PULL APART AND FOCUS ON THE SINGLE
Like viruses do, decompose, split, or pull apart an organism, product or service and focus on the single part to growth and reproduce on that.
Many products out there, hidden inside them components that are rich in opportunities. This goes from simple more obvious ways like splitting a box of cigarettes and treating them by single for reselling or pulling apart working components from a damaged device; to more abstract ones like the breakdown of a mobile service. This provides people accessibility to 'customized' solutions without needing to spend lots of effort or time. In this way, the focus relies on the single / costume made solution and can re-signify the way a technology is understood as a whole.
Single packs for immediate consumption.
Life is made of small moments - and things.
There’s in the Philippines and all around many tropical countries a very strong and present cultural mentality that has influenced the way products are sold and distributed. It is known as the Tingi Tingi Sachet Mentality and it has been printed as popular wisdom in the minds of every filipino. It refers to the consumption of products by tiny individual packages. It is strongly influenced or caused by economical crisis and searches feelings of more control and being saving. Many people decide to live with a day by day mentality of immediate consumption and no ties. One day you wake up and you can spontaneously decide if you want (or are able) to consume a product. The next day maybe you’re not up the same product; it will be decided as the day goes by. This is something very common to see in the hygiene industry reflected in very small packages of shampoo, conditioner, soap and detergent. The interesting thing is that this type of immediate consumption is also easily translated to other contexts.
In this territory and in many others from the Tropics, it is very common to decomposed a product and resell it as a single. Single cigarettes on the streets, single pills for headache in pharmacies and single calling minutes for mobile phones are very easy to find anywhere and are just basic spontaneous manifestations of this behavior. Many say, the mobile prepaid model originated due to this Sachet Mentality of the Tropics that expanded overseas and established itself as a valid alternative possible to find in the whole world. At the moment mobile technologies were introduced into the Philippines, this cultural phenomenon merged with the way this artifact is being used and appropriated. Very soon, as a way to reach more people that couldn't afford a yearly contract, the service was sort of split by minutes for immediate consumption. A contract wasn't need anymore and people could consume their calling minutes with this day by day mentality. It was just a matter of time till, this product or service was split again, making possible again an almost tailor-made alternative for immediate consumption by the reselling of singles. Now it is also possible to transfer credit via sms to reinforce this cultural behavior.
All of these led afterwards to other kinds of models as the reselling activity of calling minutes.
Ecosystem
A Tingi Tingi Sachet Mentality rule the country. Not many people can afford complete or whole packages of something and prefer to consume in small plastic bags: Sachet. This mentality started merging with commerce with the adaptation of small shampoo packages for immediate use and very soon infected other forms of products as cigarettes and medicine. Instead of buying a full box, filipinos will prefer to buy by single. Not everybody could afford a mobile phone plan.
NEED
People wanted to be able to have access to a mobile phone on a day by day mentality, with no ties and simple enough to be immediately consumed.
Dynamic
Split a product into individual singles for immediate consumption. In this case, breaking down a monthly fare from a mobile service into a minute prepaid fare that could reach more people by targeting more specific needs and wishes. People could have access to a mobile phone call when they were in need or wanted one.
New Service / product / Interaction
Prepaid plans for mobile phones were achieved by splitting or simplifying the service.
New Meaning
A mobile phone isn't any more a technology full of ties, but rather a flexible tool to be used only when needed. It encourages as well more spontaneous and dynamic decisions instead of burying them.
Technology
Mobile Phone / Phone Credit