Tigo Tanzania wins GSMA highly commended award in Africa

Tigo Tanzania  has won the Highly Commended Award under the Best Network Improvement category, awarded by global mobile association - GSMA during the continent's prestigious and largest annual communications Congress & Exhibition, Africa Com, held recently in Cape Town, SA.

Tigo was short listed under the Best Network Improvement Category as the sole mobile operator in Africa in the category.

Commenting on the award, Tigo Tanzania's Head of Operations, Mr. Deon Geyser, said that having won in this category is not only an honor for Tigo Tanzania but also a demonstration of its continuous commitment towards quality improvement in mobile services and solutions in the country.

"We have invested heavily in the past year in network quality so that we make our services more accessible and reliable to our valuable customers. Tigo is now available everywhere in the country and at a better quality, therefore this award is a great celebration towards this achievement." he said.

According to Mr. Geyser, Tigo's improvement on network quality is a result of the management teams' turnaround strategy which started implementation in December 2012 across all Tigo operations. "This strategy has led to incredible results such as a 70% reduction in network outage time, 63% reduction in call drops and 300% increase in data throughput."

"Tigo has equally invested in coverage by reaching out to more rural areas and customers across all 30 regions in Tanzania mainland and Zanzibar. This nationwide presence allows our customers to enjoy calls with better voice enhancement, use data with better 3G internet connectivity and have more reliable Tigo Pesa services where now they can send and receive money with less inconveniences, thus giving them another big reason to smile," further stated Mr. Geysor.

Tigo Tanzania's Head of Planning and Optimization, Mrs. Halima Idd, further explained that the company successfully managed an extremely focused Quality Transformation Program and invested money and other resources into the right areas.

"During our surveys we got a lot of feedback from our customers that our network quality needed improvement, this for us meant urgent measures must be taken. We are a customer centric company and that is in the core of our operations where we develop products and services around key findings from consumer understanding and feedback," Mrs. Idd explained.

She continued, "The Quality Transformation Program that we started implementing in 2012 included; right investments into network resilience, coverage and capacity; controlled changes and project execution; as well as improved operational management. However, all this was complimented by a great team effort internally, a robust organizational structure and key strategic partnerships to achieve the results that were required."

In September, Tigo kicked off an activation caravan dubbed 'Tigo Smile tour' to celebrate the widespread network coverage and reach in rural Tanzania due to launch of more than 280 quality towers in all 30 regions this year.

source: www.zawya.com

Q&A: peter lyons GSM Association

As mobile uptake rockets across Africa, fuelling connectivity across the continent and boosting the popularity of mobile-based economic activities, HumanIPO speaks to Peter Lyons, director of public policy for the Africa and Middle East region at the GSM Association (GSMA), about how to leverage mobile to spur further growth, and what issues policy makers should be focusing on to facilitate connectivity in Africa.

HumanIPO: What are the drivers of the significant growth in mobile uptake across Africa?

Lyons: Prices for mobile services have fallen substantially over recent years, driven by a range of factors including increasing competition in a number of markets, decreased equipment prices (both in terms of handsets and infrastructure for mobile networks), as well as growing scale for the operators.

 The mobile operators themselves have played an important role with ongoing investments to improve network coverage as well as to introduce new service offerings that can attract lower income subscribers. For example, prices have fallen in Kenya by 20 per cent per year over the last four years and by 15 per cent per year over the same period in Senegal.

source: www.humanipo.com

MTN announces Bloemfontein LTE service

 Mobile operator MTN announced on Tuesday that it had launched higher speed Long Term Evolution in Bloemfontein as part of a national rollout.

Data consumption in SA has emerged as a key driver of revenue for operators and LTE is expected to significantly improve the user experience of mobile internet.

"Data traffic continues to grow exponentially, led by video and users want to be connected to content and friends, everywhere and always, expecting perfect quality, zero latency, and limitless speed with zero costs," said Eben Albertyn, chief technology officer at MTN SA.

Vodacom and MTN were first to launch LTE services in SA, and though there is a shortage of spectrum, the strategy of recycling spectrum has seen penetration in some areas.

Generally, LTE is available in the metropolitan areas of the country, and the GSMA has urged the government to accelerate the allocation of spectrum.

One of the hurdles in the provision of LTE spectrum has been the delay in SA moving toward Digital Terrestrial Television. Analogue free to air TV occupies some of the frequency required for LTE to become universally available.

