Opera, Safaricom launch free data campaigns in Ethiopia
Opera said it has facilitated nearly 40 million people across five countries to benefit from up to 3GB of free browsing each month.
What you need to know:
- Opera said the move to partner with Safaricom in Ethiopia follows successful similar campaigns in Kenya.
- The company has invested more than Sh1.75 billion over the past three years in free data campaigns, in Kenya alone.
Web innovator, Opera, has partnered with Safaricom to launch free data campaigns in Ethiopia, in a strategy to increase internet access in the continent and gain more market.
According to Opera, the free data campaign, which it has been running for seven years now, is one of its main strategies to capture the market in Africa, indicating it has invested $100 million (about Sh14.6 billion by current exchange rate terms), to bring more people online.
“Ethiopia is a large and growing country in which we see a great deal of potential. But at this point, the internet penetration rate is only around 16.7 per cent nationwide. So we’re excited to join forces with long-time partner Safaricom to help expand Ethiopia’s digital economy,” said Jørgen Arnesen, EVP Mobile at Opera.
3GB of free browsing
The company said the move to partner with Safaricom in Ethiopia follows successful similar campaigns in Kenya, with the current programme expected to entice Ethiopians with free browsing data of upto 50MB per day when using Opera Mini or Opera for Android on the Safaricom network.
“In the past, our collaboration provided a first window to the web for many users in Kenya, and we’re proud to work together to try to similarly bring millions of new users online in Ethiopia,” Mr Arnesen said.
Opera said it has facilitated nearly 40 million people across five countries to benefit from up to 3GB of free browsing each month, in an initiative that has helped users to establish businesses, connect with loved ones, and learn digitally.
Data Compression technology
The company has invested over $12 million (about Sh1.75 billion) over the past three years in free data campaigns, in Kenya alone.
The free data campaign is accessible through Opera’s mobile browsers Opera Mini and Opera for Android.
About 100 million people in Africa use Opera Mini, Opera’s biggest brand in the continent, a factor the company attributes to its unique Data Compression technology “that helps users save up to 90 per cent of data while browsing.”
