Huge opportunities for telco in IoT revolution
IN a few weeks, Digi.com Bhd will launch a new app called vcash.
It is an e-wallet meant not just for its subscribes but for anyone with a mobile phone to pay for services.
“It is a virtual wallet for which we have had a soft launch recently. We will commercially launch it soon. What you need to do is put in the money and use it at merchants that have our QR code. This opens a new area for us and we are working towards a one-day settlement,” Digi CEO Albern Murty explains.
The solution was created by the company and it is part of the financial technology revolution where anyone with a licence can offer payment services.
A year ago, Telenor, Digi’s major shareholder bought over Prabhu Money Transfer Sdn Bhd, a localbased licensed money services business that provides multi-country international remittance services.
It has since been re-branded as Valyou. Telenor is seeking to strengthen its mobile financial services footprint and offerings in Asia.
Telenor has a 49% stake in Digi. With the licence, it can work with merchants from the favourite street nasi lemak seller to the pisang goreng woman. As long as they have the bar code, they can accept vcash.
Digi is working on getting as many merchants to accept vcash before the launch date.
That is just one of the many Internet of things (IoT) offerings it plans to get into as it takes advantage of the digital revolution.
Digi believes that there will be multiple SIMS embedded in things other than smartphones in line with the IoT revolution. This represents a huge opportunity for Digi in supplying the SIMs.
Albern says 70% of all online purchases are based on cash on delivery and the remaining 30% via credit cards and other payment methods. If Digi can promote vcash to online sellers, it opens a window of opportunity for both parties.
“We will do a lot of digital services bundles,” he says.
That is why he wants to work on content bundles.
One such partnership is with Viu, an over-the-top video service operated by PCCW. For RM5, users get 5G of video streaming. It also offers music streaming through its Music Freedom service, and one such product is Gaming Freedom, and they are revenue streams for its digital business.
Albern says Digi has also launched i-fleet, a solution for businesses to track and enable connected vehicles. He is looking to expand them to the individual user. He believes there is a ready market for the end-to-end fleet solution, and the telco is also targeting the motor insurance industry with the usagebased insurance platform.
A report says that IoT envisions a world of connected devices that goes beyond mobile phones and smart watches.
Everyday objects will be linked, that is, they will be able to send and receive data to and from one other.
This level of connectivity would require additional, related IT and infrastructure services, which could further drive telco revenues.
The next phase that Digi will be working on include meter-reading, payment terminals and smart devices.
Some of them will have SIMs embedded in them while others will be solution-based. The company is working with partners on several of the initiatives.