CCK reviews digital signal distribution tariffs down

http://www.cck.go.ke/news/2013/CCK_reviews_digital_signal_distribution_tariffs_down.html

The Communications Commission of Kenya has today reviewed downwards tariffs for digital signal distribution in a move geared towards facilitating a smooth migration from analogue to digital television broadcasting in the country.

According to Determination No. 1 of 2013 on Cost-Based Terrestrial Digital Broadcast Signal Distribution Tariff issued today, Digital Signal Distributors shall charge broadcasters (also known as Content Service Providers) at KES. 125,990 per Megabit for Nairobi and KES.93,202.75 per Megabit for other sites in Kenya.

The new tariffs take effect from today.

Before the review, the Pan-Africa Network Group (PANG) had proposed to charge broadcasters a monthly signal distribution fee of KES 1,135,312.50 per channel in Nairobi. Kenya Broadcasting Corporation-owned SIGNET on the other hand had proposed to charge KES 248,141 per mega bit (Mbit) for signal distribution services within Nairobi.

For other sites in Kenya, SIGNET had proposed to charge a uniform signal distribution fee of KES248,141.45 per mega bit, while PANG had proposed to charge a flat monthly fee of KES.378,437.50 for signal distribution services in Mombasa, Kisumu, Nyeri, Eldoret, Kakamega, Kisii and Meru.  For Malindi, Webuye, Garissa, Narok, Kericho, Isiolo, Kitale, Bungoma, Embu, Voi and other regions, PANG had proposed to charge broadcasters a flat monthly fee of KES.126,145.83 to distribute their digital signals.

In the determination, CCK further requires the two Digital Signal Distributors – Pan African Network Group (PANG) and Signet, to publish a Reference Offer three months from today in order to ensure that there is access, transparency and non-discrimination on the terrestrial signal distribution platform.

According to the determination, digital signal distributors are also expected to prepare separate accounts for each commercial subsidiary including the appropriate allocation of central overheads within six months from today.

In arriving at the afore-cited tariffs, CCK adopted a consultative approach where the signal distributors were involved. 

The full Determination is available on our website.

Issued by
Mutua Muthusi
Director/Consumer Public Affairs
For: DIRECTOR GENERAL 

Doba Faculty introduces online Master’s degree programme

Europe-based institution plots to benefit from growing demand in Africa for overseas university degrees

DOBA Faculty of Applied Business and Social Studies, a leading online private education institution in South-Eastern Europe, has today introduced its online Master’s degree Programme for the African market.
The Faculty’s flagship course will be the Masters Programme in International Business Management, which will cost KSh406, 117 (U$4.695) per academic year.

The director of the  Faculty, Ms Jasna Dominko Baloh, said e-learning would help many people with limited time and finance advance their education from their home countries at affordable fees.

“Online learning is an alternative for those who are unable to attend face to face lectures due to their career or family commitments, such as full-time employed people who want to advance in their career, young adults with active lifestyles and young mothers with limited free time,”  Ms Baloh said during a media briefing in Nairobi.

The Faculty is targeting those employed in diplomatic organizations and multinationals, entrepreneurs, middle management, civil servants, alumni of bachelor programmes and young people aged between 19 and 25 years old.

The objective of the Faculty is to prepare students for solving practical business problems and challenges in their future careers, for the challenges of the business world that requires great flexibility and an individual, innovative and creative approach.  European recognized degree.

“We develop professionally successful, personally happy and satisfied graduates, who will contribute to the greater competitiveness of the economy. Our success is the quality knowledge, employability and permanent satisfaction of our alumni.56% of graduates experienced positive changes in their workplace immediately after graduating,” said Ms Baloh.

DOBA Faculty of Applied Business and Social Studies holds the honour of being the first and only higher education institution in South-Eastern Europe to receive the UNIQUe international certification for quality in e-learning which is awarded by the European Foundation for Quality in e-Learning.

Online learning with DOBA Faculty offers a truly global experience. Students have the opportunity to study in internationally varied groups and work with other students who bring new ideas as well as their own professional and cultural experiences enriching the learning process. This cultural exchange provides added value to our programmes. During the whole programme students are monitored and guided by a tutor, who is available to you 7 days a week.

“Our students have numerous opportunities for networking and strengthening both business and private connections in the European Union and Africa through: the online Master’s programme, various programme-related activities, and active participation in the alumni club,” Ms Baloh said. 

The Faculty employs a state-of-the-art virtual learning platform known as the Blackboard Learn to support Online students.  The platfom allows students access all information that is needed for the course, including course materials, chat rooms, discussion forums on their computers or mobile phone and tablet.
DOBA is the latest entrant into the market as European-based higher learning institutions are targeting a growing number of people in Africa seeking overseas university degrees  by introducing cost-effective online programs for the region.

