From: Kenfish

Safaricom started out as a department at Telkom, naturally when you have your baby, you nurture and grow it until its grown and can not only dress and shower, but can go to school, get an education and look for a good job.

Safaricom should not be blamed for the ills facing the telecommunications sector, Orange and other smaller players were piggy riding on the false promise that government will “cut safaricom to size” in order for them to turn a profit. Telkom has existed for so many years I fail to count, yet Orange keeps making noise. Why cant they leverage on the Telkom brand as Safaricom did and grow?

Blaming Safaricom for their own inefficiencies wont make sense. Safaricom pays the exchequer a lot of money in both direct and indirect taxes, and employs many more people out of their mainstream employees – such as partners and vendors of airtime and mpesa, not roping in the various subscription based business models, not counting even baby sitters. Does Telkom employ even a single babysitter for their employees? How long does one get a response to their problem on a Telkom network? In my area, YU internet runs as GPRS, while Safaricom is past EDGE, way into WCDMA or HSPDA. Pretty fast connection. If YU doesnt upgrade its Internet, why should I be forced to use it? And Orange is not even there. Villifying Safaicom will just add to the specter of failed enterprises and the companies complaining do not have an innovative business model to take care of a competitive business environment.

Much of what Safaricom is using to develop the infrastructure is borrowed money – money that they get from bonds on the free market. I’ve never heard Zain, YU or Orange getting bonds to the market to raise money to improve their network. Walalahoi. Nkt.

What is Safaricom doing now that they cant do? They waited until Safaricom overly publicized Mpesa for them to develop and market their own, and when that flops, they turn to the government for salvation. That is unfair. Kenyans are not being forced on Safaricom, they choose it because the SIM cards they most likely find in the nearest market is a Safaricom line and Safaricom airtime. Then they know how to choose. If Safaricom gets rewarded for their innovation and aggressive product promotion to turn a profit, so should Orange, YU and Zain. For example, Telkom/Orange keeps copying everything Safaricom does – like promotions. So how does a copy cat survive when they don’t know what drives Safaricom to engage in such business practices?

Infantile antics will not bring a proft to these companies. They must innovate, or just like Popote Wireless and Flashcom, they will sink with the hopes of a nation. We must Appreciate innovation and aggressive product tendencies so that like South African companies, we conquer our region. The new form of slavery, just like in the old form, needs some savages, and thats the difference.

Even Access Kenya is going to die because they are not innovative. When the market needed them, they kept on shifting goal posts until Safaricom came and took hold of the market AK could not claim. Now AK has no room for further grown unless they innovate! I think in the not too distant future, the Somen’s will see the fruits of innovation or lack of it, just like Popote Wireless, Flashcom, Zain, YU, Orange, UUNET and so on. And the fruits might leave a bitter taste like what YU/Orange/Zain are finding now.

Please government, don’t sacrifice innovation over ineptitude. The biggest loser will be the Kenya people you are purporting to be trying to save. The key wasnt monopoly, it was about allowing more players to bring competition into town and to help drive prices down. If the players can’t play, they should be replaced with more savvy players who cherish competition. That’s how a Kenyan will benefit. Blaming others for your ineptitude is juvenile.

Kenfish