Mobile Report: October 2013
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This month's snapshot of the latest mobile trends in the local and international digital landscape.
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Mobile Report: October 2013
- 2. INSERT IMAGE IN BACKGROUND MAKE SURE IT FILLS THE SCREEN 100% A MONTHLY SNAPSHOT OF MOBILE NEWS, VIEWS, EVENTS & DEVELOPMENTS LOCALLY AND ABROAD
- 3. HOW TO USE THIS REPORT This report is intended to be an easy-to-reference tool It is a resource that you can flip through in your own time – and not to necessarily read from front-to-back
- 4. CONTENTS » » » » » » » » » Executive Summary Section 1: Mobile Landscape Section 2: Mobile Innovation and Campaigns Section 3: Mobile Devices and Operating Systems Section 4: Mobile Networks Section 5: Technology Section 6: Social Networks Section 7: LinkedIn Statistics for Africa Sources and Contacts
- 6. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. Samsung dominates Africa’s smartphone market and the launch of their ‘world first’ curved screen smartphone is expected. 2. Pick n Pay launches mobile loyalty app 3. Angola makes Africa’s first ever LTE video roaming call 4. BBM is now available to all African smartphones 5. Vicarious is the new social media app which lets you live through friends’ experiences 6. MTN maintains Nigerian mobile market dominance 7. Disney develops way to ‘feel’ touchscreen images 8. BiblioTech is the first bookless library in Texas that offers e-books only 9. Apple to launch its’ two new iPads 10. Lock8 lock, the world’s first smart bike lock 11. Facebook to build its own town 12. Starbucks figured out how to take your money over Twitter 13. The new section with LinkedIn statistics for Africa
- 8. SAMSUNG DOMINATES AFRICA’S SMARTPHONE MARKET, SAYS IDC » South Korean electronics firm Samsung is dominating Africa’s smartphone space as its market share on the continent has touched 52.1%. » This is according to an International Data Corporation (IDC) quarterly mobile phone tracker report that says Samsung has a strong lead in Africa as BlackBerryfollows far behind with a 17.8% marketshare. » The report goes on to say that smartphone shipments to Africa increased 21.5% in the second quarter of 2013. » This surge in smartphone shipments to the continent means that the devices account for 18% of the overall African mobile phone market's volume, accordingto the IDC. » The IDC adds that Africa’s smartphone market is expected to double in the next four years. » Nokia,however, dominates Africa’s feature-phone market. » The Finnish phone maker accounted for 58.5% of Africa’s feature-phone market in the quarterunder review, says the IDC. Source: ITWeb Africa, 2 October 2013
- 9. SA’S VIDEOGAME MARKET SIZED UP » Mobile gaming is expected to account for the lion’s share of growth in the South African videogamemarketin coming years, while PC gaming will stagnate and online gaming will fall behind growth globally due to South Africa’s comparativelycostly and slow Internet access. » By 2017, the videogame marketin South Africa will be worth R3.3bn, up from R2.2bn in 2012, says PwC’s latest annual “South African Entertainment and Media Outlook” report. » According to the report, online gaming and digital distribution of games in South Africa lags behind more mature marketsbecause of a low level of broadbandaccess, particularlywith regards to fixed services. » “South Africa’s early strength in the PC gaming marketand a robust multigenerational console marketoffer a stable platform for future gaming and a launchpadto the rest of the continent,” the report says. » However, it’s mobile gaming that will become the “star of the show”, reflecting South Africans’ commitment to mobile as their “primary interactive entertainment platform”. » According to PwC, tablets remain a largely untapped marketthat will boost mobile gaming over the mediumterm as the experiences they offer become more complex and compelling. Their convenience and mobility are also attractive to consumers. Source: TechCentral, 7 October 2013
