Revolution 2.0 is actually Awakening 1.0

It’s being called Revolution 2.0. It was facilitated by Facebook pages that brought young Tunisians and Egyptians together, starting a national conversation and taking action. It was driven by hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of Twitter updates, which attracted the attention of the world to an evolution of a revolution.

This movement has been building up for years and you have to look at it as a step-by-step process of empowerment.

The Internet has been available in the Arab countries for nearly 15 years, but its penetration levels to almost every segment and social class only started a few years ago. With that Internet access came knowledge and communication, coinciding with the introduction of social media platforms- like Facebook, YouTube and others. It then took some time for Facebook to be Arabized, but a flood of Arabs joined immediately. The number of Facebook users in Arab countries is currently around 20 million. However, to this day, Twitter users in the Arab World are estimated to be less than 100,000, so it can’t be seriously considered a high-impact media on the populous, but what it can do is reach and mobilize the media and technology savvy Arab youth, a now highly influential segment.

For a few years, there was a lot ‘training’ and ‘testing’ involved; finding out how governments and authorities would react to opposition on the Internet. Censorship, website blocks and even turning off the Internet became expected responses, but those driving change kept raising the stakes and pushing up the levels of freedom of expression.

My friend, Wael Ghonim, played an important role in these events by starting the Facebook page ‘We are all Khalid Saeed’ – the young man brutally beaten and killed last year. Wael became a face of this revolution when he was kidnapped and jailed, and became a hero when he was released.

For all of us, who knew Wael as a regular guy, a tech and media professional like us, his disappearance caused an outrage. A massive online movement built-up online to search for him and demand his release. Tweets and Facebook updates about him were saturating social networks. Websites and blogs across the world picked them up, followed by global news organizations and then a whole wave of ‘where is Wael’ emerged that made the headline news in every country in the world. His employer, Google could no longer remain silent and had to provide comment. His release was also heavily covered.

The members of the Middle East technology and media community who ‘connected’ over the past few years through meetings at conferences or doing business together, realized that they could do so much more when ‘one of their own’ needed help.
And, every one of Wael’s Facebook and Twitter friends felt they had played their small part in the Egyptian uprising.

But, the real heroes were not the people sitting behind a keyboard tweeting! They were those who responded to the digital call for action, but reacted in the real world and put their lives in danger and got real injuries. In the end, it became clear technology, as it always has been, was nothing more than a tool in the hands of a willing people. There are no digital replacements for human sentiments and causes.

On New Year’s Eve, I was interviewed by Al Jazeera, who also spoke to other guests on a panel regarding the topic of technology and economy in the Middle East in 2011. A couple of the guests were older - and old fashioned- people who said they had lost faith in Arab youth, saying they were too busy paying attention to ‘trivial matters’.

My response was that there was already clear and encouraging movement, across the Middle East, by young entrepreneurs and activists who were driving economic and social change, creating new jobs and building a new, better future for Arab youth using tools and knowledge that previous generations did not have access to. It was probably the last thing on any of our minds that this Arab youth would be creating new political systems too!

The media can call it whatever they want: Revolution 2.0, the Digital Uprising or whatever. The reality is that millions of Arabs are thrilled, not because of the technology involved, but because it feels like ‘Awakening 1.0’.

zanasser@gmail.com

int@j announce MENA ICT Forum 2010

It’s back. Jordan’s premier information technology event, has been announced and will be held on 10 October, 2010. It has been re-named the MENA ICT Forum.

Organized by the Information Technology Association of Jordan (int@j) for the 5th
time, the event will be held under the patronage of His Excellency Mr. Marwan Juma, Minister of ICT, previously head of int@j and well-known for his hard work for Jordan’s ICT sector.

At the event announcement, His Excellency said: “The MENA ICT Forum aims at establishing a leading position for Jordan to serve as a regional ICT hub and an internationally recognized exporter of ICT products and services.

Ayman Mazahreh, president of int@j and a long serving int@j board member, said that: “The MENA ICT Forum is the venue of choice for high-level decision makers from both the private and public sectors on local, regional and international levels.”
MENA ICT Forum will be supported by the USAID and Jordan Economic Development Program (SABEQ).

Laith Al Qasem, Chief of Party, said that “Jordan has a golden opportunity to enter the world of outsourcing due to the huge natural potential that lies within it. On both the public and private sector levels Jordan has launched its new campaign “Turn to Jordan…Your Smart Shore Destination”.

