Intelligent CIO Africa Issue 03 | Page 15

PROJECT LATEST Saudi Arabian Airlines to provide internet on North African flights Checking emails and social networks, streaming live content at 36,000 feet, are poised to become reality at the end of this year for passengers connected to Taqnia Space Aero services platform. This follows an agreement between Eutelsat Communications Paris, a global satellite operators and Taqnia Space, owned by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia. The multi-million dollar, multi-year deal covers spot beam capacity on the Eutelsat 3B satellite in order to provide high throughput satellite connectivity services to Taqnia Space Airline clients over the Middle East, North Africa, Mediterranean and Europe regions. Bandwidth on Eutelsat 3B will support live TV, on-board voice, GSM and broadband connectivity from third quarter 2017 on commercial aircraft connected to Taqnia Space Aero services platform. Saudi Arabian Airlines, one of the leading airlines in the Middle East, will be the first commercial airline Passengers will enjoy Taqnia Space Connectivity package through their devices on international flights over North Africa. connected to the platform, with more than 100 medium and long-haul aircraft. Passengers will enjoy the Taqnia Space Connectivity package through their devices, laptops, tablets, smartphones, on domestic flights in Saudi Arabia and international flights over the Middle East, North Africa, the Mediterranean and Europe. Malawi’s United General Insurance to use fleet analytics Taqnia Space will use four High Throughput Ka-band spot beams on the Eutelsat 3B satellite that have been steered by Eutelsat to cover flight paths extending from London to Saudi Arabia and from Casablanca to Oman. Eutelsat 3B is a tri-band satellite, for markets in Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia and South America. General Insurance Company. Providing the proprietary Pay How You Drive usage-based insurance model through its Ctrack telematics solution, which utilises tracking devices to gather and monitor data related to driver behavior including accidents, fuel consumption and mileage, Inseego will enable United General Insurance to offer its customers a clear path to increased driver safety and lower insurance premiums. Negligent driver behavior is one of the main causes of road-related accidents worldwide. In Malawi alone, it accounts for around 90% of all accidents, with speeding, fatigue and driver distraction listed as the primary causes. Insurance telematics, in particular, is increasingly being viewed as a disruptive force that will have a major impact on the auto insurance business globally over the next decade. Insurance telematics is increasingly viewed as a disruptive force that will have major impact on the auto insurance business. Inseego, a global provider of SaaS and Internet of Things solutions, announced a new partnership with one of Malawi’s leading short-term insurance companies, United www.intelligentcio.com By embracing the Ctrack insurance model, United General Insurance will not only play an integral part in improving road safety in Malawi but also strengthen its customer relationships by rewarding attentive and responsible drivers with lower insurance premiums. With the first 1,000 units already delivered and an aggressive rollout strategy set in motion, United General Insurance indicates the expansion of Ctrack across its entire customer base in the near future. INTELLIGENTCIO 15