9mobile Launches Customer Care on RCS, Transforming How Users Communicate with 9mobile

Lagos, Nigeria and AfricaCom, Cape Town, South Africa, November 15, 2019: 9mobile, a leading telecom operator in Nigeria, today announced the launch of the first customer care service over RCS (Rich Communication Services) in Africa. RCS is the evolution of SMS, offering interactive and engaging capabilities for Android users. With this launch, 9mobile subscribers will experience an innovative and personalised customer care service that will provide support and deliver important notifications on RCS. For example, subscribers can check airtime balance, data balance and details of previous transactions through the RCS bot, which will share instant responses for the queries asked.

Touted as the next-generation native messaging evolution, RCS is an update to SMS, offering features for enhanced smartphone messaging such as high-resolution photo and video sharing, location sharing, group chats, read receipts, etc., all of which were not available on SMS. 9mobile is the first operator in Nigeria to launch RCS, and the first operator in Africa to provide customer care using an RCS bot. This launch not only transforms the user experience for enhanced customer care support; but also exemplifies how different 9mobile services can offer improved user experiences in the future using RCS. Consumers are looking for efficient, convenient, prompt and helpful customer care service for the resolution of their queries and issues, and RCS is a perfect channel to deliver the same. The rich media, buttons and suggested response capabilities of RCS Business Messaging enables 9mobile to provide an interactive conversational user interface, with quick and immediate responses for common queries or issues faced by subscribers, all from within the standard built-in messaging app already on the phone of the subscribers. Also, unlike live customer support centres operating within limited time schedules, customer care over RCS is available 24×7.

Bola Afuye, Head, Digital Media, 9mobile said, “We launched RCS last month, and it is only natural that we move our own services, including customer care, to utilize the power of this new messaging channel. Kirusa has been a very supportive and competent partner to help us deliver on our RCS vision.”

Akinwale Goodluck, Head of Sub-Saharan Africa at the GSMA said, “Mobile operators around the world are offering RCS messaging services based on open industry specifications. We are committed to fostering rich partnerships for the delivery of digital services for consumers and businesses. We encourage the realization of these partnerships across the region, connecting everything and everyone to a better future.”

“We are delighted to have had the opportunity to help 9mobile to create the first RCS bot for customer care in Africa. Providing customer care service through RCS empowers 9mobile to innovate and lead the way for introducing the latest technologies for improving user’s experience and overall satisfaction with 9mobile,” said Inderpal Singh Mumick, Founder, Chairman and CEO of Kirusa.

The customer care bot, named my9mobile, is built by Kirusa, a global leader in messaging and voice solutions over data networks, using its Kirusa KonnectTM platform. 9mobile expects to continually add new features and further enhance the my9mobile bot, as well as provide highly personalised conversations using Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. Along with these benefits, it will also help reduce the overall costs for 9mobile by significantly bringing down labour, IT and operational costs.

About 9mobile

Emerging Markets Telecommunication Services Limited (EMTS), trading as ‘9mobile’, is a Nigerian private limited liability company licensed by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to provide a broad range of telecommunication services including voice and data services across the country. Formerly trading as Etisalat Nigeria, 9mobile commenced commercial operations in October 2008.

In our over 11 years of operations, 9mobile has established a reputation for best-in-class Quality of Service (QoS), innovation and exceptional customer experience among mobile network operators (MNOs) in Nigeria. 9mobile has been at the forefront of technological innovations, including high definition voice enhancements and digital business solutions. At 9mobile, innovation is not just a buzz word; it’s about how we make people’s lives more meaningful and devise new ways to solve existing problems. As an environmentally responsible brand, our Environmental Management System (EMS) was certified to ISO 14001:2004 Standard in the first quarter of 2017, making 9mobile the first (MNO) to achieve this certification in Nigeria.

In July 2017, we launched our new brand identity – 9mobile, reflecting the bold and creative attributes we share with our valued subscribers, especially the vibrant youth segment. Our new name represents our authentic Nigerian heritage, Afro-centricity, and our evolution over a decade of operations. For more information, visit https://www.9mobile.com.ng.

About the GSMA

The GSMA represents the interests of mobile operators worldwide, uniting more than 750 operators and nearly 400 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, including handset and device makers, software companies, equipment providers and internet companies, as well as organisations in adjacent industry sectors. The GSMA also produces the industry-leading MWC events held annually in Barcelona, Los Angeles and Shanghai, as well as the Mobile 360 Series of regional conferences. For more information, please visit the GSMA corporate website at www.gsma.com. Follow the GSMA on Twitter: @GSMA.

About Dotgo

Dotgo™, a global leader in RCS and other rich business messaging solutions, is the provider of the Dotgo Bot Store®, world’s first and largest directory of RCS and WhatsApp bots. Embracing the paradigm shift to rich business messaging that is underway, Dotgo is building the cloud communications technology and services needed in a world where every business must have a presence inside messaging apps, just as they have web sites and smartphone apps. RCS, Google’s Business Messages, iMessage, and WhatsApp are fast becoming the de-facto standards for business messaging for brands, offering exciting possibilities for customer engagement.

Dotgo enables brands and developers to transform customer interactions using rich business messaging, and helps mobile operators make RCS business messaging a reality. Dotgo is a Google partner, a WhatsApp Business Solution Provider, and a member of the Mobile Ecosystem Forum. For more information, visit www.dotgo.com. Bot Store is a registered trademark of Dotgo Systems Inc. in USA and other jurisdictions.