South Africa isn't just Africa’s biggest economy, it’s also home to some seriously impressive mobile internet statistics. Our report looks at everything mobile internet-related - from social media to education, banking to e-commerce. It's hard not to be impressed by how quickly mobile has built new opportunities for locals, and also businesses looking to enter South African market.

1. SOUTH AFRICA IS HUNGRY
FOR MOBILE DATA
AND WHY IT IS THE ONE TO WATCH FOR MOBILE INTERNET IN AFRICA

2. We know about
mobile technology in Nigeria,
and mobile money in Kenya,
but what about South Africa?

3. Did you know that South Africa ranks 5th in
the world for mobile data usage?
5 5
5
5
5
5
5 5
Mobile phones dominate in South Africa
Source: Nielsen (2011)
5
5
The US is just 7th.

4. South Africa is the continent’s strongest economy,
and it’s well connected
African Terrestrial Fibre Optic Cable Map
Source: Google Africa, manypossibilities.net

5. Key South Africa mobile statistics
POPULATION
g
^
N
*Adults aged 16+
POPULATION
UNDER
25
YRS
53
Million
49%
INTERNET
PENETRATION*
INTERNET
USER
GROWTH
(2010-­‐12)
41%
140%
MOBILE
PHONE
PENETRATION
135%
Source: Index Mundi (2013), World Bank (2012), ITU, Wikipedia, IDG Connect
MOBILE
vs
FIXED
BROADBAND
8:1

6. High mobile subscription rates
South Africa has a higher rate of mobile subscriptions than both Nigeria and Kenya.
It also has a higher subscription rate than the rest of Africa, the US and the world
on average.
Mobile subscriptions (per 100 persons)
Source: World Bank (2013)

7. Mobile connections vastly outnumber
fixed broadband subscriptions
Source: CNBC Africa (2013)

8. Mobile internet - a priority for businesses
"I think the biggest change is that globally
the majority of internet usage will be
done via a mobile device and for most
people the mobile web will be their primary
- if not their only - way of experiencing the
internet.”
!
Peter Rojas, co-founder of Gdgt, Engadget and Gizmodo
Source: Business Insider (2011)
8

9. Mobile is South Africa’s gateway to the internet
5
57
7
*Referred to as “landline”.
Source: mybroadband.co.za
80% of internet users are using only
their mobile phone to access the
internet,
with 14% using both mobile phone and
fixed broadband*,
A minority 0.3% are using fixed broadband* only.

10. Mobile broadband is on the rise
136%
increase in mobile broadband usage
from Aug 2012 - Aug 2013
!
Source: mybroadband.co.za, Digital Media and Marketing Association (2013)

11. And it’s still growing...
Mobile operator MTN South Africa intends
to double the number of 3G base stations in
2013, to extend wireless broadband access
to underserved parts within the country
!
Source: africantelecomsnews.com,

12. Why are people using mobile broadband?
The biggest reason why
consumers choose mobile to access the internet...
is cost.
Reasons limiting internet use:
38%
Internet is too expensive
66 Percent
Source: Network Society ZA (2013)
25%
Internet is very slow
21%
No interesting content
19%
Lack of local language
content
8%
Too few people to
communicate with

13. More South Africans own a mobile phone
than any other electronic device
What consumer electronic device do you currently own in your household?
Source: Nielsen (2011)

14. South Africans like spending on electronics
South Africans spend a larger proportion of their wage on electronics than
many other countries.
In the past 12 months, how much have you spent on purchasing consumer electronics?
Source: Accenture (2012)

15. What are they buying next?
Which of the following consumer electronics do you plan on purchasing in the next 12 months?
5 67
8
Which of the following consumer electronics do you plan on purchasing in the next 12 months?
Source: Accenture (2012)

16. Smartphone vs. feature phone
Basic feature phones continue to dominate in South Africa — from legacy handsets
passed on through families to affordable new models such as the Nokia C1-01.
!
The smartphone market grew 45% from 2010 - 2011.
Smartphone
29%
Tablet
0.4%
!
Source: BuzzCity (2012), Quartz (2013)
Feature phone
70.6%

17. VS
The average South African will
purchase a feature phone on
Pay-As-You-Go with cash
*average.
Mobile Phones in South Africa
Source: Euromonitor International (2012)
Whereas those who purchase
a smartphone will pay via a
24 month* contract

