HiPipo Money

———————————–

MultiChoice is appalled by the acts of violence being perpetrated against our fellow brothers and sisters in South Africa and strongly condemns these acts.   As a multi-cultural African organisation we respect and embrace diversity, and all the different traditions and religions across the continent.  This is demonstrated through by our multinational staff complement, rich African programming and channels on both our DStv and GOtv platforms.

MultiChoice advocates equality and freedom for all and condemns such acts as we believe Africa’s potential can be achieved through unity and peace. Our condolences go to the families and friends of those who have been affected or lost their lives in these unforgiveable acts of violence.

———————————–

Desperate Housewives Africa, the local adaptation of the multiple award-winning ABC television drama hit series, is set to launch on April 30, 2015, EbonyLife TV, exclusively on DStv Channel 165. This launch is to be preceded by a premiere in Lagos on April 28 where the new Desperate Housewives of Africa will be introduced in person along with the all-African suburban ‘Wisteria Lane’ neighbourhood where the series will be based.

Whilst the set location is still under wraps for the time being, it can be confirmed that Desperate Housewives Africa will closely reflect the original multi-award winning American version with a uniquely African flavour. Viewers can look forward to an enthralling and spell-binding homegrown pilot that takes the Desperate Housewives format as you once knew it to scandalously new dimensions.

When an outwardly successful neighbor Rume Bello, played by Marcy Dolapo Oni, succumbs to death, her friends continue to deal with their everyday lives and, as seen through Rume’s eyes, the story mysteriously unravels in a dramatic, comedic whirlwind which will have you at the edge of your seat calling for more. 

Michelle Dede portrays the character, Tari Gambadia. Her ultimate desperation is unknown at first as she competes for the attention of a new hunky neighbour who has his own ulterior motives?

Nini Wacera, portrays Ese De Souza, a housewife who struggles with maintaining the perfect family … but will her outward impression of perfection successfully mask the disturbing dysfunction in her household? Kehinde Bankole, as Kiki Obi, continues a rather sordid and sleazy love affair; will her husband catch her in the act?

And Omotu Bissong, who stars as Funke Lawal, copes with life as a stay-at-home, fatigued mother of four boisterous and rambunctious children. What possibly could be her desperation?

All these mysteries will evolve in each episode of Desperate Housewives Africa.

According to Christine Service, Senior Vice President and Country Manager of The Walt Disney Company Africa comments, “We are very excited that one of ABC’s hit television series is being made for African viewers.  This is a first for the continent of Africa and we could not be more proud of what we have seen so far of Desperate Housewives Africa.”

Mo Abudu, Executive Chairman and CEO of EbonyLife TV, has this to say about the production. “Once again, I am pleased to say that we are extremely excited to bring this rich, thrilling and captivating drama to our local and global audiences. We have put in a lot to maintain our premium homegrown quality of  production and our viewers can absolutely look forward with great delight to watching a most riveting adaptation of the multiple-award winning version from Africa; one with a uniquely African essence that closely mirrors the format and storylines of the multiple award winning American version.”

For Director of Scripted Programming, Quinty Pillay, “No stone has been left unturned in ensuring that we worked with the best in every facet of the production. We have taken the multiple award-winning original versions and given it a distinctly African twist, from the storytelling, to the ‘look and feel’ of the entire production, without compromising on the global appeal. Viewers in Africa and indeed the rest of the world will hate to miss a second of every episode of it!”

Since 2006, five different versions of Desperate Housewives have been produced for EMEA and Latin American audiences. The original Desperate Housewives won both the 2005 and 2006 Golden Globe Awards for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy, and was created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios. The series is broadcast in more than 200 territories around the world, where it has been one of the most popular U.S. TV shows in recent history with its eighth and final series concluding in 2012.

————————————-

• Enhanced product supports up to 5 mobile users concurrently
• Free activation and deactivation of a number to and from a TUGABANE account

Airtel Uganda has today officially launched a new and enhanced internet value proposition named TUGABANE under their 2015 umbrella Campaign, The Smartphone Network.

TUGABANE allows an internet customer to subscribe to a data bundle on one mobile line and is able to add up to 4 other mobile numbers to surf from the same bundle irrespective of where these mobile numbers are geographically located and what type of internet devices they are using.

