioned effectively for business users looking to replace BlackBerry devices. In the long term, though, the volume opportunity lies in markets that are entering the high-growth phase of smartphone penetration – which is the case for several countries in the Middle East and Africa region.

Nokia addresses this opportunity with its Asha device range, through which the vendor continues its strategy of making feature-phones look, feel, and behave like smartphones, but at lower price points. The three new touchscreen Asha models, 500, 502, and 503, join the 501 (the device through which Nokia introduced its re-engineered software platform) to form a range of four devices that offer the same user experience at different specs and price points. A new hardware design, using colored plastic encased in a transparent polycarbonate block, gives the new devices something of a premium feel for their price band. All support WiFi, and all support the key social/communications apps that are popular in the markets at which they are primarily targeted. These already included Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Viber, Line, and WeChat – and Nokia has announced that WhatsApp is now available, too. The Asha range offers an increasingly attractive alternative to low-priced Android devices in emerging smartphone markets, particularly due to their ability to minimize data volume usage and thus user operating costs.

There could also be substantial potential in these markets for low-priced Lumia devices. The existing Lumia 520 goes some way towards addressing this opportunity; but the next phase in Nokia's strategy of building the range should include a refresh of the Lumias at the lower end of the price scale. With last week's Lumia announcements, Nokia has addressed the trend toward 'big' at the high end. Next, it needs to anticipate a new wave of demand for 'small' – but sophisticated and powerful.

Signal Alliance showcase cutting edge IT solutions at Edo Technology Day 2013

The overall advantage of deploying best-in-class technology systems in the public sector as a means of achieving transparent governance and administration formed the basis for the participation of Signal Alliance in the just concluded Edo Technology Day 2013 held penultimate week in Benin City.
This edition of the Edo State Technology Day 2013, which is a two-day annual event that started in 2010, had as theme “Fostering Governance with Technology” and attracted a plethora of IT Consultants, Vendors, and Solution experts from across the country. It was chaired by Omobola Johnson, the Communication Technology Minister and hosted by the Edo State governor Adams Aliu Oshiomhole.
The event was conceptualized to analyze, diagnose and proffer solutions to IT challenges with particular attention being paid to Broadband Delivery and Management in Nigeria, Advancing Education with Technology, Security Implications of Big Data and Actualizing a Workable National IT Policy.
Commenting on the value proposition of the solutions presented by the award winning IT firm during the event, the Marketing and Communications manager of Signal Alliance and the leader of the team to the event, Michael Chinwuba, explained that apart from showcasing cutting-edge IT solutions that would benefit both the public and private sector enterprise customers, the SA team was very much interested in meeting with and getting feedbacks from its numerous existing public sector customers as well as potential customers. According to him, “it goes beyond showing what we have, but mostly to engage delegates especially from the public sector that were there to get their IT problems solved, because ours is much more than a company that sells technology. We listen and try to come up with unique technology solutions for all manner of challenges our customers can face” he said.
For Signal Alliance, the Edo Technology Day event has become a reference point on how government on any level, can engage technology solution providers in the formation of a synergy with that critical market in order to proffer solutions. In a bid to ensure that the target is achieved, Signal Alliance also showcased high-end solutions in Business Optimization, Networks & Monitoring, Service Management, Data Centre & Collaboration, Software Advisory Services, Business Applications and Cloud Computing.
Founded in 1996, Signal Alliance, which has won several partner awards as well as other industry awards such as System Integrator Company of the Year, Top 50 Fastest Growing (Nonlisted) Companies In Nigeria, Country Partner of the Year for both Cisco and Microsoft, is an end-to-end IT Company that specializes in systems integration and enterprise solutions with offices in Lagos and Abuja FCT. The company boasts of highly skilled and certified consultants as well as major strategic partnerships with World industry giants such as Microsoft, Cisco, SAP and CA Technologies.

