Not to change track on the big green machine
Safaricom is Kenya’s largest income-generating company with a revenue of $1 billion, its largest taxpayer, has 18 million customers, and the award-winning Vodafone M-pesa, 3G rollout to the mobile masses etc. but has taken a lot of flack this year online and at conferences.
A Catalog of ills committed against developers in their dealings with Safaricom can be found at Thus Spaketh – one of the best blogs I’ve read this year and the perception is that Safaricom steals ideas, takes a big profit slice from developers leaving them poor, has too many requirements etc.
But this week I had a talk with a crew of who had struck it big dealing with Safaricom, more than once, in both hardware and software. And the tips they shared included:
1. It will be a struggle – with lots of frustrating months of tinkering, back and forth visits to the company; you may go broke and not see the promised land
2. With 18 million customers, they won’t tinker much with their cash machine and don’t pitch old ideas or technology they have outrightly rejected. Try and work within the technological parameters and requirements they are using.
3. You have to hustle on your own to get the product/concept moving with early adopters in the market before the Safaricom PR machine take over.
4. IF when you strike it rich you will have a very lucrative year, better than an IPO; your turnover will go from zero to millions of shillings per day, so prepare your bank otherwise they may flag your account for money laundering or being a pyramid scheme
5. Yes they will eventually steal your idea; or they will develop in-house what they are paying you millions for – so your wonderful product has a shelf life of one very lucrative year. It’s only natural that the company will try and reduce their outlay costs to improve margins, while competitors and clones will also eat into your market share and profits and probably even improve on your product.
6. Now that you understand the last point, think two steps ahead, and have more innovations, because the gravy train will not last forever (so don’t buy a range rover in year one). Invest the profits in your next innovation, equipment, or real estate or another more stable industry
In summary, it is a vicious cycle that will only pay off for a few as the likelihood of this supernova is very small. Development doesn’t appear to be a bankable field as banks and financiers like to see steady growing income and profits, so it is likely that resources will come from family, friends and savings.
This is so true, I was actually amazed at the title of this article. I will be happy the day Safaricom will listen to the small players with ideas without robbing them off ideas and push them to benefit for their innovations.
Well, the easiest way for [web] developpers to make money with Safaricom is to use Google Adsense 🙂
The last two weeks, Safaricom ads were in almost all .ke blogs/websites using Adsense…
Thank you for the link but the guy doesnt even have his facts right. He is a humor writer though
Very informative. Remember simu ya jamii? I think Bamba 5 ate that baby up.
What of patents to protect your intellectual property Banks? Any chance of having a successful application here in Kenya? Coz that would take away your fears of having them and rivals steal your idea.
Agreeing wholeheartedly with Sahito. With all the ICT conferences that go on, does the patenting factor for software innovation ever come up? Like everything else, all property (Intellectual included) needs protective legislation. Without it in place, safaricom would be stupid and unfair to its investors if they did not find a way to get the same for much less money. Sad; but true.
Legislation is a largely overlooked factor in most Kenyan processes; and while everyone blames almost anything else for the country’s failures, better legislation would improve everything, including corruption much more effectively.
David: They are not in business to rob ideas, but if they see a good one, they will adapt it – just ask Kencell/Celtel/Zain
TheBigBoss: Adsense is a drop in the ocean for Google
Odegle: met him a few times, good developer & writer and he’s on point
PKW: Exactly there is an evolution from call boxes, to simu ya jamii to bamba 5/= – nothing lasts forever
Sahito & Mimmz: this armchair critic says – imitation is a fact of life, ideas will be copied (patent or not), developers should focus on execution & delivery
@banks I disagree, where ideas do not get copied that is a crime anywhere in this world. Ideas get stolen! Now how you steal that is the big clue! What Safcom is doing by developing their own version of your software after a year of using it (copying through use) is a crime. In the west, for you to imitate a software so as to make your own version, the coder is required never to have used a software, seen the code or been associated with a company that developed the software. The screening process is very rigorous and could get the coder some prison time if they withheld information on their activities. The person who wants to steal an idea will then tell the coder what they want the software to do and the coder then writes his own code from scratch without seeing or using the working version that’s already out there. In summary, its OK to steal but illegal to copy someone’s work!
What happened to none compete clauses while pitching ideas? The new communication act actually empowers coders…this is a loop hole for lawyers to get into intellectual property rights for coders. Not long before we see law suits flying around and Safcom better prepare itself for an onslaught if this is what they do to get new services.
Copying ideas is STEALING and it kills innovation. Kenya does have Intellectual Property protection laws. Try and get several “layers” of protection:
1. Tradename / trade mark (brand it then protect it)
2. Copyright – e.g. copyright the source code and the solution as a creative work of art. I think you can copyright:
a. The innovative algorthm
b. The user interface design (nnovative aspects of it)
c. Innovative functionality
3. Patent – protect it as an invention by obtaining a patent. Not sure where the patents office is and am too lazy to google right now.
4. Contracts:
1. EULA & OEM agreements
2. NDA – sign Non disclosure agreement.
3. MAstr agreement: sign an agreement recognizing that there exists sharing of important trade secret knowledge between the two organizations and each undertakes not to exploit others trade secrets and such knowledge.
Am not a lawyer – this is just my layman optinion. Talk to a lawyer who specialises in business laws for specifics.
Good luck and keep innovating!
🙂
Keep in mind…
Legal paperwork won’t pevent people from stealing your ideas – but it does give you a strong foundation for deterring unintentional offenders or for seeking compensation from deep pocketed corporates.
Also be sure that what you protect is in fact protectable, and protectable within the context you want to protect it and that other layers of protection do not compromise or waive the core layer of protection that you heavily depend… cumulative effect needs to be there.
Hence the need to research these matters and consult an EXPERIENCED LAWYER who understands or (preferrably) specializes in IP protection.
🙂
Keep in mind…
Legal paperwork won’t pevent people from stealing your ideas – but it does give you a strong foundation for deterring unintentional offenders or for seeking compensation from deep pocketed corporates.
Also be sure that what you protect is in fact protectable, and protectable within the context you want to protect it and that other layers of protection do not compromise or waive the core layer of protection that you heavily depend… cumulative effect needs to be there.
Hence the need to research these matters and consult an EXPERIENCED LAWYER who understands or (preferrably) specializes in IP protection.
🙂
Is someone stealing your ideas …Let THEM!!!
http://blogs.bnet.com/career-advice/?p=387&tag=nl.e713
interesting article….however SAFCOM doesn’t have the “highest turnover/revenue”….its actually KenolKobil which is just shy of $2B!!!
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Very interesting post. Unless most developers start to learn some business and legal stuff they will always fall victims of such big companies who have the money and can therefore hire other developers to copy your idea and claim it as their own.
@ Maishinski, i do not believe that Copying ideas is STEALING and that it kills innovation, i believe that everyone, and even businesses need mentors. And why have a mentor when you can copy their ideas. they are the foundation whereupon one builds creative energy to develop ideas.