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HOOZA NEWS AGENCY

Hooza Media opens regional Office in Tanzania

Hooza Media has announced the opening of the company’s Regional Office in Tanzania where it is expected to make it easier for customers in the country to access its services within the right time.

The expansion of Hooza Media services is part of the company’s long-term plan to make media and communications services available to all Africans irrespective the boundaries.

 Hooza Media has vowed to step towards faster and more modern services to reach more people across the East African Region as well as Africa as a continent.

Hooza Media CEO, Mr. Victor Nkindi says this is the possible way to expand activities in the region and in Africa in particular.

He explains that the company currently has plans to expand its operations to as much countries in Africa.

Hooza Media currently has operations in various countries including Mali, Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, Senegal, Cameroon, Kenya, Uganda, Botswana, Tanzania, Guinea, Ivory Coast and Rwanda.

press@hooza.rw

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HOOZA NEWS AGENCY

#TeamEurope supports COVID-19 vaccine development and distribution to Rwanda

#TeamEurope (EU and Member States) welcomes the announcement by Gavi on the first delivery of vaccines via the COVAX facility. Rwanda will receive a first 1.1 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine in the first quarter of 2021.

#Team Europe has substantially contributed to the COVAX facility, pledging over €850 million to help secure 1.3 billion doses of vaccination for 92 low and middle-income countries, including Rwanda.  

By the end of February, Rwanda is expected to receive 996,000 doses of the AstraZeneca/Oxford vaccine and 102,960 of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.

Team Europe commends Rwanda for its preparedness to receive the vaccines, including the required setting up and management of the ultra-cold chain.

EU Ambassador Nicola Bellomo said; “This is a visible demonstration of our engagement to support equal and global access to a safe and efficient vaccine for everyone in the world. No region of the world is safe until we are all safe COVAX is and remains the best vehicle to ensure international vaccine solidarity and will be key to help end the acute phase of the pandemic.

The EU has been leading efforts to accelerate the development, manufacturing and deployment of vaccines against COVID-19 internally, and has been a key initiator of the global framework, together with the World Health Organisation (WHO) and international health organizations, to accelerate the research and development of COVID-19-vaccines, tests and treatments and a top contributor from the start to COVAX.

The COVAX Facility – co-led by the Gavi Vaccine Alliance, the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and the WHO – aims to accelerate the development and manufacture of COVID-19 vaccines and to guarantee fair and equitable access for every country in the world. All COVAX participant countries will receive individual allocations of vaccine doses totalling 147 million doses by June 2021. By the end of the year, COVAX has already secured 1.6 million doses and expects to increase this number to reach 2.3 billion.

press@hooza.rw

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HOOZA NEWS AGENCY

The crucial role of network slicing in realizing the full potential of 5G

By Zoran Lazarevic, Chief Technology Officer at Ericsson Middle East and Africa

The digital era has the potential to transform industry and society, and with the introduction of 5G around the world, countless new business models have become a possibility. New-generation technology and services come with their unique connectivity and performance-related challenges. So, communication service providers (CSP) need efficient and flexible technologies to meet the demands of these new services.

This is where network slicing comes in – providing the capability to enable new business models across a broad industry spectrum. This solution allows operators to segment the network to support particular services and deploy multiple logical networks for different service types over one common infrastructure.

With the combination of 5G and network slicing, CSPs can offer new services, such as augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and real-time automation, with guaranteed performance to the enterprise and mobile broadband (MBB) market segment. In doing so, access to potential new sources of revenue, and improved ways to support their customers, will open up.

5G RAN slicing for next-level services

In the era of industry digitalization, efficient solutions are needed to address simultaneously services that need high bandwidth and services with low latency or ultra-reliability. These new services will have different/unique performance requirements characterized through the service level agreements (SLA). The CSPs need the capability to guaranty fulfillment of SLAs while creating end-to-end that spans over the radio access network (RAN), core network and transport network. The ability to monitor and control performances in the RAN is the vital part and this is where the 5G RAN slicing solution comes to play.

The 5G RAN slicing solution allows for the slice-aware observability, dynamic radio resource partitioning on a 1ms level, quality of service, and slice orchestration functionality. This way, service providers can deliver SLA based 5G slices to drive innovation in smart manufacturing, healthcare, online gaming and other emerging enterprise and MBB use cases.

RAN slicing builds on existing 5G network investments and secures the efficient allocation of limited radio resources to facilitate the creation of next-level services while guaranteeing the fulfillment of SLAs. RAN slicing will considerably shorten time-to-market and improve the total cost of ownership for the CSPs when offering the new services.

In offering the new services, CSPs are initially focusing on augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), cloud gaming, and other MBB-based use cases in the consumer market segment. As end-to-end network slicing matures, use cases will continue to grow both in number and complexity. Examples in the enterprise verticals already include smart surveillance, real-time automation and remote operation. Strong interest has been observed in tailor-made slices for the financial services sector in certain Asian countries.

With the increased number of slices, created for various use cases, complexity will also increase. This increased complexity will demand end-to-end slice orchestration and automation to carry out slice lifecycle management.

RAN slice orchestration is part of end-to-end slice orchestration, enabling automation of slice lifecycle management tasks such as slice provisioning, activation, supervision and service assurance.

Ericsson RAN slicing solution enables service providers to offer differentiated handling of new services with respective quality of service and radio resource management for SLA fulfillment. What’s more, our solution is scalable and flexible enough to support a growing number of slicing use cases with faster time to market.

Ericsson network slicing solution provides the opportunity to monetize CSPs 5G investment and open the door for the new revenue streams from enterprise and MBB segment. The objective is to achieve full dynamic orchestration of end-to-end slicing with optimal automation.

For more information on this topic, read our latest paper in which we discuss the importance of RAN slicing in delivering on the promise of 5G.

Download the 5G RAN slicing report here

Categories
CULTURE & ACTU

La résistance de Bisesero (Rwanda) vous est racontée : un rendez-vous très attendu avec l’Histoire

À l’occasion du lancement de Hooza Podcast*, Hooza Media annonce la diffusion, à partir de ce vendredi 5 février, de la version audio du livre «  Bisesero, le Ghetto de Varsovie Rwandais  » de l’écrivain français Serge Farnel : des épisodes de 15 minutes, diffusés tous les 2 jours sur la plateforme, permettront aux auditeurs francophones de poursuivre, pendant plusieurs semaines, l’écoute de ce récit directement et gratuitement sur leur téléphone. Des témoignages de rescapés et d’anciens génocidaires, racontant notamment la participation de Blancs au grand massacre du 13 mai 1994 à Bisesero [Ouest du Rwanda], seront par ailleurs mis en ligne afin de permettre une véritable immersion des auditeurs, les aidant à mieux s’imprégner de cette partie ô combien sensible de l’Histoire contemporaine. Igihe s’est entretenu avec Serge Farnel au sujet de ce lancement.

Igihe : Pourquoi proposer une version audio de votre livre ?

