Mr. Shina Badaru, the Founder of Technology Times has identified that mobile phone networks have moved from traditional telephony services to become the new “one-stop-shop” businesses transforming the Nigerian economy.
According to him, mobile phone companies have become one stop shop for mobile subscribers that see their phones and devices as integral part of the way they work, play and live.
[blockquote right=”pull-right” cite=”Shina Badaru, Founder of Technology Times”]“One of the ways that the fundamentals have changed is that MTN reported a few months ago that the MTN Nigeria music ambassador, Harry Song got more than 3.5 million downloads within three weeks for the Nelson Mandela Callertunez. When you do the math and remember that each subscriber pays N50 for a service that can directly reach over 50 million customers and bypass the traditional channels, you have an idea of how the fundamentals are being changed across sectors of the Nigerian economy”, Badaru told the Pan-Atlantic University forum.[/blockquote]
Badaru said this as a speaker 3rd International SMC Media and Culture Conference 2014 organised by the Pan-Atlantic University, Lagos on the theme, “Nigeria’s Centenary 1914 – 2014: Media, Culture and the Re/Invention of a Postcolonial Nation-State.”
Mobile phone companies are fundamentally transforming enterprises, entertainment, media and virtually every sector of the Nigerian economy, he said.
During his presentation he took attendees down memory lane as he gave statistics of the evolution of the Nigeria’s telecoms market which has so far grown rapidly over the last 13 years from only 500,000 lines to over 127million active lines as at Q1 2014.
According to him, since the first batch of GSM networks commenced commercial services in August 2001, not only have they transformed the communications landscape by putting the power of communication in the hands of most Nigerians, driven by stiffer competition in the telecoms sector, operators are now disrupting the traditional business landscape.
“The transformation is pervasive and mobile phone companies or GSM operators or by whatever name you call them are not just your traditional phone operators, they have become the new total business solutions providers”, Badaru told attendees at the event that included professionals from the entertainment, media and other sectors of the economy.
According to Badaru, the stiffer completion is making mobile operator to continue to include new layers of service offerings to their customers to promote innovation, keep check customer loss in check and promote subscriber loyalty to their brands.
“The mobile phone has become everything. It is your new central business centre where everyone can reach you to do business. Aside that it has become your play centre where you connect with Facebook and your friends on different platforms” Badaru added.
On the entrainment side, the Technology Times Founder left attendees with a few thought-provoking insights on how phone companies are tapping the power of new media “that is unfolding, evolving and impacting our lives.”
He cited the example of the popular MTN Callertunez that paid tribute to late South African President Nelson Mandela by Harry Song, a brand ambassador of MTN Nigeria, the largest mobile phone company in the country.
Badaru told the forum that by leveraging its extensive subscriber base numbering over 50 million active customers in Nigeria alone, MTN released the Callertunez on its network thereby bypassing the traditional brick and mortar music distribution networks “including our popular Ebinpejo Lane, Alaba Market”, to gain faster market traction.
“One of the ways that the fundamentals have changed is that MTN reported a few months ago that the MTN Nigeria music ambassador, Harry Song got more than 3.5 million downloads within three weeks for the Nelson Mandela Callertunez. When you do the math and remember that each subscriber pays N50 for a service that can directly reach over 50 million customers and bypass the traditional channels, you have an idea of how the fundamentals are being changed across sectors of the Nigerian economy”, Badaru told the Pan-Atlantic University forum.
The Technology Times Founder urged players in the media, content and entertainment industries to harness the full potentials of new media not only to earn more revenue but also ensure they encourage innovation by protecting their intellectual property.
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