General News
The Need for Operators to Tap into Expanding Mobile Advertising Segment
Outside providing subscribers access to internet as well as rolling out enterprise solutions for corporate customers, mobile network operators are also provided with the opportunity of maximizing the use of their technology through mobile advertisement.
Mobile network operators in Nigeria today have the required technology to deliver short message service, video and picture messages.
One then wonders why they are not exploring mobile advertising option to enhance their revenue base which invariable could help in driving down voice call tariff.
Mobile Marketing refer to one of the two categories of marketing refer to one of marketing, first and relatively new, it meant to describe marketing on or with a mobile device, such as a mobile phone.
According to a new research report from the analyst firm Berg Insight, the total value of the global real-time mobile location-based advertising and marketing (LBA) market will grow from EUR 192 million in 2011 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 91 percent to EUR 4.9 billion in 2016.
This will then correspond to 28.3 percent of all mobile advertising and marketing.
This means that location-based advertising and marketing will represent more than 4 percent of digital advertising, or 1 percent of the total global ad spend for all media.
The report predicts a rapid uptake of location-targeting among mobile advertisers after having remained on an experimental stage for several years.
“The growing attach rates of location technologies in handsets and the increasing consumer acceptance of location-based services in general are the main game changers”, said Rickard Andersson, Telecom Analyst, Berg Insight.
Targeting by location in combination with other contextual and behavioural segmentation greatly enhances the relevance of mobile advertising.
“Major brands are progressively embracing location-based advertising across the range of mobile formats, and LBA also opens up the mobile channel for new advertisers such as local merchants”, said Mr. Andersson.
He added that SMS, mobile search and coupons have emerged as important high-volume LBA formats.
The LBA value chain is still forming and there are a large number of players involved in the ecosystem.
Since the value chain is fragmented and the industry has not yet reached maturity, many different roles are involved.
Major digital and telecom players such as Google, Apple and Nokia are competing to gain market shares in the space alongside mobile operators, LBS players, location-aware apps and media, mobile coupon providers, mobile search companies and proximity marketing providers.
There is further a range of specialised LBA actors, including Placecast, xAd and Xtify. The traditional mobile advertising providers have also intensified their focus on location targeting, in some cases even through acquisitions.
Further consolidation is expected as small players with innovative advertising solutions are absorbed by larger players in the industry.
Location-based services (LBS) are offered by some cell phone networks as a way to send custom advertising and other information to cell-phone subscribers based on their current location.
The cell-phone service provider gets the location from a GPS chip built into the phone or using radiolocation and trilateration based on the signal-strength of the closest cell-phone towers (for phones without GPS features).
Ugo Okoye, managing director of Iconcepts Limited, said that introduction of proximity marketing into the mobile marketing industry will no doubt make a big difference in the way brands reach their consumers with tailor-made messages that suit their purpose.
According to Okoye, ‘for the first time, brands using proximity marketing technology can ensure that they reach their target audience at a time and place that put their messages in a direct and relevant context to the consumer’s current activity.
“The ability to communicate with consumers bases on their presence in a fixed time and place is one of the great features of proximity advertising technique as it makes it possible to access people at various points with tailor-made offers precisely to suit them,” he said.
Advertisement through mobile phones offers operators another avenue of revenue source to complement that of voice and data service. In this time of drop in revenue from voice service as a result of harsh economic condition, operators need to create awareness on the use to be able to maximize the benefit.
Nigeria CommunicationsWeek gathering that Nigeria marketing communications is worth over $4 billion. Nigeria Marketing Association, Apcon said that the sector became vibrant with the liberalization of the telecommunications sector which witnessed a boost as a result of operators’ use of the medium to reach their subscribers in one promotion or the other.
The association which is presently using television viewer ship mostly in their advertising campaigns is considering mobile marketing because television viewer ship is declining at a fast rate for some reasons, such as influx of cheap Chinese pirated movies, electricity failures, absence of prime time TV shows and absence of national Television stations.
Radio, the association said, has its own challenges too and outdoor is location specific.