Serge Farnel : C’est une façon de permettre au plus grand nombre d’accéder à ce pan essentiel de l’Histoire contemporaine africaine qu’a constitué cette ultime résistance de civils tutsi au dernier génocide du 20e siècle. Cet acte inouï de bravoure eut lieu dans les hautes collines de Bisesero, dans l’ouest du Rwanda. Cette histoire nous concerne tous, que nous soyons rwandais ou non, que nous vivions en Afrique ou non.C’est notre Histoire à tous. Or tout le monde ne lit pas ou ne peut pas facilement se concentrer sur la lecture d’un récit aussi dense. Aussi, quand Victor Nkindi, le fondateur de Hooza Media, m’a suggéré de l’enregistrer dans ses studios, j’ai trouvé l’idée formidable.

Quand avez-vous réalisé cet enregistrement ?

En 2014, alors que je présentais ce livre au Rwanda à l’occasion de la 20e commémoration du génocide. Tout le monde était alors regroupé dans la capitale. Je m’étais, pour ma part, rendu à Bisesero car je tenais à être aux côtés des Basesero[Habitants de Bisesero] ce jour-là.

On se souvient que des rescapés du grand massacre du 13 mai à Bisesero étaient venus, cette année, au mémorial de Kigali, témoigner de la participation active de Blancs à ce massacre.

Oui, les caméras de la télévision rwandaise étaient là également et les téléspectateurs rwandais ont pu les voir et les entendre parler de ces Blancs du 13 mai dans ce lieu haut en symbole. Quant au public présent, ils ont pu poser toute les questions qu’ils désiraient alors poser. C’était un moment important pour ces rescapés.Siméon Karamaga, chef adjoint de la résistance civile de Bisesero, racontant avoir vu des Blancs se réunir le 12 mai 1994 avec ses assassins à Ruhuha (Bisesero).

Expliquez-nous comment les auditeurs vont pouvoir écouter ce récit.

Victor Nkindi a tenu à le rendre accessible à tous facilement et gratuitement. Les futurs auditeurs n’auront ainsi qu’à cliquer sur un lien [https://hoozapodcast.glideapp.ioqui installera sur leur téléphone mobile une nouvelle icône, « Hooza podcast  », leur permettant, une fois tous les deux jours, d’écouter gratuitement 15 minutes de la narration de cette histoire.

Une sorte de rendez-vous réguliers, en somme ?

C’est exactement ça. Et bien sûr, si vous n’avez pas pu écouter l’épisode précédent, vous le trouverez sur la plateforme de Hooza.

La particularité de ce récit, c’est qu’il s’appuie sur de très nombreux témoignages, c’est bien cela ?

Très nombreux, oui. Il s’agissait en effet de construire le récit le plus complet possible de l’Histoire du génocide à Bisesero. Ces témoignages, je ne suis pas le seul à les avoir recueillis. Je m’appuie ainsi sur de très nombreuses sources : African Rights, Commission Mucyo, reportages journalistiques, autres enquêteurs …

La particularité des témoignages que vous avez vous-mêmes recueillis, c’est toutefois qu’ils concernent la participation directe de Blancs au massacre du 13 mai qui fit près de 50 000 victimes civiles à Bisesero.

Tout à fait. Mais je ne suis pas le seul à en avoir recueillis. Il y a ainsi ceux recueillis par un deuxième enquêteur qui est d’ailleurs, comme il l’explique en détail dans un article, retombé par hasard sur cette participation, et ce par un canal tout à fait différent du mien. J’ai appris qu’il avait enfin récemment pu revenir au Rwanda. Et puis un troisième enquêteur qui a également confirmé cette présence de Blancs le 13 mai.

J’ai toutefois été informé qu’il était interdit, depuis quelques années, d’interroger des rescapés de Bisesero en dehors d’une liste restreinte de témoins qui n’ont, eux, pas vu ces Blancs du 13 mai. Ceci n’a pas manqué de surprendre, il y a deux ans, un journaliste français de RFI qui en a alerté les auditeurs sur les ondes de la radio française. Mais je ne doute pas que les choses vont évoluer, et ce paisiblement. Le Rwanda est trop attaché à l’entière vérité pour passer, même partiellement, à côté de son Histoire.

D’autant que la présence de ces Blancs le 13 mai avec des armes lourdes signe l’incroyable courage de ces civils tutsi hors du commun, en ce que ce fut là le seul moyen de venir à bout de leur résistance. Aussi, poser entièrement leur Histoire est un hommage dont on ne doit pas les priver. C’est un devoir que nous avons tous vis-à-vis d’eux.

Pour en revenir aux témoins que j’ai interrogés moi-même, j’y inclue aussi ceux que j’ai recueillis et qui ne mentionnent pas les Blancs du 13 mai, soit parce que leur témoignage concerne un autre endroit, soit parce qu’il n’en ont pas vus eux-mêmes ce jour-là à Bisesero.

Le récit ne concerne donc pas que Bisesero ?

En fait si, mais on ne peut pas saisir ce qu’il s’y passe sans comprendre ce qui amène tant de Tutsi à progressivement rejoindre cet endroit. Or pour cela, il faut également raconter ce qu’il se passe dans la ville de Kibuye située en contrebas des hautes collines de Bisesero, ville que certains Tutsi vont parvenir à fuir pour éviter d’être massacrés dans les stades ou les églises.

Et si on parle, par exemple, du stade de Kibuye, il nous faut comprendre comment les génocidaires sont parvenus à les y regrouper. Cela nous amène dans une autre commune, celle de Mabanza, où l’on suit une famille forcée de faire une marche d’une vingtaine de kilomètres à pieds pour rejoindre ce stade. Elle va y entrer alors que s’y trouve (ou s’y trouvera, je ne me souviens plus qui y arrive en premier) une autre famille que l’auditeur suit parallèlement, mais qui, elle, habitait en face du stade.

C’est ça, l’esprit du récit : avoir les yeux partout et tout le temps pour être en mesure de construire ces événements dans ses plus fins détails, aussi bien dans l’espace que dans le temps.

Vous disiez également, pour ce qui concerne les témoignages du 13 mai, que vous incluez ceux qui n’ont pas vu de Blancs ?

Oui, et ce dans le même esprit que ce que je viens de vous expliquer. Il faut savoir que même si un nombre significatif de rescapés témoignent de la présence de ces Blancs le 13 mai, ce nombre reste probablement très faible en pourcentage de l’ensemble des rescapés de Bisesero.

Et pour cause : quand bien même leur présence fut déterminante, ces Blancs pourraient bien n’avoir été qu’entre vingt et quarante, au milieu d’une foule de milliers de génocidaires rwandais, militaires, milices Interahamwe ou encore paysans hutu. Or les Tutsi couraient pour échapper au feu des armes lourdes et des mitraillettes, pour échapper aux grenades et aux machettes. Tous n’ont dès lors bien sûr pas été en mesure de les apercevoir.

