Adoption of 5G for Commercial usage in Kenya iGaming Industry

Mobile network operator Safaricom has launched a 5G network in Kenya. According to GSMA, it became the second country in Africa to roll out the technology to customers; GSMA, an organization representing mobile network operators worldwide, disclosed this report.

The Safaricom Company is trialling the technology in four towns and expects to expand it to nine over the next year. Speaking the Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa described the launch “as a major milestone for the country.”

Telecom company is implementing the project using technology from the Finnish company Nokia and the Chinese giant company Huawei. GSMA defines the rollout of a commercial 5G network as one in which customers can purchase a 5G subscription. In 2020 MTN and Vodacom launched 5G in South Africa. Though other telecommunication companies in several other African countries are conducting trials for 5G, they are not yet widely available for public use and thus not included in the GSMA count. Though, E-Play Africa had early reported that 18 countries are testing 5G in Africa.

According to the Global Mobile Supplier Association (GSA), details said, 24 operators in 18 African countries are evaluating, testing, trialling, and deploying 5G. Of those operators, eight have deployed 5G into pre-commercial commercial networks. The new development of the 5G rollout makes Kenyans adopters of 5G in Africa after South Africa. The question remains over the investor and market readiness for mass use of the technology. The widespread adoption of 5G in the region, even though the promising prospect may be far-off for now but still, the potentials are evident for businesses such as iGaming, e-commerce, FinTechs, Education Health care, amongst others.

However, the Kenya iGaming industry will experience a new dynamic approach from bettors’ attitude towards gambling. Consequently, the impending mass rollouts in other towns and the early adopters of the fifth generation technology in the East African region. These positioned the Kenya market as the next big market for iGaming over the next decade. The potential of the 5G technology is tremendous. The standard for the broadband cellular network offers data speeds up to 100 times faster than 4G and lower latency.

The delay for data transfer and its actual transfer can also support up to 1 million connected devices per square kilometre compared to up to 100,000 for 4G. This move will draw much attention to the potential of 5G in the region and the benefits it can bring to society. 5G faster speeds bring fibre-optic-like connectivity to homes, a broadband connection that can reach a speed of up to 940 megabits per second. These would be a game-changer not just for Kenya but also for Africa as a whole, as mentioned earlier, businesses, such as e-commerce, iGaming industry, schools, health care, logistics, and financial service. The technology will enable new technologies such as artificial intelligence and the internet of things- the interconnection via the internet of computing devices embedded in everyday objects to have a transformative impact on business processes helping drive productivity and efficiency.

The 5G has a high net speed that enables an internet user to stream high-definition videos and send millions of data within milliseconds. Such powers technology will impact mobile iGaming gambling and betting in more than one way. This will aid players in accessing their favourite casino games without network glitches. At the same time, it gives sports betting enthusiasm the freedom to follow a live sporting event, and the technology provides more engagement opportunities as players will spend more time on gaming platforms than the usual hours spent.

Also, it gives iGaming operators the confidence to build more sophisticated mobile games that can attract more players to their platforms. The 5G technology will provide faster gaming speed, and one of the common issues players face while playing online casinos. The cause is usually unstable connectivity of the 4G cellular network. More live table games and a better mobile gaming interface, 5G network is here in Kenya quite an astonishing development. The iGaming companies in Kenya can leverage upon improving their offering and boosting their performance in the coming years.

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