Episodios

  • TCS+ | MVNX on the opportunities in South Africa’s booming MVNO market

    TCS+ | MVNX on the opportunities in South Africa’s booming MVNO market
    Jul 11 2025
    For years, mobile telecommunications was dominated by a handful of large operators, or MNOs. Now, with almost 30 MVNOs, or mobile virtual network operators, serving niche consumer bases in banking, retail and education, among other sectors, the MVNO market is thriving.
    However, brands looking to take advantage of this boom and add mobile services to their offerings are not guaranteed success. There are several critical decisions regarding strategy, process and choosing the right technology platform that are key to building a critical mass of loyal MVNO customers.
    In this episode of TCS+, Daniel Swart, chief commercial officer at MVNX, an MVNO enablement specialist, discusses the opportunities and threats facing MVNOs in South Africa today.
    Swart Delves into:
    • The services MVNX, as an MVNO enabler, offers to brands looking to launch MVNO services in South Africa;
    • How South Africa’s MVNO market has developed since its inception in 2006 with the entry of now-defunct Virgin Mobile;
    • The markers of success separating successful MVNOs from those that have struggled to gain a foothold in the market;
    • The benefits MVNO brands reap from using an enablement platform to launch and distribute their mobile services;
    • The importance of understanding the competitive dynamics of the MVNO market and how new MVNOs should position themselves;
    • The regulatory aspects of running an MVNO; and
    • International MVNO trends Swart believes are likely to be emulated in South Africa.
    This discussion is not to be missed. TechCentral
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    24 m
  • TCS | Connecting Saffas – Renier Lombard on The Lekker Network

    TCS | Connecting Saffas – Renier Lombard on The Lekker Network
    Jul 7 2025
    The Lekker Network is a recently launched global business platform designed to help South African expatriates find business and investment opportunities around the world, including at home.
    Founded by a group of well-known businesspeople, The Lekker Network was launched in March and offers members access to a business directory, a jobs portal (for employers and job seekers), a social platform with “likeminded individuals” and events around the world for people, including non-South Africans, to meet up.
    Renier Lombard, a co-founder of The Lekker Network, is our guest on this episode of the TechCentral Show. He said the platform, whose ambassadors include well-known journalist and speaker Bruce Whitfield and former Springbok and now businessman Bob Skinstad, is designed to “forge connections between South African businesses and businesspeople, regardless of their location”.
    In this episode of TCS, Lombard unpacks:
    • Who founded The Lekker Network and why;
    • Who it is aimed at and who can join;
    • How much it costs and what members get for the fee;
    • The markets where The Lekker Network is focused – not surprisingly, the attention is on countries where there are a large number of South African expats;
    • How (and why) non-South Africans can join the network; and
    • The importance of the tech sector, including start-ups, to The Lekker Network community.
    Don’t miss the interview! TechCentral
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    21 m
  • TechCentral Nexus S0E4: Takealot’s big Post Office jobs plan

    TechCentral Nexus S0E4: Takealot’s big Post Office jobs plan
    Jul 4 2025
    This is the fourth episode of a new podcast series curated by TechCentral’s editorial team and generated by artificial intelligence tools. It’s an experiment that’s in beta for now, but if it works well, we’ll consider making it a regular feature by launching a season 1.
    In this episode, we highlight some of the biggest technology news stories from South Africa and the world over the last week, as covered by TechCentral.
    Note that even using the most accurate and reliable sources, AI can and will occasionally make mistakes.
    In this episode, we look at:
    • Takealot’s talks about hiring thousands of retrenched Post Office employees to support its e-commerce expansion plans;
    • Why South Africans’ use of cash is costing the economy billions of rand a year, according to the Reserve Bank;
    • City Power’s plan to roll out electric vehicle charging stations in Johannesburg;
    • The Internet Service Providers’ Association’s view of communications minister Solly Malatsi’s plan to introduce equity equivalence in licensing in the ICT sector;
    • Intel’s pivot to the “14A” manufacturing technology and what it means in its fight with TSMC for foundry customers;
    • Bank Zero’s sale to Lesaka Technologies; and
    • The mental health impact of AI chatbots.
    Again, this podcast is experimental. We welcome your feedback. Would you like this podcast to become a regular feature? Is there anything you’d like us to improve? Is it too short or too long? Drop us a line at nexus@techcentral.co.za. TechCentral
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    19 m
  • TCS+ | First Distribution on the latest and greatest cloud technologies

    TCS+ | First Distribution on the latest and greatest cloud technologies
    Jun 27 2025
    The pace of innovation in the cloud space is breathtaking. Gone are the days when the cloud was just about virtual machines and storage; today, it is a dynamic ecosystem, constantly introducing features that are fundamentally transforming how businesses operate, from the smallest start-ups to the largest enterprises.
    Preegan Chetty, Azure product manager at First Distribution, returns to TechCentral’s TCS+ to discuss some of the latest and most exciting features available in the Azure cloud environment and how businesses are leveraging those capabilities to facilitate growth.
    This is the third in a series of three episodes with Chetty and First Distribution. Episode one covered cloud cost optimisation in Azure and episode two looked at how businesses can manage the complexities of data residency in hybrid cloud environments.
    In this episode, Chetty delves into:
    • The benefits cloud-based IT environments offer over on-prem installations and how they help companies experiment and adopt new technologies faster;
    • How businesses can ensure they are able to keep pace with new technologies so they are not left behind;
    • How South African businesses are using the newest AI tools in Azure to build new products and services;
    • How to approach responsible AI development in the cloud;
    • How cloud AI tools can help with code modernisation;
    • How small businesses can take advantage of cloud technology; and
    • Emerging cloud technologies to keep an eye on.
    This discussion is not to be missed. TechCentral
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    11 m
  • TCS+ | First Distribution on data governance in hybrid cloud environments

