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issue 09 | q4 2014
the internet of thingS
Where bits meet atoms
inside: Bring your own opportunity | When tech goes wrong | Selling storage
ENGAGE DEVELOP GROW EXTEND
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Credits
PUBLISHER
Jovan Regasek
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR
Ranka Jovanovic
Where the digital
and physical
EDITOR
Adrian Hinchcliffe
(adrian@itweb.co.za)
collide
ASSISTANT EDITOR
Alison Job
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Carel Alberts, Aki Anastasiou, Paul Booth,
Tracy Burrows, Simon Cashmore, James
Francis, Donovan Jackson, Alison Job, Ben
Kelly, Clare Matthes, Tamsin Oxford, Maggie
Ren, Jon Tullett, James van den Heever,
W
Rodney Weidemann
hat I really enjoy about working on The data being created, transmitted, stored and processed,
PROOFREADER Margin is the diversity of channel companies it also draws on cloud, big data, networking, security
Patricia Czakan
and the wide range of business and and connectivity. So whether you sell components or
DESIGN AND LAYOUT technology areas we cover. Considering this, and the gadgets to the consumer, or provide packaged tech
Zack Hoosen (ITWeb) old adage ‘you can never please all of the people all solutions to the SME, or architect and integrate entire
PHOTOGRAPHY of the time’, I’m sure some topics we cover will appeal systems for corporates, the IoT is likely to impact your
Karolina Komendera to a larger number of readers than others. That said, I business offering some time soon.
think the tech topic that is our focus in this edition – the In this issue, we also look at product recalls in the
PRODUCTION MANAGER
Sindiso Khupe Internet of Things (IoT) – has the potential to impact and tech space, the impact of PoPI on the channel and
provide opportunity to so many players in the channel. the potential diversification opportunities presented
SALES DIRECTOR
Robert Mace
I was fortunate enough to hear Kevin Ashton, the by IP CCTV. We’ve also got a story that may have
(rmace@itweb.co.za) founder of the IoT moniker, speak at the My World of significant implications for local hardware product
Tomorrow conference. He believes everything that’s been launch timeframes as the period for official certification
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR: PRINT
Caryn Berman achieved in computing to this point has been building of electrical compliance has been extended from three
(caryn@itweb.co.za) a foundation for the Internet of Things. We’ve been weeks to three months…just as South Africa seemed to
FEATURE SALES MANAGER
manually inputting data into computers for years, but be catching up on technology. You’ll also find a host of
Moréna Gaud with the connection of a plethora of sensors, the world other regular stories in these pages, such as the mini-
around us now has a voice and a way to be mapped survey on the local storage market, a distributor profile
SALES EXECUTIVE
Sindiso Moyo to the digital world. The phrase Ashton used that most on Esquire Technologies and The Pitch, which is about
simply describes the IoT is ‘where the atom meets the selling tech to marketing rather than IT.
SUBSCRIPTION MANAGER
bit’. And the possibilities are massive. If you think how I hope you find this edition an interesting and
Carrie-Anne Waldeck
(carrie@itweb.co.za) big the ‘digital’ internet is, then add almost any inanimate useful read.
object you can think of and give it a voice, this will give
PUBLISHED BY
ITWeb Limited you some sort of idea of the potential size. Happy reading
www.itweb.co.za While some of the long-term visions around the
326 Rivonia Boulevard, Rivonia, 2128 IoT may seem to come straight out of Hollywood
PO Box 2785, Rivonia, 2128
TEL +27 (0)11 807-3294 blockbusters, there’s certainly a swelling of activity
FAX +27 (0)11 807-2020 and attempted landgrab underway by some of the
WEB
biggest names in ICT. The progress being made means
www.themargin.co.za we’re taking steps towards turning science fiction into
reality. And it’s here where it’s going to get exciting for
SUBSCRIPTIONS
carrie@itweb.co.za the channel – IoT plays in so many technology areas, Adrian Hinchcliffe
and therefore provides opportunity to a wide variety Editor
ADVERTISING
caryn@itweb.co.za
of channel businesses. With wearables and mobility, Adrian@itweb.co.za
it’s likely to impact millions of individuals; with the
PRINTING ‘smart home’, it’s likely to affect home-owners too; with PS. You can also find us on Twitter (@The_Margin_ZA)
Paarl Media Paarl
sensors in everything from water taps to manufacturing and Facebook (facebook.com/TheMarginZA). Find us,
ISSN 2305-3038 machinery, it will affect the enterprise; and with all this follow us, like us, be part of the conversation.
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Q4 2014 | The Margin 03
Message from the publishing partner
THE FUTURE IS HERE –
AND IT’S IN EVERYTHING
Louise Taute, Comstor Director at Comstor explores
how the Internet of Everything (IoE) is shaping not just
how we think, but also how we work, how we engage
with those around us and the devices we use.
According to global vendor The index has brought to the fore a series
of insights about the IoE and the position
and Comstor partner Cisco, businesses find themselves in, what they
the IoE is a $19 trillion global envisage for the future, and how they hope to
capture more IoE value today and in the future.
opportunity over the next
Looking at these insights we can safely say they
decade where private-sector are, as we are in an emerging economy that is
firms can create as much as technology hungry, relevant to South Africa on
almost all levels. But lets explore the findings.
$14.4 trillion of value while
cities, governments and other Insight No. 1: The Internet of Everything is
public-sector organisations can poised to generate at least $613 billion in global
create $4.6 trillion. corporate profits in calendar year 2013.
