The company’s flagship Jupiter 3 satellite was launched July 29, 2023 and covers north & south America with capacity exceeding 500gbps, and individual streams up to 100mbps bandwidth. The school-bus sized satellite runs off of 14 solar panels and sits perched at a longitude of 95 degrees east. Hughes packages this GEO (Geostationary Earth Orbit) with its managed LEO (Low Earth Orbit) service to provide connectivity without the end client or user having to manage the connections, coordinate, or even be aware of what satellite or network is providing the connectivity. This has allowed Hughes to deploy solutions such as its OneWeb in-flight satellite internet service for aircraft.

Hughes insists that its solutions are not just for the jet-set or big businesses. Locally, Hughes has been deploying its advanced technology in places like Colombia’s remote La Guajira peninsula, rural Huila and 12 other Colombian departments, connecting 12,510 previously isolated households. Rural schools, agriculture, and small, remote communities are all able to benefit from Hughes’ modern satellite technology.

Hughes country manager for Colombia, Roque Lombardo was kind enough to take time out from his dealmaking at ANDICOM to speak with Loren Moss, executive editor of Finance Colombia, and himself a veteran of the early commercial satellite business, to talk about how Hughes is making the latest space technology like Jupiter 3 relevant and accessible for even a grade-school student in Colombia’s La Guajira desert or Chocó rainforest.

Finance Colombia: I’m here with Roque Lombardo, who is the country manager for Hughes Satellite here in Colombia. Thank you very much for your time. It’s an honor to be here talking with you. How’s it going here at ANDICOM?

Roque Lombardo: Well. We have been participating for several years now, truly with great success. I’d say it is the largest telecommunications and technology fair in Latin America, except for some events in Mexico. So, luckily, we are doing very well.

Finance Colombia: Excellent. I want to start by congratulating Hughes because one thing I have seen is that, year after year, you have a long-term commitment here in Colombia. Aside from all the technology that Hughes has developed throughout its history, from World War II, when you made aircraft, to now as a satellite company, you are committed to connecting not only Medellín and Bogotá and Cartagena here, but also rural areas of Colombia. Explain to me how you are applying your technology to bridge that gap.

Roque Lombardo: Satellite technology is, generally speaking, a long-term investment. Since you mention long-term commitment, obviously, there is a long-term commitment, but the business is very long-term because the satellites we launch have a useful life of 20, 25, or 30 years. So any business we can do in satellite connectivity is long-term.

This provides two things: it guarantees sustainability and regional coverage. From there, I would say that satellite communications are basically focused on rural connectivity, or are focused on rural connectivity and backup services; fundamentally, it’s those two. Our strength is in rural areas, but you can also see, even though we don’t compete with fiber optics, you can see our VSAT terminals in urban areas, like I don’t know, at a gas station. What is one of our VSAT terminals doing at a gas station in an urban area? It is a backup service because they cannot be left without communication. When the radio link or fiber optics connection fails, the backup service kicks in.

Now, to answer your question more specifically, there are two things I consider to reduce the digital divide. The first consideration is, obviously, that we are all very committed to reducing the digital divide, especially in the southern hemisphere. I am not talking only about Colombia, but on a global level.

And from there, we need to have a certain level of connectivity, but we also need to have content. Because many advocates for reducing the digital divide say that we have reduced the digital divide if, and only if, we have connected a school to a satellite station. But if you don’t feed that school with relevant content from a satellite station, it’s useless. You know? In other words, a connection alone is one thing, but a connection with relevant content so that people can educate themselves, engage in e-commerce, communicate, carry out e-government procedures, and so on, is another thing entirely.

So, from there, satellite connectivity is very useful, and we are working in that direction to increase connectivity. Because even narrowing the gap is sometimes a fallacy, because there are always more places to connect. In other words, the number of places to connect is growing, and the speed of coverage should grow at the same rate as the need for internet service, right?

Finance Colombia: Yes, it’s quite shocking. I’ve visited parts of Colombia: La Guajira, not far from here, Chocó, in the south, like the Amazon and Vaupés, and those areas where there’s no cell phone service, let alone internet access or anything like that. But I think you have technologies that allow cell phone operators to, like, they don’t have to run fiber optics,  they can install connectivity in remote areas like Leticia, or in Antioquia. There are areas where the only access is by river.

Roque Lombardo: 30 kilometers away from here, there are areas without coverage. We are in Cartagena, and 30 kilometers away, there are areas without coverage. That is another service we are providing called cellular backhaul, which connects cell phones through satellite stations. Why? Because, in a way, it is not profitable for cell phone operators to go to a very isolated location with fiber optics or a radio link. So, since they don’t go there with that, they can do it through a satellite link and achieve 4G or 5G cellular coverage in remote areas.

Finance Colombia: One thing that fascinates me is technological advancement. I’m old enough to remember when people had satellites like C-band antennas in their yards.

