Mobility Nigeria

Mobile VAS in Growth Markets, Dubai, December 2010
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What happened to convergence?

I have been an advocate of convergence for years, and I have been very vocal about it. When I say “convergence” I mean the convergence of mobile voice and data. In layman’s terms, that’s having your voice, SMS, and internet needs met on one single mobile line.

I tried it out for several years, and I got my fingers burnt.

Badly.

As those around me know, data takes precedence over voice for me. I do more online than I could ever do with voice or with SMS. That would have been no problem, except for the fact that every now and then data services on one network or the other would simply go absent without leave. Then I would have to switch to another line (and network) to have access to internet on the move.

As such, most people around me keep wondering why they cannot reach me on the line they have. This cycle has gone on for about three years now – from GloMobile to Celtel, and now MTN. Just when people were ready to certify me deranged, I found the solution to my protracted problem – I gave up on convergence!

I simply decided that it was in the best interest of my stability and sanity to separate my voice/SMS needs from my mobile data needs. So, at the moment, I have mobile data via MTN GPRS/3G and voice/SMS via Celtel. Regardless of how MTN packet data behaves, my voice line will stay the same from now. My data line can change and somersault all it wants, and go round from MTN to Reltel to Visafone or no-phone. My family and friends will at least relax, knowing that I have not gone off the deep end.

Sigh.


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