The figures speak for themselves. If you aren’t According to Cisco these profits are a reflection
considering it, planning for it or doing it, you simply from corporations around the globe leveraging, or
aren’t doing business. Why is it then that there is planning to leverage the IoE as a means to make
still a lack of understanding and then a subsequent their businesses more efficient as well as improve
push back on all that is the Internet revolution? their customer relationships and experiences.
The value of the IoE Louise Taute Insight No. 2: Corporations could potentially
The truth is that businesses have a bit of Comstor Director at Comstor nearly double those profits by adopting
technology inertia, they have been burnt by dot. business practices, customer approaches, and
“
com bubbles and Y2K psycho babble one too technologies that more fully leverage IoE.
many times and they want to see the facts on
paper before they take the leap. Many just don’t The Internet of Everything According to Cisco the survey highlighted
understand that the IoE is not “a technology”, but
the connection points or network that connects
is poised to generate that while the IoE is driving a huge number of
corporate profits, an additional $544 billion could
people, processes, data and things. Lots of things.
It is with this stark misunderstanding and even
at least $613 billion in
global corporate profits
“ be realised if companies adjust their strategies
to take better advantage of IoE. While the survey
was done in 2013, we are starting to only really
ignorance of business that Cisco created the IoE
Value Index, a tool to help companies understand
in calendar year 2013. see the momentum of this locally now.
how the IoE will affect them and how they can take Insight No. 3: Traditional business
advantage of it into the future. The IoE Value Index advantages are evaporating quickly.
strives to help executives across the business In short the Value Index is in essence built off of
value chain answer some fundamental business the back of a survey conducted with approximately No brainer really. While the early winners have
questions. Firstly how they can create value for 7,500 business and IT decision makers from been those companies in developed markets, as
their business today and tomorrow, as well as how private-sector firms in 12 of the world’s largest they have continually invested into IT and have
they can harness and ride the wave of the IoE in global economies (Australia, Brazil, Canada, experience with tech. The fact that Africa is still
order to increase innovation and strengthen their China, France, Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, a greenfields market in many areas is in itself a
competitive positioning. Russia, United Kingdom, and United States). huge advantage for us as a continent.
Insight No. 4: Competition will intensify as While developed countries are fearing job losses, investing in the right technology infrastructure
IoE evens the playing field between large and here locally this presents an opportunity as local and capabilities, secondly integrating new
small companies around the globe. companies don’t need to scrounge for, or try technologies with legacy IT environments and
and find scarce skills that simply don’t exist, to thirdly updating processes to absorb new
The IoE crashes through traditional business support their business. technologies.”
parameters and creates parity between
businesses of all sizes. What this means for us Insight No. 6: Executives believe IoE will Insight No. 9: Firms must invest in the right
here in Africa is that as an emerging economy make their firms more secure. Information IoE capabilities to improve competitiveness.
our businesses finally stand a chance of taking and physical security are seen as the primary
a sizeable chunk of a global market if we go to downsides associated with the increased Broken down by industry the research shows the
market correctly. connectedness that comes with IoE. capabilities needed per industry as:
• Manufacturing firms: real-time,
50 percent of the respondents think IoE will make multidimensional data analysis; integrated
As an example, the report highlights that companies
information more secure, while just 19 percent video collaboration; remote tracking of
in emerging markets are more confident in their
physical assets; intelligent robots
ability to realise IoE value. On a scale of 1-10, fear it will be less secure. Locally customers are
• Energy firms: integration of sensor data;
where 10 is “extremely confident,” executives from still very concerned about cloud security as an
ability to locate experts when vast distances
emerging markets scored a 7.8, in contrast to 6.7 example, so should the same report be unpacked
are involved between experts and energy-
for executives in developed markets. locally, I think the figures would be dramatically production sources; predictive analytics
skewed to have a higher “fear” factor. • Retailers: data visualisation and predictive
Locally we are seeing companies investing in analytics; BYOD; location-based marketing
new technologies as business enablers, and Insight No. 7: While technology is pivotal,
smaller, new businesses, are more inclined to people and process make the difference. While the above offers real insights into how
look at outsourcing their IT requirements to the While data analytics is an important enabler of businesses should embrace the IoE, the most
cloud. They are also more inclined to allow their IoE, “data” has become ubiquitous, and is not important aspect of it all is that it is a very real
staff use of their own mobile devices, because of in itself a differentiator. phenomenon that we as business can begin
the significant cost savings they can experience leveraging to improve ourselves, motivate our
off of the back of initial investment. Cisco’s analysis reveals the quality of a company’s people and ultimately start making more money.
technology infrastructure and tools is the single
Insight No. 5: Executives in surveyed most important factor in determining the amount
countries anticipate job growth and wage of value realised. This is an area where locally
increases as a result of IoE. we may falter as companies are often inclined
to take short cuts when it comes to technology
According to the survey: “Forty-seven percent investment.
of executives think IoE will lead to higher wages
at their companies, while only 6 percent think Insight No. 8: The key challenge: harnessing
wage cuts are likely. This is particularly evident innovation for business gain.
in emerging markets. Thirty-three percent
of executives believe IoE will lead to higher What is true innovation? This is a big challenge
employment levels in their firms, versus 28 for business – particularly those who appointed
percent who think job losses are more likely. innovation managers to unearth this Holy Grail,
In developed countries, executives, while still and who have to date still come up with nothing.
positive, were somewhat more reticent about the According to Cisco, the top three challenges cited
prospects for job creation.” by respondents in realising IoE value were: “Firstly +27 11 848 9000 | WWW.WESTCON.COM
1 Year Free Subscription* *Includes 1 Year subscription Office 365 Personal
contents
10 Booth’s Bulletpoint Bulletin
Notable deals and developments that have taken place in the
local and international channel in recent months.
