As competition begins heating up in the cloud storage space, last week Facebook quietly began rolling out a file-sharing feature for all groups.According to a Mashable report, the feature allows users to upload files of up to 25MB (but music and executable files are not allowed). The file-sharing service was originally included in Facebook’s Groups for Schools initiative, but this required users to have a .edu address to use it.
Facebook says malicious, copyrighted or inappropriate files can be reported using the same mechanism for all other content on the site.
Facebook Groups reportedly has 380 million users, and the file-sharing feature has been added as a result of user requests.
While the initial release of the service comes with a number of limitations, it is widely expected that Facebook will continue to update the file-sharing service – potentially posing a threat to the long-term growth and appeal of other free cloud storage services like Dropbox.
File-sharing on Facebook has been a long time coming for the social network, and in 2010 it acquired file-sharing start-up Drop.io.
In the run up to its IPO, Facebook has been consistently rolling out updates to its service offering and user interface. Last week, the social giant also announced plans for its own “App Centre” in which all social games and apps will be featured in a single place.
Facebook will also for the first time begin offering paid-for apps in the new store, which will be a new revenue stream for both Facebook app developers and Facebook itself.
The past year marked some significant milestones in terms of the Internet in SA, notably that of mass market adoption – due, largely, to the proliferation of mobile telephony.According to World Wide Worx’s 2012 Internet Access in SA study, the Internet user base in SA grew 25%, from 6.8 million in 2010 to 8.5 million at the end of 2011 – a development underpinned by “the impact of both smartphones and ordinary mobile phones”.
As a result, says World Wide Worx, the Internet is “finally” arriving in the hands of the mass market. This is the key finding of the study, backed by the Howzit MSN online portal and undertaken using multiple methodologies – including primary research, interviews with providers and market intelligence
With Internet penetration approaching 20%, World Wide Worx MD Arthur Goldstuck says the Internet has finally awoken “fully” in SA. He says, for the first time, it is evident the mass market is using its phones to engage with digital tools.
The findings revealed that a total of 7.9 million South Africans access the Internet on their cellphones. Of these, 2.48 million do not have access to computers and log on to the Internet only on their cellphones.
The remaining 6.02 million users, the study shows, access the Internet on computers, laptops and tablets. “However, 90% of this number – 5.42 million – also accesses it on their cellphones. This means that almost eight million South Africans sometimes or regularly access the Internet on their phones.”
According to executive producer of Howzit MSN, Justin Zehmke, the findings have “huge implications” for media and social networks, in that all online services will in future also have to be offered on cellphones.
Imminent explosion
Zehmke says the findings are a “powerful signal” that demand for online content in SA is likely to explode in the coming years. “The spotlight will not only be on online media, but also on social networking and electronic services in general. As the market grows and matures, we are likely to see a diversification in the landscape that will create space for successful niche media, a greater choice in information sources and a maturation of online services.”
World Wide Worx forecasts that the current growth trend will continue during 2012, with the Internet user base passing the 10 million mark by the end of the year. Goldstuck says that, while smartphones are the main driver of Internet growth, the cost of data use is being driven down by the proliferation of undersea cables connecting sub-Saharan Africa.
The study shows that undersea cable capacity to SA at the end of 2011 was 2.69Tbps. “[This is] due to rise to 11.9Tbps by the end of 2012” – and, according to Goldstuck, that capacity will be twice as much in 2013.
Teraco Data Environments today announced the launch of the Africa Cloud eXchange (ACX). This makes Teraco the first premier grade data centre environment in Africa to provide access to a vendor-neutral co-location space for sharing and selling cloud services. The Africa Cloud eXchange is providing a secure data centre environment where cloud providers can co-locate their service offering.
Due to the lack of power and general infrastructure around Africa, the opportunity exists to establish South Africa as a central hub for international access providers and cloud services to support the rest of Africa. There are many challenges in building data centres around the African continent, says Lex van Wyk, MD of Teraco Data Environments.
