What are the key milestones in Singtel’s digital transformation journey?
Samba: We’ve had significant achievements in the past six years. Most importantly, we have created a portfolio of digital initiatives that now contributes meaningfully to the Group’s revenue.
We are on track to scaling our digital marketing platform Amobee to become one of the world’s top leading independent digital marketing players. Fuelled by growth in digital advertising, Amobee has made significant progress, with revenues exceeding S$1.1 billion and EBITDA turning positive in the past year as it leveraged synergies following the acquisition of Turn. It also won new clients such as Cisco, Del Monte and Heineken.
Our video streaming service HOOQ and data analytics arm DataSpark are both gaining traction. Mobile carriers around Asia are increasingly using DataSpark’s analysis of people’s data consumption patterns and movement around high-traffic areas to plan mobile network investments more effectively. HOOQ has more than tripled its subscriber base across Southeast Asia in the past year and is now ranked number one in terms of app downloads in Indonesia. It has been producing and licensing more original local content across the region to woo regional viewers.
Singtel Innov8, our corporate venture arm, has given us a strong presence in the innovation communities of Silicon Valley and Israel, with start-ups increasingly coming to us for funding and partnerships. Through the years, Innov8 has invested in over 70 companies globally in various verticals such as cyber security, digital marketing, mobile video and big data which are key pillars of our digital strategy.
How did Singtel identify these business opportunities early on?
Samba: We are constantly on the lookout for investments in the digital space, bearing in mind Singtel assets that we can leverage to provide differentiation.
For example, we got into digital marketing after noticing that advertisers have been shifting from traditional print and broadcast media to digital media. We have the right assets to win in digital advertising. Our market reach with over 650 million mobile customers across Asia, Australia and Africa gives us a significant amount of information that advertisers can use for targeted marketing campaigns in a non-invasive way. We also ventured into video on demand content because consumers’ changing habits meant that they are increasingly using their mobile devices to access movies, sports and other entertainment content.
Amobee is one of the Group’s more significant investments, what lies ahead for Amobee?
Samba: Amobee is constantly looking at new ways to empower brands and advertisers to reach consumers. To accelerate growth, Amobee will create a differentiated digital marketing platform by leveraging technology, data and media and will increase the self-service capabilities of the platform.
By combining machine learning and AI technologies to glean unique data through partnerships with telcos and third-party data providers, we are developing insights that can help companies create campaigns for specific demographics such as millennials and their travel destinations at certain periods.
We will continue to innovate and expand Amobee’s footprint across Asia Pacific in order to capture the growing digital ad spending in this part of the world. This will also help diversify Amobee’s revenue base, which is currently US-centric.
What could be the next growth drivers for Group Digital Life?
Samba: I'm very excited about the future. Singtel’s aim is to win in the digital revolution. The world of technology and our telecommunications business are rapidly evolving all the time. If you look at some of the new innovations coming up, you see a lot of immersive technology, augmented reality, virtual reality, AI, machine learning, and even further advances in cyber security and digital marketing. There is continuous innovation and disruption going on across industries such as finance, healthcare, transportation, retail and gaming. And while disruptive, these concurrently present significant opportunities that we can capitalise or leverage.
Through Innov8, we are constantly identifying innovative start-ups to invest in so we can stay ahead of the game. I'm optimistic that we will continue to make new investments in the right areas of innovation. These would give us and our customers a stronger foundation for the future.
Given that data is key to Singtel’s digitalisation strategy, what steps have you taken to protect customer data in the light of the Facebook/Cambridge Analytica data breach?
Samba: While Singtel does not engage in similar activities, we have always been committed to protecting consumer data by focusing on data anonymity. We also adhere to best practices as well as regulations in all the countries we operate in.