- 10. PICK N PAY LAUNCHES MOBILE LOYALTY APP » In line with loyalty scheme trends at majorretailers abroad,Pick n Pay launched a mobile app that allows customers to do all the things they usually do at an in-store SmartShopperkiosk — but on their phones. » Pick n Pay’s SmartShopper programme,launched in 2011, has more than 6-million members. » In an environment where retailers are trying to win over new customers and keep existing ones, loyalty card programmeshave proved vital. » World Wide Worx data show South Africa has 14.7-million smartphones in use, so a presence on a digital platform is key for retailers, which can use the capabilityto showcase promotions to drive foot traffic. » Designed by Pick n Pay’s in-house digital team, the SmartShoppermobile appcan be downloaded for free from the Google Play and iTunes App stores. » Users without smartphones can go online at the Pick n Pay mobi site or dial *120*905# to manage their SmartShopperaccounts. Source: BDlive, 8 October 2013
- 11. US CONSUMERS REJECT MOBILE WALLETS, SURVEY SAYS » The overwhelming majority of US consumers would not use a mobile wallet, accordingto a survey carried out by consultancy Consult Hyperion during September. » The study, carried out as preparationfor the Tomorrow’s Transactions Unconferences that Consult Hyperion organises, askedconsumers who they would trust to operate a mobile wallet service– and a total of 64% said they would never use a mobile wallet, no matter who was behind it. » Of the 36% who said they would use one, 20% said they would trust their bank,and 10% said Google, Retailers like Wal-Martand phone companies scored just 3% and 2% respectively. » The study found some differences in attitude among different age groups: among 25-24 year-old males, only 50% said they would never use a mobile wallet, while the figure rose to 78% among 45-54 year-old females. Source: banking technology, 8 October 2013
- 12. KENYA'S COMMERCIAL BANK LAUNCHES ONLINE BORROWING SERVICE » Kenya's Commercial Bank (KCB) has launched M-Benkiservices, which would enable customers to borrow and save money online. » The offering is planned to utilise Safaricom'smoney transfer service commonly known as M-Pesa. » “We hope to reach an estimated 10 million unbankedKenyans and more people across East Africa," an official said. » KCB is the second bank to introduce such a service after the Commercial Bank of Africa (CBA), which launched the M-Shwari service late last year. » Meanwhile, Safaricomindicated that the M-Shwariservice had over 2million customers. » Safaricomdata further indicated that about 65% of M-Shwariservice subscribers were male and 46% were young Kenyans who deposited an average$11.7 and take out loans of $13. Source: ITWeb Africa, 16 October 2013
- 13. 'ANGOLA MAKES AFRICA’S FIRST EVER LTE VIDEO ROAMING CALL’ » The first ever LTE video roamingcall in Africa has been madein Angola on the Unitel mobile network, according to global providerof wholesale carrierservices BICS. » BICS says the call was made “in the presence of HRH Princess Astrid, Princess of Belgium, on an official state visit by the Belgian Economic Trade Mission to Angola.” » The video call is said to have taken place during the official signature ceremony of the trademission. » Angola was one of the first countries in Africa to launch an LTE network in 2012 when Movicel unveiled the offering in Luanda,a key crude oil province. » However, Angolan mobile operator Unitel also launched an LTE service in the country in 2012. » And subsequently Unitel has set up a roamingLTE network agreement in conjunction with partnercountries alreadysigned-up to the BICS IPX network. » "This agreement with BICS will allow us to offer our customers an entirely new range of quality services when abroad,”says Amilcar Safeca,deputy chief executive officer and chief technical officer at Unitel. » “It will also allow visitors in Angola to roam onto Unitel's network with a very high speed. With its extremely fast data transmission, the technology opens a new dimension with a multitude of communication possibilities," says Safeca. Source: ITWeb Africa, 24 October 2013
