News

The service connects deaf, hard of hearing, and speech-impaired customers with a 24-hour interpreter to facilitate calls with family, friends, and organisations with whom they would otherwise struggle to communicate

This week, South African telco group Vodacom has launched a National Relay Service (NRS) in a bid to help build a more digitally inclusive society and support their deaf, hearing-impaired, and speech-impaired customers.

The NRS system works by connecting any Vodacom customer that uses South African sign language (SASL) to a specially trained SASL interpreter when they make a call to a third party that does not understand SASL. The interpreter then acts as a central link on the call, facilitating communication between the SASL user and the speaking recipient in real time.

In this way, the 24-hour NRS will allow customers that use SASL to make calls to friends, family, and external organisations on their own at any time, without needing to ask someone nearby to facilitate.

Vodacom says this will give its customers more autonomy when using connected devices and, crucially, will help support these customers in requesting help from emergency services.

The type of relay service delivered will be matched to the user’s individual needs, allowing them to choose between voice relay, text relay, live chat, captioned telephony relay, and video relay.

“The Specific Needs and NRS Centre offers an inclusive technology solution that advances our goal of empowering all South Africans and ensuring no one is left behind in the digitalisation journey. The launch of this system is another example of how Vodacom is delivering on its purpose to connect for a better future,” said Takalani Netshitenzhe, Executive Director of External Affairs for Vodacom South Africa.

The idea of the NRS itself is not overly novel – for example, apps like Be My Eyes, which connects blind and visually impaired people to sighted volunteers, have existed for almost a decade now – but this is one of few examples of mobile operators incorporating such technology directly into their own service offerings.

It should be noted that Vodacom’s efforts to improve digital inclusion within the telecoms industry date back to at least 2004, when the operator launched its Specific Needs initiative, aimed at overcoming barriers to communication for customers with disabilities.

Since then, various solutions have been developed as part of the programme, including devices designed for the visually impaired, text-based emergency services for deaf and hard-of-hearing customers, and a dedicated call centre for disabled customers.

Also in the news:
Vestager: Restricting “high-risk” vendors a “matter of urgency” for EU
UKRI selects BT consortium for intelligent drone project
IRIS cable set to link Iceland and Ireland

The post Vodacom launches National Relay Service to boost digital inclusion first appeared on Total Telecom.

VIEWPOINT

The foundation of every smart home is fast, reliable wifi to keep your smart devices – like lights, thermostats, plugs, and more – connected. And with more people working from home, the need has never been greater for strong connectivity.

eero, an Amazon company, is a pioneer in home mesh wifi systems and continues to innovate using the latest technologies, including Wi-Fi 6 capable devices like eero Pro 6E and eero 6+.

At Connected Britain, we spoke with Gabe Kassel, principal product manager at eero, to learn more about eero’s offerings, the new Matter protocol, and the company’s integration with TalkTalk.

 

For more information about eero wifi systems, visit eero.com.

The post How eero is powering your smart home first appeared on Total Telecom.

Cityfibre has today announced that their huge £270 million rollout of a new gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) based broadband ISP network across Glasgow (Scotland) is being extended into the Clydebank area, which will be supported by a new civil engineering contractor – local company IMS Scotland. The Glasgow project, which began in 2021, is the operator’s […]

Openreach (BT) has reportedly informed its suppliers that their need to curb costs and get more “bang for its buck” will impact the UK rollout of their gigabit-capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) broadband ISP network, which will “include an element of cancellation or suspension” of some work and have a “financial impact“. The rollout, which is expected […]

A complaint raised by EE (BT) has prompted the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) to ban a website banner and press advert for broadband and mobile provider Vodafone, which were both found to have made a “misleading” claim of being “the UK’s Reliable, Award-winning network“. EE complained that the wording was meant to imply that Vodafone […]

Mobile operator EE (BT) has today announced that they’ve extended the coverage of their ultrafast 5G based (mobile broadband) network to more than 150 new locations across the United Kingdom, including various Christmas markets and places such as Kettering, Carlisle, Portlethen and Merthyr Tydfil etc. At present, EE’s 5G network already covers over 50% of […]

News

The pair’s “one million phones for the planet” initiative is designed to encourage customers to trade in their old devices and support the circular economy

This week, Vodafone has announced a new partnership with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), initiating a new campaign to encourage smartphone reuse and recycling.

As part of the new three-year “one million phones for the planet” project, Vodafone will launch various strategic initiatives in its European and African markets to promote more sustainable choices by customers, as well as leverage mobile technology to tackle conservation and sustainability challenges.