On the 21st November at 6 PM, there will be a presentation at Nairobi Hilton open to anyone who is interested in studying in exciting new programmes and courses available to all those who are interesting in earning a European recognised Master's Degree from one of the top European online faculties.

Gartner Says Smartphone Sales Accounted for 55 Percent of Overall Mobile Phone Sales in Third Quarter of 2013

Worldwide mobile phone sales to end users totaled 455.6 million units in the third quarter of 2013, an increase of 5.7 percent from the same period last year, according to Gartner, Inc. Sales of smartphones accounted for 55 percent of overall mobile phone sales in the third quarter of 2013, and reached their highest share to date. 

Worldwide smartphone sales to end users reached 250.2 million units, up 45.8 percent from the third quarter of 2012. Asia/Pacific led the growth in both markets - the smartphone segment with 77.3 percent increase and the mobile phone segment with 11.9 percent growth. The other regions to show an increase in the overall mobile phone market were Western Europe, which returned to growth for the first time this year, and the Americas. 

“Sales of feature phones continued to decline and the decrease was more pronounced in markets where the average selling price (ASP) for feature phones was much closer to the ASP affordable smartphones,” said Anshul Gupta, principal research analyst at Gartner. “In markets such as China and Latin America, demand for feature phones fell significantly as users rushed to replace their old models with smartphones.” 

Gartner analysts said global mobile phone sales are on pace to reach 1.81 billion units in 2013, a 3.4 percent increase from 2012. “We will see several new tablets enter the market for the holiday season, and we expect consumers in mature markets will favor the purchase of smaller-sized tablets over the replacement of their older smartphones” said Mr. Gupta. 

While Samsung’s share was flat in the third quarter of 2013, Samsung increased its lead over Apple in the global smartphone market (see Table 1). The launch of the Samsung Note 3 helped reaffirm Samsung as the clear leader in the large display smartphone market, which it pioneered. 

Lenovo’s sales of smartphones grew to 12.9 million units, up 84.5 percent year-on-year. It constantly raised share in the Chinese smartphone market. 

Apple’s smartphone sales reached 30.3 million units in the third quarter of 2013, up 23.2 percent from a year ago. “While the arrival of the new iPhones 5s and 5c had a positive impact on overall sales, such impact could have been greater had they not started shipping late in the quarter. While we saw some inventory built up for the iPhone 5c, there was good demand for iPhone 5s with stock out in many markets,” said Mr. Gupta. 

Table 1

Worldwide Smartphone Sales to End Users by Vendor in 3Q13 (Thousands of Units)

Company	3Q13 Units	3Q13 Market Share (%)	3Q12 Units	3Q12 Market Share (%)
Samsung	80,356.8	32.1	55,054.2	32.1
Apple	30,330.0	12.1	24,620.3	14.3
Lenovo	12,882.0	5.1	6,981.0	4.1
LG Electronics	12,055.4	4.8	6,986.1	4.1
Huawei	11665.7	4.7	7,804.3	4.5
Others	102941.8	41.1	70206.8	40.9
Total	250,231.7	100.0	171,652.7	100.0

Source: Gartner (November 2013)

In the smartphone operating system (OS) market (see Table 2), Android surpassed 80 percent market share in the third quarter of 2013, which helped extend its leading position. “However, the winner of this quarter is Microsoft which grew 123 percent. Microsoft announced the intent to acquire Nokia’s devices and services business, which we believe will unify effort and help drive appeal of Windows ecosystem,” said Mr. Gupta. Forty-one per cent of all Android sales were in mainland China, compared to 34 percent a year ago. Samsung is the only non-Chinese vendor in the top 10 Android players ranking in China. Whitebox Yulong is the third largest Android vendor in China with a 9.7 percent market share in the third quarter of 2013. Xiaomi represented 4.3 percent of Android sales in the third quarter of 2013, up from 1.4 percent a year ago.

Table 2

Worldwide Smartphone Sales to End Users by Operating System in 3Q13 (Thousands of Units)

Operating System	3Q13  Units	3Q13 Market Share (%)	3Q12  Units	3Q12 Market Share (%)
Android	205,022.7	81.9	124,552.3	72.6
iOS	30,330.0	12.1	24,620.3	14.3
Microsoft	8,912.3	3.6	3,993.6	2.3
BlackBerry	4,400.7	1.8	8,946.8	5.2
Bada	633.3	0.3	4,454.7	2.6
Symbian	457.5	0.2	4,401.3	2.6
Others	475.2	0.2	683.7	0.4
Total	250,231.7	100.0	171,652.7	100.0

Source: Gartner (November 2013)

Mobile Phone Vendor Perspective

Samsung: Samsung extended its lead in the overall mobile phone market, as its market share totaled 25.7 percent in the third quarter of 2013 (see Table 3). “While Samsung has started to address its user experience, better design is another area where Samsung needs to focus,” said Mr. Gupta. “Samsung's recent joint venture with carbon fiber company SGL Group could bring improvements in this area in future products.” 