“With the rapid growth in IT requirements, Africa needs a solution to keep up with the demand. With the recent growth in fibre capacity along the East and West coasts, Teraco has identified the opportunity to offer the ideal data centre environment to all service providers wanting to provide IT solutions into African markets.”
Along with current benefits like free peering, cost-effective interconnects, access to all major carriers, resilient power, remote support and high levels of security, Teraco is the ideal space for cloud to be established in Africa. “Our facilities in South Africa already boast connectivity to all the undersea cables offering a combined 28 landing points along the East and West coasts of the continent, as well as all major carriers operating in SA and several active cloud providers. This, in effect, means the Africa Cloud eXchange is already in operation,” says Teraco Managing Director, Lex van Wyk.
Casper Kondo Chihaka, Managing Executive, Telkom Wholesale Services, says: “With Telkom’s ability to offer international connectivity via EASSy, WACS/SAT3/SAFE and terrestrial connectivity into South Africa, Telkom can backhaul numerous African countries to Teraco’s environments. Telkom has deployed infrastructure into Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban Teraco sites, and has been offering services to Telkom clients from these environments since 2009.”
Aidan Baigrie, Head of Business Development at SEACOM, says broadband connectivity will be one of the major spurs to the growth of African economies over the next decade, but there is still plenty of work to be done in building the telecommunications backbone that will connect the continent to the global village. “Broadband is to the 21st century what railways were to the 19th century – the engine of social and economic progress that forges economic links between countries and supercharges trade and transactions.”
* EASSy (Eastern Africa Submarine Cable System) is a 10 000km submarine fibre-optic cable system deployed along the East and South coast of Africa, linking South Africa with Sudan via landing points in Mozambique, Madagascar, the Comoros, Tanzania, Kenya, Somalia and Djibouti. EASSy is the highest capacity system serving sub-Saharan Africa at 4.72Tbps. * The SEACOM cable network directly connects South and East Africa with Europe and southern Asia, covering a distance of over 17 000km worth of fibre-optic technology. The cable lands in South Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania and Kenya with a capacity of 4.2Tb/s. The latency on this cable is 195ms. * WACS (West African Cable System) is a 14 500km-long optical fibre submarine cable that, when launched, will land in Namibia, Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Republic of Congo, Cameroon, Nigeria, Togo, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire, Cape Verde, the Canary Islands, Portugal and the United Kingdom, with a capacity of 5.12Tbps. The cable is landing in many countries without undersea cable access, and will dramatically change the connectivity landscape in those countries.
Teraco’s most recent offering, NAPAfrica, was launched in March 2012, providing an open, free and public peering facility with the aim of make peering simple and available to everyone. Van Wyk says the Africa Cloud eXchange concept is no different. “We want to provide a highly secure data centre environment with easy access to global connectivity providers,” says Van Wyk.
Richard Vester, Director of Cloud Services at EOH, says: “Teraco provides a world-class data centre facility which meets our unique SLA requirements, and more importantly, allows for our customers to connect from any network onto their private cloud. The ability to deliver services on-demand across Teraco’s data centre ensures we meet the operational requirements of our customers.”
Ronald Doyle, Principle Consultant from Bytes System Integration, says: “One of the essential characteristics of cloud computing is broad network access to offer services to customers wherever they may be. Teraco offers BytesNet the ability to connect and peer with other providers to ensure that our cloud services are delivered in the optimal manner for our customers within South Africa and throughout Africa.”
“The Africa Cloud eXchange allows South African and African cloud providers to host their platform, and offer services from a vendor-neutral, well connected and highly secure data centre environment, thereby opening up South Africa to the rest of the continent,” concludes Van Wyk.
Follow Teraco on Twitter: @ TeracoDC Visit www.teraco.co.za for more.
The Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) has embarked on a new electronic initiative. The “Virtual Office” will allow those employees who have access to the Internet to apply for UIF benefits online.
During her budget vote speech this week, labour minister Mildred Oliphant said the new system electronically connects the unemployed with their former employers.