HP Launches Envy Recline…All-in-One Touchscreen Desktop with Beats Audio

HP has announced the HP ENVY Recline All-in-One PC series, offering the best, most immersive touch experience available on an All-in-One PC. With an innovative product design, HP's new All-in-One PCs allow users to pivot the touch screen lower and closer, making the interaction more accessible and comfortable.

"Customers have told us that they want touch on their PCs, and at HP we're always looking for ways to improve the experience," said Mike Nash, vice president, Product Management, Consumer PCs and Consumer Solutions, HP. "HP's family of reclining all-in-one PCs offer new ways to stay productive and enjoy immersive experiences such as movies and games with the most natural touch experience available."

The design of the Recline allows users to pivot the touch screen lower and closer, making the interaction more accessible and comfortable, according to HP.

An HP study revealed that while using touch screens, an overwhelming majority of people preferred their screen in a low and close position for 100 percent of touch-related tasks. The HP ENVY Recline series has a touch screen (23 or 27 inches large) that responds to all 10 fingers at once. The desktops are also equipped with Intel Core i-series processors.

The HP ENVY Recline23 TouchSmart All-in-One PC and HP ENVY Recline27 TouchSmart All-in-One PC, feature 10-point touch and a revolutionary adjustable design that allows for a more comfortable experience and greater control than ever before. The HP ENVY Recline series meets the needs of touch users with a full high-definition (HD) IPS touch screen that responds to all 10 fingers at once, and a unique hinge that allows the screen to be repositioned with ease. The hinge enables the screen to seamlessly move below the table and closer to the lap for a natural touch navigation position, or it can be adjusted upright for traditional use and to watch movies.

Both the HP ENVY Recline23 and HP ENVY Recline27 TouchSmart All-in-One PCs are equipped with 4th-generation Intel® Core™ i-series processors and NVIDIA discrete graphics to help users with the most demanding tasks. The HP ENVY Recline27 also features Near Field Communication (NFC) technology to let users share photos, contacts and URLs with a simple tap.

Additionally, HP is offering a new All-in-One PC with a bold design and premium sound for entertainment and music enthusiasts. The HP ENVY Recline23 TouchSmart All-in-One PC Beats Edition features black and red accents with Beats Audio™ driven dual speakers for the best-sounding, richest audio experience available on a PC.

Optimized for touch navigation, the new HP Pavilion 23tm Touch Monitor provides a comfortable and clear visual experience at a price that is more affordable than many Windows® 8-certified (3) touch monitors. Featuring a 23-inch vivid full-HD touch screen with five-point touch technology, wide viewing angles and an adjustable stand that allows users to tilt the monitor to a 70-degree deep recline position, the HP Pavilion 23tm enriches the computing experience.

The HP Pavilion 23tm Touch Monitor can pair with the HP ENVY Phoenix 810 Desktop PC for outstanding gaming, photo editing, productivity and comfort. The HP ENVY Phoenix 810 Desktop PC includes a lightning-fast Intel Core i7 Extreme Processor, NVIDIA discrete graphics or AMD ultra-high-performance graphics, and Beats Audio.

HP also announced the HP ENVY 23 IPS Monitor, a sleek, ultrathin monitor with two HDMI ports for connectivity across a variety of devices, including mobile phones and tablets. The monitor also enhances the listening experience with an integrated Beats Audio headphone jack.

HP and VMware Enable Customers to Unify Data Centre Networks

HP and VMware, Inc. has announced plans to collaborate to deliver the industry’s first federated network solution, designed to  provide customers unified automation of, and visibility into, their physical and virtual data centre networks, enabling business agility and improving business continuity.

As companies embrace cloud and mobility, manual network configuration has proven time and resource intensive, as well as error prone. Network virtualisation offers a centralised control plane, but does not automate configuration and provisioning of physical network devices.

