Africa Poised to Be the Next Big Market for Mobile Marketers as Smartphones ProliferateWhat continent is positioned to become the next growth market for mobile?

Look no further than Africa, according to a recently released report from Opera Mediaworks.

Opera Mediaworks’ “Africa: State of Mobile Advertising” report contends that mobile will be the driving force behind the continent’s accelerating internet adoption.

“Based on data from two of Opera’s core businesses, its global mobile-ad platform (Opera Mediaworks) and its mobile-phone browser business (Opera Software), the report examines the mobile internet and mobile-advertising landscape across Africa,” according to a report summary.

People in Africa are increasingly moving to the mobile web and smartphones (especially Android), notes the report.

“Beyond the monetization potential of a world of new or localized apps and websites, there are distinct possibilities to harness the power of social networking and to implement innovative internet usage plans, as well as new ways to push forward digital healthcare initiatives in Africa,” the firm explains.

Key trends include:

  • Android devices are at the forefront of smartphone growth and mobile internet adoption/
  • Social networking is the driving mobile activity.
  • While app use remains minimal compared to Western markets, a huge opportunity looms ahead for app adoption in Africa.

“The report indicates that only about 5 percent of advertising traffic in Africa comes from mobile apps, but suggests that this market will grow substantially as more users adopt smart devices. Additionally, the fact that app traffic tends to monetize better than web traffic means big opportunities in African markets.”

Not to be overlooked: the coming opportunity for healthcare-related sites and apps.

“Globally, interest in healthcare sites and apps appears to be tied to the availability of doctors. Countries with the most doctors per capita account for 90 percent of impressions to health sites, while countries with the fewest doctors per capita consume less than 1 percent of health-focused-site impressions. These findings reflect the global healthcare gap and reveal a large, untapped audience within the African continent for healthcare-related sites and apps.”

More insights from “Africa: The State of Mobile Advertising” are available here.