- 14. BBM AVAILABLE TO ALL AFRICAN SMARTPHONES » Finally BlackBerryMessenger (BBM) is availableas a free download on the Google Play and Apple App Store in Africa. » The launch followed a postponed attempt by BlackBerryto unveil BBM its Android and Apple appin September. » Over ten million people worldwide downloaded the BBM Android and Apple apps within the first 24 hours of its availability. » “To help manage the pent up demandfor BBM and get everyone on the service as quickly as possible,a simple line-up system has been implemented to help ensure a smooth roll out,” says BlackBerryin a press release. » “To get the fastest possible access to BBM, Android and iPhone users should visit BBM.com from their Android or iPhone browser. Once they’ve downloaded the app, users should launch it and enter their email addressto hold their spot in line. BlackBerrywill send them an email when they reach the front of the line. Customers can then log in and start using BBM. » BlackBerry’smove to launch BBM for Android and Apple comes as the Canadian handset maker’s marketshare and financial performances have sunk to record lows. According to the IDC, BlackBerry’sshare of the global smartphone marketis predicted to be at 2.7% for 2013 reaching just 1.7% in 2017. This signals a sharp decline for the smartphonemaker,which previously held 20% of the global smartphonemarketin 2013 Source: ITWeb Africa, 25 October2009, according to the IDC and Gartner. »
- 15. MOBILE TRAFFIC: VOICE VERSUS DATA » Akamaireleased its Q2 2013 State of the Internet Report on 16 October 2013, revealing that mobile datacontinues to show exponential growth while mobile voice is only showing moderate growth. » The AkamaiState of the Internet report uses insight from mobile vendor Ericsson, which has a presence in more than 180 countries, and its customer base represents more than 1,000 networks. » The result is a representative base for calculating world total mobile traffic in 2G, 3G, and 4G networks (not including DVB-H, WiFi, and Mobile WiMax). » The volume of mobile data traffic almost doubled from the second quarterof 2012 to the second quarterof 2013. Mobile datafurther grew by 14% between the first and second quarterof 2013. » Mobile voice traffic also continued to grow as well, but at a slower rate. Voice traffic increased 5% from the second quarterof 2012 to the second quarter of 2013. Source: mybroadband, 29 October 2013
- 16. SECTION 2 Mobile innovation and campaigns
- 17. THE FIRST BOOKLESS LIBRARY: BIBLIOTECH OFFERS ONLY E-BOOKS » BiblioTech is a new library in Texas which houses no physical books. » Staffers at San Antonio's BiblioTech say it's the first "bookless library." And in addition to its catalog of 10,000 e-books, this tech-library also provides a digital lifeline to a low-income neighborhood that sorely needs it. » BiblioTech opened its doors September 14 on the south side of San Antonio where 40% of households don't have a computer and half lack broadband Internet service. » Although the library houses no printed books and members can even skip the visit by checking out its e-books online BiblioTech's staff says the library's physical presence is still key to its success. » "We're finding that you really have to get your head around a paradigm shift," said Laura Cole, BiblioTech's special projects coordinator. "Our digital library is stored in the cloud, so you don't have to come in to get a book. But we're a traditional library in that the building itself is an important community space.” Source: CNN Money, 8 October 2013
- 18. SMARTPHONE APP DEVELOPED TO BOOST SA BORDER PROTECTION » Armed forces in South Africa have experimented with smartphone technology in a bid to better protect the country’s borders. » This is according to the latest annual report of South Africa’s Council for Scientific and Industrial Research(CSIR), which says it has helped the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) to test this new technology. » Smuggling, the influx of illegal immigrants, deficient fencing and limited capacityare among challenges facing South African bordersafeguardingforces, who consist of the country’s defence force and the police. » South Africa also has large borderareas consisting of approximately2,800 km of coastline, 4,800 km of land borders as well as over 1.2 million square kilometres of airspace. » As a result, the CSIR says in its latest annual report that it has developed a webbased commandand control collaboratorsystem – called ‘Cmore’ – to help border forces better observe activities and incidents in the field. » “They can observe operator positions (real-time), receive photographic images, receive instant text messages and map positions. When an incident occurs, a unit is dispatchedvia this system, and its progress is tracked on a screen,” adds the report. Source: ITWeb Africa, 25 October 2013
