LTE will be disruptive: Virgin Mobile CEO
MyBroadband recently asked Virgin Mobile South Africa CEO Steve Bailey about his views on the local mobile and technology environment.
MyBB: What are you most excited about for the next 12 months?
Bailey: Android, Apple, Windows 8 and BlackBerry.
MyBB: What will drive the technology and telecommunications sector in Africa in the near-to-mid future?
Bailey: Making smartphones affordable.
MyBB: Are there any specific areas of growth you are targeting in the mid-future?
Bailey: Conversion to smartphones.
MyBB: Will we see a new disruptive innovation in 2012?
Bailey: LTE over the next 2-3 years.
MyBB: What challenges do you face under the current economic climate? How does management change?
Bailey: Consumers are stretched – we need to offer them better value for money.
MyBB: What margins are you working on?
Bailey: Never as high as I’d like.
MyBB: What customer growth are you aiming for in 2012?
Bailey: 20-30%.
MyBB: Social media – yes or no?
Bailey: Yes.
MyBB: What is your business passion? What excites you most, what gets you out of bed in the morning?
Bailey: Our industry and everything about it. The way it’s changing lives and lifestyles. It’s exciting – fast changing and fast paced.
Steve Bailey
MyBB: Did Santa spoil you with any new tech gadgets over Christmas?
Bailey: iPhone 4S, Apple TV, Mede8er HD Multimedia Player.
MyBB: What is your industry bugbear?
Bailey: It used to be high interconnect rates, but they’re now coming down. More current bugbears include the delays in awarding WiMAX/LTE spectrum, delays in local loop unbundling, the continued high international data pricing (although this had been improving with increased offshore cable connectivity) and the slow migration to DDT.
MyBB: Any favourite apps in your library?
Bailey: Twitter, Speedtest, Zinio.
MyBB: What is your biggest challenge, what keeps you awake at night?
Bailey: How to adapt to the changing industry.
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