InnovationVillage's Favourite Google Doodles of 2012

It is highly unlikely that you have not seen a Google Doodle. But if you have not seen it and you don't know about it, here is the story behind it.

Doodles are the fun, surprising, and sometimes spontaneous changes that are made to the Google logo to celebrate holidays, anniversaries, and the lives of famous artists, pioneers, and scientists.

African Google Doodles of 2012

Doodles are the fun, surprising, and sometimes spontaneous changes that are made to the Google logo to celebrate holidays, anniversaries, and the lives of famous artists, pioneers, and scientists.

According to Google history, the concept of the doodle was born when Google founders Larry and Sergey played with the corporate logo to indicate their attendance at the Burning Man festival in the Nevada desert. This was in 1998, before the company was even incorporated. They placed a stick figure drawing behind the 2nd "o" in the word, Google, and the revised logo was intended as a comical message to Google users that the founders were "out of office." While the first doodle was relatively simple, the idea of decorating the company logo to celebrate notable events was born.

Two years later in 2000, Larry and Sergey asked current webmaster Dennis Hwang, an intern at the time, to produce a doodle for Bastille Day. It was so well received by our users that Dennis was appointed Google's chief doodler and doodles started showing up more and more regularly on the Google homepage. In the beginning, the doodles mostly celebrated familiar holidays; nowadays, they highlight a wide array of events and anniversaries from the Birthday of John James Audubon to the Ice Cream Sundae.

The top 10 YouTube videos of 2012 are.....

According to Kevin Allocca, YouTube trends manager, 2012 has been a big year for YouTube. "We have been watching over 4 billion hours of video a month. Millions of creators are using YouTube channels to experiment with innovative forms of entertainment, explore their passions and interests, and take creativity and pop culture to new levels. 2012’s top trending videos showcase this creative ingenuity in ways we'd never before thought possible."

Globally, here’s what we were all talking about in 2012:

Konga Looks Set To Catch Up With Jumia in 2013 With New Fashion Category

By virtually any standard, Jumia is Nigeria's biggest e-commerce platform, and miles away from the rest. They would however do well to pay a little more attention to their rear-view mirror. Of late, there's reason to believe that their strongest contender, Konga, will be closing that gap in 2013.

While Konga started with a narrow focus on beauty, baby and personal care products, those of us watching might have noticed that they've been silently, gradually cranking the heat up all the time. Shortly after launch, they added groceries, household items and other fast moving consumer goods. Since then, they've expanded into gadgets, watches, books, movies, office items and home appliances.

Now Konga has finally confirmed what I'd counted on as a given since November --That they are going to enter into the fashion business shortly. Going by the tweet in which this interesting future nugget was revealed, they'll likely be doing it in a big way.

LG to unveil a mammoth 100-inch TV in January 2013

The South Korean electronics company LG said it will unveil its mammoth 100-inch ‘LG Hecto’ laser TV projector at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January 2013.

“LG’s 100-inch class Laser TV takes projection technology and makes it perfectly suitable for both the boardroom and the living room,” said Havis Kwon, President and CEO of the LG Electronics Home Entertainment Company.

He further said, “In the coming year, LG will continue to introduce innovative TV products to provide an outstanding productivity and entertainment experience for our customers.”

LG claimed that the laser TV projector’s size will make installation and viewing easier by allowing users to place the lens just 22 inches (56 cm) from the screen. Users will have the option to position the projector near the floor or have it fixed to the ceiling.

Getting easier to hit the 1 million user milestone: From AOL to Line Pop

It took 9 years for AOL, Facebook nine months, and Draw Something nine days to get a million users on its platform.  Recently Naver, one of the most successful Asian publishers, launched five applications at the end of November, all of which quickly became the most popular applications in many Asian countries.

Google's best android apps of 2012

Google has just released its list of the best apps available in the Google Play app marketplace for 2012.

"Some launched in 2012 while others issued updates that achieved a great combination of utility, beauty and accessibility," Google Play merchandising manager Tavares Ford wrote when announcing the list.

Continuing, he said, "Almost all of them are available globally and offer a great user experience on both tablets and phones. From excellent tools to objects of beauty, each of these applications represents the best of Google Play".

Here's a look at some of the apps:

• Evernote: An app designed for taking notes and organizing documents. Also syncs across multiple devices. (Free to download) 
• Pinterest: Pinterest lets you organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. (Free to download) 

In the face of flagging exports, Maruti Suzuki is considering building an Assembly Plant in Africa

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd., the nation’s biggest carmaker by volume, is considering setting up its first overseas assembly plant in Africa as it seeks to revive flagging exports.

The company, based in New Delhi, is scouting for new export markets and Africa is more or less untouched, Chairman R.C. Bhargava said in an interview. Countries that are on the cusp of motorization may be key to Maruti’s plan of doubling exports in the next four years as Europe struggles to recover from a slowdown, according to Mayank Pareek, head of sales.

Continue here

2012’s Most Popular Locations on Instagram. The top spot goes to....Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport

Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok.   Courtesy of @Savet_v

What was the most-Instagrammed place in the world this past year?

According a recent release by Instagram in a blog post, Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport is the most popular location on Instagram with over 100,000 photos taken there last year!

The Top 10 is listed below:

1. Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) ท่าอากาศยานสุวรรณภูมิ in Bangkok, Thailand
2. Siam Paragon (สยามพารากอน) shopping mall in Bangkok, Thailand
3. Disneyland Park in Anaheim, California
4. Times Square in New York City
5. AT&T Park in San Francisco
6. Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)
7. Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles
8. Eiffel Tower in Paris
9. Staples Center in Los Angeles
10. Santa Monica Pier in Los Angeles

World's longest high-speed rail route opens in China

It used to take 23 hours to travel from Beijing to the southern commercial hub of Guangzhou (2,298 km) but this has now been reduced to less than 10 hours. This is due to the opening of the world's longest high-speed rail route on Wednesday, 26th December 2012. Bullet trains will travel at 300km/h (187mph).

