Framework for developing and deploying location-based services in emerging economies

Abstract

The general belief is that Location-Based Services (LBS) in emerging economies does not make much sense until there is widespread availability of geographic information system (GIS) data, broadband internet access, payment methods, infrastructure such as power, well developed advertising platform, etc. There is also the belief that these deficiencies make it next to impossible to realize revenues from the existing revenue models such as mobile adverts, online adverts, subscription, etc. This study shows how LBS services can be developed and deployed in emerging economies within these given set of constraints. It also adduces methods for overcoming some of the identified hindrances such as ways for creating effective and sufficient revenues from online and mobile adverts. The central hypothesis for this work is encapsulated in a "change of mindset" from developing products comparable to those in developed world (United States, Western Europe) to developing products which meet the immediate needs of the local environment in emerging economies/developing economies (however crude these solutions may appear initially from the POV of the developed world) and make use of not only locally available technologies but locally available phenomena. These solutions are then refined as they are consumed by the populace and the populace becomes more "sophisticated". This hypothesis is developed and fleshed out in a methodical manner using data and examples from developing countries - Nigeria (Africa), India (Asia), etc. This study finishes with the architecting of an LBS service (routing/navigation service) for an emerging economy using the framework developed in this study. Recommended future work includes developing more LBS services using this framework and deployment of the developed service, followed by a detailed analysis of the framework and possibly refinements to it.