Leep Africa, a Johannesburg-based South African company, has launched Leep Connect, an internet service being piloted in select Bolt vehicles and in independent minibus taxis to provide free internet to passengers and drivers alike.
Leep Connect provides commuters with free internet access on their daily travels and not cached content to help Bolt drivers reduce the data costs and enable them to keep costs under control and grow their income.
According to George Georgiades, Industrial Engineer, co-founder of Leep Africa and developer of Leep Connect, “The minibus taxis are the backbone of the South African economy. Taxi commuters are often data-starved during these trips as they simply cannot afford mobile data. It’s largely wasted and unproductive time,” the innovator says. “Now we can connect them to the internet at no charge and give them the ability to use their daily commute to keep in contact with friends and family, apply for work, read or watch the news, find information for their studies, and so on.”
Leep Africa funds this internet access through third-party marketing, bringing together advertisers and networks to connect end-users to the internet at zero cost. Additionally, through collecting anonymous data, Leep is able to perfect the user experience and find out how users are interacting with the system as a whole, as well as develop new key insights about how people use transport in South Africa.
The pilot programme for Leep Connect launched on 22 October 2020 and will continue into early 2021 in both Bolt vehicles and minibus taxis.
Leep Africa was established in 2019 and uses technology to improve the lives of people across the continent. Its focus is on networks, devices and data.
Leep Africa believes that the internet is a basic human right as it improves people’s lives and provides people with access to information. Leep Africa fills this gap in South Africa and aims to continue installing Leep Connect in more vehicles while expanding the network to modes of transport and beyond.