Commenting about this new and enhanced innovation proposition, Airtel Uganda Marketing Director, Mr. Prasoon Lal said, “Uganda is one of the fastest growing markets for mobile internet services. It is a country which is culturally rich and diverse with one commonality that cuts across which is the spirit of sharing moments of happiness, collective fun and socializing.”

“TUGABANE in the local language means Let us Share and Airtel Uganda is bridging the gap between the nation’s way of life of sharing and the need to stay connected online,” he added.

TUGABANE, the 1^st of its kind innovation in the Ugandan Mobile Internet industry, is much more powerful than WIFI hotspots whose coverage is limited and will encourage Airtel Uganda customers to easily share data with their friends and family.

Furthermore, activation and deactivation of TUGABANE is free of charge.

Mr. Prasoon expressed confidence that the Uganda market will enjoy and embrace the new product, adding that the service is a permanent addition to the existing Airtel services and not a promotion.

To activate multi surf;

• Dial *175*5#
• Choose Sub Option 1: TUGABANE
•  Select Activate
• Enter number 

—————————————

Huawei, a global leading ICT solutions provider, yesterday attended the Innovation Africa Digital (IAD) Summit 2015 hosted in Vitoria Falls, Zimbabwe. As an official partner of the IAD Summit 2015, Huawei showcased its cutting-edge ICT solutions as well as its consumer devices. Best practices and international experience of rolling out National Broadband Networks (NBN) and LTE networks were presented by Huawei during workshops at the IAD Summit, in order to provide technological advises to the ICT planning in local African market.

“In line with the theme ‘Affordable Access’ of the IAD summit, Huawei is now building the telecom network infrastructure, including LTE networks for Zimbabwe, and bridging the digital divide by increasing network coverage and offering affordable devices,” said David Wang, Vice President of Huawei Eastern and Southern Africa, during his keynote speech at IAD 2015, “In order to build a better connected Africa, we look forward to closer cooperation with the government of Zimbabwe in terms of ICT planning and ICT skill transfer programs. We believe that the joint efforts between African governments and Huawei in ICT development will accelerate the progress of building a better connected Africa. Such practices have been implemented in other African countries. Huawei was chosen as the ICT advisor to the government of Kenya in 2014 and signed a MOU with the African Union for partnership in ICT in February of this year. ”

“ICT talents are important for the ICT development in Africa. Huawei is committed to cultivating ICT talents for Zimbabwe. In October, partnering with the Ministry of ICT，Postal and Courier Services，Huawei will implement our global CSR program “ Seeds for the future” in Zimbabwe. 10 Zimbabwean students will benefit from this program, and receive ICT trainings in Huawei headquarters in China.”

Huawei’s efforts in building a better connected Africa was acknowledged by the government of Zimbabwe. During a keynote at the summit, the Minister of ICT，Postal and Courier Services recognized Huawei as an ICT giant in the world, with the expertise and global deployment experience to provide affordable access in Zimbabwe.

The Innovation Africa Digital Summit 2015, one of the largest ICT gatherings in Africa, is organized by the Ministry of Information Communication Technology, Postal and Courier Services, and will run from April 14th to 16th. The summit attracts up to 500 participants, including policy makers, regulators, service providers and major end users from across Africa and the rest of the world, with an aim to provide essential support services to related shareholders, to improve ICT ecosystems and promote ICT industry development. 

—————————————-

• New centre to increase speed of customer service delivery and enhance consumer experience
• New service solutions now available including dedicated demo lounge for products and services
• Adoption of new technologies will mean that long queues will become a thing of the past

Multichoice Uganda has opened a new state of the art customer service centre on Plot 17B Impala Avenue in Kololo (Next to the lawns restaurant). The centre which is the latest strategic investment made by the company in Uganda was built with the specific aim of improving the consumer experience and taking MultiChoice customer care services to the next level.

Speaking about some of the features and service options MultiChoice subscribers can look forward to Charles Hamya, General Manager of MultiChoice Uganda said the new centre will dramatically improve the way we interact with our clients, we will be able to serve them a lot faster and provide them with a lot more service solutions and information that in future will allow subscribers to self-serve at their convenience.