Having attended every ICT Forum in the past, I look forward to seeing what’s on offer this time round, especially with the more regional approach adopted.

The general program sounds good. The opening session will discuss Jordan’s journey and key accomplishments since 2000, followed by the “MENA at a glance” session with real life case studies and the current status of Arabic online content. The event will conclude by an interactive and informative session that articulates recommended practical steps to capitalize on various opportunities guided by investment incentives and legislative environments.

There is also a possibility that we, Jordan’s Internet entrepreneurs, may be contributing to the ICT Forum this year through the efforts of the newly founded Internet Cooperation Council (ICC) which aims to assist the country’s tech start-ups and investors and to build on Jordan’s reputation as a hot-bed of technology creativity and success. We’ll be telling you more about that soon.

In the meantime, we should all wish int@j the best of luck and we should all contribute through feedback, participation and spreading the good word about Jordan’s potential as a global ICT center.

zanasser@gmail.com

It’s official: PCs have been replaced by personal gadgets

You are probably tired by now from hearing about Apple. But for industry watchers like us- writers and analysts who have followed computing for three decades- we cannot ignore the milestones being crossed and the turning points being witnessed in this era!

Here’s the latest milestone, that sheds some light on the reality of the growth in mobile computing versus desktop/laptop computing.

Newsweek has reported that, within six months, Apple's revenues from the iPhone and iPad will be more than double its revenues from the entire Macintosh computer product line. Imagine how a company founded in the late seventies to produce personal computers, then going through a cycle of ups and downs, has completely re-invented itself as a producer of slim mobile gadgets, which are now the new form of computers.

After all, what does a personal computer do nowadays? It’s an Internet-connected machine we use for email, telephony, information, social networking, gaming and some light business applications. What if you could add options like a size that fits into your pocket or a small handbag, including a music player and 5 megapixel camera. How can a desktop or laptop computer compete with that for personal use?

Don’t get me wrong. Fully-featured PCs with wide screens, expansion slots, peripherals and big keyboards are still needed for both business and entertainment; but the majority of people today seem to be doing just fine utilizing touch-screens or mini keyboards on smaller devices. As a result, many are ditching their computers.

Combine the impact of of the recent efforts of Apple, Blackberry, Nokia and others and you begin to see the convergence of computing, telephony and photography is complete.

In the poorer countries of the world, smart phones- which we are mobile computing gadgets- are the more widely available computing platform, are cheaper and therefore help bridge the digital divide. Just look at the number of mobile phone subscribers in Africa, compared to home or office broadband Internet subscribers. Clearly, a shift is happening in the way ‘we compute’.

For now, I cannot yet comfortably write and lay out this column on a smart phone, but I could probably do it with an iPad equipped with the right software: A complete device the size of a book, thinner than my monitor and without the need for a separate keyboard, mouse or cumbersome computer case. Amazing!

People keep saying change is coming. Well, it has already arrived. Let’s learn to deal with it!

zanasser@gmail.com

Quit Facebook Day ...

Monday May 31st was designated as 'Quit Facebook Day' by a movement championed by two ex-Facebook users from Toronto, Joseph Dee and Matthew Milan, who insist that Facebook doesn't have the user's best intentions at heart and does not offer fair choices.

They built a website (QuitFacebookDay.com) to inform people about their movement and managed to get commitments from approximately 27,000 users to quit Facebook.

They have also attracted media attention, as the hot topic of the past few weeks has been the changes that Facebook introduced to its privacy settings, which are ‘opt-out’ based. This means the new privacy settings are the default for all users, and you actually need to go through a series of steps to opt-out of them.

A group of computer enthusiasts from Califorinia say that there as many as “170 options and 50 clicks to actually lock down your Facebook profile."

As a result there is a growing general consensus that Facebook management seeks to serve advertisers worldwide with little regard for its users’ wishes.

The new settings enable marketers to get more information on the Internet habits of Facebook users, and provide even more sophisticated targeting of these users.

Clearly, millions of well-informed users across the world would be concerned regarding this ‘sharing’ of their personal information and interests, and it’s up to them to decide whether or not to use Facebook.

According to a recent poll in the U.K. regarding privacy concerns, 30 percent of users said they were "highly likely" to quit Facebook, while another 30 percent said it was "possible" they would quit and 16 percent said they have already stopped using Facebook!