C’est l’occasion de dire que si vous ne cherchez pas à rencontrer ceux susceptibles de témoigner de leur présence, vous ne tomberez qu’avec peu de chance sur ce type de témoignage, d’autant qu’un rescapé les ayant vus ne vous livrera pas nécessairement spontanément une information dont il ignore qu’elle vous importe. Mais heureusement, il en reste suffisamment qui peuvent témoigner de leur présence et qui d’ailleurs l’ont déjà fait.Serge Farnel et Victor Nkindi dans les studios d’enregistrement de Hooza Media

Comment le public a-t-il réagi à cette information de la participation active de Blancs à ce grand massacre ?

Dès lors que l’on prend le temps de se confronter à ces témoignages, on ne peut pas faire grand-chose d’autre que d’accepter de prendre en compte ce qu’ils nous disent. Il y a toutefois probablement eu, pour certaines personnes, une phase de sidération, voire d’impossibilité à faire face à une telle information, d’autant plus s’ils ont été sous l’influence de cette tentative, un temps, de disqualifier les témoins qu’on est allé jusqu’à calomnier !

J’ai cependant, depuis que j’en ai été informé, publié sur le site web de l’enquête [www.bisesero.net] les éléments permettant de mettre un terme à cela. On va considérer que cela aura fait partie du chemin que doivent emprunter les faits dans leur marche vers l’Histoire et que le proverbe rwandais résume à sa façon : « La vérité traverse l’épreuve du feu sans se consumer. »

En revanche, il est légitime de se demander comment la présence de Blancs au massacre du 13 mai n’aura été inscrite dans l’Histoire que si longtemps après les faits, et notamment après la commission Mucyo [Commission rwandaise chargée de rassembler les preuves de l’implication de la France dans le génocide, ndlr]

Je l’ai expliqué sur le site de l’enquête ainsi que dans mon premier livre. Il se trouve que j’ai accompagné, en tant que journaliste, cette commission en décembre 2006 à Bisesero. Elle a concentré son enquête sur les trois jours du 27 au 30 juin 1994 de l’opération Turquoise [mission officielle française ayant débuté le 22 juin 1994 au Rwanda, ndlr], ce qui se comprend dès lors que sa mission était de rassembler les preuves de l’implication de la France dans le génocide.

Il lui fallait donc se concentrer sur les dates des missions officielles françaises. Aussi elle a fait exactement ce pour quoi elle avait été missionnée. Et elle l’a fait d’une manière admirable. Sur ce point, le travail qu’a fourni cette commission est, pour l’Histoire, exceptionnel. Mon enquête a démarré, elle, un an après la publication de son rapport, et j’ai aussitôt prévenu M. Mucyo de ce que je venais de découvrir.

Quand précisément l’avez-vous informé ?

Juste après avoir enregistré les premiers témoignages de la présence de Blancs les 12 et 13 mai à Bisesero. De retour à Kigali, la première chose que j’ai faite est de prévenir par téléphone un des commissaires de la commission Mucyo, après quoi j’ai appelé son président, autrement dit Jean de Dieu Mucyo lui-même, qui était alors secrétaire exécutif de la CNLG [Commission nationale de lutte contre le génocide]. Ce dernier a immédiatement tenu à me rencontrer. M. Mucyo et moi-même avons alors longuement discuté pour essayer de comprendre qui pouvaient bien être ces Blancs.

Après avoir analysé les rushes dont je lui ai laissé une copie dans un souci de totale transparence, il m’a demandé de revenir pour poursuivre mon enquête, allant jusqu’à participer, avec Tharcisse Karugarama, alors ministre rwandais de la Justice, à son financement. Quand il me l’a demandé, je n’ai senti aucune gêne de sa part. Il avait, au cours des deux années qui précèdent, enquêté avec son équipe sur la partie qui lui avait été confiée. Quant à moi, je ne faisais qu’amener un élément supplémentaire relatif à une période située, elle, en dehors des missions officielles françaises. En effet, le grand massacre de Bisesero a eu lieu le 13 mai, autrement dit après la fin de l’opération française Amaryllis d’évacuation des Occidentaux (15 avril) et avant le début de l’opération française Turquoise (22 juin), mission présentée comme humanitaire.

Revenons au récit que vont entendre les auditeurs. Vous expliquez dans votre livre que ce n’est pas votre livre, mais celui des témoins. Expliquez-nous.

Ce n’est pas juste une formule : c’est la nature même de ce récit. Le texte a, pour une grande partie, été construit avec les mots des témoins. J’ai pris soin de rester au plus près de leur parole. Concrètement : une phrase peut être constituée par un ou plusieurs extraits de leur témoignage, ce afin de tendre vers un observateur qui aurait vu la scène sous plusieurs angles, ce qui n’est évidemment pas possible pour une seule personne.

J’ai enfin pris soin de rester au plus près de leurs mots en préservant aussi bien le contenu de leur récit que leur façon de le raconter. Quand on me dit qu’un « gros fusil » parvenait à envoyer des balles qui faisaient « trembler la colline », je ne traduis pas cela en parlant d’un tir à l’arme lourde, mais je laisse les choses ainsi. Aussi ce récit est-il vraiment le leur. J’ajoute enfin que toutes les traductions ont été vérifiées mot à mot par des Rwandaises (sept Rwandaises ont participé à ce formidable travail).

Le livre est par ailleurs très sourcé.

Toutes les phrases de ce récit sont associées à une note en fin d’ouvrage. Lorsqu’il m’arrive de faire une analyse personnelle, la note indique « note de l’auteur ». Aussi le lecteur sait d’où vient tout ce qui est écrit. Les auditeurs doivent donc savoir que tout ce qu’ils vont entendre est sourcé.

Donc, des épisodes de 15 minutes tous les deux jours. Cela nous amène jusqu’à quelle date ?

Fin de l’année.

Qu’attendez-vous de cet événement ?

Qu’il contribue à faire connaître ce pan de l’Histoire à mes contemporains, tout en espérant que le Rwanda fera ce qu’il faut, avant qu’il ne soit trop tard, pour ne pas laisser les génocidaires blancs du 13 mai impunément en liberté, et ce qu’il soient français ou non, qu’ils aient alors été des soldats en active dans l’armée ou bien des mercenaires. Qu’importe ! Mais cessons de perdre du temps. Ils doivent rendre des comptes.

Une des pistes sérieuses est celle des hommes du mercenaire Paul Barril qui ont probablement fait partie de ce groupe de génocidaires. Un certain nombre éléments factuels le laissent penser. Et ces hommes sont identifiables. On parle tout de même de cinquante mille civils massacrés en une journée ! Ne l’oublions pas. Notre responsabilité à ne pas agir est énorme devant l’Histoire.

*Hooza Podcast est une application gratuite au contenu proposé libre d’accès, téléchargeable sous le lien https://hoozapodcast.glideapp.io
Site web de l’enquête : www.bisesero.net

Lisez l’article originale https://fr.igihe.com/spip.php?page=mv2_article&id_article=29607

Categories
HOOZA NEWS AGENCY

Ericsson reports major achievements as Fourth quarter and Full year 2020 Statistics are released

Ericsson, a company that specializes in communications technology and services with headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden, has released a quarterly report on the company’s business and investment figures for the full year 2020

There are exciting statistics, according to Börje Ekholm, President and CEO of Ericsson

Commenting on the report, Börje Ekholm said “As we navigate through the pandemic, health and well-being of our colleagues, customers and partners is our number one priority.”

