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Airtel, Konga.com, Seal Retail Partnership Deal

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Airtel Nigeria, a telecoms giant, has partnered with Konga.com, online retail outfit to offer consumers on the network with a range of enriching data service experience on purchase of any blackberry and smartphone devices from Konga.

The partnership which focuses on prepaid consumers of data services, offers customers who purchase any data enabled device from Konga, a free Airtel Sim and automatic 30% bonus on any purchased data bundle worth 200 MB and above in addition to 100% return on same the following month.

Also, customers stand to enjoy 18k per second for calls to all networks and 20k per second to five international destinations including US, Canada, UK (landline), China and India, 20 free SMS.

For Blackberry devices, a customer will be given a free Airtel Sim and be migrated to Smartbytes proposition with all the attendant benefits in addition to free subscription for the following month.  

To enjoy the free one month data bundle, customers are text KONGA to 141, on activation of their preferred plan.

Speaking on the partnership, Deepak Srivastava, Airtel Nigeria’s chief operating officer and executive director, said, “the telecoms operator would continue to seek out reliable and efficient corporate partnerships that would support its drive to enhance customers experience in fulfillment of its promise to becoming the most loved brand in the daily lives of Nigerians.

Srivastava stated: “This partnership with Konga highlights another side to the trademark innovativeness with which we have been identified ever since we resumed operation in Nigeria. We will continue to create ways to add value to the individual lives and corporate entities. This means, whether you are an individual, corporate customer or a business partner, it is a win-win experience for you. Our vision is to be the most loved telecoms brand in the daily lives of Nigerians and we’re committed to achieving this through our range of bespoke products, value offerings and pocket-friendly tariffs.”

In a comment after the announcement, Sim Shagaya, CEO of Konga.com, expressed the importance of the partnership by stating, “Almost one year ago, the people behind Konga.com set out on a journey to offer Nigerians a better shopping experience by emphasizing customer service, selection and convenience. Partnering with brands such as Airtel is an important part of this journey as it allows us to offer even greater value to our customers”.

The recent partnership with Konga attests to Airtel Nigeria’s strides in offering a superior telecoms experience to its millions of its customers since it began the transformation of the Nigerian telecoms landscape in 2010. 
 


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E-Business

UK Orders Apple to Create Backdoor for Encrypted iCloud Data

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United Kingdom has issued a “technical capability notice” to Apple, mandating that the company create a backdoor to access users’ encrypted iCloud data.

UK Orders Apple to Create Backdoor for Encrypted iCloud Data

This directive, issued under the Investigatory Powers Act of 2016, requires Apple to provide British security officials with the means to retrieve all content uploaded to iCloud by any user worldwide.

Apple’s Advanced Data Protection (ADP) feature, introduced in 2022, offers end-to-end encryption for iCloud data, ensuring that only users can access their information.

The UK’s demand challenges this security measure, potentially compelling Apple to either comply by creating the backdoor or withdraw the ADP feature from the UK market.

Compliance could set a precedent, leading other governments to request similar access, thereby raising global privacy concerns.

The UK Home Office has declined to confirm or deny the existence of such notices, stating, “We do not comment on operational matters, including, for example, confirming or denying the existence of any such notices.”

This development underscores the ongoing tension between governmental surveillance efforts and technology companies’ commitments to user privacy.

 


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E-Business

Oracle Adds AI Pricing Features to Financial Software

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Oracle on Thursday added another set of artificial intelligence (AI) tools to NetSuite, one of its corporate finance software offerings, including some that might make it faster for consumers to get a price quote on purchases like custom bicycles.

Oracle has taken a different tack with AI than rivals such as Microsoft. Rather than racing toward general purpose virtual assistants, Oracle has decided to add targeted features that speed common-but-tedious tasks like entering a brief write-up of how a sales meeting went into a corporate records system.

Another such task that is common in the business world is giving a customer a price quote on a complicated purchase that might have a lot of options, when a sales professional would need to sift through materials to come up with a price.

NetSuite on Thursday announced a feature to compile such a quote via conversation with a chatbot asking what the customer wants, which can either be used by sales professionals behind the scenes to speed up their work, or directly by consumers in the case of e-commerce businesses.

“When you buy something like a bicycle, you have to configure it – figure out what parts you want and which parts work together. We all do it when we buy our cars on the web these days,” Evan Goldberg, executive vice president of Oracle NetSuite, said.

“If you can configure (products) for customers more easily, you can do more deals in a day, or each deal costs less.”

To power those features, Oracle has decided to skip the costly race to develop huge AI models and instead works with partners such as Canadian startup Cohere.

Goldberg said that Oracle’s recent agreement to build massive data centers with ChatGPT creator OpenAI could lead to working with it as well, though the two firms have made no formal announcements.

“I think you could safely say that there’s a possibility that OpenAI will be part of this,” Goldberg told Reuters. “We are eager to work with OpenAI.”

 


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IBM Exits Nigeria and Ghana, Transfers Operations to MIBB

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IBM, the American multinational technology giant, has reportedly announced plans to exit Nigeria, Ghana, and other key African markets, transferring its regional operations to MIBB, a subsidiary of the Midis Group.

IBM Exits Nigeria and Ghana, Transfers Operations to MIBB

The move, which according to TechCabal was revealed in a statement by the company, effective April 1 2025, is part of a new operating model IBM is adopting across select African countries.

Under this arrangement, MIBB will take over IBM’s local operations, customer support, and relationships while marketing and selling IBM products and services across 36 African nations.

“MIBB will market and sell IBM products and services in 36 African countries, thereby giving MIBB’s sales network direct access to IBM products, services, and support, further boosting innovation and growth in the region,” IBM stated.

IBM has been a key player in Africa’s tech industry for decades, providing critical infrastructure for banking, telecom, oil and gas, and government services.

However, its planned exit follows a trend of multinational corporations leaving Nigeria.

In December 2024, Swiss cement giant Holcim announced its departure from Nigeria, selling its 83% stake in Lafarge to a Chinese firm.

Similarly, South African grocery retailer Pick n Pay disclosed plans in October 2024 to exit Nigeria by selling its 51% stake in a joint venture.

IBM has yet to respond to media inquiries regarding the specifics of its transition strategy and reasons for the exit.


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