According to a report by Apcon, mobile is the only medium with anywhere and anytime advantage with possibilities to accommodate all array of features like video, Multimedia Messaging Service, pictures, Short Message Service, internet and among others.
Mobile is a more powerful personal medium than any other, and it is time that Nigeria Brands exploited the opportunity.
Possible Channels
Marketing on a mobile phone has become increasingly popular ever since the rise of SMS (Short Message Service) in the early 2000s in Europe and some parts of Asia, when businesses started to collect mobile phone numbers and send off wanted or unwanted content.
Marketing communications companies in Nigeria lately are using SMS to send advertising content to mobile subscribers.
It has become a common experience for one to receive SMS from companies on the prices of their product.
One key criterion for provisioning is that the consumer opts in to the service.
The mobile operators demand a double opt in from and the ability for the consumer opt out of the service at any time by sending the word STOP via SMS.
These guidelines are established in the MMA Consumer Best Practices Guidelines which are followed by all mobile marketers in the United States. This has not started working in the country.
Femi Otedola, chairman, First HoldCo, has revealed that he will invest $100 million in Dangote refinery.
Aliko Dangote and Femi Otedola
This is coming ahead of news that the Dangote refinery is planning to raise $2 billion through private placement, by selling its shares to the general public on a stock exchange for the first time.
Otedola, announced his plans on Wednesday after leading top executives of First HoldCo to visit Aliko Dangote, president of the Dangote Group, at the refinery in Lagos.
“From on a personal note, I’ve appealed to him (Aliko Dangote). I’ve been here with him 25 times, so my compensation is he’s going to allocate to me shares worth $100 million in the private placement,” the billionaire said.
“That’s one of the reasons why I sold my stake in Geregu plant to come and invest my proceeds in the IPO of Dangote refinery.”
During the meeting, Dangote said, the company is targeting a private placement of about $2 billion for the refinery
Dangote, on October 22, 2025, said the refinery could sell up to 10 percent stake in the listing, which Bloomberg valued to be about $5 billion.
The billionaire is planning to make the IPO a cross-border listing to enable the refinery draw investments from domestic and international investors.
In an earlier report, Dangote said the IPO is designed to democratise wealth creation and give Africans direct access to participate in the continent’s industrial transformation.
On May 12, Bloomberg reported that the billionaire is reportedly aiming for a valuation of up to $50 billion for Dangote refinery.
The Nigeria Immigration Service, Lagos State Command, has entered into a collaborative partnership with Lasaco Assurance Plc to drive sustainable institutional growth and operational synergy.
According to a statement from the firm, the partnership is a strategic move to bridge the gap between public service efficiency and private sector innovation.
The partnership was solidified during a courtesy visit by top officials of the NIS Lagos Command to the corporate headquarters of Lasaco Assurance Plc in Lagos.
Led by the Deputy Comptroller of Immigration and Passport Control Officer, the NIS delegation engaged the insurance firm’s executive team in high-level discussions aimed at fostering knowledge exchange, strengthening risk management practices, and advancing national development goals.
A major highlight of the strategic engagement was the presentation of an award to the Managing Director of Lasaco Assurance Plc, Ademoye Shobo.
The NIS delegation honoured the insurance boss for his exemplary leadership in driving product growth, building operational resilience, and introducing innovative risk management solutions to the industry.
While commending Lasaco’s leadership, the NIS delegation noted that the company had consistently distinguished itself through a customer-focused approach and commitment to professionalism.
They emphasised that public-private partnerships were vital to creating value-driven systems that would benefit the larger Nigerian economy.
Reacting to the honour and the partnership prospects, Shobo reiterated the insurer’s readiness to support the immigration office.
“We are deeply honoured by this visit and the recognition from the Nigeria Immigration Service. At Lasaco, we believe that the future of institutional growth lies in deliberate collaboration. We are fully committed to maintaining a strong, mutually beneficial relationship with the Immigration Office to improve operational efficiency and deepen trust across both sectors,” Shobo said.
