The African region is witnessing one of the strongest increases in mobile data use in the world. With more users switching to mobile phones for normal activities, the mobile digital revolution is forcing researchers to revisit their predictions about the African market. An Internet World Stats, reports have predicted internet use on mobile phones will increase 20-fold in the next five years. The growth is attributed to the rise of social media, content-rich apps and video content accessed from a new range of smartphones costing less than $50 (£30).
Social media giants Facebook, YouTube and Twitter among several others are now studying on how to reach out to both the growing African middle class and the remotest rural areas.
Seeing the in increasing number of users and views coming from the Sub Saharan continent, video sharing platform YouTube has now begun to label 4K and 8K videos accordingly. This means that now consumers have to option to watch videos in a resolution of 4K (2160p) and 8K (4320p). Until now, users were able to stream video content at a resolution of up to 1440p only.
Users however are viewing this option with caution as 8k means 16 times the resolution of a full HD video, which will increase Internet data usage. Africa has its own challenges of economical conditions and dearth of landline infrastructure. Consumers are aware that they have to choose their options with caution in the world’s poorest continent.
