What would a sub-$100 smartphone mean for Africa?
Cheaper smartphones means web access for Africa's half a billion mobile users.
The iphone vs Blackberry debate is so 2009. Cheap, simple to use smartphones, many running on Google's open-source Android software, are hitting the market thick and fast. They could soon drop below the $100 mark.
In the US, Dell launched a $99 Areo smartphone on contract with AT&T in August. In July, Chinese manufacturers ZTE released their Racer model, which has begun retailing at around $100.
ZTE's Chinese rivals Huawei (whose name means 'the chinese way'), launched their IDEOS smartphone in South Africa – a springboard for the rest of Africa. Also Android-linked, the IDEOS can act as a wifi hotspot, connecting six other users via its 3G connection. Huawei say it is the most affordable entry-level smartphone yet on the market and over 2m purchase orders have already been received. The cost? However much operators are willing to subsidise it – but it is unlikely to be less than $150. The benefit? Access to the internet.
We are not quite there yet. But MTN South Africa's chief executive Karel Pienaar believes that it is just a matter of time until smartphones come down to around $20 or $30. In South Africa, around 60% of mobile handsets currently being sold by MTN are smartphones. By 2014, 60% of all handsets shipped into the country will be too.
Across Africa, cheaper smartphones and the internet they bring will mean nurses can have access to better information about medications and medical practice; small businesses will be instantly connected to global markets for their goods; and teachers can find lesson ideas without having to wait for their school to get laptops.
Around 10% of global handset sales in 2010 and 2011 will come from the Middle East and Africa according to researchers Gartner. This is still a small market, but it will grow and grow as disposable incomes rise and operators subsidise newer models to attract new customers. Telecoms researchers Informa predict that Africa will break the half a billion subscribers mark by the end of 2010, with 540m owning mobile phones.
Once cheaper smartphones begin filtering down into rural areas, operators will have to invest in infrastructure to roll out 3G coverage. They will lose customers if their competitors have a better network than them. Smart pricing on data packages must be worked out. Smartphone users consume more data, but if costs are too high, they won't take full advantage of the services – particularly if connection is slow and keeps dropping. How to make money from data services that cost a lot to roll out is a big question African operators are still grappling with.
The biggest problem for the future is content. What good is a 3G-enabled phone for a rural teacher or small urban businesswoman if there is no information on the world wide web in their language, or designed to serve their information needs? Competitions, like the World Bank's Global Apps for Development competition, and Blackberry's SuperApp Developer Challenge will be one way to spark developers' imaginations. |
