What is 7.am?

Currently the website does not allow you to sign-up online, you have to signup via your mobile phone. The site lets you post ’status updates’ which can be automatically posted to both Facebook and Twitter, in addition you can also perform check-in’s from different locations.

The check-in’s are manual since the site is web-based, the advantage of this means that even phones without a GPS can use the location based features. The disadvantage is, it becomes cumbersome to keep searching for locations to check-in. In addition to this, 7.am has a bunch of other features like chat, a diary, virtual currency called “smart bucks”, groups and the ability to backup/sync your contacts to the site.

The missed opportunity

When viewing the menu, you are faced with a huge number of menu options, i counted 21 different features and options. More features and options are not always better, especially on a mobile device.

Also some of the features could be removed entirely, for example the ‘diary’ feature. This is in effect almost exactly like posting a status update, with the difference being that you can add a title. Why even have this feature?

While it’s interesting that the location features can be used without a GPS on most WAP enabled devices, there does not seem to be any motivation to encourage check-in’s. We see companies like Gowalla and Foursquare encouraging check-in’s by making it a game.

While it’s at a very early stage, the service could work with the removal of unnecessary features and some refinement.

Microwork for the next billion – We bring dignified, computer-based work to women, youth, and refugees living in poverty

Dolores Labs writes:

We have been working with Samasource for a while now — they are a fantastic local non-profit that brings computer based work to people in Africa. We send tasks to one of their hardest to employ groups: a Kenyan refugee camp.

The people are extremely motivated, speak fluent English and even have high speed internet. But sometimes there are downtime issues (due to floods, satellite failure, etc.) and sometimes there are data quality issues (due to cultural misunderstandings), which makes it hard for them to compete for traditional outsourcing work. Fortunately, our dynamic routing and quality control technology can resolve these problems gracefully.

When you complete a task on your iPhone, your work is paired with the work of someone in Kenya.  iPhone users results are used for quality control

You can outsource your work for this using Crowd Flower , On the order page you need to select Samasource and Iphone.

Though, what are your thoughts on the service? As an African, do you find it insulting that the work needs to be ‘verified’ by people in the ‘first-world’? I think though offering work and training to people will always be a benefit!

Blue Label Telecoms

What is OneApp?

OneApp is a mobile application platform that gives users using ‘feature phones’ that normally do  not have the capability to install applications the ability  to run applications those of us using smart phones have enjoyed for a while. Examples include Facebook, Twitter, RSS etc. The platform allows application/services to be hosted in the cloud, and has a client application that runs on the phone, which is just 150KB.

Feature phones outnumber smart-phones, especially in the developing world such as Africa and usually these phones do not have capabilities to run some demanding applications and are usually limited to basic Java apps. The OneApp solution aims to change that by hosting services and applications on the cloud.

Some of the default services that have been included are Facebook, Twitter, RSS, MSN, Chat & a mobile wallet. I was actually invited to the launch of this service and the premise and service seems interesting enough, bringing internet services to people who may not even have access to computers.

Initially i could not test the service since the Iphone does not support Java applications, though when i got home i downloaded and installed the application on a Nokia 5320, the application itself is tiny a mere 150KB. Though when trying to logon for the first time it just kept timing out. I am  guessing this was due to not being able to handle the influx of new users (It was the first day of the public launch).

I tried the the application the following day and was able to register and logon successfully, however i kept getting those security nag screens from nokia with each request made from the mibli application. (Literally every 5-10 seconds)

“Allow application mibli to use network and send or receive data?.”

Now, i am not sure if this is an issue with the application or the phone though i have tested other Java based applications and usually it only asks you the first time. Once you have accepted it connects without requesting you to confirm again. This nag screen makes the application pretty much unusable on my phone, as you have to constantly click “Yes”.

Other then that i managed to test the loading of a UKash voucher into the mobile wallet (The voucher was given to us at the launch) and this worked as advertised. I also tested out the facebook application which lets you update your status on Facebook from the mibli home screen, if you have a twitter account setup your status is sent to both the services. Another interesting feature is Instant messaging which includes public rooms. What will be the takeup of this remains to be seen, but Mxit normally charge for access to public chat rooms. With mibli this seems to be a free service and they may get new users just for this feature.