But, is this just a ‘storm in a tea cup’? Are 27,000 users far too few compared to some 400 million using the service? Facebook seems to think so. Officials said that more than 10 million people have joined since the privacy settings were changed last year, and half of all of Facebook’s users have adjusted their settings.

So what’s next in the ‘Facebook Privacy Battle’? Quit Facebook Day has passed, but the debate is not going away any time soon. Surely, Facebook needs to consider valid points like making it’s new setting opt-in - permission based- by default rather than opt-out.

And, although Facebook is a company and it provides us with a valuable service, it should introduce less intrusive revenue generation technologies, or at least run wide-ranging tests and focus groups before it unleashes service updates that leave millions of users worried, and stirring up such a fuss.

If Facebook is everyone’s new home page, or even our new operating system, then Facebook management should accept that we all have a say in the direction it takes.

zanasser@gmail.com

Google 'Petra Logo' on occassion of Jordan's independance day

Apple blocks Adobe technologies, a war ensues

It’s the main technology story in the news: Apple refuses to open up its iPhone/iPad platform to Adobe Flash and related technologies.

Upon first hearing this fact, you tend to feel that Apple is bullying Adobe for no apparent reason. After all, Adobe provides all sorts of tools that improve the experience of web users. Without Flash, we couldn’t watch YouTube videos, and without it we can’t see the wonderful animations and sounds that grace websites and have turned web design and development into an art.

Without Adobe technologies, we cannot use one of its latest products, Air, which enables real-time communication and updates that are best demonstrated through TweetDeck (for Twitter desktop management).

So. Why on earth would Apple block Adobe technologies?


The answer comes from Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple, as follows: “Apple does not support Flash because it is so buggy. Whenever a Mac crashes, more often than not, it’s because of Flash. No one will be using Flash. The world is moving to HTML5.”

Some people agree with the point he’s making about Adobe needing to refine its technology and fix some problems, but the general consensus is that Adobe technologies are useful and web services are better because of them, till a replacement becomes available.

So, the question is whether or not HTML5 is the answer. It is an open standard not created or owned by any company.

For now, it’s not an encouraging prospect. Web-TV-streaming giant Hulu.com claims that HTML5 isn't ready for coding and broadcasting video on the web. Hulu released the latest version of its player built using Adobe Systems' ActionScript, saying that HTML5 is “not ready for prime time”.

The issue that interests industry analysts and consumers is that Apple, the warm brand that used to resemble all that is creative and challenged the cold corporate big boys like IBM and Microsoft, has now become just as cut-throat!
Adobe has responded with a ‘declaration of love’ for Apple, in which it cheekily states that it admires Apple for its great products, but does not admire Apple’s crackdown on consumer choice. Ouch!

Apple is now being cast as ‘the big bad wolf’.

I wonder how the millions of holier-than-thou Apple fanatics will respond!

Here's Adobe's Letter:

Digital distractions and learning

Nowadays, attend any conference or event, and you will note that several people have their laptops open in front of them, as if it were acceptable to stare into a screen, while a speaker presents on stage.

People busy fiddling with their mobile phones at any business meeting you attend seems to have become acceptable too!

This resembles a cultural shift in social behaviour, and frankly it seems appears that our attention is divided, while the people seeking our attention are being offended.

As a culture, the human race are now at a crossroads, and new rules emerging from universities in the United States and Europe demonstrate a realization that there’s a problem. Professors are now demanding that their students turn off their devices and put away the laptops.

In fact, some universities have decided to turn off the internet access in classrooms!

As it it turns out, the PC as an educational tool has now become a distraction. Different people will have different levels of discipline and attention. You simply can’t count on the majority of students to stick to academic uses of their computers and smartphones in a classroom.

A professor at the University of Colorado at Boulder, knew her students weren't all paying attention in class. She carried out a quick study, simply by comparing the grades of students who used laptops in class with those of the students who didn't. According to the Chronicle of Higher Education in the United States, she informed the students after their first exam that they scored 11 percent lower than their counterparts without laptops.

It is absolutely understandable that teachers now have no tolerance for students surfing the Web or playing games in class. And maybe a ban should be extended to business meetings, training workshops and seminars. As for conferences, well, maybe they can be an exception if they’re all day affairs.