    TCS+ | First Distribution on data governance in hybrid cloud environments
    Jun 27 2025
    Data is the lifeblood of every organisation, driving innovation, enhancing customer experiences and influencing strategic decisions.
    But managing this invaluable asset has never been more challenging. Hybrid IT environments – where some organisational data sits in the cloud other data resides in on-premises infrastructure – only adds to this complexity.
    In this second episode in a series of three delving into the ins and outs of Azure cloud deployments, Preegan Chetty, Azure product manager at First Distribution, discusses the data governance procedures that ensure organisational data is stored in the most useful, cost-effective and compliant ways.
    The first episode centred on effective cost management techniques for the Azure cloud environment. You can watch that episode here.
    In this episode, Chetty delves into:
    • Why the complexity of data governance increases when organisations migrate from on-premises to hybrid cloud environments;
    • The factors organisations should consider when deciding which data they should keep where;
    • What Dora legislation is and how it affects the hybrid data strategies of South African organisations;
    • Other legislation impacting data governance in South Africa;
    • The tools Azure provides to help data architects structure distributed data in ways that do not have a negative impact on performance;
    • Data governance for disaster recovery; and
    • The impact data governance decisions have on an organisation’s cloud costs.
    Don’t miss an informative discussion! TechCentral
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    13 m
  • TCS+ | First Distribution on cloud cost management in Microsoft Azure

    TCS+ | First Distribution on cloud cost management in Microsoft Azure
    Jun 26 2025
    Organisations are flocking to the cloud for its agility, scalability and innovation potential. But while the cloud promises big things, it also presents a set of financial challenges.
    Many businesses find their cloud bills spiralling out of control, eroding the very benefits they sought in the first place.
    In this episode of TechCentral’s TCS+, Preegan Chetty, Microsoft Azure product manager at First Distribution, discusses the tools Azure provides for effective cost management and how businesses can take advantage of them to get the most out their cloud deployments without breaking the bank.
    Chetty delves into:
    • Some of the common pitfalls or hidden costs that organisations encounter when moving their workloads into the cloud and how to mitigate against these;
    • The different pricing models available in Azure and how organisations can leverage them;
    • What FinOps is and how businesses can benefit from it;
    • How organisational KPIs can be leveraged to manage cloud spending effectively;
    • How tagging can aid in cost centre management;
    • How to manage costs in more complex hybrid cloud environments; and
    • The AI tools Azure offers to aid businesses in managing their costs.
    This episode is not to be missed. TechCentral
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    13 m
  • TCS | South Africa’s Sociable wants to make social media social again

    TCS | South Africa’s Sociable wants to make social media social again
    Jun 23 2025
    The digitisation of social interactions has made it easier for people to maintain contact and build online communities. However, there has been a decrease in in-person interaction that has contributed to a sense of disconnect.
    South African-made social media platform Sociable hopes to solve this problem by combining online engagement with in-person meetups, connecting people based on shared interests.
    In this episode of the TechCentral Show, Sociable co-founder and CEO Jason van Dyk tells TechCentral’s Nathi Ndlovu about the importance of community and how Sociable is helping drive its development.
    In the show, Van Dyk delves into:
    • How community builders benefit from using the Sociable platform;
    • The features Sociable provides to communities and their members to enhance engagement;
    • How meeting spaces including coffee shops, bars and restaurants benefit from the in-person component of Sociable’s community meetups;
    • Sociable’s approach to safety for its users;
    • How Sociable positions itself against large social media platforms like Facebook;
    • Some of the most popular communities on the platform; and
    • The impact of AI on the social media landscape.
    Don’t miss the conversation! TechCentral
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    24 m
  • Nexus S0E3: Behind Takealot’s revenue surge

    Nexus S0E3: Behind Takealot’s revenue surge
    Jun 23 2025
    This is the third episode of a new podcast series curated by TechCentral’s editorial team and generated by artificial intelligence tools. It’s an experiment that’s in beta for now, but if it works well, we’ll consider making it a regular feature by launching a season 1.
    Note that even using the most accurate and reliable sources, AI can and will occasionally make mistakes.
    In this episode, we highlight some of the biggest technology news stories from South Africa and the world over the last week, as covered by TechCentral.
    In this episode, we look at:
    • Takealot Group’s strong top-line performance;
    • The profit surge at Prosus and what’s driving it;
    • The over-capacity crisis hitting China’s motoring industry;
    • How Oracle, a dowdy database developer, got a new lease on life;
    • Jaltech’s decision to back solar specialist Wetility; and
    • The State IT Agency hits back at its critics in government;
    Again, this podcast is experimental. We welcome your feedback. Would you like this podcast to become a regular feature? Is there anything you’d like us to improve? Is it too short or too long? Drop us a line at nexus@techcentral.co.za. TechCentral
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    16 m