Compiled by Paul Booth, Adrian Hinchcliffe and Alison Job
13 Aki’s eye
The Greek geek speaks about some stories from the worlds
of science and tech that have caught his attention.
By Aki Anastasiou
15 Tullett’s tech talk
46
CIOs want your strategy, not your service.
By Jon Tullett
16 Figuring it out
The Margin brings you some of the latest industry forecasts,
statistics and predictions.
Compiled by Paul Booth, Adrian Hinchcliffe and Alison Job 28 Speedbumps on the road
Getting to grips with the ‘who’ and the ‘how’ of the Internet
17 Hurry up, and wait of Things.
By Donovan Jackson
South Africa could soon find itself at the back of the
technology adoption curve, as a result of slower turnaround
30 The IoT gets closer
times on authorisations on imported products.
While the sci-fi worlds depicted in BladeRunner and Minority
By Tracy Burrows
Report are still some way off, there are a number of real-world
solutions that demonstrate the IoT is already happening.
24 32 Vox pops: How will the Internet of Things
impact on business?
The Margin asked key players in a range of industries the
following question: “Do you believe the Internet of Things
will become a commercial reality in South Africa and if so,
how might it impact on your business?”
By Rodney Weidemann
34 A channel of things
The Internet of Things offers early opportunity.
By Carel Alberts
36 Visualising the Internet of Things
A graphical view of the things, the places and the potential
20 Selling to the CMO: think results of the IoT.
Marketing decision-makers are an exciting and potentially Compiled by Adrian Hinchcliffe
lucrative target market for IT services and solutions, say
industry players. But you have to move fast and deliver 38 Bring your own opportunity
measurable results if you want to succeed in this market. Generation Y and its demand for working its way is driving
By Tracy Burrows disruption in the IT space.
By Ben Kelly
24 Meet the Internet of Things
It’s the buzzword of the year, if not the current decade. But 44 Securing personal information
what is the Internet of Things and does it mean anything for PoPI offers the channel opportunity, but don’t overlook the
the channel? implications for your own business, warn the experts.
By James Francis By Clare Matthes
46 When tech goes wrong 60 Selling storage
Product recalls can be a disaster for equipment suppliers and As part of our regular series, The Margin’s mini-survey of
retailers. Smart risk management strategies, however, can local industry experts in this issue focuses on the storage
soften the pain. market, to determine where the money and opportunity lie.
By Simon Cashmore By Adrian Hinchcliffe
50 The empire of the PC 62 An innovative way to slice the channel pie
The gaming PC has died, it has risen and it has fallen again. Esquire Technologies’ custom-tailored supply chain
What does the future hold for this niche and demanding management system is emblematic of the company’s
market in South Africa? approach to the channel.
By Tamsin Oxford By Rodney Weidemann
64 Stock watch
50
Find out what products are
hot to stock.
69 Movers and shakers
Keeping you on top of some of the
key appointments recently
made across the industry.
Compiled by Alison Job
71 Celebrating partner success
Microsoft recognises its top-performing partners for 2014.
Compiled by Alison Job
72 Innovation is the name of the game
Innovation isn’t just about technology, it’s also about finding
ways to survive in a tough economic climate.
By Maggie Ren
Advertiser list
54 Retail challenge Axiz Workgroup 18, 19
Although it’s taken some time, e-commerce is finally Broadlink 40
beginning to make its mark in South Africa. The Margin
CompTIA 52, 53
spoke to two very different e-commerce sites that sell tech
Drive Control Corporation 22
to find out just how successful online retail in South Africa is
at present. Duxbury 66
By Rodney Weidemann
EMC 2
Hitachi Data Sytems 48
56 CCTV goes IP
A new generation of networked cameras is opening up a Mustek 6, 9, 42, 43
growing range of opportunities for resellers. Nology 68
By James van den Heever
Rectron 70
58 No signs of silence Schneider Electric IBC
Voice may feel like yesterday’s technology, but it’s actually Tarsus 14
leading us into the future. Westcon IFC, 1, 4, 5, 12, OBC
By James FrancisEvidEncE, not footagE
MST is dedicated to providing
security solutions, distributing the
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MST offers a complete
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Enterprise and Infrastructure Technologies
For more information, please contact Vino Pillay : 011 237 1472 or Email: vinop@mustek.co.zaICT industry consultant Paul Booth keeps you abreast of
the notable deals and developments that have occurred in
the international and local sector in recent months.
Booth’s bulletpoint bulletin
HP splits business Windows 10 announced
Hewlett-Packard has announced
plans to separate its business in
two. One business will focus on
personal computer and printers, to
be called HP Inc, while Hewlett-
Packard Enterprise is focusing on
technology services, such as data
storage, servers and software.
HP CEO Meg Whitman will
lead the Enterprise business and
HP PC and printer chief Dion
In an announcement made in September 2014, Microsoft
Weisler will be CEO of HP Inc.