The new HP-VMware networking solution will federate the HP Virtual Application Networks SDN Controller with the VMware NSX™ network virtualisation platform to provide customers with an integrated approach to automating their physical and virtual network infrastructure. The networking solution will provide a centralised view, unified automation, visibility and control of the complete data centre network, improving agility, monitoring and troubleshooting.

According to Gartner analyst Joe Skorupa, “A hybrid model blends the device-based and the overlay models, transparently mixing physical and virtual devices under a common control plane. This approach promises a rapid time to value, support for bare-metal endpoints (servers, networking, security appliances and so forth) and a smooth migration to an optimal mix of endpoints.”

“Networks must be agile enough to enable the adoption of cloud and mobility while ensuring continuity,” said Raymond Maisano, country manager, HP Networking, Enterprise Group, HP South Pacific. “Building upon our SDN leadership, the HP-VMware networking solution unifies visibility and automation of the physical and virtual network with a common control plane, enabling new application and service delivery in minutes rather than months.”

A typical cloud data centre network may require 10,000 provisions per day, each requiring at least 20 network command line changes. These 200,000 command line changes would require 3,333 man hours to complete, assuming 1 minute per command.(3) The HP-VMware networking solution promises to eliminate manual configuration of both the physical and virtual data centre networks through interoperable automated orchestration of policies. It also will create a single view of the network—both physical and virtual.

The HP Virtual Application Networks SDN Controller also will include support for VMware Open vSwitch Database (OVSDB) management protocol. This enables HP FlexFabric top-of-rack switches to participate in the automated provisioning of the virtual network, which will be delivered by VMware NSX network virtualisation platform.

“Customers are adopting network virtualisation to gain the necessary agility needed to realise the promise of virtualised and cloud data centres. To be successful, IT organisations need solutions to deliver common management of services and operations across the physical and virtual domains,” said Stephen Mullaney, senior vice president and general manager, networking and security business unit, VMware. “By collaborating with HP on a federated networking solution, we will help our joint customers create a unified network operations model that will radically simplify IT in the software-defined data centre.”

HP also introduced the HP 5930 top-of-rack switch with built-in intelligence based on VXLAN technology, extending network virtualisation to the servers, and allowing customers to leverage their virtual and physical networks to work together as one entity.

HP offers clients a single point of contact to help support and evolve complex data centre networks while incorporating the benefits of software-defined networking (SDN). The new HP Datacentre Care for Networking provides clients with a single, environment-based relationship that can incorporate the HP-VMware networking solution into existing and future environments. 

HP also helps clients determine where SDN can deliver optimal benefits to their organisation with the SDN Connectivity Transformation Experience Workshop, which builds organisational alignment and an initiative roadmap for the client, taking into consideration SDN-enabled business benefits and risks. The service also helps clients explore architectural options that consider their current state and best path to the future, both from a technology and investment point of view. As a result of the workshop, clients can determine their pragmatic path for their unique SDN journey, incorporating people, process and technology.

Microsoft to acquire Nokia’s devices & services business, patents and mapping services

Microsoft Corporation and Nokia Corporation has announced that the Boards of Directors for both companies have decided to enter into a transaction whereby Microsoft will purchase substantially all of Nokia’s Devices & Services business, license Nokia’s patents, and license and use Nokia’s mapping services.

Under the terms of the agreement, Microsoft will pay EUR 3.79 billion to purchase substantially all of Nokia’s Devices & Services business, and EUR 1.65 billion to license Nokia’s patents, for a total transaction price of EUR 5.44 billion in cash. Microsoft will draw upon its overseas cash resources to fund the transaction. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2014, subject to approval by Nokia’s shareholders, regulatory approvals and other closing conditions.

Building on the partnership with Nokia announced in February 2011 and the increasing success of Nokia’s Lumia smartphones, Microsoft aims to accelerate the growth of its share and profit in mobile devices through faster innovation, increased synergies, and unified branding and marketing. For Nokia, this transaction is expected to be significantly accretive to earnings, strengthen its financial position, and provide a solid basis for future investment in its continuing businesses.