A Chinese official has described the route - parts of which were already in operation - as "one of the most technically advanced in the world".

The decision was taken to start the passenger service on 26 December to commemorate the birth of former Chinese leader Mao Zedong, state media said.

China's high-speed rail network is one of the country's most expensive infrastructure projects and a symbol of its long-term ambitions. Yet the programme has recently been plagued by scandal – a bullet train crash killed 40 people, a section of track collapsed in the rain and a top railway official was sacked for corruption – raising concerns about its safety, sustainability and cost.

What was the most viewed article on Wikipedia in 2012?

Wikipedia itself doesn’t actually make its own popularity stats public anymore, but outside researchers can analyze its log files, and Swedish software engineer Johan Gunnarsson has now published a full year’s wrap-up for the first time.

Now what was the most searched article on Wikipedia in 2012?

Well, in the English language version of Wikipedia, it was Facebook, with 32.6 million views. The page for "Wiki" earned the second spot (how meta). Also, people wanted to know who died this year ("Deaths in 2012" came in at No. 3).

Johan recently released the list of the most viewed articles on Wikipedia in 2012 and this is based on unedited data. The top 10 articles are shown in the table below:

1. Facebook                             32,647,942 views
2. Wiki                                     29,613,759 views 
3. Deaths in 2012                     25,418,587 views
4. One Direction                      22,351,637 views
5. The Avengers (2012 film)   22,268,644 views
6. Fifty Shades of Grey            21,779,423 views
7. 2012 phenomenon               20,619,920 views
8. The Dark Knight Rises        18,882,885 views
9. Google                                 18,508,719 views
10. The Hunger Games             18,431,626 views

Johan also released the list in other languages. The most-visited page in Japanese is a list of adult movie actresses; the best-read Italian article is about the TV show Grey's Anatomy; and the top German article is, peculiarly, about cul de sac streets. Interesting....

Google working to introduce the "X Phone" to rival Apple and Samsung

If what the Wall Street Journal's report is true, Google Inc is working with recently acquired Motorola on a handset codenamed "X-phone", aimed at grabbing market share from Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd.

Google acquired Motorola in May for $12.5 billion to bolster its patent portfolio as its Android mobile operating system competes with rivals such as Apple and Samsung.

The Journal quoted the people saying that Motorola is working on two fronts: devices that will be sold by carrier partner Verizon Wireless, and on the X phone.

Motorola plans to enhance the X Phone with its recent acquisition of Viewdle, an imaging and gesture-recognition software developer. The new handset is due out sometime next year, the business daily said, citing a person familiar with the plans.

Motorola is also expected to work on an "X" tablet after the phone. Google Chief Executive Larry Page is said to have promised a significant marketing budget for the unit, the newspaper said quoting the persons.

Chinese Language To Be Introduced Into Schools In Cross River State

In less than 2 months that the Lagos state government defended the proposed introduction of Chinese language in government schools, believing it would assist in boosting the state economy in the nearest future, its Cross River counterpart is also planning to introduce Chinese language in all government schools in the state.

Cross River State Commissioner for Education, Prof. Offiong Offiong disclosed this recently while briefing news men on the activities of the ministry at the end of the year summary.

He said, “In order to key into global trend, the state has initiated discussion with the Chinese Embassy towards introduction of Chinese language in our schools.”

He added that the state government will distribute about 9000 laptops to public school teachers with the aim to assist them to be up to date with the most recent development in their subjects.

Offiong however hinted that the former French Language Centre facilities in Calabar will be upgraded to accommodate the new initiative.

“As a preliminary step, we have re-christened the centre. We have also initiated discussion with Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, which is currently collaborating with the Chinese University on the teaching of the language in the institution,” he said.

He concluded that the Cross River state is always open for foreign investors, while emphasising also that the introduction of Chinese Language is strategic for the state’s investment drive and for the future of the next generation

http://www.medianigeria.com

NIBSS introduces 2 new financial products to promote cash-less policy

Last week Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) Plc introduced two financial instruments to promote the cash-less policy so as to transform the payment system in the country.

In unveiling the two new products, NIBSS e-Billspay and Automated Direct Debit, the Managing Director and Chief executive Officer, NIBSS, Mr. Adebisi Shonubi, said that the financial instruments are also meant to drive financial inclusion.

“The ADD is a cash-less or electronic payment method for settlement of financial obligations and indebtedness on a recurring basis through authorisation to debit nominated bank accounts in any bank at agreed intervals.”

He added that that the product subsisted on duly signed mandate to debit a nominated bank account.

Shonubi noted that the product was for customers of deposit money banks, utility companies, insurance companies, leasing companies, pension companies to mention a few.

Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) directs all mobile money operators to NCS on or before February 28, 2012

Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed that all mobile money operators to the National Central Switch (NCS) on or before February 28, 2013. This directive was contained in a circular titled “Timeline for Interoperability and Interconnectivity” on Friday, December 21, 2012.

Mr Dipo Fatokun, Director, Banking and Payment System Department stated that this was to ensure the interoperability and interconnectivity of all the schemes.

The CBN issued licences to 16 companies to operator mobile money transactions.