He explains that “Despite the challenges, our people continued to deliver and to serve our customers with very limited disturbances. Our R&D investments have continued to drive both technology leadership and cost efficiency which have led to increased market share and improved financial performance.”

“We are today a leader in 5G with 127 commercial contracts and 79 operating networks around the world.” Börje Ekholm adds

According to statistics, Ericsson Organic sales grew by 5% for the full year 2020. The company’s operating margin of 12.5% (5.0%) exceeded the 2020 target and reached the 2022 Group target range two years early.

Networks sales grew organically by 20%, reporting a gross margin of 43.5% (41.1%) for Q4. This reflects continued high activity levels in North America and North East Asia, and also in Europe where Ericsson further increased market share.

The report shows that Networks delivered an operating margin of 19% for full-year 2020 – well above the 15%-17% target.

“Investing in R&D is fundamental to our strategy. Since 2017 we have increased R&D investment by SEK 10 b. and delivered SEK 16 b. of improved operating income. Our growth during 2020 is built on a strong and competitive 5G portfolio.” Börje Ekholm, Ericsson President and CEO reveals.

Ericsson Digital Services gross margin grew to 41.0% (38.1%) in Q4. From 2017 to 2020, gross margin excluding restructuring charges and items affecting comparability increased from 29% to 42%, as a result of streamlined product portfolio, fewer critical contracts, a growing portion of software sales and lower service delivery costs.

Börje Ekholm
President & CEO of Ericsson

“We continue to execute on the turnaround plan and the operating income of SEK 0.5 b. in Q4 is the best quarterly result to date. The cloud-native 5G portfolio has a high win ratio and significant new customer contracts will start to generate revenues during the next 12-18 months. By selective R&D investments to accelerate our growth portfolio, we aim to capture further opportunities.” Says the President of Ericsson

Managed Services delivered a gross margin of 17.7% (15.4%) in Q4. Sales declined on operator consolidation in the US during 2020. The full-year 2020 operating margin was 8.1% – above the 5%-8% target. We expect the margin profile to improve further with increasing sales of our Operations Engine with its high value-added services, driven by R&D investments in AI and automation. We see increasingly positive response from customers to our new portfolio.

Emerging Business and Other sales are growing in enterprise offerings such as IoT Platforms, complemented by the acquisition of Cradlepoint.

 Gross margin improved to 33.8% (15.1%) driven by operational leverage from growth and lower cost as a result of the exited Edge Gravity business.

Cradlepoint drives new revenues for mobile service providers and strengthens Ericsson position in the 5G enterprise market, alongside our existing Dedicated Networks and IoT portfolio.

The underlying business in Cradlepoint develops according to plan.

However, reported sales and costs for Cradlepoint are impacted by purchase price allocations and during 2021 the operating margin is expected to be negatively impacted by approximately -1 percentage point due to amortization of intangibles and increased cost for market expansion.

5G acceleration

Börje Ekholm noted that “The pandemic has fast forwarded the digitalization of societies, including remote working, by months if not years. A resilient digital infrastructure is critical. We see more signs that countries and enterprises see 5G as a key access technology, with increasing deployment speed in Australia, the Middle East, North East Asia and the US. The pandemic has exposed the digital divide and rapid deployment of 5G is a fast way to bridge the divide.

According to Ericsson President “The Swedish telecom regulator’s decision to exclude Chinese vendors from 5G networks may create exposure for Ericsson operations in China.”

Our business in 180 markets today has been built on free trade and open, competitive markets. This has also ensured the development of a single global standard for mobile communication. It is critical that responses to the geopolitical situation safeguard the extraordinary value associated with those operating standards for 5G and beyond.” He said

During 2020, Ericsson further reinforced its strong commitment to ethics and compliance.

The company increased the investment with the recruitment of additional dedicated resources and the deployment of new or revised processes and controls.

“As a vital cornerstone, we put focus on establishing a durable ethical culture that is built on individual accountability for responsible business practices. The ongoing independent monitorship is providing valuable contributions to achieving our ambition.” Börje Ekholm said

“Long-term business fundamentals remain strong and we will continue to invest in further strengthening our portfolio and growing our global footprint. While we expect temporary negative impact during 2021 from IPR renewals, Cradlepoint and investments to strengthen our long-term business, we remain fully committed to the 2022 target as a milestone towards the long-term target of 15%-18%.” Börje Ekholm assured

Fourth quarter highlights

  • Sales adjusted for comparable units and currency grew by 13% YoY mainly driven by sales in North East Asia, Europe and North America. Reported sales were SEK 69.6 (66.4) b.
  • Gross margin excluding restructuring charges improved to 40.6% (37.1%) with margin improvements in all segments. Reported gross margin improved to 40.6% (36.8%).
  • Operating income excluding restructuring charges improved to SEK 11.0 b. (15.8% operating margin) from SEK 6.5 b. (9.7% operating margin) mainly driven by Networks. Reported operating income was SEK 11.0 (6.1) b.
  • Networks sales increased by 20% YoY, adjusted for comparable units and currency. Operating margin excluding restructuring charges was 21.5% (14.5%).
  • Reported net income was SEK 7.2 (4.5) b.
  • Free cash flow before M&A was SEK 12.8 (-1.9) b. Q4 2019 included a payment of SEK 10.1 b. related to the resolution of the US SEC and DOJ investigations. Net cash Dec 31, 2020, was SEK 41.9 (34.5) b. 

Full-year highlights

  • Sales adj. for comp. units and currency grew by 5%, with Networks growing by 10%. Reported sales increased by 2% to SEK 232.4 b.
  • Gross margin excl. restructuring charges was 40.6% (37.5%), with improvements in all segments.
  • Reported operating income improved to SEK 27.8 (10.6) b.  
  • Reported net income was SEK 17.6 (1.8) b.
  • Free cash flow before M&A amounted to SEK 22.3 (7.6) b. Full-year 2019 included a payment of SEK 10.1 b. related to the resolution of the US SEC and DOJ investigations.
  • The Board of Directors will propose a dividend for 2020 of SEK 2.00 (1.50) per share to the AGM.

Planning assumptions highlights (please see the quarterly report for complete planning assumptions)

  • Three-year average reported sales seasonality between Q4 and Q1 is -24%; however, the seasonal effect may be somewhat less pronounced due to 5G deployment in some of Ericsson’s markets.
SEK b.Q4
2020
Q4
2019
YoY
change
Q3
2020
QoQ
change
Jan-Dec
2020
Jan-Dec
2019
YoY
change
Net sales69.666.45%57.521%232.4227.22%
 Sales growth adj. for comparable units and currency – – 13%– – – – 5%
Gross margin 40.6%36.8%– 43.1%– 40.3%37.3%– 
Operating income (loss) 11.06.180%8.627%27.810.6163%
Operating margin 15.8%9.2%– 15.0%– 12.0%4.6%– 
Net income (loss) 7.24.560%5.629%17.61.8– 
EPS diluted, SEK 2.261.3370%1.6140%5.260.67– 

Measures excl. restructuring charges and other items affecting comparability[1]
Gross margin excluding restructuring charges 40.6%37.1%– 43.2%– 40.6%37.5%– 
Operating income excl. restr. charges & items affecting compar. in 2019[2] 11.05.792%9.023%29.122.132%
Operating margin excl. restr. charges & items affecting compar. in 2019[2] 15.8%8.6%– 15.6%– 12.5%9.7%– 
Free cash flow before M&A 12.8-1.9– 3.9– 22.37.6192%
Net cash, end of period 41.934.521%41.51%41.934.521%

[1]Non-IFRS financial measures are reconciled at the end of this report to the most directly reconcilable line items in the financial statements.

