Article
By Alex C
Tingo Mobile, a Nigerian mobile-phone manufacturer has agreed to buy a majority stake in Mass Telecom Innovation Nigeria Plc (MTI) for about $25 million (N4 billion) to develop rural broadband in Africa’s most populous country.
While Tingo will acquire 51 percent of cable-network operator MTI, the company is set to be rebranded as it remains listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).
Telecommunications companies such as China’s Huawei Technologies Co. (002502) and Johannesburg-based MTN Group Ltd. are expanding in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous countries, to tap a growing market for mobile and data usage. Nigeria, Africa’s biggest economy, had 169 million mobile-phone subscriptions as of March 2014, the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) said on its website.
With many users owning more than one phone, subscriber numbers are expected to grow to more than 200 million in 2017, according to London-based research company Informa Telecoms & Media.
Tingo Mobile revealed that it will begin the sale of three smartphones in Nigeria, the first time its devices will be made available to the public. The smartphones- Tingo T5, T500 and T561 models which will cost between N10, 000 to N18, 000 will be manufactured locally. The Abuja-based company also has operations in Kenya and Malaysia.
Interestingly, Tingo is making GPS tracking systems and mobile point-of-sale devices that can be attached to its phones as it looks to expand its Internet-based services business. New products include a chat application that localizes emoticons, using Nigerian cultural references.
Image: https://bizwatchnigeria.ng