Can We Do Without a Central Bank? Yes, BUT...read on

This piece was written by Martin Udogie, the Founder and Publisher of BottomLINE Newsletter

I have just picked up my last book for the year. It’s the 500-page LORDS OF FINANCE by Liaquat Ahamed. (Yes, not Ahmed)

Nigeria was amalgamated into one country in 1914. We will be 100 years old in 2014; just about a year from now (the planning for this celebration ought to begin NOW).

But it wasn’t until 1959, one year to our Independence in 1960, that we had a functional Central Bank. So how did we cope?

You might argue that, that was in the “olden” days as we like to say. But even nowadays, there are countries without their own central bank. And the list may surprise you: Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Greece, etc. They are members of 17 European countries with one common central bank, called the ECB (the European Central Bank).

This is one of those "breakthrough thinking", the hallmark of creativity and innovation, that you are taught in strategy consulting. Learning to think of the unthinkable, to think out-of-the-box. To question settled wisdom.

Example: Why do we shake with the right hand? Why do we read a book from the first chapter to the last, unlike British Prime Minister, David Cameron who reads from the last chapter to the first.

Psy’s ‘Gangnam Style’ Hits 1 Billion Views on YouTube

Psy’s ‘Gangnam Style’ Hits 1 Billion Views on YouTube; and it took just over five months to happen.

This is according to an official YouTube blog post by Kevin Alloca, YouTube Trends Manager. 

Kevin also states that PSY's success is a great testament to the universal appeal of catchy music-- and er, great equine dance moves.

France Telecom-Orange announces the launch of service for the ACE submarine cable in the first 13 countries

France Telecom-Orange and the other members of the Africa Coast to Europe (ACE) consortium announced in a ceremony held today in Banjul, The Gambia, that the ACE submarine cable is now operational for the first phase linking France and Sao Tomé & Principe. The cable, which will extend as far as South Africa for the second phase, provides connectivity to broadband internet in Africa and will add extra capacity to existing international networks.

Nearly 12,000 km of optical fibre running along the west coast of Africa have been deployed to connect 13 countries1 from France to Sao Tomé & Principe. Two landlocked countries, Mali and Niger, will also be connected through extensions to the terrestrial network. Finally, Nigeria will also be connected to the cable in 2013.

Seven of these countries – The Gambia, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, Liberia, Mauritania, Sao Tomé & Principe and Sierra Leone – will benefit for the first time from a direct connection to a submarine cable enabling them to enjoy optimal access to the international broadband network. By using this new network, the telecoms operators in these countries will now be able to develop innovative broadband services that are essential to their economic and social development.

GT Bank recommends "Trusteer" to secure your online communications with its website/internet banking portal

GT Bank is recommending "Trusteer" to its customers to secure their online communications with its website/internet banking portal and protect their account details from fraudstars.

GT Bank is one of the most innovative banking institutions in Nigeria. It was one of the first banks in Nigeria to urge its customers to use a token to carry out 3rd party transfers and payments online via the GTBank internet banking platform anywhere in the world. The token with its 128bit data encryption protects your account details against online thefts, hackers and fraudsters by generating a random code for every transaction.

ConocoPhillips to sell off its Nigerian Business to Oando Plc for $1.8bn

Earlier this week, ConocoPhillips announced it has entered into agreements to sell its Nigerian business unit for a total of $1.79 billion plus customary adjustments.ConocoPhillips has entered into agreements with affiliates of Oando PLC to sell its Nigerian business unit.

This includes two offshore properties consisting of a 95 percent operated interest in OML 131 (Chota Field) and 20 percent nonoperated interest in OPL 214 (Uge Field), as well as a 20 percent nonoperated interest in onshore OMLs 60-63 (NAOC joint venture), a 20 percent nonoperated interest in the Kwale-Okpai Independent Power Plant and a 17 percent nonoperated interest in the Brass LNG project. ConocoPhillips’ 2012 net production in Nigeria averaged 43 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day through October, comprising approximately 60 percent natural gas and 40 percent liquids. At Oct. 31, 2012, the net carrying value of ConocoPhillips’ Nigerian assets was approximately $600 million.

“This intended sale represents further progress on our asset disposition program,” said Don Wallette, executive vice president, Commercial, Business Development, and Corporate Planning. “We are pleased that Oando PLC recognizes the value of this asset.”

The 2013 BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe is now available in Nigeria. Want to buy one?

The new BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe is the first four-door Coupe in the history of the brand. It combines exclusive elegance and an impressively dynamic driving experience. Wrapped in stretched 6-series coupe sheet metal, Car and Driver says it is BMW's four-door answer to the Mercedes-Benz CLS and Audi A7 . Like the 6er coupe, it is mechanically similar to the 5-series—following the pattern of the A7 and CLS, which are rebodied versions of the Audi A6 and Benz E-class.

If you want one, you can now get one in Nigeria, courtesy of Coscharis Motors.

Speaking at the launching ceremony in Lagos few days ago, the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Coscharis Group, Dr. Cosmas Maduka said the new automobile innovation came as a step to provide the local market with the best auto wheel in the world.

Register for Auditions of “The Next Titan” Entrepreneurial Reality Show

The Next Titan is a proudly Nigerian Entrepreneurial Reality TV Show. The Season One of the 13-week Reality TV Show will see 20 talented young entrepreneurs competing in order to earn support and investments for their businesses. 

Every week, the contestants will work in two teams, each under the guidance of a project manager gotten by balloting, to compete in business-driven tasks around Lagos, Nigeria. Apart from working as teams, each of the contestants is expected to display his/her creativity on their personal business ideas in the Academy. 