Roque Lombardo: 180 cm tall.

Finance Colombia: When you changed the channel, that satellite would move from one game to another.

Roque Lombardo: I am that old as well.

Finance Colombia: And I remember that in the nineties, I had a company that provided services for those things.

Roque Lombardo: C-band.

Finance Colombia: Right, yes. And up north, when it’s cold, the lubricant freezes.

Roque Lombardo: And the antenna wouldn’t move.

We have approximately 10,000 schools connected in Colombia, and we have between 15,000 and 17,000 homes connected – Roque Lombardo

Finance Colombia: It was a money-maker for us, because they called us so they could watch the game, and it was just a matter of cleaning the arm that moves it. But what killed that was the Ku-band. And then the dish satellites arrived, which already had the small things, and changed the industry completely. Now, twenty years later, for example, you have antennas that are like small laptops. The connection and installation are much easier. Before, a technician had compasses and weird things.

Roque Lombardo: Elevation and azimuth.

Finance Colombia: It looked like voodoo, installing that for the consumer. So my question is… You guys are still at the forefront. How do you see and what is your strategy with the advancement of systems, which they say are disruptive, but we already have Low Earth Orbit, which has like satellite constellations? You guys already have it; you’ve been setting the pace with every piece of technology. How is that changing the market, and what is your strategy in response to that?

Roque Lombardo: Yes, let’s see, what changes the market dramatically is the reduction in hardware and service costs, beyond the technology itself. I mean, it can be GEO, or LEO in this case; either one. Now, GEO technology has a specific coverage area, and LEO technology, due to the characteristics of the networks, has global coverage.

What does LEO allow for? It allows you to have connectivity everywhere, absolutely everywhere. GEO has very significant coverage, with extremely high capacity, but in perfectly defined areas, right? So, I believe that fixed Internet connectivity is becoming more democratic, but two paths are also opening up: the residential path, B2C, and the business path, B2B. In the residential sector, with low orbit or stationary GEO, needs can be met without any problem. In the business sector, you have two solutions: a LEO solution, a GEO solution, or a mixed solution.

Finance Colombia: Yes.

Roque Lombardo: In general, the best solutions are mixed ones, in which the provider analyzes your needs and gives you the best solution for each of those needs. There is no single GEO solution or single LEO solution.

Finance Colombia:  Something you guys have is a featured product that provides services to airlines.

Roque Lombardo: Yes, that is LEO.

Finance Colombia: That is LEO, okay. And aside from that, your customers obviously include broadcasters, traditional media outlets that always send their signals that way, and one of your first commercial customers. Apart from that, obviously, cell phone operators, but… there’s something in Colombia and many countries here in Latin America, as well as in Canada and Alaska, there are businesses that are located in very isolated places. And I don’t know if there’s much coverage so far north, but my question is, aside from those traditional clients who have known you for decades, what are the companies, I imagine like we have many readers from the mining and oil sectors, what are the sectors where you see the most growth, where perhaps you have solutions for those industries?

Roque Lombardo: There is a need in all industry verticals. Banking, finance, oil and gas, mining, agriculture and livestock; because in addition to everything we’ve already talked about in these few minutes, you have what is called IoT, which is the famous Internet of Things, with 5G technologies in which everyone can set up their own virtual private network, and from there have all their connectivity needs covered. That demand is infinite, because I’m talking about wanting to connect a television camera, wanting to connect my refrigerator, wanting to connect a drone, wanting to connect a moisture detector to measure agricultural moisture, or wanting to connect livestock to see how it is evolving and to monitor it.

Finance Colombia: The water levels.

Roque Lombardo: Water levels, I mean, the applications are endless. That’s why I say that demand is growing all the time, and all the solutions that are appearing in any type of orbit are going to be necessary to meet all that demand.

Finance Colombia: That’s right. Well, I remember that, I don’t think it was last year, but two years ago, you guys were celebrating, and you invited us to celebrate with you the launch of a satellite. I don’t remember if it was Jupiter 3, off the top of my head.

 Roque Lombardo: Jupiter 3.

Finance Colombia: Is there something we haven’t mentioned that you want to mention, or a question I didn’t ask you, or some successes since then?

Roque Lombardo: No, basically, we have continued to grow. We have approximately 10,000 schools connected in Colombia, and we have between 15,000 and 17,000 homes connected. We have many deals with large companies, and we have cellular backhaul, as I mentioned before. And we are marketing, let’s say, if we’re talking about basic services, we are marketing everything that Hughes offers with geostationary orbit satellites and OneWeb’s service with low orbit satellites, with full coverage.

Finance Colombia: And if there are businesses or school districts that want to learn more, is there a specific section of the website or a contact? What steps can be taken?

Roque Lombardo: Yes, at Hughes.com, you can find all the information there. It’s a very user-friendly site with instructional videos, product lines, services, and more. It’s at Hughes.com.

