T-Mobile's Deal With Facebook Is an Important Test

In Facebook's second-quarter conference call, Mark Zuckerberg outlined three main goals for the company going forward. The first was to connect everyone. Google (NASDAQ: GOOG  ) shares this goal with Facebook, and the advertising rivals might end up helping each other.

With a growing number of users accessing Facebook through mobile devices, the company wants to ensure that anyone can access its services. In February, Facebook announced partnerships with 18 carriers in 14 different countries to allow subscribers free or discounted access to Facebook.

The best part about these deals for Facebook is that it isn't footing the bill for data usage.It has helped out with marketing and promotion, but considering its access to one of the largest advertising platforms is all but free, that isn't too much of a burden for the company.

Although the terms of the arrangement with GoSmart were not disclosed, it's likely Facebook has come to similar terms. Considering Facebook's saturation level in the U.S. and the average price per ad in the country, T-Mobile is getting just as good of a deal as Facebook.

Google, on the other hand, is unlikely to make similar deals with carriers. The company's service, by its very nature, sends people to other parts of the web. Instead, Google has taken to setting up free WiFi networks all over the world, including plans for a potential network of balloons or blimps over Sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia, which could connect an additional 1 billion people.

Google can benefit from Facebook's deals with carriers, however, as more people sign up for data plans once they get a taste of the mobile web. This is what T-Mobile and GoSmart are banking on.

source: www.fool.com

growing internet use in Africa to lift contribution to economies

internet services have experienced exponential growth in Africa, thanks to the significant investments made in building backbone infrastructure and the roll-out of 3G networks. This has allowed millions of Africans to connect to the internet for the first time.

McKinsey said the continent was now in a better position in terms of international bandwidth, as capacity had been added faster than peak demand had grown.

According to the report, only 16% of the continent’s 1-billion people are online, but the take-up is rising rapidly as mobile networks are built and as the cost of internet-capable devices continues to fall.

More than 720-million Africans have cellphones, about 167-million already use the internet and 52-million are on Facebook.

"The internet is a catalyst for economic growth," said McKinsey director and co-author of the report Saf Yeboah-Amankwah. "In China, India and Brazil, it has contributed more than 10% of total GDP growth over the past five years.

"Its impact in Africa to date has been much smaller, but is likely to accelerate in the coming decade and could have a transformative effect on the continent’s development."

source: www.bdlive.co

Sandvine provides econet wireless Zimbabwe withusage based plans

Sandvine, a provider of intelligent broadband network solutions for fixed and mobile operators, announced it is providing Econet Wireless Zimbabwe with network policy control products to roll out new service packages for the growing demand for mobile data.

According to a release, Econet Wireless Zimbabwe, the largest subsidiary of Econet Group, serves over 8.5 million subscribers on its 3G network and became aSandvine customer in March 2013.

Sandvine noted that Econet Wireless Zimbabwe is using its Usage Management product with plug-and-play capabilities that will enable them to roll out new revenue-generating services for their pre-paid and post-paid subscribers. Sandvine was selected based on its ability to fulfill the technical requirements of usage-based charging over Gy and policy enforcement over Gx, which are critical for rolling out new services such as roaming notifications, bill shock prevention, family plans and data bundles.

"Sandvine's technical accuracy and scalability gives us confidence that as our network and subscriber adoption continues to grow, so too will our service offerings," said Leon de Fleuriot, General Manager: Products and Services, Econet Wireless Zimbabwe. "We are committed to maintaining our leadership position in Zimbabweby rolling out new services that meet the growing demand for mobile Internet data across the country."

Additionally, Sandvine recently published its semi-annual Global Internet Phenomena Report identifying that video accounts for less than 6 percent of traffic in mobile networks in Africa but is expected to quickly grow towards the 40 percent levels seen in other regions.

"The African market is especially unique, as most users are connecting to the Internet for the first time through mobile devices, and using applications like BBM, Facebook and WhatsApp," said Tom Donnelly, COO, Sales and Global Services, Sandvine. "We expect that Africa will be a fast video adopter and forward- thinking operators like Econet Wireless Zimbabwe are rolling out creative device-and application-based service tiers to drive revenue and increase adoption of mobile Internet."

source: hispanicbusiness.com