Meg Whitman, HP revealed plans to launch its Windows 10 operating system
“The decision to separate into
in late 2015, and in so doing will leapfrog any Windows 9
two market-leading companies
launch. The release will span all hardware from PCs to phones
underscores our commitment to the turnaround plan,” says Whitman. “It
and try to address the issues that have dogged Windows 8.
will provide each new company with the independence, focus, financial
Windows 10 is expected to be a hybrid of Windows 7 and
resources, and flexibility they need to adapt quickly to market and
Windows 8. It combines the reborn Start menu with Windows
customer dynamics.”
8’s live tiles, and adjusts its behaviour depending on how
The split, if approved by the company board, is expected to close by
you’re using your device. In its initial announcement, Microsoft
the end of fiscal 2015. Once complete, HP stockholders will own shares
focused on the benefits for enterprise users as opposed to
of both companies.
the consumer. Tech enthusiasts can sign up for the Windows
Insider Program to trial the new features before anyone else.
Comment: Paul Booth says…
The HP split is part of a major trend that is now manifesting itself among Comment: Jon Tullett says…
the bigger players. This year is expected to see over 60 spin-offs as Microsoft has massively changed its development strategy
this spin-off/split trend continues to gain momentum. In addition to HP, for Windows 10, using open public access to obtain feedback
Symantec has announced a similar move; eBay has announced that ahead of the launch. This will smooth the way for the
it will spin-off PayPal; IBM has already disposed of its printer, PC and commercial deployment, hopefully avoiding the negative
small server businesses and is close to selling off its chip business; and kickback that the introduction of Windows 8 evoked.
Compuware, following its buy-out by a private equity company, has Much of the innovations in this version entail the re-
announced the spin-off of its Covisint subsidiary. This list is just the tip of introduction of features that were removed for Windows 8,
the iceberg. such as the Start menu. The most interesting addition is the
Regarding HP itself, this move is long overdue and allows the two Enterprise app store, which means that the app licence stays
units to do what is necessary to stimulate growth as both sectors are with the company and not the individual. This is very much top
developing at very different rates. of the enterprise app manager’s wishlist.
10 The Margin | Q4 2014Compiled by Paul Booth, Adrian Hinchcliffe and Alison Job
African developments International developments
• Seacom has deployed two new POPs in Uganda. • Alibaba saw huge demand for its record-breaking $25 billion initial public
• SAP is investing $500 million into African growth through 2020. offering.
• The EU’s investigation into Apple has uncovered alleged illegal Irish tax
deals.
• Cisco will invest $1 billion over two years to expand its cloud offerings.
Local developments However, the network equipment maker has also revealed restructuring
• Business Connexion’s shareholders have approved the proposed plans, which include slashing 6 000 jobs.
acquisition by Telkom. • Ericsson is exiting the modem business.
• Pinnacle Holdings said the Financial Services Board investigation into the • HP has been fined $58.8 million for bribing Russian government officials.
distributor has been closed with no enforcement action. • IBM has patented a technique that helps clients automatically analyse
• Samsung will invest R212 million to open a television manufacturing plant and manage the location where their public and private cloud data is
at Dube Tradeport in Durban. stored.
• Flexenclosure, manufacturer of prefabricated datacentre buildings and • Infineon, Philips and Samsung have been fined by the EU over a
intelligent power systems, has opened an office in Johannesburg. smartcard chip cartel.
• Virtual Instruments, a Silicon Valley-based Infrastructure
Performance Management solution provider, is looking to invest in
the South African market.
• SITA sued by local IT suppliers for R33 million. Vendor deals
• Cisco acquired Metacloud, which helps set up cloud services for
other companies.
• Citrix Systems bought Virtual, a startup that is the provider of a cloud-
Local deals based virtualisation platform for iOS and Android.
• ADP Streamline has appointed SageVIP as its channel and service • Ericsson bought a majority stake in Apcera, an enterprise IT cloud company.
partner in key African countries. • Facebook bought 100 patents in a move designed to spur initiatives
• Altech Netstar has bought FleetPro. regarding virtual reality, video and speech translation.
• Blue Label Telecoms acquired Via Media, a mobile content and value- • Google acquired Zync Render, a video-processing service provider; Gecko
added services provider, for R144.3 million (75 percent). Design, a mechanical engineering and product design company; and
• Blue Turtle has signed a value-added reseller partner agreement with JetPac, a startup that designs social travel applications.
Courion. • HP bought Eucalyptus Software, a cloud software startup.
• Brand-Rex, a supplier of standards based structured cabling systems, has • Huawei purchased Neul, a UK-based Internet of Things connectivity
appointed Mustek as its local distribution partner. specialist, for $25 million.
• Bytes Systems Integration has signed up as a value-added distributor • IBM acquired Lighthouse Security Group, a cloud identity and access
for Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise, and created a business unit dedicated to management company.
its solutions. • Infineon Technologies bought International Rectifier, a manufacturer of
• ConvergeNet Holdings made a R109.23 million (17.64 percent) investment in power semiconductors, for $3 billion.
Digicore. It also made a 30 percent investment in Tellumat. • Intel purchased 1 400 Powerwave Technologies-owned telecoms
• Datatec has spent $12 million to buy assets from US-based Verecloud. patents and invested $1.5 billion in a 20 percent stake in two Chinese
• Dimension Data is creating a new joint venture company with semiconductor companies. The semiconductor giant also purchased LSI’s
MultiChoice, called WirelessCo. It will build and operate an open access Axxia networking business.
carrier-grade WiFi network. • Kaseya acquired Scorpion Software, a provider of security and
• Foneworx buys a 35 percent stake in BMI Research. authentication software.