But schools, universities and training centers should go back to being places of focused learning.

Honestly, if you had a PC in front of you in a lecture, wouldn’t you be distracted by all the MSN chat, Gmail, Skype, TweetDeck alerts? Of course you would. Will you learn anything if you don’t pay attention? You probably won’t. Turn every digital device off, and turn on your brain. It’s the only device you’ll really need!

zanasser@gmail.com

Jordan ranks 44th in global ICT readiness report

The Global Information Technology Report for 2009/2010 by the World Economic Forum is now available. It is based on a Networked Readiness Index (NRI), and it’s worth reading to see how prepared countries around the world are to use ICT effectively.
Apart from all the analysis, covering business, regulatory and infrastructure environment for ICT, the most interesting part is the ranking of countries in terms of ICT readiness, which sums up the report.

And, it is my pleasure to inform you that several Arab countries enjoy a respectable ranking.

The UAE, in particular, comes in at number 23, just before Ireland at 24 which is considered a very advanced technology economy!

And, to be honest, it is also a pleasure to see at least one Arab country ranking ahead of Israel, which came in at number 28.

So, what about Jordan? For all our good work in ICT over the past decade, Jordan makes it into the top fifty, coming in at number 44.

Not too bad in a list ranking 133 countries- which means we’re in the top third- but only reasonably impressive within a regional context as Bahrain and Qatar come in at 29 and 30 respectively, and Saudi Arabia coming in at 38 completes the group of four Arab countries ahead of us in the report.

The top three Arab countries get a special mention by a senior economist and co-editor of the report, who says "UAE, Bahrain and Qatar's superior capacity to leverage ICT as an enabler of sustainable, long-term economic growth in the Middle East region is a direct result of the focus placed by governments on knowledge-based economies with particular emphasis on education, innovation, as well as ICT access and diffusion."

We’re doing that in Jordan too, but maybe the extent of investment and the size of our economy relative to those Gulf countries puts us at a disadvantage.
As far as ‘ICT readiness’ is concerned, we’ve made strides in empowering the key stakeholder groups to use and benefit from ICT, and we will be climbing up the list.

For now, the most ‘networked’ Arab country is the UAE, and the least networked are Kuwait at number 76 and Syria at 105. So, Jordan sits in the leading group of Arab countries, but must and probably will do better in the near future.


zanasser@gmail.com

Access the full report here:

Hundreds of Millions worth of free publicity: iPad hysteria!

Hysteria is the only suitable word to describe the iPad launch, on Saturday 3 April, preceded by heightened speculation since it’s ‘unveiling’ by Steve Jobs on January 27, which in turn came after years of speculation and teasing by Apple.

It’s a masterpiece of a product and a masterstroke of marketing, which encourages analysts and industry experts to believe that maybe someone will finally crack the tablet market, following several attempts from Microsoft, HP and others.
As was the case with iPod, Apple was not necessarily the first to introduce such a device, but it was the best to understand the ‘comprehensive, high utility, software-hardware integration’ approach needed. With iPod, Apple re-introduced the digital music player category, and controls more than three quarters of that market since.

The iPhone then followed, broke the stronghold of Nokia, Motorola and other established players and did what they could not do: introduce a whole new pocket computing platform, that also happens to be a phone; thanks to popularity of iTunes and the App Store.

So, the next natural step was to build a ‘bigger computer’ that utilized this now massively popular platform, and that’s what the iPad is. Or is it actually more?

News organizations and websites are all clamoring to evaluate the iPad’s features, with ‘exclusive reviews’, and the results are ranging from ‘pleased’ to ‘raving ecstasy’.

Engadget, the world’s top blog for gadgets and a definitive resource, has already declared that it’s a legendary device saying the iPad is “more than a product, it's a statement, an idea, and potentially a prime mover in the world of consumer electronics, but what was little more than rumor and speculation for nearly ten years is now very much a reality.”

Newsweek’s cover provides its verdict too saying: “What’s so great about the iPad...... everything!” We shall find out if that is indeed true.

As of yet, no launch date for the Middle East has been set, but hysteria is building up here too. A study by YouGov showed that 58% of respondents in the Middle East were likely to buy the iPad, which was more than the percentages reported in the UK and the USA.

Either YouGov have a strange sampling methodology, or we’re just Apple iPad crazy in the Middle East.

