Telecom
Sony Pictures Partners MTN to Launch ‘Sony One’ App
Sony Pictures Television (“SPT”) has announced the launch of ‘Sony One’ – an app platform developed in association with MTN, the leading ICT company in Nigeria.
Sony One provides a selection of SPT film and television favourites, making them available through special MTN mobile data packages.
MTN users can stream a selection of SPT content and rent the latest Hollywood blockbusters through the app at affordable prices.
New users also have access to a 3-day free trial. The partnership is in furtherance of MTN’s resolve to continue to provide a superior digital experience for customers and make life brighter.
Speaking on the launch, John Rossiter, who oversaw the development of the app as Sony Pictures Television Executive Vice President, Networks and Distribution, CEEMA, said, “Sony One is tailor-made to the increasingly flexible way we see media being consumed in Nigeria and across Africa today.
“Today’s launch marks the first step in an inspiring journey for SPT: we have spent a couple of years reviewing and evaluating effective ways to serve our excellent SPT content to, and engage with, this hugely important continent.
“It is fantastic to launch this platform, and there is no better partner to launch with than MTN in Nigeria.”
Also speaking, Srinivas Rao, chief digital officer, MTN Nigeria, said, “We are proud of our association with Sony Pictures Television. This partnership aligns with our GoodTogether philosophy; with it, our customers, who are at the heart of everything we do, will be assured of quality international content, including movies, music and favourite shows all in one app.”
Users will have access to four plan categories including streaming bundles that offer data and access on the Sony One service, binge plans that offer affordable streaming service on the app, rental plan for content on the app as well as content only plans. Sony Pictures Entertainment (“SPE”) blockbuster titles available for rent on the platform are ‘Spider-Man: Far from Home’, ‘The Equalizer 2’, ‘Bad Boys for Life’, ‘Bloodshot’, ‘Angry Birds 2’ and ‘Black & Blue’.
Also available at launch are 40+ popular SPE library titles available for streaming, including films in the classic ‘Ghostbusters’ and ‘Terminator’ franchise, as well as favourites ‘Hancock’, ‘Jerry Maguire’, ‘Chappie’ and ‘White House Down’.
In addition, the SPT series available through Sony One at launch will include full seasons of ‘Community’, ‘The Shield’, and ‘The Boondocks’ among others.
New feature film and television titles will be regularly added to the platform.
Sony One app is available for download on Google Play Store and Apple store.
MTN users can subscribe to the dedicated Sony One plans via the shortcode 5445.
SPT partnered with Hakeem Condotti’s BLK HUT in Nigeria as the licensee of the service.
In the wake of increasing geopolitical tension, Cassava Technologies has unveiled its National Sovereign Cloud offering for African governments.
The solution, the company claims, will help the continent’s governments ensure data is kept on infrastructure that remains under local legal and operational jurisdiction.
According to the official announcement, made yesterday, the solution provides “secure, locally-governed digital infrastructure that enables the deployment of AI-enabled public services”.
The overarching solution encompasses cloud, cyber security, AI computing infrastructure, as well as local language AI models and skills support for governments.
The announcement comes amid increasing uncertainty over the hosting of sensitive national data on cloud services operated by foreign hyperscalers, which are subject to legal frameworks, such as the U.S. CLOUD Act. The CLOUD Act opens the door to allow American authorities to access data stored on the servers of US hyperscalers, wherever those servers are physically located.
Cassava has claimed separately that currently, “approximately 33% to 45% of the world’s data is hosted in the USA”.
The company added: “A sovereign cloud reduces exposure to extraterritorial laws, improves cyber resilience, and ensures that model weights and training data for public AI remain under national custody.”
The Africa Data Centres Association’s 2026 Economic Report states that “data sovereignty has evolved from a legal aspiration into a strategic policy lever”.
Ahmed El Beheiry, Group COO and Group Chief Technology and AI Officer, Cassava Technologies said: “Across Africa, governments are accelerating their digital transformation agendas and are increasingly focused on ensuring that data and digital infrastructure remain secure and sovereign.”
Announced at the Mobile Word Congress in Barcelona, this week, the Sovereign Cloud offering launch accompanied the launch of Cassava’s Cloud Partner programme.
The partner programme targets mobile network operators and system integrators across Africa to resell and distribute AI, cloud, and other digital services using Cassava’s infrastructure and technology platforms.
El Beheiry added: “We are expanding Africa’s sovereign AI ecosystem to build solutions that address the continent’s unique challenges while creating new opportunities for growth and digital inclusion.”
The programme offers partners access to NVIDIA Cloud Partner solutions, Cassava’s AI Factory, its own native AI solutions and its AI Multi-Model Exchange, which supports both Anthropic’s Claude and Google’s Gemini models.
Mazen Mroue, a non-executive director at MTN Nigeria Communications Plc, has resigned effective February 27, 2026, to prioritise other responsibilities within the MTN Group, the company announced in a Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) filing.
MTN Nigeria
The notice, signed by company secretary Uto Ukpanah, stated: “This is to enable Mr. Mroue to focus on other priorities within MTN Group Limited. The Board wishes to express its appreciation to Mr. Mroue for his immense service to MTN Nigeria and wishes him success in his future endeavours.”
Mroue joined MTN Nigeria’s board on June 1, 2022, bringing over 28 years of telecom experience. A veteran MTN executive, he previously served as CEO of MTN Uganda and MTN Liberia, non-executive director at MTN Cyprus, and held leadership roles at MTN Ghana.
Since February 2022, he has been MTN Group’s Chief Technology and Information Officer, overseeing technology strategy and governance. Earlier, as MTN Nigeria’s COO from August 2018 to January 2022, he also sat on the MTN Nigeria Foundation board.
The exit follows MTN Nigeria’s stellar 2025 results, posting a ₦1.70 trillion profit before tax—reversing a ₦550.3 billion loss in 2024 driven by forex woes—marking one of the telco’s strongest rebounds.
Google has rolled out support for Yorùbá and Hausa languages in its AI-powered Search features—AI Overviews and AI Mode—enabling millions of Nigerians to get quick answers, summaries, and conversational web exploration in their mother tongues.
The update forms part of Google’s push to cover 13 African languages, including Afrikaans, Akan, Amharic, Kinyarwanda, Afaan Oromoo, Somali, Sesotho, Kiswahili, Setswana, Wolof, and isiZulu, selected based on high search activity across the continent.
Now, a Kano student can ask complex questions in Hausa, while an Ibadan trader seeks business tips in Yorùbá—both receiving culturally nuanced AI responses via text or voice on Android, iOS, or web.
Taiwo Kola-Ogunlade, Google’s West Africa Communications Manager, said: “Building truly global Search requires nuanced local understanding. With Gemini-powered AI, we’ve made advanced capabilities relevant in Yorùbá and Hausa, so Nigerians converse naturally with Search in their mother tongues.”
To use: Open the Google app, tap AI Mode, and query in Hausa or Yorùbá for personalised guidance—breaking language barriers and making technology reflect Nigeria’s diverse identity.
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