Vodacom goes limitless with 'Red'

CEO Shameel Joosub says Vodacom's latest smart pricing plans mirror parent company Vodafone's offerings in international markets.

---

SA's largest mobile operator has made another move in the mobile price war with the introduction of new "holistic" pricing plans for contract customers.

This morning, Vodacom outlined its new smart plans, which include unlimited voice calls, unlimited SMSes, more data and a range of new value-added services. The new offer will be available to contract customers as of 7 March.

The operator says the smart plans will introduce customers to a "Smart Lifestyle" that it says is simple and easy to understand, and helps customers to get the most out of their new smart device and mobile Internet lifestyle.

The proposition introduces tariff plans that include Red, an offer comprising three plans with unlimited voice, unlimited text, data and other services.

The following features are included in Vodacom's Red smart plans:

* Device buy-back: Vodacom will buy back the customer's old device and get a price reduction on their new contract.

* Vodacom financing: Flexible device financing options to help customers buy the devices they want.

* Free applications: Ensure that customer information and content are safe at all times. These include Vodafone Protect (lost phone location) and Vodafone Guardian (child protection).

* Perfect Start: Internet, e-mail, social networks and Vodacom applications are set up while the customer is in store.

* Smart crew and Red crew: Provide support that will be available 24/7 to assist customers with their technical and smartphone requirements.

* My Vodacom App: Assists customers in managing their service usage. This provides an easy way to monitor data usage and purchase additional bundles when needed.

* Plan check: Helps to ensure that customers are on the right plan. Vodacom will proactively recommend the most appropriate option.

Vodacom says a cloud storage application will also be launched "soon" for customers to store personal files, photos and videos with 5GB of free storage.

Also new to the table is an offer that CEO Shameel Joosub says is a bid by the operator to proactively address the problem of customers exceeding their data bundles in the first month. "This creates a bad impression, so we thought let's double their data for the first two months, to ultimately get them to the plan that suits them best."

Joosub says simplicity was a key focus in the construction of the new plans. He says the new, limitless plans change Vodacom's game plan.

The offer, says Joosub, is part of a broader three-tiered strategy that focuses on the network experience, customer experience and value.

This comes a day after MTN struck back against recent prepaid deals in the ongoing mobile price war.

MTN - SA's second largest operator - introduced a prepaid tariff that translates into 2c per second (R1.20 per minute) on per-second billing.

About two weeks prior, Vodacom introduced Free4Sho, its new prepaid tariff that also offers callers R1.20 per minute calls - but on per-minute billing.

The sudden activity in the mobile price war comes as the wholesale interconnect rates (mobile termination rates, or MTRs) drop to an all-time low of 40c today. MTRs are the fees operators pay each other to terminate calls on their networks.

Joosub says, however, that this had no part to play in the construction of the operator's latest contract price plans.

Phil Patel, chief officer of the consumer business unit at Vodacom, notes that the Red plans have been six months in the making.

Vodacom's new smart plans are as follows:

* Voice calls are billed per second
* Out of bundle rate is R1.00 per MB (inclusive of VAT)