Soon, we’ll all be able to decide for ourselves!

zanasser@gmail.com

iPad arrives in Apple US stores amid huge demand

Apple’s new iPad became available in all 221 US Apple retail stores and most Best Buy stores on Saturday, April 3. Starting at just $499, iPad lets users browse the web, read and send email, share photos, watch HD videos, listen to music, play games, read ebooks and much more, all using iPad’s revolutionary Multi-Touch™ user interface. iPad is just 0.5 inches thick and weighs just 1.5 pounds—thinner and lighter than any laptop or netbook—and delivers up to 10 hours of battery life.

“iPad connects users with their apps and content in a far more intimate and fun way than ever before,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “We can’t wait for users to get their hands and fingers on it this weekend.”

Apple retail stores will offer a free Personal Setup service to every customer who buys an iPad at the store, helping them customize their new iPad by setting up their email, loading their favorite apps from the App Store, and more. Also beginning Saturday, Apple retail stores will host special iPad workshops to help customers learn more about it.

iPad is available in Wi-Fi models on for a suggested retail price of $499 for 16GB, $599 for 32GB, and $699 for 64GB. The Wi-Fi + 3G models will be available in late April for a retail price of $629 for 16GB, $729 for 32GB and $829 for 64GB. iPad will be sold in the US through the Apple Store.

Jordanians: Proud Geeky-techies, acquiring other skills fast!

Attending any regional conference provides insights into Middle Eastern trends, but one of the most striking facts at ArabNet in Beirut last week was that Jordanians made up 40 percent of attendees - it actually looked like more than that- and made up the majority of start-up entries in the event competitions.

It’s not a surprise to us, but it is indeed another affirmation to the whole region that there’s something special about Jordan. It cannot just be a coincidence that category leading regional arab digital businesses like Maktoob, Jeeran, Info2Cell and so many others happen to come out of Jordan!

People always ask me: “What is it about Jordan that makes it a fertile ground for technology and web entrepreneurs?”

My answer has evolved over the years, and until recently it was the following: “Well, we have a good education system, people have to find ways to ‘make it in life’ and the open market economy atmosphere for several decades has helped!”.

Now, I am adding to it an annex as follows: “Also, the rise of private-public sector initiatives and NGOs to boost entreprenuership, coupled with the efforts of many generous and forward thinking mentors is making Jordan the place to be as an entrepreneur.”

Let’s all thank these organizations (Queen Rania Fund for Entrepreneurship, Endeavor Jordan, PSUT Incubator, YEA and others) and people (Fadi Ghandour, Maher Qadoura, Fawaz AlZoubi and others). The biggest contribution they make is to invest/incubate and provide skill-sets, such as management and marketing support.

On another note, I also feel success can be due to national characteristics and stereo-types which contribute to directions youth take in building businesses.

Our typically ‘serious’, ‘detail oriented’ and ‘stubborn’ characters means we are ideally suited to be ‘geeky techies’; and when our tech-media start-up has the potential for regional success, we usually need the help of our ‘more flexible’ Arab brethren to market it!

These stereo-types are changing, of course, as the region becomes a ‘common market’, and all Arabs are professionally trained to excel in various fields; but don’t underestimate our special talents, coupled with Jordan’s social stability, economic openness and our hunger to succeed.

Some say we’ve got the makings of ‘Silicon Valley Arabia’, I agree but feel we need to do more to truly earn that reputation and hold on to it by ‘breeding’, ‘retaining’ and ‘rewarding’ the talented Jordanians who drive it. Let’s capitalize on this organic success and truly become a powerhouse.

zanasser@gmail.com

Arab Net 2010, a success

Attending Arab Net 2010 (arabnet.me) was quite an experience, as over 600 delegates came to Beirut from 25 to 26 March to discuss Arab web business ventures and the opportunities in this emerging industry.

Apart from the conference sessions, the event aimed to identify and award start-ups that can gain support from investors. In fact, all the "Ideathon" 10 finalists were approached by investors and all start-up finalists were approached by investors.

The event also showcased the power of social media, with live-tweeting in the hall, making the hashtag #arabnetme trend globally on Twitter in 4th place. Overall, there were more than 10,000 tweets.

Arab Net was also streamed live, generating over 200 simultaneous UStream viewers, and getting over 2,500 virtual attendees at live.arabnet.me.