• Grand Parade Investments has entered a joint venture with electronics • KKR made a $90 million investment in Savant Systems, a smart home
manufacturer Tellumat for the manufacture of electronic and related tech company. KKR, one of the largest private equity companies, acquired
technology products. Pioneer’s DJ equipment unit for $550 million.
• Internet Solutions acquired various assets of MWeb, namely MWeb ISP • Microsoft bought Mojang, the developer of the Minecraft video game, for
core network assets, MWeb Business and Optinet from MWeb Connect, $2.5 billion.
and the WiFi assets of MWeb Connect. • Murata Manufacturing (Japan) acquired Peregrine Semiconductor for
• IT Naledi Solutions has been appointed as a Samsung Authorised $471 million.
Services Partner for the company’s B2B equipment. • Sage Group purchased PayChoice, a US payroll services group, for
• Navomax has signed with SAP Africa to provide managed cloud services $157.8 million.
for SAP software solutions. • Samsung purchased Quietside, an air-conditioner firm, as part of the
• Networks Unlimited will deliver F5 Networks’ application delivery product former’s move to strengthen its ‘smart home’ business. It also acquired
set throughout sub-Saharan Africa. Networks Unlimited has also signed SmartThings, a home automation start-up, and PrinterOn, a Canadian
a distribution agreement within South Africa and Africa with converged cloud-printing company.
infrastructure vendor, SimpliVity. • SAP acquired Concur, an expense management software maker, in SAP’s
• Rectron has partnered with Taiwanese manufacturer BenQ for the largest acquisition deal. It was worth $8.3 billion.
distribution of high-end products, including display monitors and • Teradata purchased Think Big Analytics, a consulting and solutions
projectors. company focused exclusively on Hadoop and big data solutions.
• In an active period for SA’s online retail sector Takealot.com announced it is • Thomas Bravo, a private equity investment firm, bought Compuware for
to merge with Kalahari.com. Takealot also acquired Superbalist. $2.5 billion.
• Telkom has signed an agreement with Cisco to become the first Cisco • Vista Equity Partners purchased Tibco Software for $4.3 billion.
Hosted Collaboration Solution strategic partner in SA. • VMware purchased CloudVolumes, a cloud startup.
• Vox Telecom purchased Dynamic IT, a managed IT provider. • Zensar Technologies bought Professional Access, a major Oracle partner.
Q4 2014 | The Margin 11Advertorial
AUTHORISED
DISTRIBUTOR
ACROBAT ON
SUBSCRIPTION
ANYONE?
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significance of this announcement deploy software instantly.
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your customers to better support new features. The availability of Acrobat on Subscription means
it is yet another way that Adobe is proving that it
their employees that want to work Acrobat services and features as soon as they’re is leading the race to the cloud and is enabling its
on multiple devices and in any released at no additional cost. The bottom line partners and their customers every step of the way.
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Another key benefit of making use of the
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Why should you use Acrobat on Subscription?
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Where do we start. A key bugbear for Acrobat
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+27 11 848 9000 | WWW.WESTCON.COMcolumn
Aki’s eye
The ‘Greek Geek’ speaks about some of the stories from the worlds
of science and tech that have recently caught his attention.
Aki Anastasiou hosts the tech show Technobyte on
Talk Radio 702. Follow @AkiAnastasiou
Glow in the dark roads become reality
Poorly painted roads can be frustrating especially when driving at night and not being
able to clearly see the road markings. That’s about to change. What started off as an idea Phablets, watches and
by designer Daan Roosegaarde has now turned into reality after collaboration with Dutch record sales
construction company Heijmans. The Glowing Lines project uses a special paint that charges
during the day using solar energy and then glows during the night making the road markings Much speculation and anticipation was
clearly visible. The technology lights up when a vehicle is detected and dims when there
finally quelled when Apple revealed
is no traffic to conserve energy. The project, which initially ran in a test phase, has now
a slew of product releases, including
gone live on the N329 in Oss, in the Netherlands. The team hope to roll out this futuristic
technology internationally as well as to use the Glowing Lines for marking bicycle lanes. a sneak preview of its foray into the
smartwatch (expected in 2015). With
new iPhones, an iPad and a 27-inch iMac
also launched at the September event
these new products are already producing
robust sales. The company is set for
record revenues heading into the festive
season, having sold 10 million iPhones in
WiFi, WiFi everywhere is the novelty wearing off? the first three days on sale – a new record
for the company.
By 2018 there will be nearly one Do you have a wearable device like a The popularity of the new iPhones has
Wi-Fi hotspot for every twenty Fitbit or a smartwatch? Are still wearing been astounding locally as well, with die-
people on earth, so says iPass, it after three months? Do your eyes hard fans queuing up to get their upgrades
a company that builds and still light up when you show off your when the devices went on sale in South
manages WiFi networks. According fancy wearable gadget to your friends Africa on 24 October.
to the latest research one hotspot is or has the fad passed? The adoption The two new models, the iPhone 6 and
added every second. Currently there rate of these wearables is certainly the 6+ feature a 4.7-inch and 5.5-inch
are over 47 million hotspots around gaining in traction. According to the respectively and are both larger than
the world. The French are the hotspot PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Wearable previous iPhones, with the iPhone 6+
kings, and currently have over 13 Future report around 20 percent of falling into the phablet category.
