MIS 605 Class presentations Mobile Internet and Telecommunications in Africa Group1 Members 1.Simon Wasike 2.John Njau Muriithi 3.Francis Timonah 4.Eliud Murithi 5.Franciscah Waihenya 1Wednesday, October 21, 2015Mobile Internet and Telecommunications in Africa

Content  Introduction ♣Telecommunication Investments in Africa ♣Mobile Telecom Revenue  Internet Penetration in Africa  Telecommunication trends in Africa ♣Mobile Internet ♣Mobile money ♣Mobile Web  Market Challenges ♣The Digital Divide ♣Pricing Pressures ♣High Investment Costs ♣Uncertain and Uneven Regulatory Environment  Actions to drive Africa into the internet age 2Wednesday, October 21, 2015 Mobile Internet and Telecommunications in Africa

Telecommunication in Africa Telecommunication development and coverage in Africa Telecommunication development and coverage in Africa has grown tremendously since 1999 when only 10 percent of the African population had mobile phone coverage. In the ITU ICT facts and figures for 2013, Mobile-cellular penetration rates stand at 96% globally; 128% in developed countries; and 89% in developing countries 3Wednesday, October 21, 2015 Mobile Internet and Telecommunications in Africa Telecommunications is the exchange of information over significant distances by electronic means. The medium of signal transmission can be electrical wire or cable, optical fiber or electromagnetic. Table: Mobile-cellular penetration, 2013 According to Wireless Intelligence, total number for individual mobile subscribers in Africa stood at 356 million in Q4 2012, representing 33% of the continent’s population.

 Upgrading communications infrastructure to new generation mobile technology e.g 3G services were first introduced in South Africa in 2004, and took off in 2007 when Safaricom introduced the service in Kenya.  In the late 2000s, undersea fiber optic cables were installed on the east and west coasts of Africa, including EASSy, SEACOM, TEAMs, WACS, and LION. That means broadband capacity has dramatically increased over time, along with several infrastructure projects that will be completed in the near term. The increased broadband capacity combined with privatized markets, falling prices, and accessible hardware sets the stage for the continued increase of mobile broadband. 4Wednesday, October 21, 2015Mobile Internet and Telecommunications in Africa Telecommunication Investments in Africa

 In Africa, 16% of people are using the Internet – only half the penetration rate of Asia and the Pacific.  Access to the internet through a mobile device is known as mobile internet. This allows consumers to interact, create, and share content on the internet regardless of their physical location. 5Wednesday, October 21, 2015Mobile Internet and Telecommunications in Africa Mobile Internet Penetration in Africa Table2: Mobile-cellular penetration, 2013 However, there is still a long way to go, and the price of internet connectivity remains high; most internet service providers have kept the same prices even though bandwidth capacity has doubled. See on market challenges

 Mobile Internet  Mobile operators are becoming serious internet service providers and are rapidly making internet accessible to the masses.  Mobile data and broadband technologies used as a substitute for poor or nonexistent fixed-line infrastructure.  Mobile money  This one of the biggest growing trends and it has being a key to Revenue Generation and economic driver is Africa.  Mobile Web  With internet-enabled phones supporting services such Opera Mini and social media platforms. 6Wednesday, October 21, 2015Mobile Internet and Telecommunications in Africa Telecommunication trends in Africa

 The Digital Divide  In 2011, out of the world’s population of 7+ billion, only 32% (2.3 billion) are Internet users. In Africa, out of the 1 billion Africans, only 13% (1.4 million) use the Internet (ITU, 2011). This is what’s called the digital divide, where poorer regions are less likely to have access to ICTs…. In most Sub-Saharan African countries, most mobile phone users do not yet have access to GPRS; in Uganda,  10% of the users have access (MTN 2011).  Pricing Pressures  ARPU in Africa has fallen as a consequence of an expanding number of industry players and growing subscriber recruitment. Price wars have broken out in some markets where a large number of operators have been licensed.  High Investment Costs  The likelihood of persistent pricing pressure makes investing in African telecommunications is a high-risk undertaking.  The cost premium of operating in remote geographies with constrained infrastructure. Such costs include e.g the need to airlift towers. 7Wednesday, October 21, 2015Mobile Internet and Telecommunications in Africa Telecommunication Market Challenges in Africa

 Uncertain and Uneven Regulatory Environment  Risks in the weak application of regulations and sound practices, including consistency and impartiality. In many cases there is an absence of coordination across government agencies that would benefit network roll-out, coverage, and cost waste reduction. Site acquisition and permitting typically suffer from such lack of basic coordination between the telecom regulator, planning agencies, and environmental agencies.  Regulations regarding pricing and service launch frequently prove cumbersome, and involve unnecessary and lengthy processes that hinder operators’ flexibility in bringing competitive and innovative propositions to the market  Infrastructure-sharing approaches vary considerably, at best creating additional barriers that operators must hurdle if they are to gain cost benefits that can be passed to consumers. 8Wednesday, October 21, 2015Mobile Internet and Telecommunications in Africa Telecommunication Market Challenges in Africa….

 Establish support for telecommunications and ICT at the highest levels of government. This would ensure visible commitment and support for the sector as a national priority. e.g Leveraging ICT in economic growth for vision  Establish an open, independent regulator. Ideally the regulator would have relationships with and guidance from the ITU and other regional, institutional bodies.  Build investor confidence. Governments can accomplish this by enforcing transparency in telecommunications and ICT regulation.  Take credible steps to reform national communications entities. This would eliminate inequitable support for underperforming operators. Governments also could embark on privatization to encourage investment and trigger sector development. 9Wednesday, October 21, 2015Mobile Internet and Telecommunications in Africa Actions to drive Africa into the internet age

 Africa’s rapid embrace of mobile telecommunications has been one of the more remarkable growth stories in the sector’s history. Although the cooperation between governments and operators has largely fuelled that surge, there is no guarantee that such cooperation will persist. Stakeholders, however, can act quickly and decisively to ensure the climate for investment is maintained, and that growth continues.  Forward-looking government policy, transparent, open regulatory practice, cross-operator efficiency, and an increasingly vocal customer base can prove to be the key elements to smooth the transition to 3G and mobile Internet, bringing the continent successfully into the next generation. 10Wednesday, October 21, 2015Mobile Internet and Telecommunications in Africa Conclusion

Thank You 11Wednesday, October 21, 2015DIS 605 : Social-Technical Theory