Re: [kictanet] [isoc_ke] For those who think Safaricom is Dominant - Think Again..
Kelvin Not sure I see the link between this sorry and the dominance issue.. It is however an interesting read. Thanks for sharing. Ali Hussein +254 770 906375 / 0713 601113 Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim Blog: www.alyhussein.com "I fear the day technology will surpass human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots". ~ Albert Einstein Sent from my iPad
On Feb 23, 2015, at 11:46 PM, Kelvin Githira <kelvin@skysys.co.ke> wrote:
is this the reason for the push to declare safaricom dominant ?
http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/Corporate-News/VeriFone-seeks-managers-fo...
well its just a matter of time before an LTD is registered in the British virgin island by nameless Kenyans
On Sat, Feb 21, 2015 at 12:42 AM, Ali Hussein via isoc <isoc@lists.my.co.ke> wrote: Listers
Isn't it time to reboot our thinking on Policy and Regulation to fit the current global situation?
This story in Forbes just made me realize one fundamental flow in our thinking regarding the regulatory environment we live in today. Should we not totally re-invent the environment to suit the circumstances? Why should we let the FCC trail-blaze in Regulation? What do they know about mobile innovation and regulation? Why are we abdicating our global responsibility from a regulatory perspective when we lead the world in mobile innovation?
http://www.forbes.com/sites/mfonobongnsehe/2015/02/19/somali-entrepreneur-ra...
The world remittance market is $550b. What market share does Mpesa have? Let's not wallow in the hype and really make it happen. Today one in every three humans who use mobile money is a Kenyan. How does this translate to market share in this global stage. How many Indians/Chinese/Nigerians use Mpesa to remit money back home? That's the playground we must play in. After all isn't Kenya ground zero for all things mobile innovation?
http://blogs.worldbank.org/africacan/how-kenya-became-a-world-leader-for-mob...
Instead of trying to stifle local based companies let's give them the boost they require to become truly global.
Here's what I think should happen. (Forgive me for being presumptive) but The Govt should cultivate BFF Status (my daughter tells me BFF means Best Friends Forever) with the likes of Mpesa, Mode, Cellulant, Pesapal, Jambo Pay, CopyCat, Seven Seas etc and present them as African Champions at every possible regional and Global event. Our very Economic Diplomacy should be anchored in this thinking. If my history serves me right that's how the Japanese Global Giants were borne. Through a truly PPP & Multi-Stakeholder Model (yes that word again..) Japanese industry became the world beaters they are today. For more on this it would be instructive to read the history of MITI.
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ministry_of_International_Trade_and_Industry
Our folly is in thinking that private sector and government are mutually exclusive and that an adversarial stance is best to protect consumers. Let's expand the pie. There is no reason that Mpesa cannot become the de-facto mobile money system across Africa. For this to happen it would require not thinking out of the box - but reinventing the box. Literally.
As Bob Collymore aptly put it - Being dominant is not a crime.
Ali Hussein
+254 770 906375 / 0713 601113
Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim Blog: www.alyhussein.com
"I fear the day technology will surpass human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots". ~ Albert Einstein
Sent from my iPad
_______________________________________________ isoc mailing list isoc@lists.my.co.ke http://lists.my.co.ke/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/isoc
As Bob Collymore aptly put it - Being dominant is not a crime.
But using you dominance to stifle <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_antitrust_law> competition <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Microsoft_Corp.> and innovation <https://www.publicknowledge.org/files/The%20Case%20Aganst%20the%20UMG-EMI%20Merger.pdf> is <http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/nov/21/european-parliament-break-up-of-google>, which is the point that is being made.
What you are advocating is to punish Safaricom for out innovating the competition. What should they do? Pussyfoot around them? Let's be honest. Business is war. And anyone who thinks otherwise has not been in the trenches. Safaricom was not born dominant. And I dare say it won't remain dominant. I'm all for the policy to enforce interoperability which will take care of the 'noise' from vanquished competitors. My other point is that the regulatory environment needs to take into consideration the global environment. Mpesa must be allowed space to grow beyond Kenya. Mpesa here means any Kenyan product. We must emulate Japan & other Asian Giants. Policy and regulation must as a matter of course favor local companies. I make no apologies for this last point - Free markets are a dream perpetuated by foreign interests with the end game of dominance. Ali Hussein +254 770 906375 / 0713 601113 Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim Blog: www.alyhussein.com "I fear the day technology will surpass human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots". ~ Albert Einstein Sent from my iPad On Feb 24, 2015, at 11:14 AM, "rsohan@gmail.com" <rsohan@gmail.com> wrote:
As Bob Collymore aptly put it - Being dominant is not a crime.
