Blame poor internet for SA's lack of cutting-edge marketingKnow what'll happen if we don't make great strides with SA's internet growth? We'll lag even further behind the rest of the world, that's what, says Strategy Worx CEO Steven Ambrose... Everyone who's anyone in the media or marketing sphere says digital's the next big thing. That's why my first emotion was worry, on reading a release stating that Strategy Worx feels South Africa's digital outlook over the short-term based is bleak, particularly based on the back of CEO Steven Ambrose's visit to CES 2015 earlier this month. Steven Ambrose, Strategy Worx CEO Some CES attendees spoke of new product ranges, others waxed lyrical of the popularity of selfie sticks. Ambrose, on the other hand, noticed that while we definitely have the passion and love of all things tech, South Africa's current internet and mobile growth trajectory just isn't on par to handle much of what was shown at the show. And unless something big happens to change this, he says SA's digital future is in serious doubt, as we simply can't support the "exploding 'internet of everything' and the accompanying devices and digital services", most of which are expected to be mainstream in the next five years. I contacted Ambrose to find out more. He said we simply can't escape the fact that we're living in an information age, which involves not just the internet of things but the 'internet of everything', where all devices are connected to the internet and multiple devices connect to one another, bringing technology into all areas of our lives, providing us with choice and the ability to customise environments and services based on what we want. As a result of this, business will move online like it never has before. People will interact with companies digitally, with self-service and automation becoming key pillars of business in the near future. This change will be both internal, with operating systems and processes in the company, as well as external with how companies deal with their customers, suppliers and other stakeholders. That's why our internet issues need to be addressed fast. We need high-speed, high quality, ubiquitous broadband, because it's actually "becoming the third utility in the first world after water and electricity". Ambrose shares other insights below...
Ambrose: My favourite things were all the clever gadgets with connected apps, and the huge LG 8K TVs, which offer four times the resolution of the new 4K TVs. Wearable everything was also a high note.
Some of the products on display at CES Ambrose: Well, that depends on how quickly South Africa's infrastructure is improved. There really needs to be a concerted effort to improve both the power supply to the country as well as the connectivity infrastructure required to increase broadband penetration. |