Airtel yesterday announced a partnership with Sproxil to combat the counterfeit drug market in Africa. Sproxil’s Mobile Product Authentication™ (MPA™) solution allows consumers to verify product genuineness within seconds through a text message. Airtel will offer this service absolutely free to its users and not charge for any SMS based verification.
Sproxil’s service works by placing a scratch-off label on products, and then when consumers purchase a product, they scratch off the label to reveal a unique, random code. The code is then sent via SMS to a country-specific Toll Free short code, and the consumer receives a reply almost instantly indicating whether the product is genuine or not.
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Kennedy Kachwanya is a technology blogger interested in mobile phones both smart and dumb, mobile apps, mobile money, social media, startups ecosystem and digital Savannah. New media must not forget the strength of old tech.
Kennedy Kachwanya is a technology blogger interested in mobile phones both smart and dumb, mobile apps, mobile money, social media, startups ecosystem and digital Savannah. New media must not forget the strength of old tech.
