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Focus

The small screen

Another of the key drivers of Africa’s technological revolution is mobile Internet connectivity. Across the continent, even in relatively developed South Africa, fixed broadband Internet is difficult to access, expensive and unreliable. However, the number of cellphone subscribers in Africa overtook the number using fixed-line telephony as long ago as 2001, and mobile penetration across the continent ranges from 30% to a massive 84% in South Africa (as reported in the Africa Mobile Factbook 2008). Indeed, the total mobile subscriber base in Africa is predicted to reach 561 million (53.5%) by 2012.

Now some phone companies are taking the opportunity to offer mobile data services and Internet access. Africa is a GSM-based continent, and GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) and HSDPA (High-Speed Downlink Packet Access, sometimes called 3.5G) are the core data platforms. MTN, a South African telecoms company with 28 million subscribers across 10 African countries, is already widely offering data services.

Most phones sold in Africa have GPRS capabilities, making data access a core functionality available to cellphone users. MTN is now using HSDPA to help Internet cafés to set up in townships where fixed Internet access is just a dream.

Meanwhile, the BBC has reported that 61% of its international WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) users are in Nigeria and 19% in South Africa. Of course, this partly reflects the fact that WAP (a simplified web browser technology designed to work on cellphones) has never really taken off in Europe, but it does show that it is a viable technology in an emerging economy where Internet access is primarily via cellphones. Thus, in Africa, digital content providers must focus on mobile delivery if they want to access anyone other than an elite handful who live in select areas and can afford to pay for fixed broadband.

So, despite its enormous economic and other problems, Africa is becoming a showcase for the potential of the mobile Internet. This has quickly shifted from being a status symbol to an instrument for promoting economic growth.

Jose Henriques, Executive Head of Internet Services at pan-African mobile telecoms company Vodacom, says: “Cellphones are the advance guard for mobile broadband networks, and at the same time they are promoting economic benefits and providing a basic tool of education.”

This is still a fledgling sector: only 3.3% of Africans have access to the Internet via their cellphones. Nevertheless, the market continues to grow dramatically; the number of pages viewed increased by 422% between April 2008 and April 2009.

Henriques explains that countries such as Zambia, Kenya, Rwanda and Nigeria in particular are working hard to extend mobile penetration, especially in rural areas. But he warns that companies will only succeed if they provide a good user experience: “They must ensure that the Internet can be accessed from any phone, with cost-effective rates, and that users can view big websites properly on a small screen.”