They would use their ideas and creativity, along with their business acumen, to win challenges. Contestants are subjected to long hours, gruelling deadlines, intellectual challenges, personality clashes and intense scrutiny under the careful watch of their supervisors and judges of the show. 

The last person standing will win N5 million investment for his business with a brand new car and business supports. The other contestants will also go back home with prizes depending on the stages which they are evicted. Apart from these prizes, they will go home with new inspiration and 'I can do attitude' that can turn their dreams into reality.

After each task, contestants must account for their actions and be examined by the top judges. The viewers will be allowed to participate by expressing their views about the contestants. The contestants will have an opportunity of interaction with a select of top CEOs and successful entrepreneurs for advice and inspiration. 

The Competition will bring the reality of the pains and gains of entrepreneurial journey into the living rooms of the millions of viewers. 

The season one of The Next Titan will be anchored by a celebrity and professional presenter. 

The show will be watched by millions of Nigerians via terrestrial and satellite television

This show is proudly sponsored by MTN Business.

Stanbic Mobile Money Zooms Past Paga In User Signups - Transaction Volume Is Next

StanbicIBTC Mobile Money

I see it, but I still find it hard to believe. At first.

According to a recent report, Stanbic Mobile Money has achieved -

• over 600,000 registered customers
• over 790 agents nationwide
• over 7.7million agent airtime transactions
• monthly transaction value of N1.3 billion.
• N5.6 billion in transactions since launch, a year ago (December, 2011). 

Interesting.

600k signups puts Stanbic MM way ahead of Paga in subscriber volume. Might it be even possible that Stanbic has more subscribers than all the other Nigerian MM operators combined? While that'd definitely make for a great headline, there's no way to know the actual position of things, because save for Paga and now Stanbic, no other mobile money operator has released any definite numbers.

Flipboard Arrives on Android Tablets

The moment so many Android fans have been waiting for is here—and just in time for the holidays. Flipboard is available on tablets like the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1, the Nexus 10 and 7, and many more. In fact, now the entire Android community can flip through everything from friends’ updates and photos to world news, tech stories, design blogs and beyond.

Like the smartphone edition, Flipboard’s Android tablet edition was made for a specific form factor. There’s still the widget for quick access to Flipboard and the ability to share to other apps, but page layouts adapt to a larger variety of screen sizes and aspect ratios. On 10-inch devices, readers can fit more tiles on their Flipboard, making it easier to quickly get to favorite content.

If you’ve been using Flipboard on a seven-inch device like the Kindle Fire, Nook or the Nexus 7, now you’ve got a version made just for you. And if you’re new to Flipboard because you recently purchased a tablet or got one for the holidays, welcome. Get started browsing and adding great content by tapping the red ribbon in the upper right. That’s also where you can create a Flipboard Account to save everything you’ve set up, sync your other Flipboard-compatible devices and connect to social networks. Whenever you see something you like, just tap the + button to add it to your Flipboard.

Welcome, Android tablet users.

TaxiPark - 1st Online Taxi booking Service for Lagos - launches today

TaxiPark is being hailed as the first online Taxi booking Service in Lagos or even Nigeria. It hit the Nigerian market today, 20 December 2012.

It is supposed to be a platform where an individual can book for any Taxi service in Lagos and Taxi companies can also register to use the platform to manage its taxi ordering service.

I honestly don't know whether the Lagos is ripe for this service but if adopted, it will change the face of this service industry. However the promoter must be ready to entice the few private Taxi fleet companies in Lagos onto this platform. As per the yellow cabs, It may take a bit more time to convince them to use the service.

It will also help to have a mobile version rather than just the web version.

Nigeria: Rocket Internet launches Kaymu.com.ng (an ebay clone) - a marketplace, an auction and a classifieds; all in one

If there is one thing that is clear about Rocket Internet, it is the fast and furious pace of execution, expansion and domination of any market they decide to play in. They take no prisoners. They know how to be in your face.

When they entered the Nigerian market this year, they started with Kasuwa.com, an online ecommerce  site and then Sabunta.com, for fashion and accessories. In typical fashion, after testing the waters with Sabunta as a stand alone property and it didn't work, they closed it down and merged it with Kasuwa to give birth to Jumia.com.ng  Not long after, they launched Hellofood.com.ng, a food ordering business

Well the Samwer brothers-owned entity has come out with Kaymu.com.ng. Now Kaymu.com.ng is a combination of a marketplace, an auction site and a classifieds site; an ebay clone.

Pieter Verkade is the new MTN Group Chief Commercial Officer

Pieter Verkade

Pieter Verkade has been appointed new MTN Group Chief Commercial Officer, effective February 2013.

Currently the CEO of MTN Cyprus, Verkade replaces Christian de Faria, who retires in January 2013 after 6 years with the Group. MTN Group President and CEO, Sifiso Dabengwa, says Verkade’s appointment is further affirmation and a sign of confidence in the pool of talent within MTN.

“The fact that we are able to fill this strategic position with one of our own speaks volumes of the richness of MTN’s leadership pipeline, and the strides we are making to create an environment that recognises performance excellence. Pieter is a hard-working and well-accomplished executive who gets the job done.

In his new role, Pieter will be responsible for the strategic direction of the innovation, products and services strategy, as well as marketing across the Group.

“His appointment comes at a critical point for MTN, as our operating environment is changing quite rapidly. We have entered a phase where network operators have to compete on more than just products and services. We believe that Pieter possesses the right combination of experience and expertise to drive MTN’s strategic agenda to deliver relevant and competitive value propositions to our customers across segments,” says Dabengwa.

MTN launches a revamped MTN Play

MTN has launched its revamped content portal, MTN Play , in line with its commitment to enhance users’ experience and its delivery of digital products and services.