But using you dominance to stifle competition and innovation is, which is the point that is being made.
@Ali,I agree. We have a (dominance) problem but want to apply the wrong medicine to cure it. Have a read @ Splitting Safaricom will change little for static competitors - Walubengo - nation.co.ke Splitting Safaricom will change little for static competitors walu. | | | | | | | | | | | Splitting Safaricom will change little for static compet...MPesa moved Sh2.4 trillion last year, more than twice our national budget. | | | | View on www.nation.co.ke | Preview by Yahoo | | | | | From: Ali Hussein via kictanet <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> To: jwalu@yahoo.com Cc: ISOC Kenya Chapter <isoc@lists.my.co.ke>; KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> Sent: Tuesday, February 24, 2015 3:03 PM Subject: Re: [kictanet] [isoc_ke] For those who think Safaricom is Dominant - Think Again.. What you are advocating is to punish Safaricom for out innovating the competition. What should they do? Pussyfoot around them? Let's be honest. Business is war. And anyone who thinks otherwise has not been in the trenches. Safaricom was not born dominant. And I dare say it won't remain dominant. I'm all for the policy to enforce interoperability which will take care of the 'noise' from vanquished competitors. My other point is that the regulatory environment needs to take into consideration the global environment. Mpesa must be allowed space to grow beyond Kenya. Mpesa here means any Kenyan product. We must emulate Japan & other Asian Giants. Policy and regulation must as a matter of course favor local companies. I make no apologies for this last point - Free markets are a dream perpetuated by foreign interests with the end game of dominance. Ali Hussein +254 770 906375 / 0713 601113 Twitter: @AliHKassimSkype: abu-jomoLinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassimBlog: www.alyhussein.com "I fear the day technology will surpass human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots". ~ Albert Einstein Sent from my iPad On Feb 24, 2015, at 11:14 AM, "rsohan@gmail.com" <rsohan@gmail.com> wrote: As Bob Collymore aptly put it - Being dominant is not a crime. But using you dominance to stifle competition and innovation is, which is the point that is being made. _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet Unsubscribe or change your options at https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/jwalu%40yahoo.com The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development. KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.
On 24 February 2015 at 15:03, Ali Hussein via kictanet < kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:
My other point is that the regulatory environment needs to take into consideration the global environment. Mpesa must be allowed space to grow beyond Kenya. Mpesa here means any Kenyan product. We must emulate Japan & other Asian Giants. Policy and regulation must as a matter of course favor local companies. I make no apologies for this last point - Free markets are a dream perpetuated by foreign interests with the end game of dominance.
Ali, the tragedy is Vodafone pulled the rug from under our feet. They saw the value of MPESA long ago and patented it, thus licensing it to Sub Saharan Africa and Southern Asian countries. Thus it's not possible for Safaricom to grow the MPESA brand beyond our borders. That is what Vodafone has been doing all along. ______________________ Mwendwa Kivuva, Nairobi, Kenya "There are some men who lift the age they inhabit, till all men walk on higher ground in that lifetime." - Maxwell Anderson
@Mwendwa My point is that Mpesa represents the whole innovation landscape in Kenya. There are other products/services that have global appeal. Kenyan made or at least Kenyan bred. The principle is that we MUST develop strong champions that can be global players - Free Markets be damned.. @Walu I agree with your assertions and you seem to straddling the fence :) not sure what should be done..:) Actually by default Mpesa has already been spinned off Safaricom. So that's a Fait Accompli. Ali Hussein +254 770 906375 / 0713 601113 Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim Blog: www.alyhussein.com "I fear the day technology will surpass human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots". ~ Albert Einstein Sent from my iPad
On Feb 24, 2015, at 3:45 PM, Mwendwa Kivuva <Kivuva@transworldafrica.com> wrote:
On 24 February 2015 at 15:03, Ali Hussein via kictanet <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: My other point is that the regulatory environment needs to take into consideration the global environment. Mpesa must be allowed space to grow beyond Kenya. Mpesa here means any Kenyan product. We must emulate Japan & other Asian Giants. Policy and regulation must as a matter of course favor local companies. I make no apologies for this last point - Free markets are a dream perpetuated by foreign interests with the end game of dominance.
