Airtel, one of the world’s top five mobile operators has partnered DataMi, a pioneering U.S. mobile-technology company, to make a wide range of content available to cellphone users in Ghana free of charge for data.
The technology for the first time will allow significant numbers of mobile-phone users in Africa to have toll-free access to content including social media, e-commerce, news and entertainment. Initial trials will offer a mix of content to Airtel users in Ghana, to gauge response rates and tailor the program to users’ habits.
“We are delighted to be able to use our technology to make valuable content more widely available in Africa, saving consumers money and improving their mobile experience,” said Harjot Saluja, President and CEO of DataMi. “Toll-free data can give many people in the world access to information and the digital marketplace that they otherwise haven’t had.”
The innovative approach to content delivery is made possible by DataMi’s technology platform, which allows marketers, content producers or carriers to pay the cost of data use that would otherwise be charged to mobile-phone subscribers. DataMi seamlessly integrates this sponsored-data functionality into the mobile operators’ networks without requiring any new infrastructure investment from the mobile operator and support existing mobile websites and applications across mobile devices and operating systems.
This is DataMi’s first international rollout. Last year, DataMi and AT&T Wireless made certain news and podcasts available with no data fees. In side-by-side testing, users offered toll-free access to content were significantly more likely to read it, and DataMi’s product is now available on other operators, too.
DataMi specializes in technologies that make more efficient use of cellular networks to save consumers money or give enterprises the freedom to pay only for the mobile data they need. DataMi was the first technology provider of its kind to fully integrate with multiple major U.S. carriers, when it last year successfully deployed its technology to offer toll-free content to consumers, and the company is now rapidly expanding its international footprint. Its technology also supports a number of enterprise applications.
“Airtel was one of the first companies to offer mobile advertising in Ghana, helping brands transform how they communicate with customers. This partnership with DataMi therefore, takes the engagement with the customer to a higher level, bringing benefits to customers by leveraging on our superior network and fast speed internet to bring a wide range of advertisers content to the customer” said the Director of Data at Airtel Ghana Jean Claude Domilongo Bope.