Mobility Ventures

Around three-quarters of the world’s inhabitants now have access to a mobile phone and the mobile communications story is moving to a new level, which is not so much about the phone but how it is used, says a new report released today by the World Bank and infoDev, its technology entrepreneurship and innovation program.  The number of mobile subscriptions in use worldwide, both pre-paid and post-paid, has grown from fewer than 1 billion in 2000 to over 6 billion now, of which nearly 5 billion in developing countries. Ownership of multiple subscriptions is becoming increasingly common, suggesting that their number will soon exceed that of the human population.

According to Information and Communications for Development 2012: Maximizing Mobile, more than 30 billion mobile applications, or “apps,” were downloaded in 2011 – software that extends the capabilities of phones, for instance to become mobile wallets, navigational aids or price comparison tools. In developing countries, citizens are increasingly using mobile phones to create new livelihoods and enhance their lifestyles, while governments are using them to improve service delivery and citizen feedback mechanisms.

Silicon Valley is about process and networking at its finest.  On the process side, venture capital networks can be used to transform the ordinary.  This is really no different from what Thomas Edison did more than a hundred years ago. Edison would pinpoint areas where innovation was possible and percolating, then piece together pre-existing inventions and ideas to push technology forward with a usable device. The light bulb is a perfect example, a device based on previous designs for something everyone was pursuing. Edison just managed to put it all together and take the credit.

That is what many companies are accomplishing, linking existing ideas and products with innovation in design and usage to create a new technology.  In such a world, it is not just your idea that matters, but being at the center of the innovation network. While the founders of entrepreneurial companies may have their own good idea, many are now incrementally built on existing ones.