There are a lot of disadvantages of COVID-19 but we must agree that it has led to faster adoption of digital technology in our society. There was a time where online shopping was reserved for consumer electronics, appliances and smartphones. Nowadays getting groceries from online shops is very normal.
We have seen TV correspondents partake in broadcasts by use of a smartphone connected to the internet. Some of us have even streamed the latest movies comfortably at home instead of going to the movie theater. As more people work from home, the adoption of virtual meeting technology that includes hardware and software has also changed dramatically over the past two years.
Virtual Work
The technology surrounding virtual and hybrid work models has increased tremendously over the past two years. There was a time when virtual meetings were exclusive to top management when interacting with each other from different countries or even continents. This required some specialized and expensive equipment that also came with some training too.
Nowadays anyone can video call another person a few kilometers away by using their smartphones. This is made possible by programs like Zoom and WhatsApp. Back at the office, virtual meetings and hybrid work models are the go-to solutions that guarantee social distancing while working.
Other players offering video conferencing software include Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, GoToMeeting and Skype for Business. At the beginning of the pandemic, Zoom’s Stock grew by 67% from the beginning of February to the end of March 2010. Being a free program, this was adopted by schools to offer online classes to millions of children who were stuck at home.
Video conferencing went from being a niche product offered via a web platform to an Android or App Store application that anyone can download on their smartphone or tablet for easy communication without any training.
Digital Infrastructure
With a lot of people working from home and others using the internet for entertainment, internet usage had increased by 70% in the early pandemic days. In Kenya, Safaricom worked with regulators on the allocation of additional spectrum to meet the sudden spike in demand as more customers were working from home. Up to 1054 sites were upgraded to 4G to meet the significant demand for data for customers without fibre services in their homes.
Safaricom also doubled the fibre internet speeds enabling customers to work from home. These speeds have since increased permanently, although not doubled. Safaricom 4G network covers 77% of the Kenyan population while their 3G network covers 94%. This is an increase from 2019 where the 4G and 3G coverage was 57% and 93% respectively.
Online Shopping
In Kenya, before COVID-19 struck, big online retailers like Jumia and Kilimall only focused on flagship goods like consumer electronics and smartphones. Nowadays they have shifted completely to even cover toiletries and food products. The volume of fast-moving consumer goods sold on Jumia nearly doubled over the past year with food delivery growing by over 40%. This means that there is a large portion of the population that prefers to shop for food and groceries online. Instead of going out to crowded public places to eat or buy food, they would rather have it delivered to them.
Another area that saw a shift in physical consumption of services is the entertainment industry. When COVID-19 hit the global company Disney was forced to close its parks, cruise lines and delayed its movie production and live sports broadcasts. All these were part of its core business that requires physical customers or crew. In 2020, the company posted a $2.8 billion net loss.
Disney now concentrates its business on streaming which saw growth in other players like Netflix which has about 195 million global subscribers. The gamble paid off with Disney+, their newest streaming service ended the fiscal year with 118.1 million subscribers.
Releasing new blockbuster movies is not a luxury of the movie theater anymore. Movies are now released both at the same time for physical movie theater goers and streaming viewers back at home. If not then the streaming platform gets the movies just days or weeks after the theater release. This is something that used to last at least 90 days. With streaming being very easily accessible nowadays, the entertainment industry will be emphasising releasing movies in streaming video on demand (SVOD) platforms.
Before COVID-19 it was unimaginable to pay for a music concert that you would consume at the comfort of your home. Whether as a fee or donation, it wouldn’t make sense to anyone at the beginning of 2019.
The demand for creative services delivered digitally increased with COVID. The internet is the main source of entertainment apart from using it at work, attend school or do shopping. This is according to UNCTAD COVID-19 Crisis update.