Page 45 - SAMENA Trends - June-July 2020

REGIONAL & MEMBERS UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

Facebook Buys Maps Company in AR/VR Play

Facebook acquired Sweden-based mapping specialist Mapillary, no plans to change “the rights given to OpenStreetMap editors”
a move Reuters reported was intended to boost the social media and work with related “communities and companies to continue
company’s development of services for AR and VR devices. on the same path as always”.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Facebook told the news
agency Mapillary would contribute to development of AR glasses
and VR headsets. Mapillary crowd sources images globally from
smartphones and cameras and combines these to create street-
level 3D maps. On its website, it lists logistics and mobility; cities
and infrastructure; and automotive use cases. In a blog post,
Mapillary CEO and co-founder Jan Erik Solem, said its technology
will power products including Facebook Marketplace and supply
vital data to humanitarian organizations globally. “By merging our
efforts, we will further improve the ways that people and machines
can work with both aerial and street-level imagery to produce
map data. Lots of exciting results will come out of this, including
the data we all need to make better maps.” Solem emphasized the
takeover would not impact the open nature of the service, with

Facebook Launches New Digital Literacy Program across Sub-Saharan
Africa

Facebook has announced the launch of pandemic. Facebook has over the years guardians. In addition to instructor-led live
'My Digital World', a program designed trained thousands of people on digital webinars featuring presentations, demos
to equip young people and the general literacy skills and is this year preparing to and virtual discussions, the company
public across sub-Saharan Africa with train close to 20,000 participants across will conduct digital marketing campaigns
digital skills needed to navigate the digital Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Zambia, highlighting best practices, tips, quizzes
world. My Digital World is a consolidation Senegal, Cote D'Ivoire and Ethiopia on safe, and polls on digital literacy topics, with
of all Facebook digital literacy programs, responsible and beneficial usage of the content delivered through Facebook and
including Safe Online with Facebook, digital platforms. The training is free and Instagram. Modules will cover online
Ilizwe Lam and eZibo, and will be offered open to youths aged 13 years and above, safety, privacy, news and media literacy,
virtually this year to adapt to the Covid-19 and will also focus on teachers, parents and and digital citizenship.

Saudi Arabia's BATIC Signs Smart Cities
Agreement with Huawei

Batic Investments and Logistics Co. Kingdom, the company said in a bourse decision-making and follow-up of key
announced that its subsidiary, the Smart filing. BATIC and Huawei will work jointly performance indicators for smart cities.
City Solutions Co., signed on June 28, to operate smart cities platform and It is worth mentioning that Smart Cities
2020, a strategic partnership with China’s services including primary services such signed two contracts in September 2019 to
Huawei to provide innovative smart cities as parking lots, transportation, reduction create, develop, invest and operate multi-
solutions in Saudi Arabia. Under this of energy consumption, lighting, and waste stories car parks and smart parking spaces
agreement, the two parties will plan and management, as well as an integrated in Dammam, Dhahran and Al Khobar for a
implement their mega smart projects set of security and safety services. The period of 25 years with a total value of SAR
activities, engineering and design of agreement includes a modern and smart 1.24 billion.
solutions provided to their partners in the operations center to support informed

45 JUNE-JULY 2020