Use of airtime to drive tech apps sales

KENYA: Local technology start-ups expect a sharp rise in sales especially those targeted at the mass market with the introduction of a service allowing customers to buy mobile apps using airtime.

Microsoft and Safaricom launched the service yesterday.The operator billing service – where an amount equivalent to the cost of an application is deducted from a subscriber’s airtime and remitted to the developer by the telco, will help monetise skills.