The largest part of partnership, however, revolves around extending the lifecycle of customer smartphones.

Vodafone says it will offer competitive prices for customers to trade in old handsets, which will be refurbished and resold where possible.

According to Vodafone, purchasing a refurbished smartphone saves roughly 50kg of CO2e (Carbon Dioxide Equivalent) and reduces its environmental impact by 87% compared to a newly manufactured device.

Beyond reuse and refurbish approaches, Vodafone is also rolling out a suite of phone repair services, hoping to extend the lifespan of existing devices.

Phones that cannot be resold will be recycled or repurposed for social or charitable causes.

From today, for each phone traded in to Vodafone during the three-year programme, the operator will donate £1 to WWF conservation projects.

“Every one of us has a role to play in helping to bring our world back to life, and the technology we use every day can play a major role in tackling the climate and nature emergency,” said Tanya Steele, Chief Executive of WWF-UK. “Through our partnership with Vodafone, we will be exploring how everyone can reduce their environmental footprint using digital technologies and services, while also using mobile technology to drive forward key WWF conservation projects around the world. We look forward to working together on our shared vision for the planet.”

The new project will run alongside similar device campaigns Vodafone already has underway in Germany and the UK.

Are operators doing enough in the battle to combat climate change? Join the operators in discussion at the upcoming Connected North conference in Manchester

Also in the news:
Vestager: Restricting “high-risk” vendors a “matter of urgency” for EU
UKRI selects BT consortium for intelligent drone project
IRIS cable set to link Iceland and Ireland

The post Vodafone and WWF partner for phone recycling drive first appeared on Total Telecom.

News

The Angolan government is already trying to find an international buyer for a stake in local telco Unitel, just a month after seizing control of the business from its disgraced former owners

According to Angolan media sources, the Angolan government is considering privatising Unitel, with Minister for Mineral Resources, Oil and Gas, Diamantino Pedro Azevedo, saying the move would provide greater stability and efficiency for the state’s strategic asset.

The move indicates a rapid turn around for the Unitel, which was finally nationalised just last month, following a lengthy legal battle.

These ownership issues centred around Unitel’s entanglement with Isabel dos Santos and Leopoldino do Nascimento, who until recently each held 25% stake in the operator via Vidatel and Geni, respectively.

Isabel dos Santos is the eldest child of former President José Eduardo dos Santos, who ruled Angola until 2017. During her father’s time in office, dos Santos amassed an enormous Angolan business empire, making her a billionaire and one of Africa’s richest women.

However, since her father’s retirement, the new Angolan government has been trying to prosecute dos Santos for corruption, arguing that she had illegally exploited her privileged position and misappropriated public funds.

Leopoldino do Nascimento, better known in Angola as General Dino, who served as the head of the ex-President’s Communication Service, is facing similar accusations.

In 2019, the government ordered that dos Santos’ Angolan bank accounts be frozen and her stakes in Angolan businesses – including Unitel and Banco de Fomento Angola – be seized by the state.

The Angolan government ultimately took the decision to seize do Nascimento’s stake in Unitel in January 2022, while dos Santos’ stake was seized at the end of last month after the failure of her last legal challenge. Interpol would later issue an international arrest warrant for dos Santos at the request of the Attorney General of the Republic of Angola.

The seizure of do Nascimento and dos Santos’ stakes left Unitel entirely nationalised, with the government already holding the remaining 50% of the business via Group Sonangol, a state-owned utility company.

But the government had no intention of keeping hold of the stakes long-term, saying in 2019 that it would look to sell at least part of its reclaimed stake in the business via a public tender process.

The size of the stake for sale and the price tag attached have not yet been hinted, but the comments in the media suggest the stake sale could soon be underway.

Also in the news:
Vestager: Restricting “high-risk” vendors a “matter of urgency” for EU
UKRI selects BT consortium for intelligent drone project
IRIS cable set to link Iceland and Ireland

The post Angolan govt line up stake sale in Unitel first appeared on Total Telecom.

New data from Ookla, which operates the popular broadband ISP and mobile network speed testing service – Speedtest.net, claims to have today revealed the top fastest 5G handsets in the UK for mobile broadband speed. Interestingly, they’re all Apple iPhones. In order to be included in this table, a device had to have a market […]

Broadband ISP CommunityFibre (CF), which has already covered 675,000 premises in London with their Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP) network (aiming for 2.2 million by the end of 2024), has introduced a series of new discounts across their 150Mbps to 10Gbps speed business packages – mostly reflecting 3 months of free service. The new offers – available to […]