18. Nokia dominates for handsets
100%
75%
Others
Motorola
Apple
HTC
RIM / Blackberry
Sony Ericsson
LG Electronics
Samsung Electronics
Nokia South Africa
50%
25%
0%
2007
Mobile handset retail shares %
Source: Euromonitor (2012)
2008
2009
2010
2011

19. Handset OS & carrier: Nokia and Cell C rule
Symbian&OS&
8.40%&
Blackberry&OS&
7.37%&
Windows Mobile OS
0.9%
Android&
5.40%&
Samsung&OS&
3.24%&
Vodacom$
22.20%$
Telkom$
1.58%$
Cell$C$
47.07%$
Nokia&S40&
41.92%&
MTN$
29.15%$
Others&
30.76%&
MTKWindows&Mobile&OS&
/ Nucleus OS
0.90%&
0.53%
MTK&/&Nucleus&OS&
0.53%&
iOS iOS&
0.41%&
0.41%
Sony&Ericsson&OS&
0.35%&
MAUI&
0.34%&
LG&OS&
0.21%&
Windows&CE&
0.08%&
Motorola&OS&
0.03%&
Linux&Smartphone&OS&
0.03%&
Windows&Mobile&(PPC)&
0.02%&
Handset OS
Symbian&OS&
8.40%&
Blackberry&OS&
7.37%&
Android&
5.40%&
Samsung&OS&
3.24%&
Vodacom$
22.20%$
Telkom$
1.58%$
Cell$C$
47.07%$
Nokia&S40&
41.92%&
Source: Euromonitor (2012)
MTN$
29.15%$
Others&
30.76%&
Handset carrier
Windows&Mobile&OS&
0.90%&
MTK&/&Nucleus&OS&
0.53%&
iOS&
0.41%&
Sony&Ericsson&OS&
0.35%&
MAUI&
0.34%&
LG&OS&
0.21%&
Windows&CE&
0.08%&
Motorola&OS&
0.03%&
Linux&Smartphone&OS&
0.03%&
Windows&Mobile&(PPC)&
0.02%&

20. What are they using their phones for?

21. Facebook has overtaken Mxit
9,600,000%
7,400,000%
5,500,000%
4,700,000%
2,700,000%
1,100,000% 930,000%
Facebook%
Mxit%
Twi:er% YouTube% LinkedIn%
Total members of each social media network in South Africa
Source: World Wide Worx, memeburn.com (2013), bluemagnet.co.za (2013)
2Go%
680,000% 460,000%
Pinterest% Instagram% Google+%

22. Over 5 million South Africans spend
21 minutes a day on Facebook
v
That’s a collective 200 years every day
[
o
Most of them are connecting through Pretoria, the capital city
Source: Edward Chamberlain-Bell

23. South Africa has the most active
Twitter population in Africa
t
South Africans posted
more than 5 million*
tweets during Q4 2011.
Next nearest was
Kenya with 2.47
million tweets, less
than half of South
Africa,
and Nigeria was the third
most-active country with
1.65 million tweets.
*Survey analysing 11.5m geo-located tweets across Africa.
Source: PC Mag (2012)

24. 82% of South Africans use instant messaging
!
Source: Accenture (2012), SimonQ錫濛譙

25. Social messaging voted #1 use for smartphone
100%#
90%#
80%#
70%#
60%#
50%#
40%#
30%#
20%#
10%#
0%#
Social#messaging#apps#
Voice#calls#
More#than#10#?mes#a#day#
SMS#
2B3#?mes#a#day#
How often do you use your smartphone for the following activities?
Source: On Device Research (2013)
Email#
Once#a#day#
Daily#

26. ...and WhatsApp is most popular!
68%$
47%$
34%$
24%$
18%$
18%$
13%$
9%$
6%$
WhatsApp$ Facebook$
BBM$/$
Messenger$ BlackBerry$
Chat$
TwiDer$
Mxit$
WeChat$
Which of the following do you use at least once a week on your smartphone?
Source: On Device Research (2013)
Skype$
Yahoo$
Messenger$
Viber$

27. Did you know...
Education and eLearning
is the 2nd largest use of mobile in Africa?
Source: TNS Connected World report
27