- 19. SOCIAL MEDIA APP LETS YOU LIVE VICARIOUSLY THROUGH FRIENDS' EXPERIENCES » Vycarious,a new social-mediaapp that is available for iOS, lets you create, follow and comment on friends' experiences, ranging from a two-week vacation to handcrafting a dinner table. » To start, users create an "experience description," such as "cooking Pad Thai." They then choose a photo or video as the lead image, denote a starting date and time, and include hashtags to make their experience searchable. » After that, users can upload posts, videos, images and other media until their experience ends. However, friends can still write comments even after users hit the end button to signal that their experience is over. » "There just really isn't a way to share an entire experience [on social media]," Rosalie Bartlett, co-founder and CEO of Vycarious,told Mashable." With Twitter, it's tiny, tiny snippets. They've broken it down into moments; they've condensed it, but there's no organization." » That's why Bartlett believes the app,which launched last Friday,can survive in the increasingly crowded arena of social media. » "I think it's going to be just really a platform to kind of learn about the world and let others learn about experiences," Bartlett said. "From what I've seen people who are signing up now feel like they need to go out and do stuff so they can share it on their Vycarious app." Source: Mashable, 29 October 2013
- 20. SECTION 3 Mobile devices and operating systems
- 21. SAMSUNG LAUNCHES “WORLD FIRST” CURVED SCREEN SMARTPHONE » Samsung Electronics Co Ltd launched the world’s first smartphone with a curved display,a variant of the GalaxyNote which moves the Asian giant a step closer to achieving wearable devices with flexible – even unbreakable– screens. » Curved displaysare on the frontlines of Samsung’s innovation war with rivals such as Apple Inc and LG Electronics Inc, as the South Korean firm seeks to expand its lead in the slowing marketfor high-end smartphones. » “It’s a step forward for having unbreakable gadgets and flexible devices eventually. But for now, the new phone is more of a symbolic product,” said Hana Daetoo Securities analyst Nam Dae-jong. » The GalaxyRound’s 5.7-inch (14.4-centimetre) displayhas a slight horizontal curve and weighs less than the GalaxyNote 3, allowing a more comfortable grip than other flat-screen models on the market,Samsung said in a statement. » Its key features include a tilt function which allows users to check information such as missed calls and battery life, even when the home screen is off. » Users can also scroll through media files by pressing the screen’s right or left, the company said. » The phone initially would be availableonly in South Korea and no decision had been madeaboutreleasing it in other markets. Source: BusinessTech, 9 October 2013
- 22. APPLE SOLD 150 MILLION IPHONES, 71 MILLION IPADS IN 2013 » Apple had a profitable fiscal 2013, selling 150 million iPhones, 71 million iPads and 16 million Macs,CEO Tim Cook said during a call with analysts. » The products helped Apple post $171 billion in revenues and earn a profit of $37 billion. Those results were aided by $16 billion in revenues from iTunes and an averageof $50 million in revenues per Apple store. » In additionto earning money, Apple was busy giving some backto shareholders . The company returned $36 billion to investors over the pastfive quarters,Cook said,and plans to give backa total of $100 billion. » Another expense was from buying companies.Apple made15 strategic acquisitions over the period,an average of one every three to four weeks. Apple reported a total of $8 billion in capitalexpenditures over the period. » Apple sold 58.3 million iPads and 125 million iPhones in fiscal 2012. The $171 billion in revenues comparesto $156.6 billion in revenues in fiscal 2012 and earnings of $41.66 billion, meaning Apple sold more overall, was less profitable. Source: Mashable, 28 October 2013