“It’s a bold step into the future – a win-win for employees, shareholders and consumers of both companies. Bringing these great teams together will accelerate Microsoft’s share and profits in phones, and strengthen the overall opportunities for both Microsoft and our partners across our entire family of devices and services,” said Steve Ballmer, Microsoft chief executive officer. “In addition to their innovation and strength in phones at all price points, Nokia brings proven capability and talent in critical areas such as hardware design and engineering, supply chain and manufacturing management, and hardware sales, marketing and distribution.”

“We are excited and honored to be bringing Nokia’s incredible people, technologies and assets into our Microsoft family. Given our long partnership with Nokia and the many key Nokia leaders that are joining Microsoft, we anticipate a smooth transition and great execution,” Ballmer said. “With ongoing share growth and the synergies across marketing, branding and advertising, we expect this acquisition to be accretive to our adjusted earnings per share starting in FY15, and we see significant long-term revenue and profit opportunities for our shareholders.”

“For Nokia, this is an important moment of reinvention and from a position of financial strength, we can build our next chapter,” said Risto Siilasmaa, Chairman of the Nokia Board of Directors and, following today’s announcement, Nokia Interim CEO. “After a thorough assessment of how to maximize shareholder value, including consideration of a variety of alternatives, we believe this transaction is the best path forward for Nokia and its shareholders. Additionally, the deal offers future opportunities for many Nokia employees as part of a company with the strategy, financial resources and determination to succeed in the mobile space.”

“Building on our successful partnership, we can now bring together the best of Microsoft’s software engineering with the best of Nokia’s product engineering, award-winning design, and global sales, marketing and manufacturing,” said Stephen Elop, who following today’s announcement is stepping aside as Nokia President and CEO to become Nokia Executive Vice President of Devices & Services. “With this combination of talented people, we have the opportunity to accelerate the current momentum and cutting-edge innovation of both our smart devices and mobile phone products.”

Nokia has outlined its expected focus upon the closing of the transaction in a separate press release published today.

Under the terms of the agreement, Microsoft will acquire substantially all of Nokia’s Devices and Services business, including the Mobile Phones and Smart Devices business units as well as an industry-leading design team, operations including all Nokia Devices & Services-related production facilities, Devices & Services-related sales and marketing activities, and related support functions.

At closing, approximately 32,000 people are expected to transfer to Microsoft, including 4,700 people in Finland and 18,300 employees directly involved in manufacturing, assembly and packaging of products worldwide. The operations that are planned to be transferred to Microsoft generated an estimated EUR 14.9 billion, or almost 50 percent of Nokia’s net sales for the full year 2012.

Microsoft is acquiring Nokia’s Smart Devices business unit, including the Lumia brand and products. Lumia handsets have won numerous awards and have grown in sales in each of the last three quarters, with sales reaching 7.4 million units in the second quarter of 2013.

As part of the transaction, Nokia is assigning to Microsoft its long-term patent licensing agreement with Qualcomm, as well as other licensing agreements. Microsoft is also acquiring Nokia’s Mobile Phones business unit, which serves hundreds of millions of customers worldwide, and had sales of 53.7 million units in the second quarter of 2013. Microsoft will acquire the Asha brand and will license the Nokia brand for use with current Nokia mobile phone products. Nokia will continue to own and manage the Nokia brand. This element provides Microsoft with the opportunity to extend its service offerings to a far wider group around the world while allowing Nokia’s mobile phones to serve as an on-ramp to Windows Phone.

Nokia will retain its patent portfolio and will grant Microsoft a 10-year license to its patents at the time of the closing. Microsoft will grant Nokia reciprocal rights to use Microsoft patents in its HERE services. In addition, Nokia will grant Microsoft an option to extend this mutual patent agreement in perpetuity. In addition, Microsoft will become a strategic licensee of the HERE platform, and will separately pay Nokia for a four-year license.