It also provides for real-time declaration of earnings and employment histories; speedy claim processing; and tracking of all claims through the issuing of unique reference numbers.
“This service will save time and cost, and it will be transparent and secure. This new service will soon be launched and this will be another example of government making use of technology to improve service to its clients. The new Virtual Office will also enhance the performance of the labour centres, many of which are achieving their targets for the turnaround time of claims,” said the minister.
Web system
She added that the Compensation Fund (CF) is currently embracing new IT systems to improve service delivery and the turnaround time in processing of claims.
“The fund is aiming to increase revenue collection through Web-based registration of employers, and electronic submission of the return of earnings and employer assessments – details of which will be announced in the next few days.”
Oliphant said that while the Web-based submissions will be implemented in the first quarter, electronic submission of medical accounts and provision of pharmaceuticals is targeted for the second quarter.
Clean exit
The Department of Labour (DOL) has been allocated R2.1 billion for the 2012/13 financial year.
It has initiated projects in several key areas to provide a focus for the activities of the department.
These include the turnaround strategy for the CF; the DOL Organisational Review; the ICT Strategy; redefining Public Employment Services; and redefining professionalisation.
In the year to come, the department expects to face a few challenges in its administration and organisation. This includes the expiration of the IT-PPP, on 30 November.
“In this respect, the department will need to ensure that it is in a position to continue its operations seamlessly, through the correct management of the exit and transfer of services strategy, as contained in the contract,” said Oliphant.
Following the announcement of FNB’s new GeoPayment solution, ITWeb interviewed CEO Michael Jordaan live on Twitter and invited followers to take part. Below is a transcript of the Twitterview. Let us know in the comments section if you’d be interested in joining us for similar Twitter interviews in the future.
TWeb: And we’re off!
ITWeb: @ MichaelJordaan Do you have to bank with FNB to use Geo Payments? What are the limitations if you don’t bank with FNB?
Michael Jordaan: FNB App customers can pay & receive. Non-FNB can set up eWallet to receive.
ITWeb: Will FNB be looking at similar cashless payment solutions for non-smartphone users?
Michael Jordaan: FNB has other cashless payment solutions, but Geopay with LBS [location-based services] is specifically for smartphones.
ITWeb: @ WaltersMPowerFM asked: “Any chance of Geopay for WindowsPhone for us 2%ers?”
Michael Jordaan: Looking at Windows App but not imminent, development driven by demand.
ITWeb: What security measures are in place to protect users?
Michael Jordaan: Users identify themselves to each other, password protection and backend security in place. Don’t disclose password.
ITWeb: How come Geo Payments is embedded within the FNB App rather than being standalone?
Michael Jordaan: FNB App is platform for many existing and future innovations, because FNB Geopay is transactional it belongs there.
ITWeb: Is FNB Geopay meant to take the place of NFC or is FNB still working on an NFC payment option?
Michael Jordaan: FNB Geopay is a contactless P2P solution prior to ecosystems for NFC being ready. Market ready for P2P and App platform exists.
ITWeb: @ alanqcooper: #askMJ @ ITWeb Do you see future for NFC in payments or is it a tech dead-end?
Michael Jordaan: Neither, niche application until standardised.
ITWeb: @ aubrey_muvhango asked: #AskMJ What’s the transfer limit on #FNBGeopay?
Michael Jordaan: R35 000 default payment limit.
ITWeb: What is the potential of #FNBGeopay for small businesses?
Michael Jordaan: P2B very interesting prospect but for now P2P.
ITWeb: @ pantsula asked Plans to deploy the #FNBGeoPay to retail? How bout earning eBucks on transactions?
Michael Jordaan: One step at a time…
ITWeb: @ ck_memphis asked can one add beneficiary to the #FNBGeoPay service/app for people who you pay regularly?
Michael Jordaan: FNB Geopay eliminates the need to add recipient but once payment made u can save recipient.
ITWeb: Final question from us: What’s next for FNB? Thanks for your time @ MichaelJordaan.
Michael Jordaan: Priority: just keeping customers happy. Over and out.