More details on the conference content, panels and activities coming up soon.

Fadi Ghandour, ARAMEX founder & CEO, addresses the Arab Net delegates

Social Networking Panel

Online Advertising Panel

Arab Net 2010 winning start-ups

A war on VoIP in Arabia

For many years now, telecommunications operators have been losing revenue to free voice over IP (VoIP) services, like Skype, and local regulatory authorities have stepped up their battle against such services, deeming them as illegal.

Although this is a relatively grey area in many Arab countries, several have now clearly crafted regulations to outlaw VoIP.

Apart from the now common-place crackdown on Internet cafes, regulation is crackdown covers both VoIP telephony through PCs and now through mobiles too.

In fact, last week, the Egyptian government declared mobile VoIP as officially illegal, unless provided by the licensed state telecom operator, which means a block on Skype and other known international SIP providers.

At the moment, it’s not clear which mobile operators have actually implemented the ban.

This follows a statement last week from The United Arab Emirates Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA), saying that voice calls provided by popular VoIP client Skype are considered a 'regulated activity' and that anyone using the software will be 'legally liable'.

Basically, this means that Etisalat and Du can offer a range of VoIP services in the country, while unlicensed entities cannot.

This seems to be a more open approach, but it clearly bans Internet telephony operators like Skype. In fact, Skype.com is blocked in the UAE but people use it through their iPhone. The TRA says that anyone using the software will be "legally liable".

So, that means a partial-ban on VoIP services, but a total ban of unlicensed and usually free services.

The question is how can millions of users, in Egypt or UAE or anyone else, be monitored or penalized.

Surely, there has be another approach to solve this issue. Maybe some form of cooperation with VoIP providers whereby they agree to pay taxes or fees of some sort to local governments.

The war against voice over IP is just another chapter in the Internet era’s story, which requires a complete rethink on the part of ill prepared businesses and governments.

It appears that there is a realization that Internet driven communications cannot be stopped, but tactical decisions for now aim to ‘freeze’ the problem till a viable solution is found, but will there really be any solution other than accepting the new reality and embracing a complete ‘rethink’ of business models and government regulation.

Any chance of that happening soon? Any enlightened initiatives on the way? Most of us sincerely hope so.

zanasser@gmail.com

.com domain turns 25 years today, first domain registration was 15 March 1985

On 15 March 1985, the first company to add dotcom to its name was a computer maker named Symbolics.

Today, 100,000 dotcom sites are registered every day and there are nearly 86m active sites. And the man behind the company looking after the dotcom domain is predicting changes in the way we use the internet.

For most of the late 1980s and early 1990s hardly anyone knew what a dotcom was, yet today it is part of the fabric of our lives and is regarded as the hallmark of the commercial internet.

In 1985, a total of six dotcom domain names were registered. Now, as well as the millions of active sites currently operational, there have been another 113m that have come and gone over the last quarter of a century.

Today, people go online to dotcom sites to shop, connect with people, engage with government, be entertained, learn new things, exchange ideas and plan holidays.

The million mark for dotcom domains was not achieved until 1997, well into the internet boom. And then came the dotcom explosion with nearly 20m names registered in the following two years.

But what of Symbolics, the first company to claim the dotcom domain? It went bust and was bought in 2009 by a company that buys and sells dotcoms for a living.

Read more.

Jordan on the virus map!

Kaspersky Lab, the well-known anti-virus company, has published a report which reveals that a total of 17 per cent of Jordan’s computers were infiltrated by a variant of the Kido malware.

To quote the statement, “Kido has been mostly successful in Jordan at wreaking havoc in large corporation networks, due to its advanced network worm replication functions, that make it a nightmare for system administrators,” said Costin Raiu, Senior Anti Virus Expert, Head of Kaspersky EEMEA Virus Lab.
Well, although I have not heard complaints, and though one has to understand that such statements are motivated by selling more anti-virus products, we need to take a look at this alarming percentage!

The Kaspersky official goes on to say that Kido has been active in other Middle Eastern countries as well, and the most successful variant is Kido.ih.
What is surprising is that, according to Kaspersky, Kido’s authors have stopped active development of this family of malware, which makes this variant the last available, yet it continues to spread in Jordan!

What does that say about how up-to-date our software security is?

Kaspersky says “It is still spreading in the wild and causing problems for users,” which means Jordan is truly in the ‘wild and untamed’ virus zone.