[2]Operating income excludes restructuring charges in all periods and cost provisions related to the resolution of the SEC and DOJ investigations of SEK -11.5 b. in Q3 2019 as well as a partial release of the same provision of SEK 0.7 b. in Q4 2019

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CULTURE & ACTU

Senegal: Journée dédiée aux victimes de l’Holocauste

  • Israël se souvient et prévient contre le négationnisme

Ce mercredi 27 janvier, a eu lieu la Journée internationale dédiée à la mémoire des victimes de l’holocauste. La pandémie de Covid-19 interdisant les rassemblements, l’évènement s’est déroulé via vidéoconférence.

Mais, la distance n’a en rien atténué l’engouement des participants à la réunion virtuelle.

Tous se sont rejoints dans une même idée : pérenniser cette mémoire et la transmettre à la jeunesse.

Ce, en vue de l’aider à comprendre l’histoire et ne pas tomber dans le piège de la haine. «Tous, ensemble, contre la haine !» Tel est le message lancé par son excellence Roï Rosenblit, Ambassadeur de l’État d’Israël au Sénégal. Ce dernier est revenu sur le parcours de sa famille qui fait partie de celles qui ont échappé à ce qu’il assimile à «la plus grande usine à mort dans le monde».

Guérir de cette haine est aussi le souhait du Secrétaire général de l’Organisation des Nations unies qui a également pris part à la rencontre virtuelle. Cette dernière a vu la participation de Damian Cardona- Onses, Directeur du Centre de l’Information

des Nations unies, et de Dimitri Sanga, Directeur du bureau régional multisectoriel de l’Unesco pour l’Afrique de l’Ouest-Sahel.

L’occasion a été saisie par d’autres participants pour rappeler que le drame de l’holocauste n’est pas une question strictement juive. «Ça n’arrive pas qu’à l’autre», dira l’une d’eux. Au contraire, cet évènement douloureux interpelle tout le monde. Borso Tall, travailleur sociale et fondatrice du réseau Young Advocates for Human Rights (Yahr), considère que contre le négationnisme qui nie l’horreur des chambres

à gaz et qui gagne de plus en plus de terrain, il faut initier un travail de conscientisation et de sensibilisation à travers l’éducation.

L’holocauste, dit-elle, «c’est quelque chose qu’on ne devrait plus voir dans le monde». Et pourtant, le monde a connu d’autres génocides tels que celui du Rwanda. Un autre

sombre épisode dans la mémoire collective universelle, que la réunion virtuelle a souligné ; tout en appuyant sur le fait que ces deux drames ont pour soubassement la

haine. D’où l’importance de la transmission évoquée par Roï Rosenblit.

«Les jeunes ont besoin de savoir ce qui s’est passé», dit-il.

Ainsi, après une courte vidéo diffusée à l’occasion de la commémoration, Simon Henri Goldberg, un de ceux qui se sont donné comme mission de pérenniser la mémoire

des victimes du nazisme, est revenu sur l’importance de la «gestion d’un legs moral et spirituel».

Pour lui, c’est la meilleure manière pour «apprendre aux jeunes à répondre aux manipulateurs de l’Histoire».

Moussa SECK (stagiaire) http://lesoleil.sn/

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CULTURE & ACTU

La société française Groupe Duval s’apprête à construire un bâtiment commercial à Kigali.

Cette semaine, le bureau du président rwandais a annoncé la rencontre de Paul Kagame avec le PDG du Groupe Duval, Eric Duval, et son équipe, pour discuter des projets que la société envisage de lancer au Rwanda.

Le Groupe Duval est une société française fondée en 1996 par Eric Duval et dirigée par Pauline Duval. Elle compte plus de 4 000 employés et au cours des 25 dernières années, Elle a gagné 700 millions de dollars grâce à l’investissement dans les  projets de construction.

Au Rwanda, ses activités sont gérées par Duval Great Lakes Ltd dirigée par Vicky Murabukirwa, Ingénieur de formation.

Le Groupe Duval a investi dans des projets de bâtiments et travaux publics, d’hôtellerie et d’agro alimentaire parmi d’autres.

Parmi les projets de Duval Great Lakes Ltd pour le Rwanda, citons l’un des plus uniques : celui de la construction du Inzovu Mall à Kimihurura à côté du Kigali Convention Center et qui abritera des magasins de renom tels que Zara, Levi’s, Lacoste ou H&M entre autre.

Le bâtiment commercial moderne sera construit de manière à respecter les normes écologiques. Le bâtiment accueillera également la société hôtelière française Odalys City Business Apart Hotel.

Nommé «INZOVU», le bâtiment présente une variété d’activités commerciales, de jeux, de divertissements, de restaurants parmi d’autres services.

On s’attend également à ce qu’il participe a l’attraction de touristes visitant le Rwanda.

L’année 2021 verra le commencement du projet et le début travaux de construction.

La société sera également chargée de la gestion du nouveau parcours de golf qui se situe dans un quartier chic de Nyarutarama  et cette gestion se fera via UGolf Great Lakes Ltd, une filiale d’UGolf actuellement contrôlée par le Groupe Duval. 

press@hooza.rw

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HOOZA NEWS AGENCY

Digital Inclusion: What Does Equal Access To Education Mean In Digital Age?

The COVID-19 crisis, and the impact which it has had on learning across the world, has highlighted many of the digital disparities which exist in today’s world. At a time when many of the world’s students shifted from physical to digital, we were also faced with the hard truth that today there are still 3.6 billion people in the world who are unconnected.

For students in the connected half of the world, the story is much different. While 1.2 billion children were affected by school closures across much of the world, our recent Consumer COVID-19 report found that students were able to substitute physical learning by spending 230 percent more time on digital learning tools such as Google Class, Epic! and Seesaw Class.

This of course is a significant rise, but it is also an acceleration of a trend which we have steadily been tracking since our first Connect To Learn program exactly ten years ago.

The State of Broadband 2020 report estimates that there are twice as many people today who use the Internet compared to 2010. This rise in digital literacy, together with the imminent period of rapid digitalization of the economy, means that ensuring fair and equal access to both education and future job markets will rest on the extent of digital inclusion within our societies.

What is digital inclusion and why is it so important today?