He explained “the new MultiChoice customer centre is a purpose built facility which was designed with the customer as the primary focus of the thought process, our main service hall is a lot more spacious and equipped with state of the art technology including self-help computerised touch points that will ensure long queues will be a thing of the past, in addition we have a dedicated demo lounge that allows customers to interact on a one on one basis with our service agents and try out some of the latest products and services we have on offer such as the DStv HD Explora, Catch Up and Box Office”. This will ensure that by the time a subscriber decides to purchase one of our products he or she is fully conversant with how the new technology or device works which means they will be able to enjoy the maximum benefits from day one”.

Talking about the reasons why MultiChoice decided to open up the Customer care centre at the new location Charles explained “Kololo is a fairly centralised location for  many  of our subscribers in Kampala, thus providing them with convenient accessibility to our services and expanding our network of branches within the city centre. The Buganda road office will remain open to the public as a customer service centre and fully fledged sales office, enabling Multichoice customers to access our services from different touch points. “Our objective is to ensure that we take our services closer to our  customers thus  leaving them with more time to do other important things”.

The new service centre is open effective, 13th April 2015 from 8.30am to 7pm every Monday to Saturday.

—————————–

A closer look at unique property developments in emerging countries

From customisable designs to pioneering smart home technology, the emerging markets are breaking new ground when it comes to property development.

As the real estate sectors in Asia, Africa and Latin America mature, the level of innovation has also skyrocketed, with many developers seeking new ways to attract an increasingly discerning property buyer.

Global property portal Lamudi takes a closer look at seven game-changing residential developments in the emerging markets.

Green City – Colombia

Based in Soacha, a small city outside Bogotá, the Green City projects represent the present and future of the country’s real estate market. This is a great example of urban development: combining efficient technologies, smart spaces and a sense of community for residents. The project offers common areas like green spaces, playgrounds and more: a city within a city.

Malibu Village – Indonesia

This development from Paramount Land allows property-seekers to customise their own home. Located at Gading Serpong in Tangerang, the Malibu Village development allows buyers to choose from 18 design options and eight finishing packages to decide the look of their dream property. Everything from the type of paint used to the floor materials can be customised. Prices start at 800 million Indonesian rupiah (about US$61,500).

Tao Inspired Living Project – Mexico

Close to Tulum’s ancient Mayan ruins, the Tao Inspired Living Project is a 300 acre development in the heart of the Riviera Maya. The project was inspired by one of the developer’s favourite books, Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu, a classic text in Taoist philosophy. The project’s unique philosophy is to foster a sense of belonging and community for residents. Offering a range of different property types starting from 3.2 million MXN, residents enjoy not only the natural beauty of this mind-blowing location, but also world-class amenities including a beach club, swimming pools, spa, tennis courts, gym, on-site transport and a mall.

L’Opera Luxury Residence – Morocco

Located in the centre of Casablanca, this development offers Morocco’s first apartments with integrated smart home technology. Residents of the two-bedroom L’Opera Luxury Residence apartments can control the internal temperature, adjust the lighting, and secure the property – whether they are at home or not. The integrated smart home system means all these functions can be controlled on the go using a smartphone.

Althum Golf II Project – Peru

Located in an up-and-coming location in Lima, Santiago de Surco, the Althum Golf II Project offers apartments from 110 to 277 square meters with designs ranging from a loft-style apartments to more traditional layouts. However, it is the common areas that really make this development stand out. Residents enjoy the best features such as terraces, a well-equipped gym, a covered swimming pool, barbecue space and elevators with direct access to the flats.

Arbor Lanes – The Philippines

This high-end condominium development is located in Taguig City, a growth area in Metro Manila. Developed by Ayala Land Premier, Arbor Lanes offers the best of all worlds: green landscaped surroundings, a well-connected location and world-class amenities. With gardens, pools, and shared open spaces, the development is a pocket of green in which residents can escape busy city life.

Clearpoint Residencies – Sri Lanka

This 50-storied apartment building now under construction in Rajagiriya, near Colombo, will be home to the world’s tallest vertical garden once completed. With 164 apartments on offer, the design of Clearpoint Residencies incorporates several sustainable and Eco-friendly aspects, most notably the mango trees surrounding the building from the ground up. This vertical garden is more than just a pretty sight: the plant cover reduces the heat level inside the building by lowering exposure to direct sunlight and providing fresher air.