Media giant, Naspers, on Monday said its profits for the year ended March this year were robust, boosted by growth in its internet and pay television businesses.

The Johannesburg listed media firm said revenues during the period under review surged 26 percent to R62.7 billion ($5.8 billion).

“This growth was fuelled by development spend of R7.7 billion ($722,5 million) – up 79% on last year – devoted particularly to ecommerce and digital terrestrial television (DTT),” Naspers said.

“As previously cautioned, this expansionary spend had the effect of limiting core earnings to R8.6 billion ($807 million), approximately the same as last year,” the firm continued.

The company said its reputable operations should continue to be “cash flow positive, profitable and growing.”

The firm’s Chinese and Russian internet businesses, Tencent and Mail.ru, posted robust earnings growth during the period under review.

“Our share of equity-accounted results includes once-off gains of R2.9 billion ($272 million) flowing from Mail.ru’s sale of shares in Facebook and Qiwi, as well as gains from Tencent’s merger of some of its ecommerce businesses with JD.com and the sale of its interest in ChinaVision,” it said on Monday. (VENTURES AFRICA)

While social media platform, Instagram is largely utilized for sharing social pictures by the global young community, doctors have devised a useful way of using the platform by creating an app known as Figure 1; the Instagram for doctors. The app was launched to bring professional doctors around the world together under a social media platform in other to exchange ideas, issues and pictures.

“One of the things I do as an ICU doctor is I connect with my colleagues keeping people up to date around the patients we care for together by taking and sending pictures,” co-founder of Figure 1, Dr. Joshua Landy told Business Insider.

Instagram for Doctors called Figure 1, is an image sharing app headquartered in Toronto. it was launched in 2013 after Landy expressed concern that medical students and Doctors were sharing information about interesting cases on social media and breaching patient confidentiality. A new version of the app was launched recently to give users the ability to follow cases and interact with other professionals around the world. With the recent update, users can create a comprehensive profile with information such as area of interest, specialities, institution they’re associated with and their location.

“About 15% of U.S medical Students and about 100,0000 medical professionals are currently using Figure1”, Landy Joshua said.

The app removes all identifiable features from the photo, a team of medical officers and moderators monitors the app to make sure there are no features on the photos that can be identified. Figure 1, also have a system in place that verifies if the user has medical license.

The app will certainly draw instant expertise from doctors across the globe and breach cultural differences amongst medical practitioners from diverse societal backgrounds. For instance, Doctors in Africa can send pictures of diseases that are not peculiar to other countries and get opinions from international professionals. “This is no substitute for caring for a patient, but now instead of saying there is a red rash, you can say this is what it looks like”.

In the past Doctors communicated with other professionals via text messages but now they can send pictures of problem and get a clearer explanation of the solution. The app helps doctors send photos- to colleagues who are not in the hospital or – to give physician assistant background for a later checkup.

“The app currently has around 80 million image view in total and gets about 500,000-700,000 image views a day,” according to Landy, confirming the significant popularity it has gained within the slim period since its launch. (VENTURES AFRICA)

Financial services firm, Alexander Forbes, on Monday said it is poised to float on the main board of the JSE, Africa’s biggest bourse, in July this year.

The firm said this move was subject to the requisite approvals by the JSE, which is also among the top 10 bourses in the world.

This announcement comes after the firm issued cautionary announcements in April 17 and June 5 this year, saying it was studying various strategic choices to bolster itself.

The company said the name of the firm will be changed from Alexander Forbes Equity Holdings Proprietary Limited to Alexander Forbes Group Holdings Limited.

Edward Kieswetter, the Group Chief Executive (GCE) of Alexander Forbes, confirmed that the company was progressing well with the planned listing which follows an evaluation of a number of strategic options for the group.

“A listing…will enhance our profile, provide a realisation event for our existing shareholders and grant us access to the capital markets as well as help us attract and retain key staff,” Kieswetter said.

“Mercer’s strategic investment in the Group is a resounding vote of confidence in our country, our region and our world class company. Mercer will provide additional benefits for our clients in Africa, while our employees will have access to the latest global skills,” Kieswetter continued.

Alexander Forbes was delisted in 2007 after listing on the JSE in 1996.

The delisting was part of a leveraged buyout of Alexander Forbes by a group of private equity investors, black economic empowerment investors and management. (VNETURES AFRICA)

In recent years, small business advice has come in various forms covering numerous areas of management. There certainly have been many opinions as to the services that need to be offered to emerging entrepreneurs.

So we thought of merging the two aspects of entrepreneurship; Entrepreneur and intrepreneur. These great minds merged in the form of one of the most successful entrepreneurs in the form of Michael Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg L.P. and the 16^th richest man in the world and Lloyd Blankfein, CEO and Chairman of the most successful Investment Company in the world, Goldman Sachs.

The two featured in a special 40 minute conversation to share their insights for small business owners.

Bloomberg was fired from his job at Salomon Brothers before he started Bloomberg with four friends. It took them three years to start generating revenue. Blankfein was elected CEO of Goldman Sachs in May 2006 and grew the capital and asset base of GS to unprecedented value.

Goldman Sachs has dedicated over half a billion dollars to assist small business with the skills they need to succeed. Both Blankfein and Bloomberg serve on the advisory board of 10 000 Small Businesses.

Blankfein was not a born and bred entrepreneur trading company – this company was bought over by Goldman Sachs. Michael Bloomberg at the time of leaving college did not know what he really wanted to do. Initially turned down an offer by Goldman Sachs and was later fired by Salomon Brothers before starting his own company.

Michael Bloomberg says that “Both Lloyd and I are alike in that we slow diplomatic or patrician individuals, but we say what is on our mind, sometimes you wish you had not and sometimes you wish you had, but we always say what we mean.”

Bloomberg says that small business owners should show initiative, if it does not work out, close shop and start something the next day. He says, “I have nothing in common with people who say this was so terrible or difficult.” Bloomberg believes that you need to evaluate your skills set, ask yourself if this can be done again, what did I not get right, what is next on the cards, but keep moving!

Bloomberg says people need to be honest with themselves. Blankfein says he wishes he did not allow himself to be intimidates. He says it’s not a vice, it’s not a bad thing to be intimidated, it just must not paralyse you. One of the success factors of the 10 000 Small Businesses is breaking the Myth Bubble in entrepreneurship.

Bloomberg says that selling is a critical part of any business, especially small business and that collaboration and partnering is critical.

Blankfein says that collaboration is critical for every single business out there. Bloomberg says that he never ever wanted to beat his competitor, he was taught to work hard. He says a strategy is always to give credit to others for their good work. This you will need as a motivator and as a leader in future recognize and reward.

Bloomberg defines relations in business and partnership in saying that two companies can be a competitor in a certain product, partners for another and clients along another service stream. Many small business owners don’t view their place in the market this way.

Bloomberg says the real world is this you will have to work extremely hard, collaboratively and be persistent. There is just no other way to run a small business. If you do something you like doing, you will do more of it and the more you do it the better you become at it.