First introduced in 2009, the upgraded portal caters for a range of mobile handsets and operating systems, from very basic models to today’s most advanced smartphones and tablets.

The new-look MTN Play is much more than a digital portal for music, says Christian De Faria, MTN Group Chief Commercial Officer. Key improvements include better usability, a fresher and more appealing look, easier site navigation, better content categorisation, end user customisation and flexible payment options.

De Faria says the recent success of the MTN branded Opera Mini browser, along with customer insights, points to an MTN footprint that’s poised for exponential growth in data usage.

“This has necessitated MTN’s renewed focus on MTN Play as a key product.”

iROKING partners with ESKIMI to launch a brand new music mobile site for ESKIMI's millions of users

iROKING, Africa’s number one music site announces that is has joined forces with one of the continent’s leading mobile social networks, Eskimi, to bring the very best African artists, directly to users’ mobiles. The new site, music.eskimi.com is for the exclusive use of Eskimi’s millions of users, more than 5 million of which are in Nigeria. Registered Eskimi users can download tracks from iROKING’s catalogue of 35,000+ tracks from over 400 of West Africa’s top recording artists, directly onto their mobile via music.eskimi.com.

The new mobi site, designed exclusively for Eskimi by iROKING, is an awesome and totally seamless experience for subscribers, who will be able to play their favourite Afrobeats songs and share to their Eskimi friends. Eskimi users can also chat with their friends whilst downloading tunes from iROKING superstars such as PSquare, Iyanya, Flavour and Bracket, thanks to an integrated header that shows new messages and alerts.

Google Ventures: 2012 review - Fund grew to $300 million and >150 companies funded

Google Ventures is the venture capital investment arm of Google Inc. that makes financially driven investments in technology companies. It was founded in 2009 with a $100 million capital commitment.

According to David Krane, the General Partner, 2012 was a year of significant growth. Its fund grew to $300 million per year and the number of companies we’ve funded grew to over 150. 

Most of its investments was in Mobile (32%) and Consumer Internet (32%) companies. And worthy of note is the Nobel Prize in Medicine.

Twitter now has more than 200million monthly active users

Twitter officially announced today via its official page that it now has over 200 million monthly active users. Just a year ago, September 8 2011 to be precise, it had just crossed over 100 million active users.

I must confess I was a late adopter to Twitter, joining the Tweetosphere just last year; five years after Jack Dorsey created the "sms of the Internet" in March 2006. I was initially put off by the fact that it seemed that people tweeted unnecessary information about their lives and I felt some things should not be broadcast to everyone.

But I must say it has gained a lot of traction going by its user base, recent official tweet above and Twitter CEO Dick Costolo's most recent information that it is experiencing 400 million tweets per day.

Advertising revenues at Twitter grew 213% to $139.5 million in 2011—the company’s second full year of selling advertising—and strong international growth is expected to push the company’s ad revenues to $259.9 million in 2012, according to a forecast by eMarketer

Related information: 2012 year on Twitter

Wait, Opera's Got A Phone?

At first glance, that's what it looks like. An Opera Mini phone. Until you look more closely and spy the actual OEM's logo in some obscure part of the device. It's not an Opera Mini phone -- but Opera's distinct visual theming on them might lead quite a few to believe that the browser company has ventured into the business of making mobile devices.

Opera doesn't appear to mind, however. Because in this case, the end justifies the means. And the end? To maintain its position of dominance in the mobile browser ecosystem.

For years, Opera's mobile browsing software has enjoyed outsize popularity on mobile devices across the world, exerting unquestioned dominance in the feature phone category for its speed and compression abilities that make browsing fast and economical, even on the least capable of internet-enabled phones.

YouWiN! Women Applicants: FIRST ROUND RESULT IS OUT!!!

Are you one of the applicants for the YouWIN! Women programme? If so, you should check if you made it through the First shortlist.

YouWiN! stands for Youth Enterprise with Innovation in Nigeria.The Youth Enterprise with Innovation in Nigeria (You WiN!) Programme is a collaboration of the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Communication Technology (CT), the Ministry of Youth Development and the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development. It is an innovative business plan competition aimed at job creation by encouraging and supporting aspiring entrepreneurial youth in Nigeria to develop and execute business ideas.

YouWiN! Women is the second edition of the entrepreneurial scheme which is designed for only female entrepreneurs aged 45 years or less. It was launched on the 3rd of September 2012. 

The names of first round of successful applicants was released very early this morning on the website. 6,000 applicants made it. To find out if you are one of them, that is, if you applied, please click on this link

Fabrice Grinda leaves OLX to pursue a "new, new thing"

Fabrice Grinda

Fabrice Grinda is leaving OLX. He made this announcement in his blog post yesterday.

Fabrice Grinda is part of the formidable duo that founded OLX; along with Alec Oxenford. OLX is an internet company based in New York City and Buenos Aires, Argentina. The website hosts free user-generated classified advertisements for urban communities around the world and provides discussion forums sorted by various topics.

The company was co-founded in March 2006 by Internet entrepreneurs Fabrice Grinda and Alec Oxenford. OLX considers itself the next generation of free online classifieds. The OLX platform is used in over 96 countries including Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa and 40 languages.