We all know about some of the challenges related to bandwidth, high costs and not enough of it. This should change soon with a number of new cables, but it’s still a challenge currently being faced.

As an example: Twitter desktop clients really consume bandwidth. Try leaving a desktop client running for a week during offices hours (10 hours a day), you will eat through your bandwidth cap very quickly. It’s one of the reasons i mainly use the web. Elan Lohmann learnt this after he hit 6gb in one month.

Desktop clients, constantly poll and download the entire XML/JSON file using the twitter API, which is fine and dandy if you are using bandwidth you do not have to pay for (i.e at work) or you are somewhere where bandwidth is cheap. There is no ‘push’ of just the new messages. Imagine for a second you only follow 10-20 people who update infrequently, your desktop client would be constantly updating with the same messages over and over again which is not the optimal use of bandwidth.

So here are some tips, for building micro-bloging platforms in Africa:

1: Reduce the overhead (XML/JSON etc.)

Mxit modified the standard Jabber protocol to reduce the bandwidth used by their mobile instant messaging client. From Defza:

Mxit does not use the standard client2server (c2s) protocol, because it would get too expensive if the standard jabber protocol in XML was used:

<message to='romeo@mxit.co.za'
from=’juliet@mxit.co.za/balcony’
type=’chat’
xml:lang=’en’>
<body>Wherefore art thou, Romeo?</body>
</message>

Instead, mxit had to come up with their own c2s protocol in order to ‘compress’ this into something… cheaper (less bytes of data)!
So, we have this instead:

ln=69.id=juliet.cm=10.ms=juliet@mxit.co.za.Wherefore art thou, Romeo?..1

So, instead of 146 bytes being used for the message, only 72 bytes or so is used. (plus 9 bytes for the confirmation message)

2:  Rather then constant polling, push updates

Constant polling by desktop clients can be expensive with regards to bandwidth a more elegant solution would be to push updates alone, this will reduce the bandwidth costs of running a desktop client. This is where an intermediary service like MyQron becomes useful, which does the polling and then only pushes updates.

3:  SMS Integration

SMS integration is key, but the integration should go beyond just getting updates via SMS. A user should be able to use the service without ever needing to go to a PC to: sign up, follow users, update their profile etc. The issue with this though, it may become costly very quickly and most of these start-ups are being bootstrapped.

4: Mobile integration

It goes without saying, the site needs a light weight and simple mobile website. The site should be able to be used on older wap browsers and low end phones. In addition to this there are other ways these local micro-blogging solutions could work and integrate better with the mobile networks. Most operators have some services which make use of USSD embedded on the sim card. The cost of requesting and sending information via USSD is usually 0, and the micro-blogging platforms could be integrated with this.

Can you think of any other ways micro-blogging services in Africa can differentiate themselves?

Some of the micro-blogging services in Africa

• Akouaba – Country: Congo – http://www.akouaba.com/
• Bloggie   – Country: South Africa – http://www.bloggie.co.za/ (Seems to have been abandoned)
• GatorPeeps – Country: South Africa – http://gatorpeeps.com/
• KukuRooku – http://www.kukurooku.com/
• Naijapulse – Country: Nigeria – http://naijapulse.com/
• Twyka – Country: Kenya – http://twyka.com/

How does it work?
Well, you simply register on the website giving your details such as email address,name, mobile number and in what industry and city you are looking for a job. Once you have registered and verified your account via SMS, you can then setup your profile and complete the details for your CV. You can save multiple versions of your CV and include a cover letter as well. Here is where it gets interesting, Once you have setup your CV to apply for a position via email, All you need to do is send an SMS in the following format: “ecv (email address to email the cv to) (your CV id)”

There are more advanced features and commands as well like inserting a title, reference number or cover page. In addition to sending you CV, you can also receive alerts for any job postings on the eCV website. Though they dont seem to be many job postings when i checked at the time of writing this post.

Why is this service important?
Let’s look at the numbers here, there are 4 million to 6 million internet users in South Africa which means a penetration rate of about 10%, while mobile is sitting at close to 100%. Often people may not have regular access to the internet or limited access via their mobiles. Which makes sending emails difficult especially on your lower end phones. These job seekers most likely have to go to an internet cafe just to send a single email to apply for a job. This becomes a time consuming and cumbersome process for anyone applying for many Jobs.