Finance Colombia: Okay, thank you very much for your time.

Roque Lombardo: Great, thank you.

Finance Colombia: Okay.

Anyone 15 years of age or older who lives in Medellín, has basic knowledge of digital tools, and has a computer, tablet, or cell phone with an internet connection can apply and access this training opportunity from the comfort of their home. The registration process is carried out through the website arrobamedellin.edu.co.

Applications can be made on the Ciudadela Digital Medellín website at arrobamedellin.edu. Photo credit: City of Medellín.

“With this call for applications, we seek to reach 8,000 beneficiaries and close gaps in access to knowledge. From the Mayor’s Office of Medellín, through Sapiencia, we want more citizens to be prepared for the challenges of the
Fourth Industrial Revolution and to take advantage of the real opportunities that the city offers in terms of employment and entrepreneurship,” said Sapiencia’s general director, Salomón Cruz Zirene.

Among the 15 courses offered, the following stand out: basic English for the tourism sector; Advanced Excel; Report Writing in Business and Organizational Contexts; Lean Startup; Video Game Design; Internet of Things (IoT) and Create Your Own Artificial Intelligence, among others.

“I invite you to be part of Medellín with all the courses, knowledge, meetings, and scholarships available in the city. It’s never too late to learn. Let’s not just say it’s too late to learn,” said Cristian “El Bicho” Álvarez, beneficiary of the Basic English for the Tourism Sector course. Registration will open from 12:00 p.m. on August 4 and
will close on August 15 at 4:00 p.m. Those interested should complete the online form and select their preferred option.

The courses will be held between August 20 and November 20, 2025, using a self-managed methodology through the Digital Citadel Medellín platform.

Photo credit: City of Medellín.

The new facilities give exhibitors and attendees up to 70,000 square meters of indoor, air conditioned space to interact around the 2023 theme of “Get into the Digital World” with focii on Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Virtual and Augmented Reality, Blockchain, 5G and the Internet of Things.

Hotels near the event are filling quickly.

Over three days, conferences and panel discussions will take place on these topics:

• September 6 – “Policies & GovTech Solutions for a connected society”.  In this space, the roadmap in terms of sectoral policy and regulation for the coming years will be discussed and the way in which disruptive trends will impact the  State and the digital citizen in daily life.
• September 7– “Strategies for digital acceleration”.  Digital acceleration strategies for business will be the topic as well as the new challenges, services and applications that have changed the way many tasks are performed.
• September 8 – “Beyond Digital”.  This day will center around the effectiveness of technological trends such as AI, Quantum Computing, Web 3.0, Metaverse, digital platforms and Gaming.

“ANDICOM 2023 is the scenario for all industries to integrate into the digital world, know the effective application of technological trends, and also interact with the protagonists and industry leaders who make social and economic transformation possible through technology,” said Manuel Martínez Niño, Executive Director of CINTEL (Center for Research and Development in Information and Communication Technologies),  organizer of the Congress.

During last year’s event, ANDICOM featured:

• 5,000 attendees
• 1,500 participating companies
• Participants from from 30 countries
• 140 exhibitors
• 70+ academic sessions
• 120 world-class speakers

The Certified Ethical Hacker is one of the most respected certification programs globally and is recognized by the US Department of Defense, Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force, as well as the British GCHQ, ANSI and other international organizations.

The certification curriculum provides a trusted platform for participants to demonstrate their proficiency in ethical hacking, including real-world practices and exercises that have been designed to create the ideal “Red Team” professional.

The Certified Ethical Hacking – CEH V11 credential issued by ETEK teaches aspiring students and practicing professionals how to identify and exploit vulnerabilities, while the CEH Practice is a test of application of the concepts learned. Those candidates who have obtained the CEH credential and can demonstrate their mastery through the CEH practical exam obtain the special CEH Master designation.

Current methods and practices

The Certified Ethical Hacker – CEH V11 program incorporates a library with the latest cybersecurity tools, including container technologies (Docker, Kubernetes), as well as cloud threats and hacking tools for the Internet of Things (IoT) such as Shikra, Bus Pirate, Facedancer21 and others.

The program includes new operating systems such as Windows Server 2019, Windows Server 2016 and Windows 10 configured with domain controllers, firewalls and vulnerable web applications that serve to practice and improve hacking skills.

Registration

ETEK’s online training sessions on Certified Ethical Hacker – CEH V11 will be held beginning in March 2021 with flexible schedules between 5:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.

Registration is open via telephone at +57 (1) 257-1520 extensions 4701 and 4708, via mobile phone +57 (304) 339-0181 and +57 (317) 893-3479 or by email: arey@etek.com and jmesa@etek.com.