OLX entered the African Classifieds landscape by way of an investment by Naspers, the South African media company. Naspers converted its leading classified properties - Dealfish in Kenya, Nigeria and Kalahariads in South Africa to OLX within the last 18 months due to its superior platform and expert resources. (Naspers owns 84% of OLX)

Juliet Ehimuan Chiazor is NCS 2012 IT Personality of the Year

Juliet Ehimuan Chiazor is NCS 2012 IT Personality of the Year. At the National Information Technology Merit Awards (NITMA) awards event held recently, She beat other nominees such as Ernest I. Osagie – Pubisher, Computer.com, Hassan U. Alao - MD, Sidmach Technologies Nigeria Limited and Sanusi Lamido Sanusi – Governor, Central Bank of Nigeria to clinch this award.

The NITMA is an annual event organized by Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) to acknowledge, celebrate and reward corporate organizations and individuals who are outstanding in their various Information Technology (IT) practice and have also contributed immensely to the development of the profession in Nigeria.

Juliet Ehimuan Chiazor is the Current Country Manager for Google Nigeria. She took up this position in April 2011. She has helped to increase the local relevance of Google to the Nigerian environment with great products and educational events.

Congrats Juliet.

Stanbic IBTC records N5.6bn worth of transactions in the first year of mobile banking operations

Last week Stanbic IBTC Bank said it had recorded N5.6bn transactions on the mobile money platform in the last one year.

This was revealed at an event in Lagos by the CEO, Mrs. Sola David-Borha. The bank also reiterated its commitment to continuously deliver innovative products and solutions and to provide technology-driven branchless banking services.

She said the organisation’s decision to launch the ‘*909# Stanbic IBTC MobileMoney’ solution last year was underscored by the bank’s strategic focus of strengthening its universal banking franchise.

She described mobile money as a game-changer which apart from enabling customers to conduct basic financial transactions such as mobile money account opening, buying airtime, deposit and receipt of cash, as well as payment of utility bills through their mobile phones, also offers enormous benefits to the Nigerian economy by channeling the huge funds in the informal sector through the banking system to engender economic development.

Glo Ghana introduces "Glo Biiiiig 5"

Mr Augustine Mamuro, Head of Commercial at Glo Mobile Ghana

Glo Mobile Ghana, the African telecommunications giant, recently outdoored a new product, the ‘Glo Biiiiig 5’, an innovative tariff plan on which all Glo customers instantly receive five times usage credit for the value of every respective recharge made.

This implies that when a subscriber loads GHC1 credit on his Glo line, the customer is automatically and immediately credited with GHC 5 worth of credit. With the additional credit, customers can call any network in Ghana send SMS’s and browse the internet. In addition, customers can also enjoy extra browsing time online with the bonus credit offered by the Biiiiig 5 product.

The Biiiiig 5 product enters the Ghana market barely three months after Glo sent market rates crushing with its Glo Gista a consumer package which enables Glo’s pre-paid subscribers to call any network in the country at only six Ghana pesewas per minute and gives away a wide range of handsome recharge bonuses and freebies.

Dr Dre - Forbes' highest paid musician in 2012 without releasing an album in 13 years

Rapper Dr. Dre, recently topped Forbes’ list of highest paid musicians, netting more than $110 million in 2012. But Dre has not released an album in 13 years. How did he get there?

Most headphones don’t allow listeners to hear “all” of the music, according to Dre, so he founded Beats Electronics with Interscope/Geffen/A&M chairman Jimmy Iovine and introduced their first set of headphones right in the midst of the financial meltdown in late 2008 flaunting a hefty price tag of more than $300. 

Beats by Dr. Dre headphones lured customers away from flimsy $20 earbuds with their signature turbocharged bass and sleek design, as well as the musician’s personal promise: Beats would allow people to “hear what the artists hear, and listen to the music the way they should: the way I do.”

New motorcycle helmet cushions you from concussion

A new helmet from 6D Helmets aims to eliminate some of the most common brain injuries suffered by riders. Styrofoam, a plastic shell, and your own head are the only things separating your brain from the curb if you have an accident. It's a standard setup that most helmet designers' use, but that arguably doesn't go far enough, as concussions are still one of the most common injuries bikers suffer in an accident.

What differentiate 6D Helmets' new products are the dual layers designed to protect a rider's head from a broader range of impact than standard helmets -- in particular, low-threshold energy impacts. A standard helmet is certainly useful in high-speed collisions, but 6D's "Omni-Directional Suspension System," or ODS, aims to keep motocross bikers safer in accidents involving less than 10mph of force.

In other words, the design aims to combat slow-speed knocks that can leave riders dizzy and impact their performance, rather than simply focusing on high-speed and more dangerous collisions between a racer and their environment.

Plateau govt, Brazilian firm sign MoU for cassava factory

Plateau State Government and a Brazilian firm, EBS Fedeta de Fedates have signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the establishment of a cassava processing factory in the state.

Governor Jonah Jang signed on behalf of the state government, while the President of EBS Fedeta de Fedetes, Mr Waldfried Schurt, signed for the firm.

Jang said agreement was a dream come true for the state as it would stimulate economic growth in the state.

The governor said the state produced large quantities of cassava, yam and potatoes which would be used by the factory to boost the revenue base of the state.

“We produce well over 431 tonnes of cassava annually and with the establishment of the factory the quantity can be doubled.

Brand New!!! You can now buy tickets to the hottest events in Nigeria from Jumia.com.ng

In what could be described as a new twist, Jumia is now selling event tickets and forms. This means that you can now buy tickets to the hottest events in Nigeria! Whether it's a concert, album launch, or just a laid-back interactive session.

So if you are currently trying to get tickets to "Christmas with Yemi Sax", "Gospel Explosion" or even forms for the APCON FIFA 13 tournament, log on to Jumia.com.ng

Interesting as this might seem, this Rocket Internet company is entering into the areas exclusively occupied by online event ticketing and management companies like Eventbrite, Afritickets and Eventiso.