Dr Dre's Beats plans to drop HTC, and move-in with another rich mate

Beats Electronics is reportedly looking to ditch its HTC partnership and bring in a new investor with fresh funds instead. The maker of the popular Beats by Dr Dre headphones, which is branching out into speakers, car audio systems and online music streaming, wants to find a new investor that will help the business grow, people familiar with the plans told The Wall Street Journal.

The company, founded by music mogul Jimmy Iovine and hip-hop artist and producer Dr Dre, wants a new partner to provide debt financing and possibly take a minority stake in the firm and hopes to buy out HTC's 25 per cent stake in the business.

Beats already tried unsuccessfully earlier in the summer to raise $700m in financing from credit markets to buy out HTC's stake, but investors weren't interested in the deal.

The firm later asked for a smaller debt, limiting the proceeds that would go to shareholders to $150m, but withdrew the offer when markets became more inhospitable in June on concerns about the Federal Reserve's interest rate policies.

However, markets have now recovered and Beats may look to try with investors again this year, the source said.

The company originally sold a 50.1 per cent stake to HTC for $300m two years ago, but bought back half the stake at around half the price a year later. The partnership saw HTC using the firm's audio software in its phones and bundling its mobes with Beats headphones. there's still no word on the preferred buyer(s).

As suitors line up for Blackberry, what lies in stock for this ‘has-been’?

After more than a year since the news first surfaced, Canadian smartphone laggard BlackBerry came into the spotlight once again last week as the company announced it was forming a special committee to review the always-ominous "strategic alternatives." And while it's abundantly clear that BlackBerry desperately needs a tech sugar daddy, what's less obvious is who would want to snap up shares of the struggling smartphone maker.

While the company does have some valuable assets, there's also that whole declining smartphone business, which makes the overall value much less attractive.

Just a few months ago, BlackBerry seemed dedicated to going alone. Now, the company is surprisingly blunt about its willingness to consider a joint venture or selling the company. Why now? Well, the crucially important “value” model Q5 launched about six weeks ago in the UK and Africa, markets that used to be BlackBerry’s cornerstones just two years ago. The Q5 gained sudden importance after the high-end Q10 and Z10 phones put in disappointingly weak volume performances during the May quarter, driving BlackBerry’s U.S. market share down to just 1.1% according to one estimate.

The problem with the Q5 is that it is priced well above $400 (about N65,000). That is the dead zone of the current smartphone market where the $600-plus (about N96,000) niche belongs to Apple and Samsung and value buyers are migrating towards sub-$200 (about N33,000) phones. Funny enough, Windows keep garnering strength in this region with the ubiquitous advantage Nokia brings into the equation.

BlackBerry received early sales numbers from the Q5 by the end of July from its most important Western base in the UK and the key emerging markets like South Africa and Nigeria. It is quite likely that these early Q5 figures were so scary they pushed BlackBerry into the radical decision of publicly announcing it may need a buyer.

There is no sign of BlackBerry being close to launching a true budget device; the upcoming BlackBerry Z30 looks like high-priced white elephant and no other BlackBerry 10 phones are expected to launch this year.

So in August 2013, BlackBerry finds itself with a product portfolio of two luxury models and one expensive mid-market model — and with an imminent launch of a high-priced phablet. This is the moment when BlackBerry’s board of directors has finally realized the current pricing approach has placed the company on the road to ruin.

The problem is that even if somebody opts to buy BlackBerry, it would take until the end of 2014 to really implement a substantial product course correction. The good news is that the company has billions of loonies in cash and it will take a long time to burn through to the hoard. There is still time. There are fascinating potential combos out there: DellBerry, LenovoBerry, SonyBerry. All of them would combine two fading consumer electronics lines, but it’s true that the oddball Sony Ericsson melange came very close to actually succeeding in mid-nineties.