Photo: Organizational leaders formalize the launch the Digital Business Development Center commemorate. (Photo credit: CINTEL)

The technology consultancy was founded in a collaborative effort led by the Medellín Chamber of Commerce, Bogotá-based ICT research and development organization CINTEL, and the CREAME Business Incubator in Medellín.

Along with pushing digital transformation, the Digital Business Development Center will generally work to promote and advance the ecosystem for innovation, productivity, and competitiveness in the Andean nation. For now, it does not have a physical office but will operate as a consulting service.

With experts from the Medellín Chamber of Commerce Digital Business Cluster, CINTEL, and CREAME contributing their resources and advice, companies will be able to use this new resource to help them improve areas including cybersecurity, cloud implementation, the Internet of Things, and Big Data and analytics.

As the new venture gets underway, CINTEL has encouraged those interested in finding out more to contact Ana María Trimmiño, senior manager at CINTEL (atrimmino@cintel.org.co), or Rubén Darío Cadavid Marín, director of the Digital Business Cluster (ruben.cadavid@camaramedellin.com.co).

To support these efforts, the U.S. information technology and services company recently appointed Eduardo Almeida as its new vice president and general manager of Unisys for Latin America.

Photo: Eduardo Almeida, vice president and general manager of Unisys for Latin America. (Credit: Unisys)

Based in São Paulo, the former Cisco and Genesys executive will be looking for growth in a variety both the public and private sectors in a number of different verticals. To find out more, Finance Colombia Executive Editor Loren Moss recently sat down with Almeida to detail where these opportunities exist and what business segments are becoming the biggest priorities for Unisys in Latin America.

Loren Moss: First of all, welcome. Can you tell me a little bit about Unisys’ current presence in Latin America? Where are the strengths and weaknesses? Where are the opportunities, and where do you see areas that you can make an immediate impact?

Eduardo Almeida: Thank you very much, Loren, for the welcome. Yes, I’m very excited with this opportunity to join an amazing company with around 100 years of tradition in the Latin American region. As a matter of fact, Unisys has been present in Colombia for about 65 years, so we are not a new kid on the block. We know very much how to support the country’s needs to improve productivity, to improve education quality, and to better serve Colombia’s citizens.

I’m feeling very good because there are so many things to be done right now. I arrived to find an amazing organization, an amazing team here — not only in Colombia but across the region. We are excited to increase our presence in the region in the next fiscal year starting in January. In general, we believe that we can make a big difference in the verticals that we have. I would say that we have three pillars: the commercial space where we have different industries, financial services, and government. We want to believe that our solutions can really improve government metrics and our customers’ business outcomes across different industries.

When it comes to serving Colombian customers, we’ve been very successful here, not only with government, but especially in the financial sector business. We were very successful in the last couple of quarters closing new business, and we have had some customers here in the country for many, many years. We have contracts that have been in place for more than 20 years now, so we believe that customers are also valuing the relationship that they have with Unisys. And we have closed some important references here like Avianca and Exito, the supermarket, just to name a few. So the strategy has been successful.

Now, looking ahead, in terms of opportunity, we are right now putting together our strategic plan. We want Unisys Colombia to be a real Colombian company, so we are looking to further our presence here. We are looking at government opportunities with a more strategic approach — a mid- to long-term approach. We want to partner with government, not only in the traditional space of technology, but making sure that in the long run — and I mean three or five years from now — we have a more valuable presence in the country.

Loren Moss: What are some specific types of initiatives that may be in the future?

“Argentina is really considering technology and digitalization as a country strategy. And, for the first time, we see Colombia having a digital agenda in terms of government.” – Eduardo Almeida

Eduardo Almeida: Helping the government to improve citizens’ experience dealing with technology in public services in the country will make a big difference to us. When we see investment in space like digital cities, Internet of Things (IoT), and Big Data analytics, a company like Unisys can serve this country better by being close to government agencies and offering the best technology to allow government to leverage those services to the citizens. So, this is pretty much what we are considering here: How we are segmenting the industry.

We are digging a little bit deeper in terms of knowing what the country’s aspirations are and determining how Unisys can play a relevant role in supporting those aspirations to make them a reality. I know this is a pretty 30,000-feet-deep perspective, but this is where we are going now.

Loren Moss: Understood. Now, you mentioned having a bigger presence in Colombia, and it’s interesting because Unisys, if I’m not mistaken, you have a “Development and Excellence Center” there in Bogotá. And, here outside of Medellin, in Rionegro, you have, an operations center that — at least the the last time I was there — has around 400 people. But I think that you have expanded and grown that operation since then. Am I correct?

Eduardo Almeida: You are right and you are very precise. We do have this presence in Rionegro and Medellín. We are expanding that, and we are expanding based on the contracts we have closed recently with some customers. Some of them were mentioned to you previously, and they reflect the expansions that we are making Rionegro and in Medellín.