- 24. TELKOM MOBILE IN ‘PRIME’ LTE POSITION » Despite its precarious financial situation, South Africa’s fourth mobile operator, Telkom Mobile is in a “prime position” in wireless broadband compared to rivals Vodacom, MTN and Cell C thanks to a huge chunk of radio frequency spectrum it has access to that allows it to build a fast and reliable long-term evolution (LTE) network. » Unlike its larger mobile rivals, which have had to “refarm” (reallocate) their existing GSM spectrum allocations in order to offer next-generation LTE services, Telkom has been able to repurpose a huge 60MHz chunk of spectrum in the 2,3GHz band. » Vodacom, MTN and Cell C are all building LTE networks using a flavor of the technology called FD-LTE (using paired frequency bands), commonly used by operators in Europe and North America. » Telkom, on the other hand, is using something called TD-LTE (using unpaired frequencies), which is used by operators in all markets but favored by those in India and China, the world’s two most populous countries. Networks that use the 2,3GHz band typically use TD-LTE. » Telkom Mobile’s access to a wide portion of spectrum at 2,3GHz has allowed it to demonstrate download speeds of more than 210Mbit/s, “albeit under ideal conditions”. Source: TechCentral, 1 October 2013
- 25. AIRTEL LAUNCHES MOBILE MONEY IN GABON, SIERRA LEONE » Indian telecoms group Bharti Airtel and Ecobank plan to expand an Airtel mobile money service to Gabonand Sierra Leone. » Airtel has operations in 17 African countries and says it has 63.7 million subscribers on the continent. » Airtel Money is already functional in about seven other African countries including Burkina Faso, Zambiaand Kenya. » Meanwhile, Ecobank is a pan-African banking conglomerate, with banking operations in 33 African countries. » “Ecobank is committed to bringing financial services to all Africans including the unbanked and underbanked through collaboration with major partner telcos like Airtel,” said Patrick Akinwuntan, a top executive at Ecobank. » “All that is required to enjoy this service is an Ecobank account and an Airtel connection registered with Airtel Money in markets where regulatory approvalsare in place,” addedAkinwuntan. » Chidi Okpala,the Africa director for Airtel Money, said the partnership between Ecobank and Bharti to further expandthe presence of mobile money across the continent was a “further demonstration” of the company’s“commitment to provideaffordable,simple and innovative solutions for” bankingand telecommunications clients. Source: ITWeb Africa, 2 October 2013
- 26. TELKOM UNCAPS GAMES, MOVIES » Telkom’s retail Internet service provider,Telkom Internet, has launched two new uncappedpromotions, Do Gamingand Do Movies, that offer users uncappedcapacity to selected services, whether or not their existing subscription is uncapped. » The promotions run until the end of March2014 and Telkom SA’s managing executive for consumer marketing,Erna Korff, says that thereafter Telkom will create commercial products based on the same format. » “We’ve seen an increased need for data in recent years and we don’t expect that to change,” Korff says. “We’re looking to makeit easier and more affordablefor customers to use huge amounts of data.” » Korff explains that the Do Movies promotion will give all Telkom Internet customers with 5GB subscriptions or higher uncappedaccess to “major movie platforms”, including DStv Catch Up and BoxOffice online, Apple TV (via iTunes) and the Samsung Video Hub. » Existing Telkom Internet customers don’t need to do anything to benefit from the Do Movies promotion. » The Do Gaming add-onoffers uncappeddata to major gaming platforms and servers, including Telkom’s own Do Gaming servers, the PlayStation Network, Xbox Live, Battle.net, Steam and Origin. » Do Gamingwill cost R49/month, but Telkom is offering a 30-day free trial for the month of October. Source: Tech Central, 4 October 2013