The management of Lasaco Assurance further expressed gratitude, noting that the engagement had set a new benchmark for public-private alignment.
The management stated, “This courtesy visit is not just a ceremony; it is a reinforcement of our shared commitment to institutional excellence. By combining public sector dedication with private sector innovation, we can create stronger avenues for service delivery that ultimately advance our national goals.”
The engagement underscored the growing importance of continuous dialogue between government agencies and private corporations to solve modern operational challenges.
Moving forward, both organisations expressed confidence that the partnership would unlock new opportunities for strategic growth.
Lasaco Assurance Plc reaffirmed its long-term vision to deliver value-driven insurance solutions, sustain stakeholder confidence, and champion impactful collaborations that foster national progress.
Dr. Aminu Maida, executive vice chairman and chief executive officer (EVC/CEO), Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), has has been confirmed as a Special Guest of Honour at this year’s Africa Beacon of ICT Lectures and Awards.
Dr. Aminu Maida, executive vice chairman and chief executive officer, NCC
Africa Beacon of ICT Lectures and Awards, is widely regarded as the most prestigious annual event available in the ICT industry in Nigeria.
The event according Ken Nwogbo, editor-in-chief of Nigeria Communications Week,“is digital transformation edition” will hold on Saturday, May 30, 2026 at the Four Points by Sheraton, Lagos.
Africa’s BoICT Lecture is designed to explore efforts to put Nigeria on the global Information and Communications Technologies map.
It will also to recognise and celebrate organisations and individuals in the ICT and banking industries that have impacted in digital transformation of the economy.
Nwogbo said that Dr. Maida, oversees the regulation, development, and strategic direction of the Nigerian telecommunications industry.
His administration at the NCC, actively drives initiatives to improve telecom consumer experience, enhance infrastructure, and foster collaborations (such as with the Central Bank of Nigeria) to protect citizens from financial fraud
He holds a PhD in Electrical & Electronic Engineering from the University of Bath, UK.
Prior to joining the NCC, he served as the Executive Director, Technology and Operations at the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System Plc (NIBSS).
At NIBSS, Dr. Maida was responsible for spearheading the technical and operational standardization of all devices deployed in the financial system in Nigeria for interoperability.
He led a dynamic team that ensured that all terminals used in the e-payment industry and all devices deployed in Nigeria would accept all cards issued by banks and other licensed card schemes without discrimination.
Prior to his appointment at NIBSS, Maida was the Chief Technical Officer (CTO) at the Nigerian-based FinTech Arca Payments Network and Senior Manager at Cisco Systems, United Kingdom.
As a seasoned technical professional with over 15 years of multi-functional and international experience in FinTech & Telecoms & Enterprise Technology, Dr. Maida between 2010 and 2014, worked as a Network Design Consultant at EE, part of BT Group, and one of the largest mobile communications companies in the UK.
He was also at some point (2006-2010) a System Engineer at Ubiquisys, a leading company in intelligent 3G and LTE small cells, which is now part of Cisco.
Dr. Maida will be joining will join top dignitaries who have graced the event in the past including: Dr. Ernest Ndukwe, former executive vice-chairman, Nigeria Communications Commission (NCC); Engr. Yomi Bolarinwa, former Director-General of National Broadcasting Commission (NBC); Dr. Jean Luc Fort, CEO at OR System France and a specialist in Counterparty Risk; and Professor Chris Nwagboso, Chairman, Knowledge Factory International, United Kingdom.
Others are: Chris Uwaje, chairman, Mobile Software Solutions Ltd; Uche Orji, former managing director/chief executive officer, Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA); Biodun Omoniyi, Managing Director/CEO, VDT Communications; and John Obaro, CEO and founder of Systemspecs; Dr. Isa Pantanmi, former DG, NITDA; Dr. Obadare Peter Adewale, co-founder and COO, Digital Encode Limited; among others.
The highpoint of the BoICT Lecture will be the conferment of awards to companies and individuals for their significant contributions to the growth of technology in Nigeria and indeed Africa.
The event is a five-star event; easily Nigeria’s ICT Oscars.
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