Applications for mLab SA membership now open

mLab SA provides incubation support to mobile developers and entrepreneurs through the following services:

• subsidised office space with meeting rooms to allow members to benefit from being part of the mobile start-up community;
• training and accreditation on mobile technologies and entrepreneurship;
• business mentoring and coaching;
• business intelligence, such as privileged access to market research information and knowledge repositories;
• testing of mobile apps and services in dedicated test bays; and
• organising regular events for networking and knowledge sharing

The mLab also assists members in accessing finance, whether it be in the form of grants, seed capital, angel investors or venture capitalists.

The recently opened mLab East Africa, in Nairobi and mLab SA are the first of a number to be launched worldwide as part of the Creating Sustainable Businesses in the Knowledge Economy programme, supported by infoDev (World Bank), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Government of Finland and Nokia.

Southern Africa has the potential

Southern Africa was chosen as a region to locate mLab because of the potential of mobile technologies for supporting business development, social development and job creation. In South Africa, mobile penetration is around 100%, and 39% of urban South Africans are now browsing the internet on their mobile phones. While the region has a vast amount of mobile opportunity, there are still challenges to face in creating a sustainable business or organisation in mobile.

Membership types

The mLab SA offers three types of membership: Community, which is free and which anyone can join, and Silver and Gold, for which interviews are necessary. Silver and Gold members pay a fee to access the core services of the mLab SA at the facility in The Innovation Hub, and receive more structured support from the mLab SA team and it's partners. Support services will either be delivered directly by the mLab SA, or through external providers to which members will be pointed.

The head office of the mLab SA will officially open at The Innovation Hub in Pretoria on 15 September 2011.

For more information, go to www.mlab.co.za/membership.