Why Apple's New Phones Won't Change the World but Nokia's Will

Apple’s new iPhone hits stores today and it looks likely the new models will be another financial success for the company. It won’t, however, do much to boost the U.S. economy. In the U.S., where almost everyone has long had access to a telephone and to other information-based services like banking, a smartphone with a few more applications and gadgets is hardly likely to drive gross domestic product growth. But in poorer countries, the story is different: There, the ongoing rollout of mobile phone service is nothing short of revolutionary, and applications such as mobile payments are multiplying that impact.

According to World Bank data, sub-Saharan Africa sees 65 mobile subscribers per 100 people, up from about 1 subscriber per 100 in 1998. Given there is only about 1 fixed-line phone per 100 people, the vast majority of those subscribers went from having no access to a phone at all to having their own phone over the last 15 years.