Africa - Mobile Broadband Market

Aug 28, 2014 : Bharat Book Bureau presents the new report, on "Africa - Mobile Broadband Market”, Forecasts suggest that mobile internet traffic across Africa will double between 2014 and 2015, and will see a 20-fold increase by the end of the decade.

Mobile broadband growth doubling each year, with three-quarters of all connections to be 3G/4G by 2020

The African region is witnessing one of the strongest increases in mobile data use in the world. Forecasts suggest that mobile internet traffic across Africa will double between 2014 and 2015, and will see a 20-fold increase by the end of the decade. Services based on 3G networks will be dominant within three years, replacing older and more limited 2G technology. By 2020, about three-quarters of all mobile connections will be on 3G or 4G, and thereafter the focus for operators will be on making use of released spectrum to expand the reach of LTE networks beyond the major cities.

This growth in traffic is being spurned on by the maturing social media sector, data-rich applications and mobile video. The region is also hosting a new wave and locally built cheap smartphones which is making such devices more readily available to a larger proportion of the population.

Another key facilitator is mobile banking and m-commerce. Mobile banking has taken root in a number of markets, particularly in Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Rwanda and Tanzania. This has supported a fast developing m-commerce sector which is enabling mobile-based transactions, remittances and payments between a growing number of participating banks. Such facilities across borders are making m-commerce a viable international service within the region.

Regulators and governments have encouraged improvements in national backbone networks, as well as international connectivity, to enable operators to increasing traffic volumes as well as customer expectations of a reliable service. These developments are providing the bandwidth needed to connect millions...