Ericsson Mobility Report: Mobile Internet Usage to Increase at Twice the Global Rate in Five Years in Sub-Saharan Africa‏

  Ericsson, a global and major player in communication, technology and services has revealed the scale of the ongoing data revolution and traffic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa. The June 2014 Sub-Saharan Africa Ericsson Mobility Report released shows that: In 2014, Phone users accessed 76,000 TB (Terabyte) of data per month which doubled the 2013 figure of 37,500 TB. It is expected that in 2015, the figures will double again to phone users accessing 147,000 TB per month. It is expected that in the next five years, mobile internet usage would have increased 20 times. The rise in mobile internet usage is as a result of the rise of social media, content-rich apps and video content that are now easily accessed from a new range of cheaper smartphones. Consumers in Kenya, South Africa and Nigeria are also increasingly using video TV and media services from their smartphones. Fredrik Jejdling, Regional Head of Ericsson Sub-Saharan Africa says: “Sub-Saharan Africa is currently undergoing a mobile digital revolution with consumers, networks and even media companies are wakening up the possibilities of 3G and 4G technology. We have seen the trend emerging over a few years but in the past twelve months the digital traffic has increased over 100% forcing us to revise our existing predictions.” In the next five years, the Report’s findings show that voice call traffic in Sub-Saharan Africa will double and there will be an explosion in mobile data with usage in Sub-Saharan Africa growing 20 times between 2013 and 2019, twice the anticipated global expansion. By 2017, 3G Technology will outstrip 2G to become the region’s dominant form of mobile connection. By 2019 the report predicts that 75 per cent of mobile subscriptions will be internet inclusive (3G or 4G). In 2019, there will be 930 million mobile subscriptions, 557 million smartphones and 710 million broadband subscriptions. Mr. Jejdling says: “The rise of cheap smartphones will allow vast portions of the population – from middle classes in cities to small businesses in rural areas – access to mobile broadband. M-commerce can offer endless opportunities for entrepreneurs and we’ve found that farmers are fans of mobile wallets – as well as teenagers wanting to watch music videos on their smartphone.”