Some thoughts
I think the concept is great, however i believe it needs to be refined. The biggest obstacle is still needing to have access to a PC the first time round. It may be difficult to overcome this though. The second and more important issue, is the market the website is catering for. As an example: Right now you can select what industry you would like to work in (i.e Information Technology), you are then presented with options for you skill level which includes positions at Senior manager and Director level. I do not believe the service would be useful to someone at that level, since they most likely have access to the internet all the time via laptops and blackberry’s. The service could also be refined to cater for adhoc small informal jobs such as “I need a painter for 3 days” similar to what SMS jobs offers.

Johan Meyer, CTO, says: “Globa is an international money transferring and mobile payment platform developed to provide the unbanked community of Africa with a means of making payments, sending and receiving money without the need to get a bank account. Globa has been build on the Ipina platform thus providing us with the unique capability to enable our Ipina clients to integrate the power of Globa into their mobile applications. This will enable them to turn their mobile application into a fully functional mobile E-commerce application.”

StartupAfrica interviewed Johan Meyer briefly:

• When did u decide to work for startup company? Or co-found it?

My wife and I started 08Mobile a couple of years ago, 2006 to be exact. 08Mobile started as a hobby, both of us had interest in the mobile environment and both of us believed that the mobile environment will be the way to go. After a couple small projects a hobby turned into a fulltime job. In 2007 we partnered with an entrepreneur from Ghana, Kenny Andam. He provided us with the international exposure needed to expand 08Mobile into the international market. That’s when 08Mobile turned into Ipina. 2007 also saw the birth of Globa. Globa was founded by Kenny and myself as a platform to be used to provide the unbanked community of Africa with a means of making payments, sending and receiving money without the need to get a bank account.

• What are the challenges u faced with in being an entrepreneur?

The biggest challenges I faced as an entrepreneur was to move from being a developer to being the developer, do marketing, find clients, basically be part of every sector of the business. Stepping out of your comfort zone into
a zone where you may not be as comfortable in is always a challenge. But this is what makes being an entrepreneur so much fun.

• Lessons learned thus far?

The biggest lesson I’ve learned thus far is always make sure you have the support of your family when starting your own business. Things don’t always run smoothly and that’s when you need someone to keep you motivated. I have learned the hard way that nothing happens overnight and if you want something you have to be prepared to work long hours and put all you have into your work.

• Long term goals?

Guess my long term business goals are to turn both of our companies into highly successful companies, not only in Africa but world wide. We are currently working at expanding our footprint in the USA and Africa and if all goes well we will be achieving this goal before the end of the year.

My goals out side of the office, learn how to play golf and spend more time with my family.

• What do u do on weekends in your spare time?

I try to get away from the laptop and cell phone. But as a “work-a-holic” it tends to be easier said than done. If not working I usually spend time with my family. Living in Cape Town we are relatively lucky, we have loads to do
out side of the house.

• Message for other entrepreneurs?

Keep positive. Never give up, even if it looks like your idea will never work out. If you believe enough in your idea and you love what you do it will work.

Vincent on the new website look

It is quite unusual to start with a mobile social network and retroactively translate this into a web environment, so a lot of thinking went into how the visual language and the user experience of these two media differ. From the outset it was clear that we needed something that fits with what web users understand a social network to be, given that they are probably regular visitors of Facebook, Twitter and blogs. As the production of the site unfolded, it became clear that the narrow, low-bandwidth display of our mobile application has profoundly influenced the way we treat data structures. One of the biggest adjustments that we had to make technically was to allow for richer data for display in lists and detail pages about content and users. Another was the inherent difficulty in synchronizing instant messaging with all the other components of the system.

Some of the new features include

• New & faster maps running on their own servers
• Twitter integration, which pushes your status to twitter & includes your location
• Inline IM messaging, you can chat via the WEB interface or Java client
• Real time alerts while using the web interface without having to visit the alerts page

They have also launched a location based advertising network

One of the most significant elements of the new web site and Java application is that some of the advertisements are delivered based on the location of your cellphone. For launch we have partnered with Nandos, Sportscene, Jay Jays and Synergy pharmacies to deliver advertising within radii ranging from 0 – 10km from your physical location, delivered via the web. When an ad is location-targeted on the web you will see a line of text below it that tells you how far away from you the physical location is. Nandos have used this to pinpoint some of their stores in Cape Town on our maps and have customized each ad to that specific location.

