ALL is now set for Nigeria to take the centre stage on the African continent as a leading provider of satellite services in the world.Nigeria would be doing so with the launch of the Nigerian Communications Satellite-1Replacement (NigComSat- 1R), on December 19, less than two weeks before the year ends. The NigComSat-1R has a life span of 15 years. Excited managing director, Nigerian Communications Satellite Limited Mr. Timasaniyu Ahmed-Rufai disclosed that 'The launch of NigComSat-1R is symbolic on different levels. For us at NigComSat Limited, it is the end result of many years of hard work and sacrifice. It is another step towards the fulfilment of our vision to be the leading satellite operator in Africa'. He added that 'for the federal government of Nigeria, it is a prerequisite for a knowledge based economy, and to the ICT industry, NigComSat-1R will serve as a critical infrastructure.' Ahmed-Rufai while unveiling the plans for the launching of the Satellite in Lagos at the stakeholders' conference and exhibition on NigComSat-1R, entitled "Pre-launch Marketing and Sensitisation on NigComSat- 1R', said that the new satellite would be sent into the orbit from China. He recalled that 18 months after the launch of NigComSat-1 on May 13, 2007, the satellite was de-orbited on November 10, 2008. According to him 'We spent five months to analyse what happened to NigComSat- 1 before commencing on the manufacturing of NigComSat-1R,' saying that the new satellite was a super hybrid geostationary satellite for communications and would also serve in telemedicine, e-learning, aircraft, aside others. While seeking the cooperation of the government and the ICT industry to enable the average Nigeria to reap the benefits of the launch he noted that 'the de-orbiting of NigComSat-1 was disappointing, it paved the way for growth and improvement. He further said that 'The improved features will enable us meet our core mandate in covering the entire African continent and parts of Europe and Asia with clear, clean and high-resolution signals on our footprints. 'The NigComSat-1R satellite, therefore, will bring the expected bandwidth, not just to Nigeria, but the entire continent. We shall ensure the bandwidth is available for customers at competitive prices'. He called on the broadcast industry to take advantage of the opportunity to meet what he called the challenges of global migration in the industry. In her remark, the Minister of Communications Technology, Mrs. Omobola Johnson, said the new satellite would cut off capital flight worth 500 million dollars yearly, which is money, spend on broadband services adding that the launch of the satellite would add value and improve the fast growing ICT landscape in Nigeria, especially in the area of broadband Internet connectivity. She recalled that 'recently, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) rose up from its yearly meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, with a marching order to its member countries to make broadband connectivity available in at least 40 per cent of households by 2012 'Nigeria as a member of ITU will abide by ITU decision by creating an enabling environment for broadband Internet connectivity through adequate investment by both the government and the private sector'. She added that NigComSat-1R would domesticate broadband services by curtailing capital flight of about 500 million dollars yearly. In the latest piracy research for Nigeria, the value of PC Software theft reached a new peak at $225 million in 2010, as 82 per cent of software deployed on PCs during the year was pirated. Nigeria is experiencing a rising number of what has turned out to be 'accidental pirates' - people who unintentionally purchased counterfeit softwares from resellers they believed were reliable only to later find out they were duped. In doing so, they exposed themselves to a plethora of risks, which in the long run could prove extremely costly for individuals, and often disastrous for businesses. A study of manufacturing companies in Brazil, Russia, India and China that chose to use illegal software showed that more than $1.5 billion were stolen from their in-market competitors that chose to play fair by using genuine software.
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