Ali, the tragedy is Vodafone pulled the rug from under our feet. They saw the value of MPESA long ago and patented it, thus licensing it to Sub Saharan Africa and Southern Asian countries. Thus it's not possible for Safaricom to grow the MPESA brand beyond our borders. That is what Vodafone has been doing all along.
______________________ Mwendwa Kivuva, Nairobi, Kenya
"There are some men who lift the age they inhabit, till all men walk on higher ground in that lifetime." - Maxwell Anderson
On 24 February 2015 at 15:54, Ali Hussein <ali@hussein.me.ke> wrote:
My point is that Mpesa represents the whole innovation landscape in Kenya. There are other products/services that have global appeal. Kenyan made or at least Kenyan bred. The principle is that we MUST develop strong champions that can be global players - Free Markets be damned..
True that ______________________ Mwendwa Kivuva, Nairobi, Kenya "There are some men who lift the age they inhabit, till all men walk on higher ground in that lifetime." - Maxwell Anderson
From: Ali Hussein via kictanet <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote @Walu, I agree with your assertions and you seem to straddling the fence :) not sure what should be done..:) ---@Ali, I actually know what needs to be done. I just did not want to say it because we pay the DG and the CS good money to figure it out :-) walu. From: Ali Hussein via kictanet <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> To: jwalu@yahoo.com Cc: ISOC Kenya Chapter <isoc@lists.my.co.ke>; KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> Sent: Tuesday, February 24, 2015 3:54 PM Subject: Re: [kictanet] [isoc_ke] For those who think Safaricom is Dominant - Think Again.. @Mwendwa My point is that Mpesa represents the whole innovation landscape in Kenya. There are other products/services that have global appeal. Kenyan made or at least Kenyan bred. The principle is that we MUST develop strong champions that can be global players - Free Markets be damned.. @Walu I agree with your assertions and you seem to straddling the fence :) not sure what should be done..:) Actually by default Mpesa has already been spinned off Safaricom. So that's a Fait Accompli. Ali Hussein +254 770 906375 / 0713 601113 Twitter: @AliHKassimSkype: abu-jomoLinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassimBlog: www.alyhussein.com "I fear the day technology will surpass human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots". ~ Albert Einstein Sent from my iPad On Feb 24, 2015, at 3:45 PM, Mwendwa Kivuva <Kivuva@transworldafrica.com> wrote: On 24 February 2015 at 15:03, Ali Hussein via kictanet <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: My other point is that the regulatory environment needs to take into consideration the global environment. Mpesa must be allowed space to grow beyond Kenya. Mpesa here means any Kenyan product. We must emulate Japan & other Asian Giants. Policy and regulation must as a matter of course favor local companies. I make no apologies for this last point - Free markets are a dream perpetuated by foreign interests with the end game of dominance. Ali, the tragedy is Vodafone pulled the rug from under our feet. They saw the value of MPESA long ago and patented it, thus licensing it to Sub Saharan Africa and Southern Asian countries. Thus it's not possible for Safaricom to grow the MPESA brand beyond our borders. That is what Vodafone has been doing all along. ______________________ Mwendwa Kivuva, Nairobi, Kenya "There are some men who lift the age they inhabit, till all men walk on higher ground in that lifetime." - Maxwell Anderson _______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet Unsubscribe or change your options at https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/jwalu%40yahoo.com The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development. KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.
:) Ali Hussein +254 770 906375 / 0713 601113 Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim Blog: www.alyhussein.com "I fear the day technology will surpass human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots". ~ Albert Einstein Sent from my iPad
On Feb 24, 2015, at 5:05 PM, Walubengo J <jwalu@yahoo.com> wrote:
From: Ali Hussein via kictanet <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote @Walu, I agree with your assertions and you seem to straddling the fence :) not sure what should be done..:) --- @Ali,
I actually know what needs to be done. I just did not want to say it because we pay the DG and the CS good money to figure it out :-)
walu.