Today, technology plays a much bigger role in the quality and scope of how we learn, such as new digital learning platforms which are estimated to reach 350 billion USD by 2025; what we learn, with a growing emphasis on programming, robotics, AI and automation; and how we can use it in the job market, with digital skillsets increasingly becoming a prerequisite of tomorrow’s workforce.

The changes which are happening today show the disparity between the developed and undeveloped world. If you are not connected, that shows you the leap which you have to make between the connectivity aspect, access to education and benefits which are derived from that.

Closing this digital divide, with those who are not connected or not considered to be digitally literate, is imperative to ensuring a fair distribution of digital opportunities across countries, locations, gender, socioeconomic status, and age.

Access to education in the digital age

In 2010, we co-founded the Connect To Learn initiative with the Earth Institute at Columbia University and Millennium Promise, with a focus on delivering connectivity and ICT tools to enhance teaching and learning in unconnected, underprivileged and largely unrepresented communities.

Since our first projects in the Millennium Villages, we’ve helped to connect and increase the digital inclusion of more than 200,000 students worldwide. As the program has evolved, we have increased our efforts to close the digital divide not just in terms of connectivity, but from a content, syllabus and platform side which is fundamental.

As a technology company, we quickly discovered that we can offer so much more than connectivity, but furthermore can help improve learning processes and methodologies so learning can become more impactful. For example, through partnerships with like-minded organizations, we have helped to digitalize and disseminate content through digital learning tools such as mobile apps.

One of the biggest differences from ten years ago is also that the nature of technology in an educational context, both as a medium and a means to enter the job market was still relatively immature as the landscape has evolved, we’ve come to understand the need to personalize and individualize learning so that we can improve learning outcomes in a meaningful way.

Giving people access to the right type of content is one aspect, another equally critical aspect is the human element. On top of the digital layer, students will still always need the engagement, inspiration and activation that comes from teachers and trainers who know about the topic. I believe that, even in the digital age, technology will never be able to replace this interaction, but rather can serve as an increasingly innovative medium for those critical learner-instructor interactions, such as through the Internet of Skills.

Digital inclusion through public-private partnerships

Zohra Yermeche

Today, there is a significant need for digital skills courses. Key technology areas such as AI, robotics and app development are advancing at such a rapid pace, which can make it difficult to ensure an effective transfer of competence to emerging workforces.

Such is the pace of change for topics such as these, public academic institutions will invariably struggle to take learning beyond a basic theoretical level. Public-private partnerships will therefore be key to addressing this, by developing advanced curriculums and delivering the necessary quality and scale of access.

As a sustainability pioneer in the private sector, we’ve understood the power of partnership, which is why we’re investing heavily in building out those partnerships with like-minded entities to create sustainable solutions in order to address the issues which the education sector faces today. A good example of this is the Ericsson Digital Lab program which is now live in several countries in partnership with local schools and community learning centers. The aim here is to share those competences that we have in-house on a much broader scale, addressing those critical skillset demands which are needed in tomorrow’s workforce.

This year, in response to the impact which COVID-19 has had on learning, we continuing these efforts by joining the UNESCO-led Global Education Coalition, launching Ericsson Educate and partnering with UNICEF to map school connectivity as part of the  Giga project.

Through digital methodologies, and with a focus on improving digital skills for students across all communities, our commitment is to ensure that future generations continue to have the skills and knowledge to find opportunity in a changing digital world. This was what we set out to do when we launched Connect To Learn ten years ago, and this will continue to be our priority in this next critical decade of action.

Zohra Yermeche is Program Director for Connect To Learn at Ericsson

Read the original story here: https://www.ktpress.rw/2021/01/digital-inclusion-what-does-equal-access-to-education-mean-in-digital-age/

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HOOZA NEWS AGENCY

Ericsson Year 2020 in Review

2020 may be primarily remembered in history for the global impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Billions of people have suffered bereavement, illness, hardship or measures to contain the spread of the new coronavirus strain.

Ericsson actions this year were aimed at protecting the health and safety of employees, customers and stakeholders. The pandemic also highlighted the crucial need for connectivity. While working strictly to local pandemic restrictions, Ericsson continued to deploy 5G globally, cemented its 5G leadership and completed the company turnaround.

January: European momentum and the World Economic Forum

The year began with the first of what would be many live 5G milestones, when TIM and Ericsson, together with Qualcomm, reached a new European record for 5G speed. The partners successfully completed Europe’s first connection overcoming the 2Gbps speed barrier on a 5G live commercial network. 

5G robotics was on show for world leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, as Ericsson teamed up with 5G partners ABB and Swisscom to highlight the value of adopting Industry 4.0 solutions to global political and business leaders.

In France, Ericsson announced the establishment of a new R&D site to accelerate 5G momentum in Europe. Opened in early 2020, the site focused initially on 5G software development and security, benefitting the global 5G ecosystem, and leveraging on Ericsson’s collaboration with French customers.

February: Portfolio strengthens as COVID-19 dominates  

With the initial outbreak of the novel corona virus and the health and safety of employees, customers and other stakeholders as the company’s top priority, Ericsson took the proactive decision to withdraw from MWC Barcelona 2020 in early February.

Despite lacking its usual physical presence at the largest annual event in the telecom industry – which would be later cancelled  – Ericsson moved forward with its plans to bolster its commercial 5G portfolio, announcing four new additions to its 5G platformnew additions to the Ericsson Radio Dot System portfolio to further strengthen the product suite for indoor 5G networks, and the commercial availability of Ericsson Spectrum Sharing.

Ericsson Spectrum Sharing went on to win top honors at the GSMA’s GLOMO Awards, scooping the Overall Mobile Technology and Best Mobile Technology Breakthrough awards.

March: Ericsson 5G production in U.S. underway

As the coronavirus continued its spread across the world, we looked at how Ericsson employees supported efforts in China to combat the virus. Local Ericsson teams moved swiftly into action to deliver mission-critical communications infrastructure to where it was needed most – the country’s permanent and makeshift hospitals.

In the US, Ericsson’s first smart factory in the country went operational and produced its first 5G base stations to enable rapid 5G deployments. The factory is one of the most advanced manufacturing facilities in the industry, and its first product was the millimeter-wave Street Macro solution, which is key to Ericsson’s 5G portfolio for its North American customers.

With the global pandemic putting the need for fast, reliable and secure connectivity in focus, a host of operators around the world ramped up their 5G ambitions. Ericsson was selected by Taiwanese communications service provider Far EasTone (FET) as its 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) vendor. The deal spans 5G RAN across FET’s spectrum assets in the low, mid and high bands using Ericsson Radio System products and solutions.

Also in the region, Chunghwa Telecom selected Ericsson to provide the 5G platform to support its future network, and deploy a non-standalone (NSA) New Radio (NR) network on mid and high-frequency bands. In Hong Kong, Ericsson and SmarTone agreed to a five-year contract for the deployment of 5G. Ericsson is the sole supplier of SmarTone’s 4G network and will continue as their sole 5G vendor – extending the companies’ 28 years of partnership.

In Europe, Ericsson was selected by Greek mobile communications service provider COSMOTE as its sole 5G RAN vendor under a major network modernization deal.