- 27. MTN MAINTAINS NIGERIAN MOBILE MARKET DOMINANCE » MTN Nigeria has maintainedits dominance in Africa’s biggest mobile market, accordingto statistics from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC). » According to the NCC, as of the second quarterof this year, MTN maintained its subscriberbase with 55.2 million active lines. » Globacom,trails with 25 million subscribers while Airtel stands at about 21.6 million. » Meanwhile, Etisalat is fourth with 15.3 million active lines. » In addition, the NCC says the number of GSM lines fell to 111,8 million in July, from 117,4 million recorded in June, while active CDMA lines fell to 2,51 million from 2,56 million in the same period. » Active fixed and fixed wireless connections droppedto 373 871 from the 382 678 recorded in June. » The country’s teledensity is now 81.97%. This reflects a drop from it was 85.97 percent over the corresponding period last year » The marketshare percentage of GSM,CDMA and fixed/fixed wireless lines are 97.55%, 2.13% and 0.32% respectively. Source: ITWeb Africa, 10 October 2013
- 28. VODACOM’S SUMMER GIFT » Vodacomunveiled its 2013 Summercampaign– called “Give a Gift, Give a Happy”,providingcustomers with “an affordable way of sharing gifts via mobile”. » “For a cost of an SMS,customers can send gifts of airtime, data,SMS bundles or discount vouchers to their friends and loved ones,” Vodacomexplained. » A Vodacom subscribercan send a gift by sending a text to 1234 with the cellphone number of the person they want to send a gift to. The cost of a Vodacom“Give a Gift, Give a Happy”SMS is 50c. » “Vodacom will then send the nominated number one of the following gifts: 60 minutes talk time, or from 100MB data, or 500 SMS’s,or other exciting gifts,” Vodacomexplained. » The recipient will receive a text from Vodacomcontaining a redemption code, and to redeem the gift they need to send the code to 1234 at a cost of 50 cents. » Vodacomexplained in a press statement that subscribers can send and receive as many VodacomHappygifts as they please. » However, Vodacom’sGive a Gift, Give a HappyPromotion’s Terms & Conditions states that “a maximum of 10 messages can be sent a day per subscriber”. Source: mybroadband, 26 October 2013
- 30. DISNEY DEVELOPS WAY TO 'FEEL' TOUCHSCREEN IMAGES » Disney researchers have found a way for people to "feel" the texture of objects seen on a flat touchscreen. » The technique involves sending tiny vibrations through the display that let people "feel" the shallow bumps,ridges and edges of an object. » The vibrations fooled fingers into believing they were touching a textured surface, said the Disney researchers. » The vibration-generating algorithm should be easy to add to existing touchscreen systems, they added. » Developed by Dr Ali Israr and colleagues at Disney's Research Lab in Pittsburgh, the vibrational technique recreates what happens when a finger tip passes over a real bump. » To fool the brain into thinking it is touching a real feature, the vibrations imparted via the screen artificially stretch the skin on a fingertip so a bump is felt even though the touchscreen surface is smooth. » This algorithm can be used to generate textures found on a wide variety of objects. » The more pronounced the feature, the greater the vibration is needed to mimic its feel. Source: BBC, 8 October 2013
- 31. APPLE INTRODUCES TWO NEW IPADS » Apple finally laid the long-running rumours to rest, unveiling one iPad that practically everyone predicted (an updated iPadMini) and another no one saw coming – an iPadAir. » It’s the latter that has received the biggest revamp. Essentially, this, the iPad 5, has undergone a considerable redesign, now boasting a depth of only 7.5 mm; incidentally, a fraction thinner than the iPhone 5s’ 7.6 mm. » While it still has a 9.7” Retina display screen (2048x1536 resolution at 264 ppi), the company has seen fit to significantly trim its bezels, makingfor a more compactand smaller 9.7” tablet. » Furthermore, as befitting its name, the iPad Air weighs in at a mere 478 g, a far cry from the 600 g plus weight of its predecessors. » Despite its bearable lightness of being, Apple reassured that the iPad Air (or iPad 5 if you absolutely insist) will still boast up to ten hours of battery life, thanks to a built-in 32.4-watthour rechargeable lithium-polymer battery. » The latest iPad now boasts the same heart and guts found on the iPhone 5s, namely the A7 chip with 64-bit architecture and M7 motion coprocessor. » Apple also announced that its range includes 16 GB, 32 GB, 64 GB and yes, 128 GB models as well. Predictably,the tablet will come in Wi-Fi only and Wi-Fi plus cellular models. » The newest 7.9” iPad Mini boasts a Retina display, a more powerful heart, in the form of that same A7 chip with 64-bit architecture and M7 motion coprocessor as is found in the iPad Air. Source: techsmart, 23 October 2013