What will Jumia make of this new category and how will the incumbents react?

Lets watch and see.

WIndows Phone Apps now available in 37 new countries, mostly in Africa and Asia

Microsoft has expanded its Windows Phone App Store to 37 new countries around the world, mostly in Africa and Asia. This was announced by Microsoft yesterday.

The full list of new countries receiving the App Store is as follows: Angola, Armenia, Bangladesh, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Chad, Congo (DRC), Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guinea, Haiti, Honduras, Kenya, Liechtenstein, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Mozambique, Nicaragua, Niger, Pakistan, Paraguay, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Togo, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Yemen, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

The App Store is now available in a total of 191 markets worldwide, while the web version of the Store is available in 112 markets.

Microsoft has also introduced several new features to its App Store, including universal search and support for installing apps via SD card.

StarTimes crosses the 1 million subscriber mark in Nigeria; launches DVB-T2 technology

Digital Terrestrial Technology (DTT) service in Africa, StarTimes has crossed the One million subscriber mark in Nigeria. This was disclosed by Bayo Adeniyi, the Senior Adviser, StarTimes Digital Satellite/NTA last week.

He also said that the company has launched the DVB-T2 technology in Nigeria and other parts of the continent. StarTimes also operates in Kenya, Uganda, Mozambique and Tanzania.

Mr Adebiyi said that one of the advantages of the DVB-T2 technology is its ability to offer more entertainment since is contained more channels, stressing that one frequency on DVB-T2 had the capacity of 25 channels.

StarTimes mission of ensuring every home in Nigeria enjoys affordable digital entertainment is backed by its collaboration with NTA, a strategic partnership that will help Nigeria in actualising its 2015 digital transaction deadline. StarTimes will leverage on the existing platform on NTA to provide quality digital service to every home in Nigeria. Another need StarTimes is meeting is the accessibility and affordability of digital service. StarTimes has made digital service affordable and enjoyable by all.

Its major rival in Nigeria is DSTV ("Digital Satellite Television") operated by MultiChoice's digital satellite TV service in Africa and owned by Naspers.

MTN Nigeria to invest $1.3 billion in infrastructure upgrade and expansion by 2013

CEO, MTN Nigeria - Mr Brett Goshen

MTN Nigeria has said that it would invest $1.3 billion in infrastructure upgrade and expansion by 2013.

The Chief Executive Officer of MTN Nigeria, Mr. Brett Goschen, while speaking at the commissioning of MTN Y'ello City at Victoria Island Lagos yesterday, said that the firm is making this additional investment so as to increase capacity on its network.

According to him, the Yellodrome is a structure that epitomises the MTN Y'ello City, put in place to re-affirm its commitment in giving customers ready access to a wide selection of MTN products and data/ICT services in a conducive environment.

Goschen said aside the enormous investment that MTN was making with the roll out of several Yello City outlets, the company remained committed to improving its end-to-end customer experience "from the way we communicate our products, to the actual customer experience in any of our 16 service centres and 102 connect stores nationwide, to our network quality."

Nigeria: Murtala Muhammed Airport Terminal 2 (MMA2) now offers free internet services to passengers

Murtala Muhammed Airport Terminal 2 (MMA2)

The Murtala Muhammed Airport Terminal 2 (MMA2) is clearly the best airport terminal in Nigeria even though it is for local flights And they are continuously working to remain on top. Now the Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Ltd. (BASL), operators of the Murtala Muhammed Airport Two (MMA2) say they have begun free internet service to passengers travelling through the terminal. This is even as MMA2 won the Most Efficient Airport Terminal Award of the Transport and Society Weekly newspaper recently.

According to a statement signed and issued by the company's spokesman, Mr Steve Omolale-Ajulo, the company said the service was in conjunction with iWayafrica and MultiChoice Nigeria.

"The first phase of the project has already started from the Final Departure lounge. This is one of the numerous Christmas gifts BASL is giving to its passengers.

"Other locations at the terminal, such as the Food Court, Meeters & Greeters, as well as KFC are to be considered for the facility very soon.

Pope Benedict XVI issued his first tweet today

Pope Benedict XVI launched his new, more personalized, Twitter evangelism campaign with a blessing, then answered a question on faith.

At 5:30 am Eastern Time, Pope Benedict XVI reached out to the world of digital seekers via his personal twitter profile - @pontiflex.

He began with a blessing: "Dear friends, I am pleased to get in touch with you through Twitter. Thank you for your generous response. I bless all of you from my heart."

He launched his first tweet from a new personal account at the end of his weekly general audience. The text of the Tweet, in Italian, flashed on the jumbo screens in the modernist Pope Paul VI Hall where the audience was held.

Technology Innovation Programme - TECHLAUNCHPAD - launched in Lagos

The Honourable Minister of Communication Technology, Mrs Omobola Johnson, launched a Technology Innovation Programme - called Techlaunchpad - on December 10, 2012 at Eko Hotel and Suites as part of the initiatives to develop the local software industry. This initiative is a collaboration between Federal Ministry of Communication Technology and industry partners (Chevron, ExxonMobil, Total, FirstBank, Access Bank, Accenture, Digital Jewel and others).

The Honourable Minister during the inauguration said the programme would accelerate software development in the country. To ensure a smooth take-off of the programme, a 15- man Steering Committee on the Technology Innovation Programme was also inaugurated by the minister to drive the process of selecting and mentoring young software developers for the country.

iTunes movies now available in 42 countries including Nigeria

According to Apple Insider, Apple has activated iTunes movie sales for a bulk of the countries in which the online media storefront launched earlier in December. Apple’s iTunes Store rolled out into 56 additional countries earlier this month, but Russia, Turkey, India and Indonesia were the only ones to offer movies right away.

