MTN is to roll-out its MTN Traffic Cam service nationwide next year, beginning in Cape Town, where 10 cameras are to be installed.
MTN mobile commerce engineer Justin Lipshitz says the service was initially launched "for fun" in July 2002, with a camera placed on a cellphone tower over the Buccleuch interchange in Johannesburg. Cameras were then added over the Gillooly, Rivonia and Grayston Drive interchanges.
"News that MTN users with multimedia messaging service (MMS)-enabled handsets could receive live traffic feeds by typing *155# on their phones spread quickly by word of mouth. The feeds were then later added to the mtnice.co.za Web site," he says.
Around 3 000 users access the service from their phones daily, Lipshitz says.
Apart from the cameras to be installed in Cape Town, Lipshitz says MTN is also looking to add additional features to the service.
"We are investigating the possibility of live video streaming of traffic to cellphones. We are also experimenting with a whale-watching camera in Hermanus and have purchased two mobile cameras that will be used at MTN events."
Lipshitz says while MTN Traffic Cam is currently free, it will be charged for once the service has been developed further.
With an increased MMS base expected after the Christmas period, added content to the site and the introduction of a commercial platform, the service is expected to exceed 100 000 hits a day.
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