Globacom, the proudly Nigerian telecommunications which took the industry by storm in 2003, will turn 19. As the countdown begins, we go down memory lane to relive some of the moments and milestones that have defined Globacom’s disruptive entrance, meteoric rise and dominance in an industry that did not exist 25 years ago and all in spite of the fact that Globacom came in two years after the other GSM companies.
1. Glo was the first company to launch operations on Per Second Billing. It pioneered the billing system in Nigeria in 2003, even when older networks said it was impossible, thereby empowering millions of Nigerians. Courtesy of Glo, telephone users in Nigeria now pay just for actual time spent on the phone.
2. Glo disrupted the industry by crashing the price of SIM cards thus making telephone accessible to millions of Nigerians. Before Globacom launched its services, GSM SIMs were selling for between N20,000 and N25,000. Glo brought this down to N6,999 and later to N100.
3. Committed to uplifting and empowering the greatest number of Nigerians, Globacom made sure subscribers no longer paid N50 per minute for calls. Glo crashed the tariff to as low as 1kobo per second.
4. Glo recorded another milestone as the first network in Nigeria to launch the 2.5G GPRS technology thus enabling multimedia convergence. This made it possible for subscribers to share pictures, audio and video for the first time in Nigeria.
5. Glo was the first company to launch nationwide 4G/LTE technology in Nigeria. This has led to ultra-fast and reliable data service on the network, thus earning it the sobriquet, The Grandmasters of Data.
6. Globacom also pioneered Blackberry services which supports push button e-mail, mobile telephone, text messaging, web browsing and other wireless information services.
7. Innovative and disruptive, Globacom pioneered a lot of innovations in the Nigerian telecommunication sector that included Multimedia Messaging Services (MMS) and International MMS; pioneered Mobile Banking; first to launch Mobile internet service; pioneered Vehicle tracking; first to Launch Prepaid Roaming and first to launch In-Flight Roaming.
8. With the launch of Globacom’s MoneyMaster PSB, the company has become the 3rd telecom company to throw its hat in the Payment Service Bank ring underlining its commitment to deepening financial inclusion in Nigeria
9. Proudly Nigerian and distinctly pro-people, Glo was first to extend Free Access lines to Government ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs).
10. Glo was the first operator to launch 3G Plus services which in addition to giving customers high- speed mobile internet access, allowed them to do video calls and video streaming on their 3G mobile handset. It also offers other advanced mobile services such as Video Greeting Kiosk, Video Mail Box, Video conferencing on both Phones and PCs and so many other services
11. To address Africa’s bandwidth deficit and in order to provide enough capacity for the region, Glo became the first African telecom company to single handedly build an international sub-marine cable. The launch of the Glo 1 cable was industry defining.
12. Glo is a committed supporter of poverty reduction initiatives of government. This has been exemplified through partnerships with various state governments, NDDC and NAPEP to provide call-centre packages for unemployed youths.
13. In 19 years, the company has emerged the biggest promoter of African football. For many years, it sponsored the Premier League, the Super Eagles and the NFF as well as other national teams, the Supporters Club, Glo CAF Awards and Glo Soccer Academy among others.
14. With a well-defined brand strategy of supporting cultural festivals and initiatives, Glo has emerged the biggest corporate supporter of Nigerian arts and culture with its sponsorship of the Ojude Oba, Lisabi, Ofala festivals, amongst others.
15. Globacom launched its fixed line services in pursuit of its goal to become a one-stop telecommunications solutions provider with services extending to the last mile.
16. Without doubt the biggest supporter of Nigeria’s entertainment industry, Glo was the first telecom company to use Nollywood stars as brand ambassadors, thus re-inventing and rehabilitating aging stars of stage and screen. The company has also emerged a strong supporter of Nigerian music, comedy and acting.
17. Glo sponsorship of literature has set the pace for other telecom companies. Its support of the Wole Soyinka prize was globally applauded while its “Evening With WS” events remain the gold standard.
18. Globacom is playing a leading role in the country’s march to a digital future with a range of customized and community-driven voice and data connectivity offerings as well as verticalized IT solutions such as E-Health, Smart Cognitive Learning, Smart Energy, Industrial IoT and Cloud Applications.
19. With empowerment encoded in its corporate DNA, Globacom continues to initiate and implement people-oriented programmes and promotions that impact Nigerians allowing them to unleash their potentials and become unlimited.
