Cellphone bill optimisation start-up Tariffic has introduced its first "package tracker" - a mobile contract index the company hopes will help consumers decipher SA's "complex" cellular market and help them select the right package for their pocket.
"The South African cellular market is incredibly complex and the fact is that most people are spending far more than they should on costly cell phone contracts that generally don't suit their needs," says Tariffic.
The company's research shows that, between Vodacom, Cell C, MTN and Telkom, there are over 10 000 different combinations of cellphone contracts and add-on bundles.
Tariffic's "Perfect Package Tracker" is based on four user cases, each of them unique. The company says it "scientifically calculates" which package would be best in each case. "Everyone is unique uses their cellphones in their own individual way. [The tracker shows] the best options for each user on each network."
Going forward, says Tariffic, it will optimise the same user profiles each quarter, using the same parameters. "This Tracker will function as a gauge of the South African cellular landscape, identifying how the cellular market is improving or deteriorating for consumers over time."
Consumer optimisation
Launched towards the end of 2013, Tariffic originally aimed to mathematically work out optimal network operators and packages for corporates.
In September last year Tariffic CEO Antony Seeff indicated the start-up would soon be making its analysis and optimisation services available to consumers, online.
At the time the company was looking at creating an online consumer offering that would allow users to can submit their bills and, for a fee, get a report back recommending the optimal service provider and package, for their specific user behaviour.
Tariffic says its optimisations are performed using Tariffic's own cellphone bill analysis software. "Tariffic is able to look at a person's current monthly spend along with exactly how that person uses their phone, in order to calculate what their spend would look like on each network, with the optimal contract/package and bundle combination"
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