From: Ali Hussein via kictanet <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> To: jwalu@yahoo.com Cc: ISOC Kenya Chapter <isoc@lists.my.co.ke>; KICTAnet ICT Policy Discussions <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> Sent: Tuesday, February 24, 2015 3:54 PM Subject: Re: [kictanet] [isoc_ke] For those who think Safaricom is Dominant - Think Again..
@Mwendwa
My point is that Mpesa represents the whole innovation landscape in Kenya. There are other products/services that have global appeal. Kenyan made or at least Kenyan bred. The principle is that we MUST develop strong champions that can be global players - Free Markets be damned..
@Walu
I agree with your assertions and you seem to straddling the fence :) not sure what should be done..:) Actually by default Mpesa has already been spinned off Safaricom. So that's a Fait Accompli.
Ali Hussein
+254 770 906375 / 0713 601113
Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim Blog: www.alyhussein.com
"I fear the day technology will surpass human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots". ~ Albert Einstein
Sent from my iPad
On Feb 24, 2015, at 3:45 PM, Mwendwa Kivuva <Kivuva@transworldafrica.com> wrote:
On 24 February 2015 at 15:03, Ali Hussein via kictanet <kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote: My other point is that the regulatory environment needs to take into consideration the global environment. Mpesa must be allowed space to grow beyond Kenya. Mpesa here means any Kenyan product. We must emulate Japan & other Asian Giants. Policy and regulation must as a matter of course favor local companies. I make no apologies for this last point - Free markets are a dream perpetuated by foreign interests with the end game of dominance.
Ali, the tragedy is Vodafone pulled the rug from under our feet. They saw the value of MPESA long ago and patented it, thus licensing it to Sub Saharan Africa and Southern Asian countries. Thus it's not possible for Safaricom to grow the MPESA brand beyond our borders. That is what Vodafone has been doing all along.
______________________ Mwendwa Kivuva, Nairobi, Kenya
"There are some men who lift the age they inhabit, till all men walk on higher ground in that lifetime." - Maxwell Anderson
_______________________________________________ kictanet mailing list kictanet@lists.kictanet.or.ke https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/listinfo/kictanet
Unsubscribe or change your options at https://lists.kictanet.or.ke/mailman/options/kictanet/jwalu%40yahoo.com
The Kenya ICT Action Network (KICTANet) is a multi-stakeholder platform for people and institutions interested and involved in ICT policy and regulation. The network aims to act as a catalyst for reform in the ICT sector in support of the national aim of ICT enabled growth and development.
KICTANetiquette : Adhere to the same standards of acceptable behaviors online that you follow in real life: respect people's times and bandwidth, share knowledge, don't flame or abuse or personalize, respect privacy, do not spam, do not market your wares or qualifications.
On Tue, Feb 24, 2015 at 12:03 PM, Ali Hussein <ali@hussein.me.ke> wrote:
What you are advocating is to punish Safaricom for out innovating the competition.
Nope. Never said that. My email was super-clear.
What should they do? Pussyfoot around them? Let's be honest. Business is war. And anyone who thinks otherwise has not been in the trenches. Safaricom was not born dominant. And I dare say it won't remain dominant. I'm all for the policy to enforce interoperability which will take care of the 'noise' from vanquished competitors.
They can and should do whatever they want viz innovation. But to use your dominant position to stop others from innovating (aka a non-level playing field) is not only illegal but has proven to be detrimental to innovation in the long term. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monopoly#Monopoly_and_efficiency> This is the point that Airtel and a bunch of other people (including small startups, external companies and quangos) have made. Personally, I would also argue a dominant partner that is afraid of competition and uses underhanded tactics to get rid of them is not really the kind of company you want at the forefront, because it's a weak company. Strong companies out-innovate, they don't out-legislate or out-thug (term mine).
My other point is that the regulatory environment needs to take into consideration the global environment. Mpesa must be allowed space to grow beyond Kenya. Mpesa here means any Kenyan product.
Either I'm missing something or this point is orthogonal to the conversation. Who is stopping Mpesa (or any other Kenyan product) from being exported? AFAIK there's no embargo on the exportation of technology from Kenya on a global scale. Please elucidate.
We must emulate Japan & other Asian Giants. Policy and regulation must as a matter of course favor local companies.
You mean protectionism? Maybe, but this comes at a price -- namely fixed prices, *opolies, high-cost of goods, etc. It's debatable what's good for African markets at this point.
I make no apologies for this last point - Free markets are a dream perpetuated by foreign interests with the end game of dominance.
