Telecom Players Focus on Africa

Amid a global scramble for new subscribers, telecommunications operators and investors are taking a sudden shine to a place with lots of potential customers: Africa. What's the continent's allure? Amid a global commodities boom, African economies are growing fast. That, coupled with a period of relative political stability in some of the region's biggest economies, has stoked consumer demand. Mobile-phone technology, meanwhile, has made owning a phone affordable and convenient for the first time. But the region's mobile penetration rate is still low. Continent-wide, penetration is 28% among a population of roughly 900 million, estimates consulting firm Capgemini. That means lots of room for growth.
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