Ericsson and Telenor also switched on Norway’s first commercial 5G services in the city of Trondheim. The achievement was part of an ongoing project to build and modernize Telenor’s 5G RAN and power the country’s digital future.

April: Connectivity in focus

In April, we looked further at Wuhan, China, and how Ericsson engineers working tirelessly on the frontline of the emerging crisis to deliver critical communications infrastructure across the province.

The global pandemic continued to highlight the role of 4G and 5G networks as critical national infrastructure. In Europe, this momentum was seen in a host of announced Ericsson deals with service providers.

Among them was Erillisverkot Group, the state-run body responsible for national communications networks for public authorities, emergency services and other critical services in Finland. It selected Ericsson to provide 5G next-generation core network products and solutions for its mission critical broadband network.

VodafoneZiggo, the leading Dutch communications service provider, announced the launch of 5G across the Netherlands with Ericsson Spectrum Sharing and 5G Core solutions at the heart of its rollout. In the UK, British Telecom (BT) and Ericsson signed a deal to deploy Ericsson’s dual-mode 5G Core, a key component in BT’s move to a single converged IP network.

In the US, Ericsson and U.S. Cellular began boosting mobile broadband capacity to customers in parts of Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, New Hampshire, Maine and North Carolina, due to increased demand for data usage during the COVID-19 pandemic.

May: Ekholm highlights the role of connectivity

Speaking at the kickoff of a new online event series – Ericsson UnBoxed Office – Ericsson President and CEO, BörjeEkholm, highlighted the importance of connectivity during times of crisis and the opportunity to rethink the role of networks in the future.

In the US, Ericsson worked with T-Mobile and ecosystem partners to enhance the quality of connectivity and achieved several important ‘world’s first’ milestones for standalone architecture (SA) 5G. “Powerful and reliable wireless networks are more important than ever, and these milestones mark a huge step forward for the entire wireless ecosystem,” said Neville Ray, President of Technology at T-Mobile.

In Europe, the continent’s largest 5G research network, powered by Ericsson 5G products and solutions, went live in Aachen Germany. Comprising multiple partners, the 5G Industry Campus Europe aims to develop and implement applications and solutions for digitized and networked production to benefit 5G production across Europe and beyond.

May also marked the 20-year anniversary of Ericsson Response, the company’s humanitarian relief program that focuses on providing connectivity to humanitarian workers and populations in affected areas during crises.

June: A strengthened 5G position, awards and new solutions

June saw a host of new 5G contracts and rollouts. Ericsson strengthened its position in China by winning 5G contracts in 2020 with all three major operators.

Telefónica Deutschland, which operates under the O2 brand in Germany, selected Ericsson 5G Core for its network of the futureBell Canada selected Ericsson as a 5G partner in RAN technology to support its nationwide 5G mobile and fixed wireless access deployment. Ericsson also continued to rollout 5G in the UK with an extended partnership with O2 UK.

The June edition of the Ericsson Mobility Report took an incisive look at the role of networks and digital infrastructure in keeping societies running, and families connected during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ericsson announced new AIR solutions to accelerate 5G mid-band deployments, meaning communications service providers can now deploy mid-band 5G networks faster and on a wider scale without adding to their site footprint.

The first half of the year wrapped up with Ericsson scooping Red Dot Design Awards for Ericsson Radio System products.

July: Africa benefits from 5G … U.S customers receive U.S. made Ericsson 5G products

With the COVID-19 pandemic still very much in focus, Ericsson also supported adjacent industries. As the demand for ventilators increased, Getinge, a global supplier of mechanical ventilators, was faced with the challenge of ramping its production 160 percent during 2020. With R&D and supply teams based in the same region of Sweden, Getinge reached out to Ericsson’s local Product Development Unit Transport for help.

Commercial 5G launches continued to gain speed around the world. In Taiwan, both Chunghwa Telecom and Far EasTone launched their commercial 5G networks, with 5G RAN and Core solutions provided by Ericsson.

In South Africa, communications service provider MTN went live with Ericsson-powered commercial 5G in the cities of Bloemfontein and Port Elizabeth. In the US, Verizon became the country’s first communications service provider to receive a 5G base station manufactured at Ericsson’s new 5G production factory in Texas.

New Ericsson software was also released, allowing communications service providers to tap the full potential of 5G New Radio (NR) technology with the commercial availability of Ericsson Standalone 5G NR software for 5G mid- and low bands.

August: Ericsson tops 100 unique 5G customer milestone

August saw Ericsson reach a significant 5G milestone when the company secured its 100th commercial 5G agreement or contract with unique communications service providers.

5G deployments continued with Ericsson and Telekom Slovenije, launching the first commercial 5G network in Slovenia. Claro Brasil also brought the first 5G network to Latin America using Ericsson Spectrum Sharing, initially rolling out services across 12 areas in Brazil.

Forwarding the company’s sustainability and corporate responsibility ambitions, Ericsson joined The Pathways Coalition, a group of innovative companies representing the infrastructure, utilities, transportation and retail sectors. The ambition is to accelerate decarbonization of heavy transport and reach the objective of zero CO2 emissions by year 2050 or earlier, in line with The Paris Agreement.

September: More 5G momentum in Europe … Ericsson acquires Cradlepoint

September saw more operators launching their commercial 5G services. In Denmark, rapid deployment by Ericsson field professionals enabled Danish communications service provider, TDC, to beat its nationwide 5G network roll out timeline and launch commercial 5G across most of Denmark on September 7.

In Spain, Ericsson helped both Orange and Telefónica Spain to launch commercial 5G services. Ericsson and Three Ireland combined to launch 5G in Ireland, bringing comprehensive 5G coverage and network capacity.

Ericsson teamed up with Rostelecom and Tele2 to demonstrate 5G capabilities for COVID health monitoring by deploying a pilot 5G network at the Digital Industry of Industrial Russia (CIPR) conference to help monitor the health of visitors. The pilot 5G service enabled remote health monitoring of CIPR-2020 visitors including temperature checks, use of personal protective equipment (e.g. masks), and extent of social distancing.

Big news followed with the announcement of Ericsson’s agreement to acquire Cradlepoint, the US-based market leader in Wireless Edge WAN 4G and 5G Enterprise solutions. The investment is key to Ericsson’s ongoing strategy of capturing market share in the rapidly expanding 5G Enterprise space. Cradlepoint complements Ericsson’s existing 5G Enterprise portfolio which includes Dedicated Networks and a global IoT platform. The combined offering will create valuable new revenue streams for customers by supporting full 5G-enabled services for enterprise, and boost returns on investments in the network.

October: A big month for 5G Core

October saw numerous wins for Ericsson in the 5G Core space. Proximus, the Belgian communications service provider, selected Ericsson to implement a new 5G Core network on its cloud infrastructure. The cloud-native solution is based on Ericsson’s dual-mode 5G Core, which will also be used for the renewal of the 4G network.

In neighboring Netherlands, Dutch service provider KPN chose Ericsson as its mobile core network vendor. Under the five-year agreement, Ericsson will deploy dual-mode 5G Core software with full support services, including an accompanying systems integration program with third-line support services.