According to Google's Zeitgeist 2012, Chelsea FC tops the most searched Sports team in Nigeria

If there was a direct correlation between Google's Zeitgeist search report on Sports teams and the performance of the Football clubs in the English premier league, Chelsea would be on top of the League Table. But alas, this is not currently so. No offence meant to Chelsea fans

The Google Zeitgeist is the annual list of most popular searches and search trends throughout the year.

The 2012 Google's Zeitgeist most searched Sports Team in Nigeria is Chelsea FC. This means that Chelsea constitutes the search query with the largest volume of searches on Google search site. This may be indicative of the number of its fans in Nigeria or the fact that they won the UEFA Champions League Cup this year. The 2nd and 3rd positions go to Arsenal FC and Barcelona FC. It is kinda surprisingly that Manchester United FC is not one of the top 3.

Naspers' owned Internet operation (MIH Group) launches a price comparison site - PriceCheck - in Nigeria

Naspers is undoubtedly an African success story and it is bent on spreading its tentacles across the globe with its numerous operations. Koos Bekker, the current CEO, has mentioned in different fora that he believes in investing in Sub-Saharan Africa, especially in Nigeria.

So it is not a surprise that one of its properties, PriceCheck, has recently berthed in Nigeria. PriceCheck is a price comparison site; eCommerce business that provides users with a way to compare prices and products while they are making a purchasing decision.

Do you want to know your year on Twitter? Try Vizify

We are coming to the end of another year, 2012. And you must have been tweeting. How would you like to know your "Golden Tweet" i.e. most popular tweet of the year as measured by retweets? Or your "Golden Follower" i.e. the person who mentioned you the most?

Vizify will help you with answers to these questions and many more. Vizify helps you transform all those interesting impressions you make online into one definitive, multidimensional, graphical biography.

See my year on Twitter below.

Why don't your try your year on social media? Click here

Will Nokia's partnership with China Mobile significantly affect its fortunes?

Nokia Lumia 920

Last week, Nokia announced its partnership with China Mobile to launch a variant of its flagship smartphone, the Lumia 920, specifically for Chinese market. The variant, the Lumia 920T will be the first TD-SCDMA Windows phone in China. With advanced location services, photography innovation, and fast mobile browsing on China Mobile's 3G network, the Lumia 920T will offer Chinese consumers the most innovative smartphone experience.

According to Stephen Elop, President and CEO of Nokia, "We are delighted to partner with China Mobile, the world's largest operator, to introduce China's first Lumia based on Windows Phone 8. People around the world are responding positively to the new Lumia devices, and we're confident that the enthusiasm will extend to China with the Lumia 920T,"

Nigerian Ladies in Tech meet at the "Geek in Pink" event - 14 December 2012

This meet-up is to explore ways in which women can play a stronger role in Nigeria’s growing information technology start-up scene which currently seems disproportionately dominated by men.

The aim is to make 2013 the year of the Nigerian Girl Geek.

While we have female powerhouses in the Nigerian tech space with the likes of Funke Opeke (CEO, MainOne Cable Company), Juliet Ehimuan (Country Manager, Google Nigeria), Lynda Saint-Nwafor (CTO, MTN Nigeria), Florence Seriki, (MD/CEO Omatek Ventures) and even Omobola Johnson (Hon. Minister of Information Technology), there is the need to create synergy to ensure that there is a steady pipeline of young women in influential roles as the start-up ecosystem opens up more in the coming years.

So this event is geared towards forming a synergy amongst women in Tech and discover areas where we can collaborate, learn, grow, network and make maximum use of all the opportunities available in Tech particularly with regards to what the CCHUB community can provide.

Date: 14th December, 2012

Venue: CcHub, 6th Floor, 294 Herbert Macaulay Way, Sabo, Yaba, Lagos

Time: 5pm – 7.30pm

Click here to register.

Google ranks Number 1 as the most shared Video brand of 2012

According to the recent report by Unruly media, Google is the number most shared video brand of 2012. This is largely due to the global success of such campaigns as Project Glass: One day. With this, Google increased the number of shares it attracted in 2012 by 196.8% from the previous year, beating Nike to the top spot by 421,359 shares.

Alcatel-Lucent to build Airtel’s network backbone across Africa

High performance IP-based network will enable new services for consumers and businesses.

Alcatel-Lucent is to help Bharti Airtel meet rapidly growing demand for mobile broadband services in its African operations by supplying advanced new IP (Internet Protocol)-based networking technology to support the delivery of new mobile broadband data and video services.

Rising smartphone ownership in Africa is driving demand for high-bandwidth mobile data services such as video calling and online gaming. To satisfy this demand and meet continued expansion, Alcatel-Lucent will evolve Airtel Africa's data transport and mobile backhaul1 networks using its IP/MPLS (IP/Multiprotocol Label Switching) technology.

NBA Celebrates 1 Billion YouTube Views with a video of fantastic moments

The Official YouTube Channel of the NBA celebrates 1 Billion views. As a Thank You to the NBA's fans, here is a video showcasing the best moments since the channel's inception.

To celebrate its massive achievement, the league put together the video mashup above to show off some of its most viral moments since becoming the first sports league to launch its own channel in 2007. There's Shaq, LeBron, Dwight Howard in an All-Star Dance-Off, Kobe Bryant's Top 10 Plays of 2007, Griffin's INSANE dunk of the year!, and many more trick shots, slams and buzzer-beaters.