Now, as far as Bogota, we are kicking up the presence, which is more connected to the financial services industry. We are just hiring two guys here to help us expand business in this vertical — a cornerstone to Unisys in Colombia. So, yes, we are expanding. But more than that, what we are doing now is to realign our organization, which is pretty big. You can imagine. We have 1,200 people working in Colombia today for Unisys.

So we are no longer talking only about enterprise computing — we are talking about mobility, we are talking about cloud services, application services, we are talking about Big Data analytics. And we need to serve our customers in these different technologies, with these different technologies, according to their demands. We are making sure that we invest our talent where our customers expect Unisys to invest. We see this big market transition now.

For a company like us with such a big investment in the country, and our number of people, it’s not very easy to turn around the organization to reposition those technologies as a company priority. But we are doing that right now, and hopefully we are going to close this very soon. Maybe by the end of this calendar year, we’re going to have all the organization in place to invest even more communication in those technologies.

Loren Moss: If we look beyond Colombia. If we look at Latin America and you have your big six economies — Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, Chile, and Peru — where are the emerging markets here in the neighborhood? What countries are you seeing growth in that maybe are newly-emerging beyond those “traditional” players?

Eduardo Almeida: The point is we should also position this in a different perspective: Which country has a digital agenda? In government, it is important to have a minister responsible for digital strategy or digital inclusion, right? So, we can go with very few countries.

“We do have this presence in Rionegro and Medellín. We are expanding that, and we are expanding based on the contracts we have closed recently with some customers.” – Eduardo Almeida

Now we see that Argentina — and I was just there — has meetings between customers and government. We see that Argentina is really considering technology and digitalization as a country strategy. And, for the first time, we see Colombia having a digital agenda in terms of government. Argentina is doing well in this regard. I think they are ahead of the curve. Peru is also a big surprise and doing great in terms of having a digital strategy. Now, of course the penetration is very high in Chile compared to other countries because they started 10 years ago. So, it is not new to them. So, those are the countries that we see.

Mexico, depending on where you are, is also a very interesting opportunity to us, particularly in the public sector. In the financial sector we understand that Colombia has the largest market after Mexico. Now, Brazil is suffering big time because of the crisis that happened a couple of years ago. The country is starting to emerge again, so probably there are some analysts that are saying that the country’s GDP will be positive in calendar-year 2017, which will be a big surprise. Even though it’s low, it still is positive.

Another thing is that both Colombia and Brazil will have federal elections next year, and we also know that when you have such elections, the government itself starts to redesign some of the priorities that they have. And we understand that the second half of 2018 will be more exciting in terms of technology adoption by government, mainly because elections will be part of the past, and in the new administration we need to start investing and executing.

Loren Moss: Last question: I think that one advantage of living there in the Southern Cone is that you’re closer to wine country. Are there any particular labels or viñas that you’re drinking this year that you would recommend picking up?

Eduardo Almeida: Absolutely! We should have more time to talk about that whenever you go to Chile and Argentina. There are so many great wine producers there. And I will tell you something, when I joined Unisys — I started October 2 — I decided to take a few days off in order to recharge my battery in Mendoza.

On my trip to Mendoza, I had a quick pitstop in our office in Buenos Aires. I had meetings with the local people there, without even presenting myself. I just said, “I’m the new employee here, so tell me a little bit about what you guys do here.” It was so interesting, because they welcomed me as a big fan without knowing that I was becoming the new person responsible for operations. And then I went to Mendoza. How familiar are you with Mendoza? Have you been there?

Loren Moss: That’s the heart of malbec country. Their malbec is as good as in Spain.

Eduardo Almeida: Yeah, exactly. They’re very good. I like the Viña Cobos producer very much. It belongs to a guy called Paul Hobbs, who is a great producer in California and who also has vineyards in Romania. He produces Mendoza. So Mendoza is good, and of course, Chile is in my heart in terms of wines. I like the carménere. I think that early in 2018, we’re going to get together here again to celebrate the New Year. We’re going to have to have a wine together here in Colombia.

With offices from regional Texas to London to Singapore, it is also a global company. To further spread the company message and meet with new clients, Jorge Hurtado of Absolute Software came to Colombia in August to attend the annual ITC conference Andicom 2017 in Cartagena.

During his trip, Hurtado sat down to talk with Loren Moss, executive editor of Finance Colombia, about the company’s security technology, why it is important to engage with the Colombian market, and potential applications for the Internet of Things.

Photo: Jorge Hurtado came to Colombia for the Andicom 2017 information and communications conference in Cartagena. (Credit: Loren Moss)

Loren Moss: What is the primary business segment for Absolute Software?

Jorge Hurtado: We are experts in area of endpoint security. Two billion devices with our technology exist in the world. So our mission, our purpose, is to make it possible now for people to be able to use that technology in favor of information security.

In essence, we are in the board that defines the roadmap of all the global manufacturers of computers: HP, Dell, Lenovo, etc. So every time a computer comes out of the factory, it already has our technology.