- 32. SILICON SUPERCAPACITOR POWERS PHONES FOR WEEKS ON SINGLE CHARGE » Material scientists at Vanderbilt University have developed a supercapacitor made out of silicon. » Previously thought to be kind of a crazy idea, the silicon capacitor can be built into a chip — which could give cellphones weeks of life from one charge, or solar cells that produce energy with or without the sun. » Published in Scientific Reports, the first-ever silicon ‘supercap’ stores energy by gathering ions on the surface of the porous material. » Different from batteries, which work on chemical reactions, the silicon supercapscan be charged in minutes and last way longer. » “If you ask experts about making a supercapacitor out of silicon, they will tell you it is a crazy idea,” said assistant professor Cary Pint, who headed the development team at Vanderbilt.“But we’ve found an easy way to do it.” » Pint’s team coated the silicon in carbon — technically a few nanometers of graphene — and it stabilized the surface of the silicon, making it perfect for storing energy. » “All the things that define us in a modern environment require electricity,” said Pint. “The more that we can integrate power storage into existing materials and devices, the more compactand efficient they will become.” Source: Mashable, 29 October 2013
- 33. LOCK8 BIKE LOCK IS THE WORLD’S FIRST SMART BIKE LOCK » Cyclists looking for a smarter way to secure their bike might be interested in a new product called Lock8 which is this month launched on the Kickstarter crowdfunding website. » The new Lock8 security system for your bike allows you to use your smartphone as a wireless key lock or unlock the rear wheel of your bike in place and has been designed to revolutionise the way people think about bicycle security. » Using the Lock8 smartphone application you can control the sensitivity of the system along with the ability to increase or decrease the alarms loudness to suit your needs. » The new bike Smart Lock is compatible with 95 percent of all bicycles worldwide that have two connecting stays on the backwheel. » The Lock8 project is currently over on the Kickstarter website looking to raise enough pledges to makethe jump from concept to production. Source: Geeky Gadgets, 29 October 2013
- 35. FACEBOOK TO BUILD ITS OWN TOWN » Facebook is considering building its own small town so employees never have to leave work. » New plans for the campus in Menlo Parkinclude a $120 million, 394-unit housing community within walking distance of its offices. Called Anton Menlo, the 630,000 square-foot rental property will include amenities such as ranging cafes, a store, a sports pub,bike repairshop with onsite storage, pool, spas,and gyms. » According to the Wall Street Journal, the move towards a 24 hour work lifestyle is new, even for Silicon Valley. » Facebook insists that employee retention isn't a majorfactor in the cunning plan. It's a good idea to have more housing options closer to campus,and people will want to live in it because “what they do is rewarding and they believe in our mission", Facebook reckons. » The developmentwill fix some of Facebook’s accommodationproblems for workers. There is a housing shortage in Menlo Park and some employees found it difficult to find places to stay near the corporate campus. Source: TechEye, 4 October 2013