I am not sure I understand this point. In my understanding, there is no "foreign interest" in a free market, it's, by definition, a FREE MARKET! Perhaps you mean we're provided an illusion of a free market or you're referencing something else?
*Ali Hussein*
+254 770 906375 / 0713 601113
Twitter: @AliHKassim
Skype: abu-jomo
LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim <http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim>
Blog: www.alyhussein.com
"I fear the day technology will surpass human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots". ~ Albert Einstein
Sent from my iPad
On Feb 24, 2015, at 11:14 AM, "rsohan@gmail.com" <rsohan@gmail.com> wrote:
As Bob Collymore aptly put it - Being dominant is not a crime.
But using you dominance to stifle <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_antitrust_law> competition <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Microsoft_Corp.> and innovation <https://www.publicknowledge.org/files/The%20Case%20Aganst%20the%20UMG-EMI%20Merger.pdf> is <http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/nov/21/european-parliament-break-up-of-google>, which is the point that is being made.
Ali Hussein +254 770 906375 / 0713 601113 Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim Blog: www.alyhussein.com "I fear the day technology will surpass human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots". ~ Albert Einstein Sent from my iPad
On Feb 25, 2015, at 3:09 AM, "rsohan@gmail.com" <rsohan@gmail.com> wrote:
On Tue, Feb 24, 2015 at 12:03 PM, Ali Hussein <ali@hussein.me.ke> wrote: What you are advocating is to punish Safaricom for out innovating the competition.
Nope. Never said that. My email was super-clear.
It was implied.
What should they do? Pussyfoot around them? Let's be honest. Business is war. And anyone who thinks otherwise has not been in the trenches. Safaricom was not born dominant. And I dare say it won't remain dominant. I'm all for the policy to enforce interoperability which will take care of the 'noise' from vanquished competitors.
They can and should do whatever they want viz innovation. But to use your dominant position to stop others from innovating (aka a non-level playing field) is not only illegal but has proven to be detrimental to innovation in the long term. This is the point that Airtel and a bunch of other people (including small startups, external companies and quangos) have made.
Personally, I would also argue a dominant partner that is afraid of competition and uses underhanded tactics to get rid of them is not really the kind of company you want at the forefront, because it's a weak company. Strong companies out-innovate, they don't out-legislate or out-thug (term mine).
History has shown that markets usually take care of bullies and that regulation alone has never been the silver bullet that we think it is.
My other point is that the regulatory environment needs to take into consideration the global environment. Mpesa must be allowed space to grow beyond Kenya. Mpesa here means any Kenyan product.
Either I'm missing something or this point is orthogonal to the conversation. Who is stopping Mpesa (or any other Kenyan product) from being exported? AFAIK there's no embargo on the exportation of technology from Kenya on a global scale. Please elucidate.
A strong governance and private sector partnership is required to actualize this. Call it Commercial Diplomacy. Most successful western and eastern countries make this a cornerstone of their global engagement. That's what I'm suggesting we do.
We must emulate Japan & other Asian Giants. Policy and regulation must as a matter of course favor local companies.
You mean protectionism? Maybe, but this comes at a price -- namely fixed prices, *opolies, high-cost of goods, etc. It's debatable what's good for African markets at this point.
I mean the illusion that the world is a free democratic commercial space is just that. An illusion.
I make no apologies for this last point - Free markets are a dream perpetuated by foreign interests with the end game of dominance. I am not sure I understand this point. In my understanding, there is no "foreign interest" in a free market, it's, by definition, a FREE MARKET! Perhaps you mean we're provided an illusion of a free market or you're referencing something else?
To my point above.
Ali Hussein
+254 770 906375 / 0713 601113
Twitter: @AliHKassim Skype: abu-jomo LinkedIn: http://ke.linkedin.com/in/alihkassim Blog: www.alyhussein.com
"I fear the day technology will surpass human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots". ~ Albert Einstein
Sent from my iPad
On Feb 24, 2015, at 11:14 AM, "rsohan@gmail.com" <rsohan@gmail.com> wrote:
As Bob Collymore aptly put it - Being dominant is not a crime.
But using you dominance to stifle competition and innovation is, which is the point that is being made.
participants (4)
-
Ali Hussein -
Mwendwa Kivuva -
rsohan＠gmail.com -
Walubengo J