All computers have a lot of technology that few users are using. One of those technologies has to do with the area of security, that our agent is persistent in the BIOS [basic input/output system]. So, those agreements exist there and have always been there. The manufacturer doesn’t buy it, we are an OEM [original equipment manufacturer]. We develop the technology, we test it for the manufacturer so it can have an added value inside the hardware that it sells.

“One of the biggest and best surprises that I have had at this Andicom compared to the five I have attended is that we are more top of mind.” – Jorge Hurtado of Absolute Software

Loren Moss: We are in Colombia, and if the main computer manufacturers are based in the United States or in Asia, what is the objective of being in Colombia at Andicom?

Jorge Hurtado: The objective is to evangelize. One of the biggest and best surprises that I have had at this Andicom compared to the five I have attended is that we are more top of mind.

The security part is more in the top of the client mind. That is the conversation that is being heard every day, and it seems to me to be very interesting.

Loren Moss: If I have a machine — a device that has the technology that you have developed — how can I, as a consumer or an executive of a company, take advantage of having that software?

Jorge Hurtado: Well, the software is already installed in the factory, sleeping, and what you need to do is activate it. It is a service.

On the consumers’ side, it is called LoJack for Laptops. You go to the “LoJack for Laptops” website, register, pay for a license, and download the permit that will allow you to activate the agent that is dormant in that computer.  That’s in the case of the consumer.

Loren Moss: Interesting. That seems to me like it would be very useful when people are suffering from theft of laptops and other types of devices. Is it only in laptops or is it also in mobiles or desktops or in what?

Jorge Hurtado: That’s a good question. It’s in desktops, in laptops, in tablets, and in cellphones. Cellular phones, such as Samsung, and also other low-cost devices, like Yezz or BLU. Recently, the one which is taking most advantage of this is Samsung. The Samsung security strategy is supported by having Absolute included in their devices.

Loren Moss: You have now released the Absolute 7. What are its differences and why should I care if it has seven and not 6.6 or 6.5?

Jorge Hurtado: Of course, every new version has important differences compared to the one before. Our service includes an automatic upgrade at no extra cost. That means that all our new customers, starting from next month, are going to see their console in Absolute 7.

“The Samsung security strategy is supported by having Absolute included in their devices.” – Jorge Hurtado of Absolute Software

Loren Moss: If it is firmware, and it is not in the BIOS, how can you make an update?

Jorge Hurtado: An excellent question. When the user or the company is registered, he registers for a service, which is in the cloud. At that moment, a permit is executed which is going to activate it — it is going to say “Wake up! Now I’m alive.”

But there is always a portion that stays in the operational system. That portion that stays in the operational system, which is what constantly interacts with security in the cloud, is already in version 7. In other words, the agent in the BIOS doesn’t need to be version 7.

Loren Moss: Is there a danger that someone can steal a laptop and then erase the hard disk, or format it, and that will deactivate the LoJack?

Jorge Hurtado: No, that is the “Persistence” model. We have developed the patent of the technology called “Persistence,” and every time it is activated and it is alive, that portion is also valid in the operational system.

Even if there is a formatting or a replacement of the disk or something like that, the piece of software that is in the BIOS will make it reactivate once again. It’s always going to be present there in the tablet, in the telephone, in the laptop, in the desktop.

Not only that, but since we have developed the technology, we have the capacity to make other persistent applications. A very common example: 80% of the calls to the help desk are because of deconfiguration of applications. So, we can do a “health check” on those applications, and if they are agents — like BPN, antivirus, anti-malware, etc. — we can make them “self-healing.” Then, that 80% of the calls to the help desk would be greatly reduced, and with that comes savings.

Right now, I have a meeting with the oil and gas industry. They say that with these oil prices, what we have to look for is effectiveness. We have to make the investment effective, and for that we need to save. One way to save: a help desk, which depending on the size of the company can have from two people to 100 people.

Loren Moss: How relevant is Absolute Software and products to the Internet of things?

Jorge Hurtado: Completely relevant. Nowadays we’re talking about endpoints, but in reality, “endpoints” is every device that generates information. So that’s where our company is going.

Our company is going to analytics and user behavior patterns to detect threats. In the market, they say that 80% of threats come from an insider, so we are reducing that number by having the technology activated. And then, later on, in a short time, we’ll also include the Internet of Things — everything that has a processor and an operational system.

This interview has been edited for space and clarity.

Now, as the world market continues to evolve, so too is NEC. It is increasingly moving into services, with the Internet of Things and biometric technology taking on a central role in the company’s strategy.

Photo: Loren Moss of Finance Colombia (L) sits down to talk about NEC’s operations in Colombia and abroad with Kukita Shinya (R), the Japanese company’s chief engineer.

