NIGERIA’s telecom stakeholders are campaigning for low cost smartphones for its users at the bottom of the pyramid.
The campaigners firmly believe this would deepen mobile telecommunications in Nigeria and boost data services.
During the recent inauguration of the TNS Mobile Life study in Lagos, Aggrey Maposa, CEO for TNS RMS in West Africa advised phone manufacturers operating in the country to consider lowering their smartphones prices to avoid being driven out of the market by low cost Chinese brands.
Maposa notes that the mobile phone is a multipurpose device for emerging market users. He believes that low cost smartphones would be a game changer for Nigerian mobile users.
Mobile usage
A Mobile Life study sourcing over 34,000 respondents in 43 countries, revealed that there had been a shift in the way Nigerians use their mobile phones.
According to Maposa, the study shows that Nigerian mobile consumers are cost-conscious and will embrace low cost smartphones required for dynamic changes in the Internet landscape.
“Any mobile phone manufacturer that intends to retain its Nigerian customers and sustain its market share must be ready to offer lower cost options, says Maposa.
“There has been a shift in the ways people use mobile phones. The mobile phone is no longer limited to the functions which come with it.
“These Chinese brands offer more to consumers. Sometimes they have three SIM cards and free applications. If nothing is done, there will be a paradigm shift and price conscious consumers will go for the Chinese phones,” says Maposa.
By: Bimbo Omitooki – Senior ICT Journalist
