Gadget of the Week
Gadget of the Week: Moya wants data freed
It is an app that started out providing free messaging, but Moya is now also an alternative payments platform, writes ARTHUR GOLDSTUCK
What is it?
South African app Moya was launched four years ago to provide free text messaging that would work whether or not a smartphone user has airtime or a data balance on their smartphone device. It was not the first, and won’t be the last to attempt addressing the challenge of high data costs in this country.
However, it has since evolved far beyond messaging, and has become one of a roster of “super apps” that includes MTN’s Ayoba, Vodacom’s VodaPay and Nedbank’s Avo. As with Ayoba, it offers a vast range of content, from local news to career and education advice. And, as with VodaPay and Avo, it allows payment for services and products.
This does not mean its success is guaranteed. A similar spectrum of services was available from WeChat, the messaging and payments app owned by Chinese giant TenCent. When it failed to gain significant traction in South Africa despite massive investment in marketing, it was summarily shut down in this country.
However, Moya goes much further. For one thing, it has reverse billing agreements with MTN, Vodacom, Cell C and Telkom, which allows customers to be billed via their cellphone accounts for transactions on Moya. That is aside from Moya itself providing the MoyaPay online wallet that allows users both to pay and be paid. Moya issues a pre-paid Mastercard, in effect a debit card, which can be used anywhere credit cards are accepted.
Within that feature set lurks the real power of Moya: it has become a catch-all payments tool for individuals and small businesses. It includes the ability to generate one’s own QR code that allows payments to be received from anyone, to send money to other MoyaPay accounts at no cost, and to withdraw cash from ATMs and a wide range of stores. As with any self-respecting payments app in this country, it also allows purchase of airtime, data, electricity and coupons.
The main benefit to users is likely to be its offer of unlimited texting, group chat, and end-to-end security, with automatic encryption of all messages.
A personal highlight of Moya it its Discover menu, which includes a few dozen services and options as diverse as funeral and insurance policies on the one hand, and sports, gaming and religious content on the other. A Job Opportunities option leads to entrepreneurial and skilling opportunities, while a Utilities menu includes the likes of tip and scientific calculators. “Ask Gogo” stamps it as a quintessentially South African app.
What does it cost?
Moya is free for Android users, via the Google Play store or at http://www.datafree.co/moya-messenger-app. More information is available from the website of Moya creators biNu, at www.bi.nu
Why does it matter?
In August, MoyaApp became only the seventh South African app to reach over 10-million downloads on the Google Play store. The rest are mainly banks and telcos, which have a massive installed base of users to propel them to this milestone, indicating the appeal of an app like this.
MoyaApp CEO Gour Lentell says: “MoyaApp has a steadily growing base of active users primarily generated through word-of mouth in South Africa. Our users love what we have to offer, which has led to them sharing the app with friends and family.
“MoyaApp has trended well in the Google Play store over the last year, featuring as the number one app multiple times and over several weeks at a time.”
Particularly at a time when data costs remain high and major messaging apps have become unreliable, Moya offers both an alternative and a means of plugging the gaps in other offering,
What are the biggest negatives?
- Some content is not directly available on the app, and can lead users to external websites without warning.
- Attachments are not included in data-free messaging, and incur data costs.
What are the biggest positives?
- A vast array of content and functionality in one place.
- News in Xhosa, English and Afrikaans.
- Users receive a personal QR codes for payments and money transfers.
- Integrates with Capitec, Standard Bank, Absa, FNB, Nedbank, RMB, Zapper and Spot Money.
* Arthur Goldstuck is founder of World Wide Worx and editor-in-chief of Gadget.co.za. Follow him on Twitter on @art2gee
