This is truly promissing news… I just read an article in FastCompany about Apple’s future launch of their new iPhone. Hello Tim??? This blog is about business development in Africa, so why are you telling me this…
Well, it is correct that the launch of the iPhone 5 in September, which is even faster and with an improved camera, is not of true importance to this space, but here is the interesting piece that I want to share with you; it is predicted that Apple soon will be launching an iPhone Lite! Apple’s BoP strategy with this iPhone version is to skip the expensive and flashy components to keep the price low in order to make the phone affordable to the masses in e.g. Africa.
Imagine what it means to Africa when (not if!) companies like Apple throw their interest at them!! I am not just thinking about the revenues ending in Apple’s pockets (fine by me!), but rather on the apps that will be developed to make the everyday more convenient and efficient. I mean, since I got my first iPhone I now check the weather locally, I go to the bank, I buy my metro ticket, I check my Facebook account, I take pictures on the go, I am using it as a GPS device, I browse, I play music and games….
All of my daily actions listed above can be ‘translated’ directly to what will be able in Africa as well, but more importantly, I think it will go even further with lots of African app-developing companies that will mushroom, who will be developing apps that are specifically tailored for the masses in Africa. The list of opportunites is infinite, the first that comes to mind is; checking daily prices of potatoes in the local market, connecting buyers and sellers of larger stock of mais using Google maps, information exchange with doctors and vets… hoooh, I could go on!! Just imagine what value it would be for African farmers to be able to predict the weather…
Internet connectivity is raising with dramatic speed many places in Africa, which would take the information exchange to the next level. What if it was possible to watch news, go to school, etc. on your iPhone?
NO, Apple has not confirmed the iPhone Lite rumor, but as FastCompany states: “…feels like the same kind of official unofficial leak we suspect the company has used to seed positive Apple-centric stories in the The Wall Street Journal”. The thing that makes me believe that the above will become more than a blog post is the revenue upside for Apple entering the developing markets! I am crossing my fingers that’s for sure…
P.S. Should it be called aPhone???
Sounds like a small revolution for the working poor in Africa as well as in the developing world – great stuff / Sam
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