"There're policy makers and there're politicians. Politicians love to say things like 'South Africa will have the analogue digital transition by 2012'. They love to make these pronouncements - ambitious terms - but not necessarily backed up by reality," Peter Lyons GSMA director for spectrum policy in Africa and the Middle East told News24 recently.

In developed markets like Japan, the smartphone penetration of 76% has resulted in a mobile internet revolution that has seen operators like NTT Docomo being able to offer a range of rich media services and mobile payment solutions on mobile devices.

Japan eliminated 2G networks in 2011, and LTE connections already make up nearly a quarter of national coverage.

source: www.news24.com

African launch for 'underwater' solar cell phone chargers

Electricity shortages in Africa have prompted US entrepreneurs to create a cheap solar powered cell phone and tablet charger that can power up devices while even being underwater.

Dubbed the ‘World Panel’ and developed by a US company of the same name, the solar charging device range is planned to be launched at the 2013 AfricaCom conference in Cape Town, South Africa being held November 12 to 14.

The company’s chief executive officer John Anderson says World Panel has specifically designed the solar products to target African feature phone, smartphone and tablet users with a plan to launch the chargers to market in early 2014.

Two portable solar chargers are expected to be unveiled at AfricaCom: the World Panel 500 and World Panel 1000. The WP-500 solar charger can charge up to six or more phones per day, while the WP-1000 has a capacity for 10 or more devices per day, says World Panel.

Using 'direct-from-the-sun' technology to charge a mobile device, a World Panel video illustrates how the device can draw more power than even a wall socket connected to the electricity grid. The video even shows how the World Panel charger, while underwater, can continue charging mobile devices.

The bid to launch the World Panel products in Africa comes at a time when the continent is becoming increasingly dependent on mobile phones, while also largely lacking access to sufficient electricity supplies required to charge these devices.

Africa is the second largest mobile phone market in the world with over 700 million network subscriptions, says the GSMA.

But according to the World Bank, only 24% of the population of sub-Saharan Africa has access to electricity while 25 countries on the continent are facing an electricity crisis, evidenced by chronic rolling blackouts.

As a result, small cellphone charging station businesses have sprung up across Africa that specialise in charging multiple devices.

Also, solar chargers for mobile devices are already sold in countries such as South Africa and Ghana, with prices ranging between R250 to thousands of rands.

But World Panel has told ITWeb Africa that its solar chargers are planned to be ‘affordable’ for Africans.

“Telecom providers will price our units in an attractive range for their subscribers since a charging solution will ultimately boost their average revenue per user (ARPU) if phone batteries are dead less frequently,” Cheryl Gordon, co-founder and marketing director at World Panel, told ITWeb Africa.

source: www.itwebafrica.com

telecom- led relief in the philippines

The rapid deployment of engineers by international and national telecommunications companies to hard-hit areas of the Philippines in the wake of Typhoon Haiyan demonstrates the private sector’s increasingly vital role in relief efforts.
 
With more mobile phone subscriptions than people in the Philippines (107 mobile phone subscriptions per 100 people), and industry estimates of at least one billion text messages sent daily, analysts say the telecommunications industry is not only able to re-connect the estimated 3.8 million displaced people with their families, but is also an ideal vehicle for raising relief funds.
 
Telecommunications play a critical role in disaster preparedness and response by disseminating early warning messages, tracing survivors and providing vital aid information, said Kyla Reid, the head of disaster response at the London-headquartered Groupe Speciale Mobile Association (GSMA), a trade organization representing more than 800 mobile network operators worldwide.
 
Within 72 hours after Typhoon Haiyan (locally known as Yolanda) hit the central Philippines on 8 November, international mobile companies Vodafone and Ericsson deployed teams equipped with emergency kits to help local providers get the network running again.
 
Philippine mobile carriers Globe Telecom and SMART Communications together control 99 percent of the national mobile phone industry. “We worked with various government agencies and even the military in order to get network equipment parts and infrastructure up and running,” said Ma Yolanda Crisanto, Globe's head of corporate communications.

Vodafone Foundation, the company’s charitable arm, sent a 100kg portable instant network contained in four suitcases to set up satellite terminals in Palo region, just south of Tacloban.

source: irinnews.org

south Africans spend more on mobile

South Africans spend more on their mobile bill than the global average, new research from the GSMA shows.

According to the “Sub-Saharan Africa Mobile Economy 2013” report by the GSMA, South Africa’s Average revenue per subscriber (ARPU) is recorded at $25.4 (R264) – above the global average of $25 (R260) and a Sub-Saharan Africa average of $13.6 (R141).