And that’s not all, the malware report for Jordan also shows a proliferation of Sality, a virus that affects 14.32 per cent of all the country’s affected systems. This malware mainly attacks home PC users. It is passed through infected software, or it piggybacks on other malware. This makes its detection more difficult. It also has worm capabilities, which means it can spread through networks, by copying itself to other computers directly, taking advantage of the Windows Autorun feature.

Because of all these things, Sality is not only hard to catch once it infects a system, but also hard to disinfect.

The bad news does not stop there. Other malware affecting Jordanian users includes Mabezat, infecting 8.84 per cent of computers. It’s a tricky worm which operates by attaching itself to executables, while being polymorphic and spreading through network drives.

The report, which also covers other countries, is based on a study during December 2009.

The question is what kind of results would we be getting in a study of February 2010. Would it be better or worse?

Do enough people care to check their systems and update their anti-virus? They should. Let’s each start with ourselves, and maybe the frightening statistics above will drop.

zanasser@gmail.com

Google say that fastest growing operations are in MENA

Speaking at the Abu Dhabi Media Summit, Google CEO Eric Schmidt revealed the Middle East and North Africa region is the company's fastest growing region in the world, in terms of the number of users and revenue generated.

His keynote at the event focused on innovation in the media, stating that the future of the internet will be driven by mobile devices. While answering a question posed from an Emirati who asked why the company didn't have a presence in the UAE, Schmidt answered by saying that the country had the fastest growing operations for the company in the world.

Schmidt also said in his keynote address that half of all new internet connections are for mobile devices. "If you want to understand the future of internet don't think of it as pipes and tubes, think of it as a mobile device...," he told delegates at the event.

Explaining that the "new model is going to be in the inversion of the model we grew up with", he says that the strategy for media going forward will be 'internet first', where content producers, for example, will use the medium of the internet to build traction and get real numbers to then approach partners to raise additional funding.

But despite his obvious preference for online, Schmidt said he does not believe that the internet-based media will replace existing mediums and that it should instead be used a part of a broader strategy.

The Middle East only ‘graduated' in 2009, which is a term Google uses internally to signify that the infrastructure has been laid out and that it is now possible to start pursuing their mission here, which involves organising the world's information and making it universally accessible and useful.

Via [ ITP.net ]

3G arrives, what it means

Orange Jordan has announced the country’s first third generation mobile network, called 3G+. This is a significant turning point for the evolution of mobile Internet access and content distribution in Jordan. Video calling, mobile TV viewing and Internet browsing at speeds of up to 14.4Mbps are now possible.

In an interview with a regional publication, several months ago, Orange CEO Nayla Khawam said that she hoped “that being able to offer 3G services would inject some value into a market completely and exclusively price driven".

So, the first thing worth looking at is Orange’s pricing strategy for the 3G service.

And here it is. Pay-As-You-Go customers can get one of three bundles. 100MB for JD3, 200MB for JD5 and 1GB for JD15. Not bad.

Pre-paid subscribers have a choice of a JD20 or JD40 package, both with unlimited mobile Internet, but varying call minutes and SMS offerings. The maximum offer for pre-paid subscribers is JD80 for unlimited ‘everything’, except international. That’s good, considering many people’s bill, without Internet, exceeds that.

To use 3G, you’ll need to get a new SIM card and your handset should also support the service.

The investment Orange made to introduce 3G was significant. Orange was awarded a 15-year license, in August 2009, for JD50 million (US$70 million), following a long process that started in 2008. 3G coverage will begin in Amman and some governorates, reaching full coverage of the country by August 2010.

For one year, starting at the date of introducing the service, Orange users will exclusively enjoy this 3G service. Afterwards, Zain and Umniah may obtain a 3G license if they meet the required criteria. So, if you’re not an Orange customer, you’ll have to wait.

It’s another exclusive for Orange, following the exclusive Apple iPhone deal. This evolving, differentiated offering by Orange is clearly giving the telecom operator more market penetration, probably at the expense of the current mobile market leader, Zain.

It’s worth noting that there’s a relatively slow uptake of 3G services in regional markets, although it’s been available for a few years.

For 3G to gain critical mass, and become a mainstream service, it’s prices will have to come down, and competitors will have to enter the 3G service market. However, maybe now the time is right and the thirst for high-speed mobile data services will surprise market watchers, at this early stage and even with only one operator delivering a 3G service.