million hotspots across the country, Americans own some kind of wearable Phablets are the fastest growing
followed by USA (9.8 million) and device. Around 53 percent of those sector in mobility, and network operators
UK (5.7 million). Interestingly 50 owners are millennials and early have been surprised by the demand.
percent of commercial hotspots are adopters of this new technology. The Initial expectations were an 80/20 split
controlled by brands. According to interesting part of the survey shows in iPhone sales with most consumers
iPass, the total number of hotspots that 33 percent of surveyed consumers opting for the smaller iPhone. But since
globally is set to grow to over 340 who purchased a wearable technology the launch of the latest iPhone iterations,
million hotspots by 2018. Hotspot device more than a year ago now say that split seems to be changing to almost
growth is expected to happen mostly they no longer use the device at all or a 50/50 split. These numbers coincide
in public areas with a strong retail use it infrequently. with Accenture’s Digital Consumer Tech
presence and in residential areas. Come to think of it I am in the same Survey 2014 where over half (51 percent)
Massive growth is also expected situation. The truth is the excitement of US consumers surveyed plan to buy a
in trains and airplanes. Driven by does ‘wear’ off if I use the pun. Nobody smartphone in the next year would prefer
consumer demand for data and has quite cracked the user interface yet a phablet.
connectivity the internet is fast and battery life can be cumbersome, Consuming more video and browsing
becoming a ubiquitous experience, and that is probably the biggest issue. more, phablet users also use much more
and in the next decade hotspots will Who wants to recharge something data, which is probably why networks
be like electricity and water – they’ll every day! think that phablet users are fab. Okay,
be everywhere! that was weak.
Q4 2014 | The Margin 13ADVERTORIAL
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E
xperts say, in the future all computing And instead of hardware defining the on, on-demand and be cost-aligned, so the
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This will allow for extremely granular it plays in the larger ecosystem to which it be optimised for application performance
resource allocation, delivering improved belongs) could change as the business’ needs and business needs, and aligned to service
efficiencies and optimal performance as and evolve. level agreement (SLA) and TCO targets. It
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Tullett’s tech talk
Jon Tullett has been covering IT for two decades. He is
ITWeb’s senior news analysis editor.
CIOs want your strategy, not your service
E
arlier this year, ITWeb’s Brainstorm was highlighted as much more desirable than By focusing instead on those key strategic
magazine (The Margin’s sister publication) a hosted server on which the customer gets to areas, much closer relationships become
conducted its first major survey of South manage his own CRM stack from OS up. South possible. It is, however, considerably more
African CIOs, asking in-depth questions about African cloud providers, scored out of ten, were difficult to achieve. The channel always aspires
strategies, concerns, and buying habits. Valid given an average rating of just 3.5. to add value on top of product shipments – the
responses received totalled 158, and the data margin is often in those services after all – but it’s
offers great insight into the patterns driving IT What do you want from us? an order of magnitude more difficult to achieve.
spend. Although the target audience for the So what are CIOs looking for from vendors, And if the survey’s conclusions extrapolate
results were the CIOs themselves, there are channel and implementation partners? accurately, customers are cutting back on
some insights for the channel too, and those Surprisingly, despite almost universal budget services anyway – they want the products, with
were among the most surprising. pressure, cost-effectiveness was ranked only infrastructure spend topping the chart. But they
Many of the findings were expected: budgets third among supplier criteria. Much higher also want to know that their suppliers share
are under pressure, frequently failing to keep ratings were given to strategic alignment and their architectural vision and roadmap, and
pace with inflation; skills are in high demand; long-term vision. Customers are struggling to will be able to continue to deliver appropriate
CIOs are struggling to achieve business develop technology roadmaps that align to their technology throughout that long-term
alignment and deliver innovation. It didn’t really businesses, and they’re demanding the same technology strategy.
need a survey to tell us any of that. alignment from their suppliers. Which probably boils down to more bad
In terms of spending, there was a strong While those scores are damning, traditional news, I’m afraid. Customers want the tin, not the
skew towards infrastructure spend and suppliers fared much better in the CIO Survey. high-margin stuff on top, but they do want you
telecoms, with reductions in services and We asked CIOs to rate suppliers in terms of to invest in relationship building by acquiring the
consulting. Investments in cloud alternatives skills, flexibility, meeting expectations, stability, business skills to understand their (often vague
are much slower than elsewhere in the world longevity and ROI. Across the board, suppliers and fluid) long-term plans. The only good news
– most of the respondents indicated a hybrid rated well in all categories save one – longevity. in that equation is that they may be amenable
strategy of in-house investment alongside Once again the drive for long-term strategy to higher margins on the tin in the first place, but
forays into hosted services. comes to the fore, with a marked concern only if you’ve put in the hard yards up front.
This mirrored the sentiments expressed in indicated in the lifespan of suppliers and their
another ITWeb survey earlier this year, in which product lines.
CIOs were asked to discuss their perceptions Given high satisfaction with ROI (whatever
of cloud services in South Africa. Almost your clients may tell you when it comes to
ITWeb Brainstorm CIO survey:
universally, the CIOs expressed a dim view contract renewals!) and the lower than expected on.itweb.co.za/138332
of local providers, criticising them for offering prioritisation of cost-effectiveness when
little more than barebones hosted infrastructure selecting suppliers, the conventional wisdom of ITWeb cloud perception survey:
rather than business services aligned to the shrinking margins and diminishing returns may on.itweb.co.za/137709
customer’s strategy. Hosted CRM, for example, be questionable.