It follows a study commissioned by Informa Telecoms & Media in July 2013, which found that smartphone users in South Africa spend on average US$31 (R321) per month on their mobile phone bills.

ARPU levels vary significantly across the SSA region – largely driven by differing GDP per capita and income levels – but remain in line with the developing market average, the GSMA said.

The only exception is South Africa which, of the larger markets, has ARPUs above the global average level – reflecting mainly high average income levels in the country.

source : businesstech.co

africa's mobile boom : huge opportunities

Sub-Saharan Africa's mobile industry has been the fastest growing region in the world for mobile users in the past five years, according to a report published  by the GSMA, the body representing mobile operators worldwide.

The region's mobile subscriber base has grown by 18% a year over the past five years to 253-million unique users and 502-million connections. GSMA forecasts in their report, "Sub-Saharan Africa Mobile Economy 2013", that mobile users in the region will be closer to 346-million within the next five years.

Despite the high figures, there is still ample room for growth. "With unique subscriber penetration rates still less than 33%, this opens up a major opportunities for growth in the next five years," the GSMA said.

At 65.7%, South Africa has the highest penetration rate, while Niger represents the lower end at 20%.

Economic effect

The mobile industry currently contributes more than 6% of Sub-Saharan Africa's gross domestic product (GDP) - higher than any other comparable region globally, according to the report. This contribution is expected to rise from $60-billion in 2012 to $119-billion, or more than 8% of GDP, by 2020.

Last year, the mobile ecosystem directly supported 3.3-million jobs and contributed $21-billion to public funding in the region, including licence fees, the study shows.

By 2020, mobile is set to double its economic effect, employing 6.6-million people in the region and contributing $42-billion to public funding.

Fixed-line penetration rates in many countries in the region are less than 5%. "Mobile has emerged as the main medium for accessing the internet across sub-Saharan Africa. While 2G connections still dominate, 3G and 4G networks are gaining scale and smartphone ownership is on the rise," the GSMA said.

"Despite the significant impact of the mobile industry in sub-Saharan Africa in recent years, even greater opportunities are ahead," said Tom Phillips, GSMA's chief regulatory officer. "Beyond further growth for voice services, the region is starting to see an explosion in the uptake of mobile data."

However, Phillips said, a short-term focus by some countries on generating high spectrum fees and maximising tax revenue risks "constrains the potential of the mobile internet.

Nigeria: Sub-Sahara Africa Leads in Mobile Growth, Impact , Says GSMA

Latest Study On the Socio-economic impact of the mobile industry in Sub-Saharan Africa by GSMA has revealed that mobile contributes over six per cent of the region's GDP, higher than any other comparable region globally, and this forecast is expected to rise to over eight per cent by 20201.
This is even as mobile industry's contribution to Sub-Saharan Africa GDP in 2012 was US $60 billion and is predicted to rise to US $119 billion by 2020.

Meanwhile, the region is dominated by lower cost mobile technologies, with over 86 per cent of connections in region at the end of 2013 expected to be 2G.

Accordingly, the balance is almost all 3Gconnections, with 4G expected to account for 0.1 per cent of total connections, a figure that will rise to almost 2% in 2017.

The report titled, "Sub-Saharan Africa Mobile Economy 2013", developed by GSMA Intelligence, further revealed that last year, the mobile ecosystem directly supported 3.3 million jobs and contributed US $21 billion to public funding in the region, including license fees. By 2020, mobile is set to double its economic effect, employing 6.6 million men and women in the region and contributing US $42 billion to public funding.

According to the report, Sub-Saharan Africa's unique mobile subscriber base has grown by 18 per cent annually over the last five years, making it the fastest growing region globally.
By mid-2013, the study informed that there were 253 million unique mobile subscribers and 502 million connections2. With many countries in the region seeing fixed line penetration rates of less than five per cent, mobile has emerged as the main medium for accessing the internet across Sub-Saharan Africa.
While 2G connections still dominate in the region, the report also revealed that 3G and 4G networks are gaining scale and smartphone ownership is on the rise3. With unique subscriber penetration rates still less than 33 per cent, this opens up a major opportunity for growth in the next five years.
"Despite the significant impact of the mobile industry in Sub-Saharan Africa in recent years, even greateropportunitiesare ahead," Tom Phillips, Chief Regulatory Officer, GSMA, said, adding that ."Beyond further growth for voice services, the region is starting to see an explosion in the uptake of mobile data. However, a short-term focus by somecountries on generating high spectrum fees and maximising tax revenue risks constrainingthe potentialof the mobile Internet."