If Orange provide market feedback and sales data in a few months, we’ll gladly report on it. It will be interesting to see if, finally, a significant number of Jordanians enter the world of high-speed mobile Internet.

zanasser@gmail.com

BlackBerry Messenger faces closure in Saudi Arabia, due to possible 'non-compliance'

Saudi Arabia’s Communication and Information Technology Commission has asked Canada-based Research In Motion, the company that owns BlackBerry Messenger, to allow the telecoms regulator access to monitor messages sent by the mobile device, according to media reports.

The Arab News daily quoted the Al Watan newspaper as saying that the CITC wants to have access in order to monitor the messages in the BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) network, threatening to shut down the service for noncompliance.

BBM is a special messaging service for BlackBerry phone users. For a monthly flat fee, BlackBerry owners can share messages, IM and multimedia with other BlackBerry owners, Arab News said.

There have been rumours that the BBM service will stop today (Saturday 6 March). The CITC was unavailable for comment on Friday.

Meanwhile, BBM maker Research in Motion (RIM) on Friday said it is investigating reports in the Arab press that Saudi regulators have asked the company for access to its unique messaging service for its BlackBerry devices.

"RIM operates in more than 170 countries around the world and respects the regulatory requirements of governments," the company said in a statement issued to Arab News.

"RIM is investigating the reported matter in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and will provide an update once further information is available to share," the statement added.

Via [Arab News ]

Skype becomes available on Nokia smartphones

Skype, the popular and free Internet telephony service, is now available for Nokia smartphones running the Symbian operating system. It can be downloaded at the Ovi Store.

‘Skype for Symbian' will can be used by more than 200 million Nokia smartphone users. It will run on any Nokia smartphone using Symbian 1, the latest version of the Symbian platform available on over 20 models so far including the N97, N97 mini, X6, 5800 XpressMusic and Nokia 5530, E72, E71, E90, E63, E66, E51, N96, N95, N95 8Gb, N85, N82, N81, N81 8 Gb, N79, N78, 6220 classic, 6210 Navigator and 5320.

Skype will soon introduce this client to Symbian mobile devices from other manufacturers, including Sony Ericsson.

An ‘Outlook’ for Arab media between 2009-2013

The Arab Media Outlook 2009-2013 published by the Dubai Press Club provides interesting predictions and an analysis of the region’s Internet landscape.
First, there’s the sobering fact that the range of broadband penetration across Arab countries is extremely disparate. It ranges from 0-1 percent in emerging markets like Syria and Sudan and to up to 84 percent in Qatar.

Imagine that. What a huge digital divide!

However, the report also shows that broadband penetration across the board is likely to rapidly grow in every Arab country and this growth will be driven by Egypt and Saudi Arabia, two of the largest countries in the region, who together will make up 70 percent of total broadband subscriptions by 2013.
The fact our region is one of the youngest in the world is a principal factor driving this growth, and is resulting in an explosion in the use of online platforms.

Still, though, businesses are trying to catchup with this massive uptake, and are not following consumers online as they should. Online advertising expenditure is still around 1 percent, which is disproportional to the time spent online by the average consumer, but there are some encouraging signs. Newspapers have woken up to the new realities and the majority have plans to monetize online content and it appears that around 2 percent of their revenues are now derived from their websites.

The report covers 15 Arab countries (including Jordan) in detail, in addition to in-depth market research on media consumption habits in several of these markets. Jordan is well represented in this report, not just as a consumer market, but proudly as an online publishing leader with Maktoob and Jeeran both featured prominently as the leading Middle East portals being compared to international giants like Facebook and Baidu.

The information in the report, overall, is quite encouraging indeed. Although, the slow pace of broadband penetration still remains the major impediment for online growth, the chairperson of Dubai Press Club makes a positive statement saying “The growth in the popularity of social media, as analyzed in detail in the report, goes to show that a healthy balance between conventional media and the digital media is already struck by the Arab media consumers.”

This is a sign that our region maybe entering the maturity phase in digital media faster than anyone expected. It’s people who are driving the change, and surprising governments, businesses and analysts.

So, the media ‘outlook’ seems favorable. After all, for now and with these numbers, the only way is up!

Download it here.



zanasser@gmail.com