Q4 2014 | The Margin 15Figuring it out
The Margin brings you some of the latest industry forecasts, statistics and predictions.
Compiled by Paul Booth, Alison Job and Adrian Hinchcliffe
By 2016, 80% of The combined revenue Global spending on
telecoms managed
businesses will find growth of the cloud computing
services is expected
constrained from a lack of new markets of Kenya and to grow at a CAGR
datacentre skills, says Gartner. South Africa will more of almost
than double to 12%over the
$288 million next five years,
according to
by 2018, according to Insight Research.
Frost & Sullivan.
More than IT services
75% of mobile spending in South
applications will Africa is expected
More than 1.25 billion fail basic security to increase 10.5%
smartphones will be tests through 2015, in 2015 to reach
shipped this year, up says Gartner. $5.7 billion, according to IDC.
23.8% from 2013,
according to IDC.
By 2016, 40% of Worldwide phablet
consumer wrist-worn shipments will surpass
devices will be smart those of portable PCs this
watches, according year and those of tablets
to Gartner. in 2015, says IDC.
Consumer Sales of Chromebooks will
3D printing is reach 5.2 million units
this year, up 79 percent from
more than last year, according to Gartner.
five years
away,
believes Gartner.
According to a recent survey, Facebook hit the
unlicensed software in The worldwide software- 100 million
South Africa defined networking market user mark in Africa,
amounts to over is expected to reach
with 80% of users
R4 billion, one of $8 billion by 2018, accessing the social
the worst offenders at a CAGR of 89.4%, network site via
in the MEA region. says IDC. mobile phones.
16 The Margin | Q4 2014Analysis
“Should NRCS only
issue LOAs within a 120
working day period, it
means that we in South
Africa will always be
six months behind on
technology.”
Spencer Chen, Rectron
challenged in meeting its (then) targets of a
21-day turnaround on approvals. In its report,
the NRCS said it had granted 7 453 approvals
in 2012/13, with only 38 percent of them within
21 days. It stated: “The delays were mostly
due to the increase in the scope of regulation,
capacity constraints, the inability to employ new
evaluators as a result of the complex recruitment
process and the negative impact of labour
relations issues.”
The extended turnaround time is reported to
have caught some local vendors by surprise, while
others said they had been unaware of the change.
Andrew McNiven, HP South Africa industry
standard servers category manager, says the
LOA required on imported electronics generally
took around one to two weeks to process
in the past. “It is essentially a paper-based
exercise, since all safety testing has already
Hurry up, and wait
been completed abroad. It’s just a matter of
submitting the tests and documentation to
NRCS for scrutiny.” McNiven says the new,
extended turnaround time could complicate
future launch plans and seriously impact HP
divisions where new products are launched
South Africa could soon find itself at the back of the technology adoption curve, every quarter. “Servers, with a slightly longer
refresh rate, might not be as badly affected. But
as a result of slower turnaround times on authorisations on imported products. nonetheless, we would still like our new product
releases to be in line with those in the rest of
by Tracy Burrows the world,” he says. The issue of course is not
Photography Shutterstock exclusive to HP, and other vendors would also
be subject to such restrictions.
I
n an amendment quietly announced in “Before the LOAs can be issued to the importer McNiven adds that delaying product
April this year, the National Regulator for or manufacturer of a product that falls within introduction locally could also increase the
Compulsory Specifications (NRCS) of South the scope of the compulsory specifications, the probability of grey market imports, “and this is
Africa, which certifies the safety and compliance company must register with the Electrotechnical currently a major contributor to revenue loss for
of the power components of imported servers, division of NRCS by completing the Application vendors locally,” he says.
electronics, TV and audio products, appliances for Registration form.” Spencer Chen, product director at Rectron,
and power tools, extended its turnaround time on In its Letter of Authority Administration says: “We believe that the change will
Letters of Authority (LOA) allowing the sales of Procedure guide published in April this year, adversely affect Rectron and the IT industry
these imported goods locally, from around three NRCS advises: “The evaluation of the LOA in general. IT products, especially PC, tablet,
weeks to up to 120 days. application will, under normal circumstances, notebook, monitors, power supplies and
NRCS states: “Letters of Authority are take +/- 120 working days from the date of printers, have model refreshes every three to
required by all manufacturers and importers registration. If the application is approved, an six months. Should NRCS only issue LOAs
of commodities that fall under the scope of LOA will be issued.” within a 120 working day period, it means that
the above compulsory specifications prior to The NRCS had not responded to repeated we in South Africa will always be six months
the importation and sale of the product. This requests for comment by the time of going behind on technology. This may result in SA
LOA will only be issued after the successful to print, but did state in its 2012/13 annual not receiving updated issues from multinational
evaluation of the proof of compliance submitted. report that its Electrotechnical division was vendors at all.”