- 36. MEET TELEGRAM, A SECURE MESSAGING APP FROM THE FOUNDERS OF VK, RUSSIA’S LARGEST SOCIAL NETWORK » Created by the founders of Russia’s biggest social networking platform, Telegram is a new messaging app that offers speed, security and features such as secret chats with end-to-end encryption and self-destructing messages. » Brothers Nikolai and Pavel Durov, who launched VK (originally called VKontakte) in 2006, began working on Telegram 18 months ago as a research project because they wanted to create something that was “really secure and fun at the same time.” » The importance of Telegram was underscored when Edward Snowden’s revelations about NSA and PRISM were first madepublicin June. Source: TechCrunch, 28 October 2013
- 37. STARBUCKS JUST FIGURED OUT HOW TO TAKE YOUR MONEY OVER TWITTER » Buying someone a coffee is a small gesture of kindness, but you usually need to be with a friend to make it. However, Starbucks has a solution: Just pay for your faraway friend's coffee over Twitter. » The new program, appropriately called "Tweet a Coffee," works like this: To tweet a coffee at a friend, first you must sync your Starbucks account to your Twitter. » Then, tweet at the person you want to buy a cup of coffee, formatting the tweet "@Tweetacoffee to [your friend's Twitter handle].” » He or she will then receive a $5 gift card from you. Your friend can redeem it directly from their phone at participatingStarbucks. Source: HuffPost Tech, 29 October 2013
- 38. TWEETING BRA REMINDS US IT'S TIME FOR MONTHLY BREAST SELF-EXAM » It had to happen: a Tweeting bra.But it's happening for a good cause. » Every time Greek TV host Maria Bacodimou unhooks her specially wired brassiere, it sends out a Tweet reminding followers to conduct their monthly breastself-exam. » She writes cute notes like: "Some don’t understand me cause I speak Greek. Instead of learning Greek, learn something easier: how to have a self-exam!” » It's a campaign from Nestle Fitness for October's Breast Cancer Awareness Month. » Perhaps while you try to think of a practical everyday application for a tweeting bra, at least you can admire the communication chain of events when Ms. Bacodimou unclasps: The mechanism hidden under the hook transmits a signal to a cell phone, which then notifies a server, which then generates a Tweet. Source: HuffPost Tech, 28 October 2013
- 39. SECTION 7 LinkedIn Statistics for Africa
- 40. ANGOLA » Active users: 62,300 » 26% Female; 74% Male » The largest age group of users is 35-44, followed by the users in the age 45-54. » 7% mobile users; 93% non-mobile users » 6% Android; 71% iOS; 23% others Source: Quantcast, 28 September 2013
- 41. SOUTH AFRICA » Active users: 1,800,000 » 35% Female; 65% Male » The largest age group of users is 35-44, followed by the users in the age 45-54. » 6% mobile users; 94% non-mobile users » 9% Android; 49% iOS; 42% others Source: Quantcast, 28 September 2013
- 42. GHANA » Active users: 184,600 » 26% Female; 74% Male » The largest age group of users is 35-44, followed by the users in the age 45-54. » 8% mobile users; 92% non-mobile users » 12% Android; 33% iOS; 56% others Source: Quantcast, 28 September 2013
- 43. NIGERIA » Active users: 574,300 » 25% Female; 75% Male » The largest age group of users is 35-44, followed by the users in the age 45-54. » 17% mobile users; 83% non-mobile users » 5% Android; 23% iOS; 71% others Source: Quantcast, 28 September 2013
- 44. NAMIBIA » Active users: 33,500 » 36% Female; 64% Male » The largest age group of users is 35-44, followed by the users in the age 45-54. » 8% mobile users; 92% non-mobile users » 10% Android; 33% iOS; 57% others Source: Quantcast, 28 September 2013
- 46. SOURCES » http://www.techcentral.co.za/ » http://www.geeky-gadgets.com/ » http://mashable.com/ » http://www.bankingtech.com/ » http://businesstech.co.za/news/ » http://www.itwebafrica.com/ » http://www.techeye.net/ » http://www.bbc.com/ » http://techcrunch.com/ » http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tech/ » https://www.quantcast.com/ » http://mybroadband.co.za/news/ » http://www.techsmart.co.za/ » http://www.bdlive.co.za/ » http://money.cnn.com/
- 47. CONTACT US Have a look at all previous Mobile Reports and other mobile work on our site http://www.native.co.za/home?keyword=mobile Should you have any mobile insight, strategy, campaign or solution requirements please contact us. Angus Robinson | Director: Mobility [tel] +27 (11) 555-3800 [cell] +27 (83) 635 4400 [fax] 0867210884 [email] angus@native.co.za [twitter] @angusrobinson
- 48. The end.