NAIROBI, Kenya, May 7 – Kenyan entrepreneurs and online content developers will now have a chance to market their material worldwide through a new platform to be launched by mobile phone company Nokia in mid May.
Nokia Head of Messaging Services for Middle East and Africa, Agatha Gikunda said the application, labeled Ovi Store, would allow individuals to distribute their material through nearly 50 million Nokia handsets worldwide.
While noting that there is a wide range of applications for different consumer segments, Ms Gikunda said Nokia would provide the worldwide distribution channel.
“What we are saying to Kenyan developers is that we have created this store where you can go online, publish your content and sell it…not just to your neighbour but you can sell it to someone in Bangkok or New York,” she said.
Ms Gikunda explained that local application developers would be allowed to produce whatever they viewed as marketable and publish directly to the phone screen.
“This is the first time that Nokia is giving Kenyan innovators an opportunity to contribute directly to its research and development function, a development which will have a significant impact on local relevance,” she pointed out.
The forum would further allow developers get their products to the market quickly and efficiently by delivering resources covering the entire mobile application lifecycle, from development to sales.
Ms Gikunda said Nokia had created categories within which any interested party would be able to fit in their material.
“Effectively, mid this month any consumer around the world would be able to purchase material from a Kenyan content developer using Ovi Store,” she enthused.