Q4 2014 | The Margin 17Benefits:
the pitch
photography Karolina Komendera
Hemmanth Singh, Vodacom
20 The Margin | Q4 2014Selling to the CMO:
think results
by Tracy Burrows
photography various
brand message out to the world. So when we
speak to the CMO, we see greater interest in the
“When selling to the
outcome, not how the solution works.” CMO, we see the
Marketing decision-makers are an Hemmanth Singh, Vodacom’s managing
executive of m-commerce, has played both the
primary interest is in the
exciting and potentially lucrative CIO role and one similar to that of the CMO. outcome – the ‘what can
target market for IT services and He says the key difference between the two
solutions, say industry players. But is that while the CMO is looking to business it do for me?’.”
acceleration, the CIO is more infrastructure-,
Nicholas Leighton, Adobe Systems
you have to move fast and deliver application- and data-driven.
measurable results if you want to “Often if you talk to a CIO, it needs to be
a pure product play. But with the CMO, the
succeed in this market. discussion is more around a solution set, and it is them to collaborate on budget allocation and on
not brand-specific. The CMO is saying, ‘I want to implementation. In South Africa, we see good
reach my existing customer, upsell them and win collaboration between the IT and marketing
I
T procurement has moved beyond the scope new customers. Show me how your technology departments of most enterprises,” says Leighton.
of the IT department, into every level of the can do that for me’.” “When selling to the CMO, we see the primary
enterprise. One key division making increasing interest is in the outcome – the ‘what can it do
use of ICT solutions to deliver on its mandate Outcome-based selling for me?’. CMOs also expect implementation to
is marketing. But selling to the chief marketing Leighton says CMOs are challenged in be fast, and it’s an unstated requirement that the
officer (CMO) requires a markedly different gathering and analysing data, improving solution must be simple to use and not require
approach than selling to the CIO, say vendors. marketing and customer retention, and much IT involvement,” he notes.
Adobe Systems, which has long focused proving the ROI on marketing spend. “There “Marketers just want to show results.
on marketers, says the CMO has very different are two sides to Adobe’s business – the media They’re under pressure to drive the right
priorities from the CIO when it comes to IT component and the enterprise component. So customer experience at the right time. They
procurement. Nicholas Leighton, enterprise we take to market technologies that help both can be demanding customers, too – and rightly
account executive: digital marketing at Adobe the CMO and the CIO deliver on the enterprise’s so, because money and brand reputation is on
Systems, says: “CMOs tend to be more focused objectives, such as web CMS, analytics, ad the line.
on the business side of things, whereas CIOs, buying tools, social management and campaign “Think of big-name brands: any mistake has
by the nature of their work, have to focus on the management technologies. a huge impact on their brand globally. If their site
systems. The CMO’s job is to understand and “This means we often engage with both the goes down or they don’t get the data they need,
engage with the customer, on top of getting the CMO and the CIO in meetings. It’s necessary for it’s immediately visible to the consumer on social
Q4 2014 | The Margin 21The pitch
Top tips for
selling to
the CMO
• Sell solutions, not technology
• Understand the client’s market, pain
points and goals
• Offer pilot projects
• Deliver fast – anything taking over a
few months is too long
• Show a measurable ROI
selling – look, listen and learn. Then go away
and figure out if you have anything to sell to
this client. Ask ‘How can I come back with a
solution?’ I see a lot more of this happening now
that I play a semi-CMO role. People call me and
say ‘I’ve read that you have a problem’ or ‘I see
you are moving into a new direction and I believe
I have a solution that will help’. I’m always
willing to see them,” says Singh.
“Because they tend to be creative, I believe
CMOs are open to new opportunity and to
photography shutterstock change. They’re agile in their thinking, and
receptive to variety. They’re also receptive to
pilot projects.
“But the challenges of selling to CMOs include
“Rather than going in and presenting a solution, you that this market is volatile and people lose focus
quickly. You must be able to give quick results
should go in as a business advisor.“ and deliver a quick return. Very few CMOs would
do a one-year pilot. In fact, if you have anything
Hemmanth Singh, Vodacom
running beyond four months, you’ve lost their
interest – you almost want to do a production
system in four months and deliver a return the
media, and the brand suffers. Their data must However, Singh notes that collaboration is next month,” he says.
be accurate, up to date and enable real-time necessary between the CMO and CIO. The CMO While CMOs may be demanding customers
decisions and responses.” may authorise the technology procurement, but who want near-instant results, they’re a strong
the risk is on the CIO, he says. “If it goes down and growing market for vendors with the right
A fatter wallet? or there are problems, who gets the blame? The solution sets. Singh says: “Marketing can be
Singh says the CMO tends to have a more CIO lives with the issues of support, resilience massively lucrative, because the CMO budget
flexible budget too. “The CIO gets a budget and and disaster recovery. So, fundamentally, CIOs is linked to revenue. If your solution delivers
says, ‘Within this budget, how can I optimise focus on risk minimisation while CMOs focus on increased revenue, the budget will increase.”
systems?’. But the CMO is able to motivate for a opportunity maximisation. Ideally, there should Leighton adds that in South Africa, the market
larger or more flexible budget, based on projected be a strong partnership between the two roles.” opportunity for marketing-related solutions is
returns. In fact, Gartner says that by 2017, the big and growing. “We see increased demand
CMO’s IT budget will be bigger than the CIO’s Tailored approach for support, training and associated services
budget in the customer-facing space. The CMO is Singh says when a vendor calls on a CMO, the – depending on the type of technology in use.
managing the budget for a range of areas – the engagement should start with ‘How can I help So if someone is implementing a website, for
website, channel enhancement, campaigns, you?’, ‘What are your pain points?’ and ‘Where example, there’s a range of opportunities for
customer databases, mining databases and do you see the business going?’. business, including content development, design
communications. So the budget is sitting in “Rather than going in and presenting a and creative teams. Vendors have a great deal of
the front-end space while the CIO budget gets solution, you should go in as a business advisor. scope to play a support and consulting role in a
pushed deeper and deeper into infrastructure.” I always say there are three important ‘Ls’ in number of areas.”
Q4 2014 | The Margin 23You can also read