To the south, POST Luxembourg strengthened its partnership with Ericsson with a multiyear deal to deploy 5G Core and 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) in Luxembourg. POST went live with Ericsson-powered 5G on October 16.

Confirming Ericsson’s strong stance on sustainable business practices, the company was named one of the world’s most sustainable companies by the Wall Street Journal. Ericsson ranked #12 on the publications list of the 100 Most Sustainably Managed Companies in the World.

November: Company turnround completed

November saw another significant milestone in recent Ericsson history as senior company executives confirmed to Capital Markets Day 2020 attendees that the three-year company turnaround was complete – with restored profitability, organic growth and on-tracking financial target progress.

A series of contracts in Kenya, South Africa, Madagascar and Benin, among others, highlighted Ericsson’s growing footprint in Sub-Saharan Africa as communications service providers moved to strengthen their networks and cater to demand for enhanced mobile services.

In Europe, more service providers were forwarding their 5G agendas with Ericsson. Telia and Ericsson switched on Estonia’s first commercial 5G network, powered by Ericsson 5G technology including Ericsson Radio System products and solutions and using hardware produced in Estonia. In the Czech Republic, Ericsson and wholesale telecom infrastructure company, CETIN, signed a five-year contract to bring 5G to the nation.

The November 2020 Ericsson Mobility Report was released, estimating that by the end of this year, more than 1 billion people – 15 percent of the world’s population – will live in an area that has 5G coverage rolled out. In 2026, 60 percent of the world’s population will have access to 5G coverage, with 5G subscriptions forecast to reach 3.5 billion.

December: Ericsson closes a strong performance year

More 5G deals were unveiled including in Greece, where the  company was selected by WIND Hellas as its mobile core network vendor for standalone and non-standalone 5G, as well as its BSS partner. Ericsson will deliver a powerful transformation to Wind Hellas’ existing 2G/3G/4G packet core and signaling infrastructure and enable them to deploy their first standalone 5G network.

In Slovakia, Ericsson was chosen by Slovak Telekom to deliver its 5G Radio Access Network and switch on 5G commercial services as of December 10, while Japan’s KDDI selected Ericsson to deploy cloud-native, dual-mode 5G Core, enabling the launch of 5G Standalone services in its network.  

December also saw the publication of Ericsson ConsumerLab’s annual 10 Top Consumer Trends report and the unveiling of the 2020 Ericsson Innovation Awards winners.

December also highlighted our Ericsson solutions are boosting public safety networks across some of Europe’s remotest communities in the Faroe Islands, as well as showcasing how Ericsson innovation could bring mobile connectivity to the seas and change the marine industry as we know it – and how Ericsson network-on-a-drone innovation could transform emergency disaster response.

Ericsson and Singtel announced the acceleration of their 5G partnership in Singapore through the deployment of high-end 5G technology enabled by 5G New Radio (NR) Standalone and dual-mode 5G core network products and solutions.

As the year closes out, Ericsson has 122 commercial 5G agreement or contracts with unique communications service providers, 68 publicly announced 5G contracts, and are live with 77 5G networks across the globe in 40 countries.

Read the original story here: https://www.topafricanews.com/2021/01/06/ericsson-year-in-review-2020/

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HOOZA NEWS AGENCY

Ericsson: Intelligent connected machines to be a major part of life by 2030, consumers predict

  • Early tech-adopter consumers predict intelligent connectivity to enable services that go way beyond the mobile broadband experiences of today
  • Consumer expectations on smarter connectivity are higher than for any other connected intelligent machine type
  • These predictions about connected intelligent machines point to opportunities for 5G service providers for new intelligent network services.

Consumers expect connected technology to become more flexible and interactive going forward and see devices enabling more pro-active, and even creative choices in a wide range of everyday life situations by 2030.

The tenth edition of the Ericsson ConsumerLab10 Hot Consumer Trends report highlights consumer predictions about the various roles that connected intelligent machines could take on going forward. Each of these roles could be seen as new service areas, opening a range of opportunities for 5G service providers to gradually extend intelligent networks to their customers.

At Ericsson Research, our vision is that advances in AI and cellular communications technology will enable connected intelligent machines to securely communicate across the networks of tomorrow. In the process, they could make the world more responsive to consumer needs than ever before, given that consumers predict intelligent connectivity to enable services that go way beyond the mobile broadband experiences of today.

Based on long-standing global trend research, the ConsumerLab10 Hot Consumer Trends 2030 report represents the expectations and predictions of 50 million early technology adopters across 15 major cities.

In this study, respondents rated 112 connected intelligent machine concepts, ranging from a human-centered to a more rational perspective. The result is an overview of the 10 roles consumers expect connected intelligent machines to take in everyday life by 2030. Each trend in the report depicts a specific role that such machines could take.

Dr. Michael Björn, Head of Research Agenda, Ericsson Consumer &IndustryLab, and author of the report, says: “I was surprised to see that consumer expectations on smarter connectivity are higher than for any other connected intelligent machine type. The Connectivity Gofers trend includes predictions that devices will intelligently adapt to any signal, with use of cellular, Wi-Fi and fixed connectivity being seamless, as well as smart signal locators that guide users to spots with optimal coverage even in crowded areas.”

“This points to opportunities for 5G service providers to gradually extend intelligent networks to cover a whole range of new services for their customers, and each of the machine roles we present in this report could be seen as a whole new service area.”

“The Community Bots trend, for example, highlights the role machine intelligence could take in providing much needed community services. The Explainers puts forward the idea that all connected devices need to be able to explain themselves to users, and Sustainability bots focuses on the increased need for localized intelligent climate advice going forward.”

“What all of these potential services have in common is that they rely on intelligently communicating across devices and thus puts the networking aspect even more in the front seat than today.”

The 10 Hot Consumer Trends for 2030

  1. Body bots: Get a power-up – 76 percent of consumers predict there will be intelligent posture-supporting suits.
  2. Guardian angels: Three-quarters believe that privacy guardians will help fool surveillance cameras and block electronic snooping.
  3. Community bots: Seventy-eight percent believe electronic watchdog services will alert neighborhood allies to any trespassers.
  4. Sustainability bots: Future weather will be extreme – 82 percent believe devices will share data and warn about local rain torrents or heat blasts.
  5. Home officers: WFH uninterrupted – 79 percent say smart speakers will project noise-canceling walls around the home office space.
  6. Explainers: Over 8 in 10 predict automated financial management systems that explain how your investments are handled.
  7. Connectivity gofers: Smart signal locators will be able to guide you to optimal connectivity spots, say 83 percent of consumers.
  8. Baddie bots: A baddie bot that can be trained to carry out burglaries or attack other people is wanted by 37 percent of AR/VR users.
  9. Media creators: Machines will curate content. Sixty-two percent think game consoles will make original games based on their game play.
  10. Bossy bots: Around 7 in 10 believe that social network AIs will understand your personality and build up a circle of friends that is good for your mental and physical wellbeing.

Read the ConsumerLab Hot Consumer Trends 2030 report here

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