The Java application has also been updated, and Vodacom has also launched an OpenGrid API, which was used to build the new website.

You can read more at Vincents blog.

Afrimesh is the name given to the wireless-isp-in-a-box development used by a number of Meraka projects, including the IDRC Wireless-Africa project, the VillageTelco collaboration with Shuttleworth Foundation and the Broadband for All project.

A dual benefit is introduced through code-sprints: Participants have the opportunity to increase their skill levels under the guidance of an expert while needed functionality is added to the open source project.

For the Afrimesh code sprint, there are defined tasks that each require applicants to work on.

I believe this is a great opportunity for students to get involved and exposure to an Open source project that has tremendous potential they would be developing a solution that caters to Africa’s unique needs. Expenses such as traveling costs and accommodation will be covered by Meraka, you will also receive a daily rate for a maximum of 20 days. Students will be based at the CSIR/Meraka Pretoria in the innovation hub campus, Pretoria. The sprint will be held over our winter, during student holidays. You can apply at the Meraka website, International students can inquire if they will be accepted as well.

Hat tip: Kenyapundit & stevesong

Interestingly he say’s that Sierra Leone is often over looked when it comes to research and statistics due to the small population size.

Here are some of the points i found interesting:

ICT – Availability

• Monopoly fixed line network operator Sierra Leone Telecommunications Company (Sierratel)‏
• Entry and backbone controlled by Sierratel – however, unclear for VSAT providers, ACE cable
• Fiber: Undersea cable ACE landing in Freetown
• Five GSM networks (Africell, Tigo, Zain, Comium and Sierratel, 2008) and up to three more expected to launch shortly
• April 09: Sierratel launches CDMA network

ICT – Affordability

• Computer and internet penetration: Internet 0.2 of population (2008)‏
• All available Indexes of ICT development (ITU, Worldbank, etc) see the country close to an absolute zero
• Problem: as so often, data are outdated. Sierra Leone is excluded from many data collections, because of size of the country

ICT – Accessibility

• Fixed-line penetration at < 0.5% (2004)‏
• Mobile penetration: 123.3 / 1000, rank 185/220 – low
• Internet penetration: 13,000 Internet users, 0.2% of the population, per ITU (March 2008)
• Internet penetration / Growth by factor 2 every 4 years (2000 – 2004 – 2008)‏
• Internet hosts: 8 (2008) (CIA) – outdated!‏
• ITU DAI 2002: 0.10 = bottom end worldwide (only 3 countries are lower)‏
• .sl domain: nic.sl: Government of Sierra Leone has appointed AFcom as the registry for the .SL zone
  Afcom is a supplier of internet connectivity services via its’ own dedicated wireless network for Freetown metropolitan area as well as in Bo, Lunsar, Makeni, Kenema and Kono.
• Pricing example: GPRS connection – modem cost $150, monthly subscription $50

Internet users 2002 - worldmapper.org

Afrigator Launches Gator Peeps

Gatorpeeps is a microblogging service from Afrigator, that features an API similar to twitters. There are plans to integrate it with SMS, this will be great as ever since twitter cancelled SMS features i find myself missing that feature. I would still love to have SMS notification for certain people i follow.  Read more about gatorpeeps

Status.UG

Status.ug is a completely mobile gateway for Ugandans to interact with their Facebook accounts. With around 60,000 Facebook users in the Kampala area, it seems absurd that no one locally has tried to engage the traffic with a local service. Especially since bandwidth in Uganda is currently so expensive and spotty.

Read more

Answer Bird

Answerbird is simple. Just point your browser to Answerbird.com. You’ll be asked to use Facebook Connect to authenticate the use of your application with your profile. Once you’ve signed up you’ll be taken to a Twitter-like interface where you simply ask questions. Automatically your question is posted to your profile on Answerbird.com (which sits on the Appfrica2 servers) but you’re given the option to also make the question your status update. This allows people who don’t use the service to offer their input via Facebook, while Answerbird users can answer using Facebook or in threaded conversations at Answerbird.com.

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Sembuse, A mobile social network in East Africa

Sembuse is a mobile social network. It’s a way for East Africans to connect with each other via short messaging, cheaper than normal SMS messages

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