The Tokyo-based technology firm also has a large presence in Colombia. One of its biggest success stories is outfitting a football stadium in Medellín with face-recognition technology that has helped increase security during events.

To discuss this innovation and NEC’s other pioneering advancements, Loren Moss of Finance Colombia recently sat down with Kukita Shinya, the firm’s chief engineer. He explains NEC’s shifting business strategy, its work in the Internet of Things, and how biometrics is becoming an ever-larger factor in the financial services industry.

Finance Colombia: NEC now has less of a presence in consumer electronics and much more of a presence in industry and business. That probably was a strategic decision that the company took some time ago. But tell me, where does NEC fit in that whole universe?

Kukita Shinya: As a company, as you correctly mentioned, we are not doing home appliances anymore, and actually we are not doing the mobile handset anymore. We have started to focus on what we call the social solutions: at this moment, consumer products, industrial, and social.

In industrial and social, the boundary is a little ambiguous. For the international market, our strength at this moment is still on the telecom carrier market, including microwave transmissions, Netcracker OSS/BSS, submarine systems, and all the other components of infrastructure. But we say we focus on social solutions starting from our biometrics identification technologies, like fingerprints and facial recognition. The solutions applied to the stadium in Medellín are one example. That’s our story.

Finance Colombia: I know the Internet of Things is a big area now as well. What is NEC focusing on in terms of IoT?

Kukita Shinya: I categorize the IoT into three different parts: personal IoT, industrial IoT, and social IoT. Personal IoT is like wearables, wristbands, glass-wear, or home appliances. And then for industrial IoT — actually there are different types of industrial IoT — with the most famous one being the jet engine of General Electric. They monitor the status of their own products.

Finance Colombia: Right. The engines themselves are feeding back to the provider, to General Electric.

Kukita Shinya, chief engineer at NEC, explains how a stadium in Medellín is using NEC face-recognition technology to “pick out the hooligans.”

Kukita Shinya: Exactly. So that means the motivation is the manufacturer maintaining the relationship with customers for an extended period of time.

In the past, every manufacturer tried to do that, either with loyalty programs or membership or those kinds of things. But those are very weak. People can easily stop using those programs. But with IoT it’s wired — it’s connected — so it’s very strong.

Finance Colombia: There’s less “churn” in the relationship. It’s stickier. You’re buying a relationship with General Electric — not just a jet engine — and General Electric is going to make money over the lifetime of the service of the product versus just from having a one-time hardware sale. It’s brilliant.

Kukita Shinya: Exactly. And another type is very similar, where the monitor is attached to a moving object. It’s similar to the jet-engine case, but this one used by operators, for example, in a bus. They want to monitor the exact location of the bus to give better information to the passengers, and they can be used to monitor driving behavior, too.

Finance Colombia: So you know when the next one is coming? You see that on the trains in the subways. It says, “three minutes until the next one.”

Kukita Shinya: Yes. Another industrial IoT focus is the manufacturing process. “Industry 4.0.” Sometimes IoT means Industry 4.0, some people say, but Industry 4.0 is, more specifically, for manufacturers and, even more specifically, driven by the German government. So you know, we are participating in this industrial part as well.

They are using our unique technology, like the fingerprint of things or coordination programs among factories — not only within the factories but also across the factories, including raw material suppliers and distribution channels. End-to-end manufacturing.

But for us, the most significant IoT is social IoT. And this social IoT is almost a synonym for “Smart City,” with various sensors, networks, data analysis, and body codes on top. So this is very much a résumé of our recent focus on social solutions.

Finance Colombia: As an example, can you talk about what NEC has done, or what Medellín has done here in Colombia, using NEC technology? It’s all very innovative, especially what you all have been able to accomplish in the football, or soccer, stadium.

Kukita Shinya: With the face-recognition technologies, we have been working on this from scratch — from the research level, for over 20 years — and the speed and accuracy of our face recognition has been recognized as number-one technology by NIST, the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

Using this world-number-one technology, we can pick out the hooligans — or the bad actors — in the stadium through video imaging instead of needing the person stop at the still cameras. We can capture the face as the people are moving.

And similar technology can be applied to the “passway” between the plane and the airport building. In “the skybridge.” We can deploy the camera with the recognition systems so that we can capture the image crossing over the bridge before they reach the immigration office so that the officials can be well prepared.

Actually, that’s the technology we deployed in the press room at the Olympics in Rio just months ago. So they could go through security just with facial recognition.

Finance Colombia: Something that’s interesting is that the use of biometrics is different in different parts of the world. Different cultures have different expectations of privacy. In the U.S., we tend to be rebels and not like anything the government wants to do — just because the government said it. Here in Colombia, on the other hand, it’s very common to use biometrics. You go into a bank, you make a transaction with cash, and the bank takes your fingerprint. If somebody sends you money with a money transfer service, they take your fingerprint.  