Nokia: Nokia did better than anticipated in the third quarter of 2013, reaching 63 million mobile phones, thanks to sales of both Lumia and Asha series devices. Increased smartphone sales supported by an expanded Lumia portfolio, helped Nokia move up to the No. 8 spot in the global smartphone market. But regional and Chinese Android device manufacturers continued to beat market demand, taking larger share and creating a tough competitive environment for Lumia devices. 

Apple:  Gartner believes the price difference between the iPhone 5c and 5s is not enough in mature markets, where prices are skewed by operator subsidies, to drive users away from the top of the line model. In emerging markets, the iPhone 4S will continue to be the volume driver at the low end as the lack of subsidy in most markets leaves the iPhone 5c too highly priced to help drive further penetration. 

Lenovo: Lenovo moved to the No. 7 spot in the global mobile phone market, with sales reaching approximately 13 million units in the third quarter of 2013. “Lenovo continues to rely heavily on its home market, which represents more than 95 per cent of its overall mobile phone sales. This could limit its growth after 2014, when the Chinese market is expected to decelerate,” said Mr. Gupta. 

Table 3

Worldwide Mobile Phone Sales to End Users by Vendor in 3Q13 (Thousands of Units)

Company	3Q13 Units	3Q13 Market Share (%)	3Q12 Units	3Q12 Market Share (%)
Samsung	117,053.8	25.7	97,956.8	22.7
Nokia	63,048.4	13.8	82,300.6	19.1
Apple	30,330.0	6.7	24,620.3	5.7
LG Electronics	18,030.7	4.0	13,968.8	3.2
ZTE	13,696.4	3.0	16,605.9	3.9
Huawei	13,574.4	3.0	11,918.9	2.8
Lenovo	12,999.8	2.9	7,203.7	1.7
TCL Communication	12,345.6	2.7	9,326.7	2.2
Sony Mobile Communications	9,757.5	2.1	8,202.4	1.9
Yulong	8,801.0	1.9	5,218.5	1.2
Others	156,004.7	34.2	153,701.20	35.7
Total	455,642.3	100.0	431,023.8	100.0

Source: Gartner (November 2013)

Additional information is in the Gartner report "Market Share Analysis: Mobile Phones, Worldwide, 3Q13." The report is available on Gartner's website at http://www.gartner.com/document/2622821.http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2623415

Internet data market records increased growth

The number of local internet subscribers increased by 28.4 per cent in the three months leading to June 30 this year to reach 12.4 million up from 9.6 million recorded in the previous quarter.

According to the CCK Quarterly Sector Statistics Report for the fourth quarter of the 2012/2013 financial year (April to June 2013) released today, the growth is attributed to numerous promotions and special offers on Internet/data by the mobile operators. 

The report further states that the coming periods are likely to record similar positive trends as internet uptake increases stimulated by the on-going ICT for schools project and increased investment in fibre optic networks across the country.

During the same period, the number of broadband subscriptions grew by 36.9 per cent from the previous quarter to reach 1.39 million. Compared to the same period last year, the sector realised a 92.5 per cent growth from 726,802 subscriptions.

“This growth in broadband subscriptions is expected to continue increasing as it indicates that customers are not only demanding for internet connections but higher capacity connections,” stipulates the report.

During the same period, the mobile phone industry in the country regained lost ground with the number of subscribers jumping 2.3 per cent from 29.8 million to 30.5 million. This increase could be attributed to a combination of new subscribers and possible re-subscription by those whose phones had been deactivated during the subscriber registration campaign. The report adds that owing to ease of access, the pre-paid services have continued to dominate mobile subscription, accounting for 99.0 per cent of the total mobile subscriptions.

Mobile money transfer subscribers increased from 23.2 million the previous quarter to 24.8 million the quarter under review, recording a 6.8 per cent growth, consistent with the positive subscriber growth patterns. The number of mobile money transfer agents jumped significantly to 88,466 during the quarter, up from 74,216 agents during the previous quarter, a growth of 19.2 per cent. The number of agents has almost doubled compared to the same period last year, which was recorded at 49,079.

The number of FM radio stations in the country went up to 109 FM radio from 102 FM recorded during the previous quarter. On the other hand, the number of existing analogue TV channels which had activated their signal on the digital broadcasting platform stood at 13 out of the 14 existing analogue TV channels. 

The postal and courier sector continued to decline in relation to the number of letters sent and received both locally and internationally.

http://www.cck.go.ke/news/2013/Internet_data.html

The fixed line market continued to slump during the quarter to post 216,469 subscribers down from 221,287 posted in the previous quarter.