Enter Warren Buffet! This investment tycoon from Canada is emerging as one of the leading bidders for BlackBerry, as analysts point to the likelihood of a private equity buyout for the beleaguered smartphone maker. Prem Watsa, the boss of Toronto-based Fairfax Financial Holdings, resigned from BlackBerry's board on Monday, just seven months after joining, and is now expected to try to orchestrate the company's stockmarket exit.

Having spent an estimated $880m (£570m) buying nearly 10% of BlackBerry's shares at an average price of $17, the 61-year-old is the company's largest shareholder and he is sitting on a potential $270m loss.

But the Indian-born chemical engineer has made his fortune from championing apparently lost causes, having left his home for Canada with $8 to his name. Fairfax was one of a small group of institutions that bought a 35% stake in Bank of Ireland from the Irish government during the height of the eurozone crisis, and has earned a positive return on its investment. Now Watsa is betting on a Greek recovery, declaring recently that "a bottom has been reached" in the decline of the European Union's most troubled economy.

He was an early skeptic on the US property market, predicting the sub-prime housing collapse years before it happened, and used the proceeds of that bet to invest in the shares well before their recent rebound.

Watsa's investment strategy means his firm's stockmarket value of $8.3bn is now greater than BlackBerry's, which has crashed from a pre-credit crunch height of $55bn to $6bn today.

Industry watchers think a sale to another handset maker or Technology Company is unlikely. Despite the company's determination to reinvent itself under chief executive Thorsten Heins, observers say a trade bid would have emerged by now if rivals were truly interested in the wake of the sidelining of founder Mike Lazaridis and his business partner Jim Balsillie 18 months ago.

Watsa's move is therefore being seen as the first tangible sign of a financial solution to BlackBerry's woes. "We believe Fairfax along with other Canadian pension funds and banks are considering taking BlackBerry private," said Peter Misek, an analyst at Jefferies bank.

LazySuzy Takes Center Stage at IBC

Matthews Studio Equipment, manufacturer of specialized support for the entertainment industry announces that their “Black Diamond Award” (NAB 2013) winning LazySuzy, created by Montreal-based Gaffer Alex Amyot, will be a key player in MSE’s IBC 2013 lineup.

LazySuzy, which was first used on the hit Showtime series, Ray Donovan, is an articulated camera platform, that does what it was designed for – make shots move better, easier, faster and smoother.

“When Alex brought us the prototype of LazySuzy, we immediately realized the value for the camera operator,” says Robert Kulesh, V.P. of Advertising and Marketing at MSE. “When Tyler Phillips took it out on a test run, the camera crew quickly realized it would be a must-have for every kind of production.”

That’s because LazySuzy provides mobility through the use of an articulated double-swivel platform. It allows the user to place the camera anywhere within a 25” diameter circle without having to reposition the dolly, tripod, or car mount rig. The camera can be secured firmly for traveling shots, process trailers, or lock-off shots with a series of strategically placed tapped holes. It supports camera packages up to 70lbs (30kg).

Creator Alex Amyot says the thought behind LazySuzy’s simplicity came about because he “saw a need and went about finding a way to fill it. The reaction of our first camera crews to their hands-on experience showed me (and Matthews) we were on the right track. Not only has LazySuzy been recognized by the NAB awards panel, it is fast becoming the go-to support on productions around the world.”

LazySuzy is now available internationally through Matthews Studio Equipment authorized resellers. Suzy, and other Matthews Studio Equipment products, Technology That Complements Your Imagination, can be seen at Booth 11-G71, at IBC 2013 Amsterdam, September 12^th-17^th.

MSE is a 43-year-old manufacturer of industry-specialized hardware, camera and lighting support. Its equipment is being used on entertainment productions and in major studios in over 70 countries around the world. The company has been honored with the Presidential “E” Award for outstanding contributions to growing U.S. exports, strengthening the economy and creating American jobs. The MATTHEWS MAX MENACE ARM recently won designer Richard Mall an Academy Award©. MSE is the exclusive distributor of the FLOATCAM products throughout Asia and the Americas.