Archive for 'Mobile'
Mobile surpasses traditional web in South Africa
It’s what we predicted would happen. In fact it’s what we thought had happened sometime ago, but here are some authoritative figures that confirm it.
According to a piece in Bizcommunity, Rick Joubert of Vodafone estimates there are now at least 9,5-million mobile wap users (read: mobile web) in the country. These are combined user figures […]
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Data shows US mobile data usage ready to pass the UK
Before long, the United States may become the world’s top user of the web on mobile devices, according to analytics and billing firm Bango. The company is releasing figures this morning showing the US at almost 19 percent of the world total, just short of the top country, the United Kingdom, which has about 19.4 percent.
In terms of absolute growth in each country, the US is growing much more quickly than the UK, so it should be surpassing its old colonial master in yet one more area soon. Bango estimates that might happen within several weeks, as the trend picks up pace in the States.
Mobile data is difficult to gather, and the numbers often aren’t dead-on. The indicators seem clear, though: Customers in the US are finally getting good options for using the web, from handsets like the iPhone, to better unlimited data plans, to the roll-out of better third generation networks.
Bango’s numbers also corroborate data released earlier this year, including Google’s report that mobile web usage of its sites is increasing.
The question left unanswered is where the usage ceiling lies for the US. While the UK has long been considered a fairly mature market, having had options for browsing available for years, the US has been behind in the race. Now that the technology is catching up, its larger population should make it easy for it to draw ahead, but it’s difficult to tell from this point how far mobile usage will penetrate into non-premium markets.
It seems reasonable to assume, however, that devices will continue to innovate (or copycat, as with the Instinct, Samsung’s version of the iPhone), and prices for both devices and data will edge down as carriers compete. Applications and services also tie in; for more on how they’re helping expand mobile web usage, check out our article on five trends driving the mobile web.
In case it’s of interest, here are the runners-up that Bango listed: India had almost 11 percent of total usage, South Africa was approaching 9 percent, and Indonesia had 4 percent.
Blogging South African Innovation
The Brand South Africa team is planning to bring a group of top US bloggers to SA in November. The idea is to have them blog about what South Africans are doing that’s exciting, cutting-edge and not being done anywhere else. We’re looking for examples of innovation and creative problem-solving in areas such as energy, conservation, health, mining, transport, crime fighting, IT and mobile telephony. We won’t have unlimited time, so the less of it has to be spent in conference rooms watching Powerpoints the better. What we want to do is get the blogosphere buzzing at the great stuff that’s going on here but which isn’t necessarily making the headlines. Suggestions, please.
The Floor From Hell
I seem to be on the floor from hell in a Tel Aviv hotel chain the night before Passover weekend kicks off. It seems as if every American who ever wanted to experience Passover in Israel all arrived today at the same time. And, they all decided to bring their kids and stay in my hotel. Since they clearly just arrived from the airport, their body clocks are still on U.S. time, which is either noon or 3 pm depending on where they came in from.
The kids must have drank a ton of coke on the plane, the kind with caffeine since dozens of them are running up and down the hallways screaming, laughing and pushing elevator buttons.
The other interesting thing about this holiday weekend in Israel is that items that are normally available suddenly disappear. For example, tea kettles are taken out of rooms since kosher rules dictate food and liquid availability over the next several days. That means that milk goes away, which isn’t really a big deal for me since I can drink my tea without it. There was no dairy on our buffet table tonight although the chocolate flan cake certainly tasted good enough to have cream running through its heavenly layered walls.
The kids are still screaming. Where are their parents I’m wondering but then I hear them yelling too. Time for the Bose headset and another blog post. Brasov . 
