Slaying the Giant Safaricom

Of late I’ve been reading a lot about the upcoming launch of Equity’s Mobile Virtual Network Operator service which is set to be the next big thing, or so they say (sometimes these things can be a swing and a miss). As a telecommunication specialist I’m quite excited about the move and the new technologies being introduced into the market but it did raise a few questions of my own.

First let’s start with the idea of this *skin* sim card, fascinating stuff I must say but where was this technology when we were going through the mobile porting phase, given the option I am sure many Kenyan’s would have been more responsive to the idea of maintaining their single Sim phones and having a dual Sim card. Saving them the trouble of having to constantly swipe out sim cards every time a low offer would advertised in a certain network, heck I’m sure some people would go so far as to have all four networks on a dual sim phone (trust Kenyans to be special people)

Next, given that the SIM skin is meant to use near field communication (NFC) how secure is this service going to be, both in terms of your current SIM card and in respect to the Equity SIM skin, I mean for those of you who know how the technology works what’s’ to say someone within a clear radius can’t hijack the line? (Maybe that’s just my paranoia). I did a little research and was able to find a company called BibiTel in the UK that introduced the technology in 2013, this is what they had to say about security, “Our technology does NOT store, interrogate your contacts or send anything to your phone. Our technology simply translates your dialed number into something our network can understand.” Taisys Solution’s website only serves to complicate understanding the product. Maybe it’s just me but with these big companies you can never be too sure I say let more research be done on the aspect of security.

BibiTel video

These are just some of the concerns that come to mind but all in all the product is needed in the market dominated by a single player whose grasp doesn’t seem to be weaning, if anything they seem to be growing stronger by the day. The affordable rates set to be offered by Equity set to address the needs of the people who simply want a convenient way to transfer funds , with amounts up to 4999/= being charged 1% and anything above that charged at a fixed rate of 25/= . Where else would you find such a competitive price, coupled by the fact that the same rates will apply to using airtel money outlets and with regulations set to open m-pesa network to other operators I believe it’s a good time for people to make the shift to a network that they truly feel will meet all their needs. No need to feel trapped in this absurdity that we can’t move because of one service, yours truly M-pesa. just sayinG