28. Dr. Math
Dr Math, launched in
2007 and with 32,000
users in South Africa
It provides a mobile
tutoring service hosted
via a free application,
MXit, the social messaging
app and is available for
less than the price
of an SMS
Source: TNS Global (2013)
http://drmath.meraka.csir.co.za/drmath/

29. The University of Pretoria in South Africa
uses mobile technology to support its
paper-based distance-learning programs
for postgraduate students in rural areas
Source: TNS Global (2013)

30. Nokia Mobile Mathematics
What is it?
“Nokia Mobile Mathematics is an engaging solution to study
mathematics using personal mobile phones”
It’s already in use in over 200 schools in South Africa, piloted in
other African countries and available globally for anyone to use.
http://momaths.nokia.com/select/
Source: Nokia (2013)

31. Following Africa’s lead in
mobile banking:
mobiles have
also enabled
South Africa...
...to overcome its
infrastructure
barriers.

32. 21% of South Africans don’t have a bank account
but 90% do own a mobile phone...
Mobile banking has taken off by overcoming Africa’s lack of
infrastructure - so few local bank branches often means
long distances to travel and even longer queues once there.
Mobile banking eliminates this barrier.
Source: Business Week (2013), TNS (Dec 2012)

33. Mobile banking offers South Africans the
security that a bank cannot provide
South Africans do not view using a bank as a
secure way to manage their money.
Mobile banking and e-payments are not only
Government backed, but they allow South
Africans to pay bills or transfer money
securely.
After M-PESA’s overwhelming success in
Kenya, it launched in South Africa three years
ago, with Vodacom. They are currently
investing in new technology to allow more
local retailers to act as M-PESA agents.
Source: The Economist (Sept 2013), Business Week (2013)

34. Mobile money and banking
“South Africa’s First National Bank (FNB) customers can now invest and
trade in shares on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) using the bank's
app on any smartphone or tablet device.”
!
- The Economist (2013)

35. “Mobile shopping is becoming increasingly
commonplace in Africa. It’s an exciting time for the
consumer, retailer, and manufacturer as mobile
shopping solutions will become more accessible,
intelligent and compelling to use.”
!
- James Lamberti, VP Global Research & Marketing at InMobi
Source: Business Insider (2011)

36. E-commerce is taking off
$326m
2010
Internet retailing in South Africa, USD $
Source: Euromonitor (2013)
the value of e-commerce, or internet retailing, in
South Africa in 2012
PayPal offered merchant services to South African
companies for the first time.
Other payment gateways such as Pay4it,
MonsterPay and Evripay provide e-commerce
solutions for small and medium sized businesses

37. The increase of e-commerce payment gateways that
offer convenient and secure payment solutions has
driven growth of e-commerce in South Africa.
However, there is a distinct lack of mobilefocused internet retailers in the market.
Source: Yenkassa

38. 62% of South Africans purchase on mobile devices
What products consumers are buying on their mobiles, (% buying)
62%$
45%$
11%$
10%$
7%$
7%$
3%$
Any$purchase$ Digital$Goods$ Consumer$
using$mobile$
Electronics$
device$
Source: InMobi (2011), World Wide Worx (2012)
Travel$
Apparel$
Entertainment$
Tickets$
Other$

39. Mobile makes it easier for small businesses
Researchers in South Africa working for SAP, a software giant, are trying to
connect very small businesses, which make up a large part of Africa's economy.
!
One service lets craftsmen create a virtual job docket with a few texts or
!
touches on a smartphone, even without mobile-network coverage. The
information is uploaded to a computer system later.
!
Another allows rural stores to order goods, saving time-consuming trips to city
markets.
!
Source: The Economist (2011)

40. The average South African mobile user…
Carrying a Nokia
or Samsung
feature phone
Use mobile
phone > any
other device
Moving from prepaid to contract
Has low spending
power
High levels of
network loyalty

41. Want to reach South African consumers?
On Device Research uses the
mobile internet to gain access to
consumer opinion any time or
location.
!
Mobile research brings fresh,
instant responses that accurately
capture the feelings, thoughts
and opinions of people
anywhere.

42. Interested in mobile research?
Visit ondeviceresearch.com
for more information
!
or contact Siim Teller
siim@ondeviceresearch.com
+44 207 278 2267
!
!
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