What do you see in the future regarding the use of biometric technology? What are some of the innovations that will not just improve security but improve the customer experience when it comes to the banking and the financial sector?

Kukita Shinya: Absolutely. There are ongoing trials for proof-of-concept things that use only biometric information for retail shopping. Obviously that’s for convenience. People don’t have to carry their credit card or even their wallet. They can purchase things with their fingerprint.

Finance Colombia: I’m told that in Brazil you can go to an ATM and take out money just with your fingerprint.

Kukita Shinya: Yes. The different applications are under study right now. And a lot of it is about privacy and security versus convenience and the quality of experience. They are a trade-off in many cases. If you try to improve the convenience, you need to sacrifice some privacy or security. That’s the common saying. But we don’t want to compromise either one.

So privacy is an issue and — as you just rightly mentioned — that is quite different from country to country. Expectations exist, so we cannot apply a single global rule for these things. But our aim is to overcome these trade-offs. We’d like to achieve both, and we have to choose the correct method for each country.

ICANN’s Rodrigo De La Parra

The Domain Name System is the regime that the ICANN manages on behalf of all internet users, and controls the suffixes at the end of every domain address, such as .com, .org, .net, .co, etc. The technology and capacity of the Internet has increased to the point that the routers and switches that handle backbone and node internet traffic can now easily process more and complex domain names.

A key topic for the group is the continuing evolution from IPv4 to IPv6. IP stands for Internet Protocol and is the system of addresses for computers connected to the Internet, or any IP network, for that matter. IPv4 (Version 4) addresses are a series of four 8-bit numbers, giving a 32 bit addressing range of 0-255 for each segment. Thus, the addresses one sometimes sees in a web browser or in computer configuration might look something like 198.162.0.1 (that particular address is actually a standard default address that consumer IP products are initially set to).

The new IPv6 addressing scheme, already in use, albeit not universally, switches to a hexadecimal, 128 bit addressing system, increasing the number of internet addresses from 4.3 billion, to an almost incomprehensible 3.4×10³⁸ addresses. This is critical for the coming Internet of Things (IoT), which expects billions of devices, far beyond computers and smartphones, to be connected to the Internet.

Out of Colombia’s population of 47 million, there are approximately 11 million Internet users.

“So actually for the LAC-i Roadshow, this is our second year of exhibition. We are divided into four sub-regions; one for the Caribbean, another one for Mexico and Central America, the other one for South America (except the Andes region) and this one for the Andean Region. We are partnering with many different organizations in Colombia and the region,” said Rodrigo de la Parra, in a conversation with Finance Colombia. To ensure a well-distributed set of events there are four editions of the LAC-i-Roadshow per year: The Caribbean; Andean Region, Mexico and Central America and South America. Each event is led by local champions and based on subjects complementing their expertise with other experts from the region when appropriate. This is the first time the event has been held in Bogotá.

The New Generic Top Level Domains (gTLDs)

ICANN’s new gTLD Program is tasked with rolling out new generic top level domains, the letters immediately following the final dot in an internet address. This creates the largest new expansion of the Domain Name System since the creation of the Internet. Hundreds of new domain names have been released, including 24 from Latin America, including one from Aerovias del Continente Americano S.A. Avianca for “.AVIANCA” —This means that Avianca for example, can now offer internet addresses such as flights.avianca, instead of flights.avianca.co. Another way to look at it, is that instead of the .com or .org suffix, .avianca becomes the suffix.

• gTLDs bring significant change and new possibilities. They allow companies, brands, cities and entrepreneurs with new ideas to own and manage a piece of the Internet’s infrastructure, for the benefit of end users. They also enhance competition in the domain industry and have significant potential as platform for innovation.
• The current gTLD expansion is underway with more than 740 new gTLDs “live” in the Internet and with more coming online every week… ICANN has said that it is committed to opening a subsequent round of applications as quickly as possible.
• The program allows communities, governments, companies and brands to request to operate of top-level domain. Operating a TLD is a responsibility that requires a major commitment. Basically, the operator becomes the guardian of an important part of the main Internet infrastructure. For this reason, ICANN established a rigorous process for those wishing to apply for a new gTLD.
• It’s not too early for Latin American companies, organizations, entrepreneurs and others who did not apply for a new gTLD in the first round to start thinking about the potential benefits and opportunities that a gTLD may afford them.
• ICANN is focused on facilitating the development of the domain name industry in Latin America, with the aim of enabling, choice, competition and innovation.

“Colombia is a regional internet leader, has nearly 11 million internet users, and is a critical market for this discussion,” said de la Parra. “The goal of the forum is to bring awareness to the expansion of the Internet, through the new gTLD Program, and discuss the enhanced competition, innovation, and consumer choice it provides, not only in Colombia, but worldwide.”

At this point, there is no announced date for the next round of gTLD applications but it is unlikely to occur before 2016 at the earliest.