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Current trends indicate that mobile commerce and advertising globally is going to be a multi-billion dollar business over the next decades, a trend that corporates need to adjust to if they intend to remain relevant.
Over the last 10 years mobile telephone usage in Africa has evolved from being primarily about voice calls and SMS to a device that enables mobile subscribers to access a wide variety of products and services at the touch of a button.
“The Internet is going to be big in Africa; the next ten years will be about mobile Internet and mobile applications. In fact, all data indicates that access to the Internet in Africa will be mostly over mobile phones / devices,” commented Mobile Planet Limited CEO Karanja Macharia.
Mobile Planet Limited (MPL) is a Kenyan company that develops voice and data applications for mobile devices. The company provides technical platforms which allow corporates to interact with mobile subscribers. According to MPL over the next ten years, consumers will have a lot more information about products and services. This information will not only be generated by corporates, but will come from other users as well.
Consumers are also expected to be able to express their views more easily and to a wider audience than before; this will all be done via the mobile phone and the Internet. Mobile commerce transactions will also grow beyond what we see today.
“The last ten years of MPL were about SMS. The next ten years will be about mobile Internet and mobile apps. We will take what we learnt about mobile subscribers in the last ten years and apply the know-how into building new and innovative mobile web applications that will help empower mobile subscribers,” adds Karanja.
He was speaking at a workshop organized by MPL to educate on the company’s involvement in developing solutions for mobile phone companies as well as other corporates in Kenya.
MPL was originally formed to provide mobile subscribers with news via SMS on their mobile phones, a service which made mobile networks attractive to potential subscribers. It’s mission statement is: “Empowering African people through mobile device applications.”
What kind of mobile business will you start to benefit from this growing industry?
Photo Courtesy of textually.org
