Cell C's partnership with one of the world's biggest energy drink brands, Red Bull, four years ago, never really took off and termination of the products does not amount to much more than the operator dropping dead weight.
This is according to local industry experts, and comes as Cell C plans to terminate its Red Bull Mobile brand at the end of the month. Cell C spokesperson Karin Fourie says the two parties "have mutually agreed to focus on different strategies".
Fourie says Red Bull Mobile Zone will still exist and include the offerings from the World of Red Bull, which includes content and "real world" benefits. Existing prepaid, postpaid and hybrid customers will be migrated to similar Cell C tariff plans, she adds.
This comes four years after Cell C launched the Red Bull Mobile product suite, which has been regarded as a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), but is essentially a white-label product offering.
At the time of launch, in February 2011, speculation had been rife that Red Bull Mobile would be the country's second mobile virtual network operator, after Virgin Mobile SA. Instead, the partnership represented SA's first niche-focused mobile offering.
Cell C declined to give user numbers, but when the company tried to revive the brand in July 2013, Red Bull Mobile had a marginal user base of about 120 000. At the time, Cell C had around 11.5 million subscribers.
Cell C had hoped to leverage the internationally-renowned and youthful Red Bull brand, which has grown significantly since its inception in the mid-eighties, to lure SA's youth market.
Debatable value
Independent telecoms analyst Spiwe Chireka says Red Bull Mobile was pretty much dead in the water to begin with, and the termination of the products does not amount to much more for Cell C than the company dropping some dead weight. "We have all known for some time now that Red Bull Mobile was not an asset for Cell C. This is just a case of another one bites the dust."
World Wide Worx MD Arthur Goldstuck adds the termination of the partnership - which really came down to being more of a content and marketing play than anything else - will not have any significant impact on either the mobile market or consumer.
"[Red Bull Mobile] never made a significant impact on Cell C's subscriber base and has probably been more trouble than it's worth. The trouble is, it's not really an MVNO - it's a value-add that doesn't add much value."
BMI-TechKnowledge director Brian Neilson doubts there will be any noticeable impact on consumers or consumer choice. "The array of emerging MVNOs in the form of banks and retailers is likely to be accompanied by very strong branding and marketing [and] consumers will soon be getting more choice rather than less."
Why now?
Chireka says it comes down to a case of "why now?" - rather than "why?" in terms of Cell C's decision to end the four-year partnership.
Although Cell C says its decision was in no way related to the emerging MVNO scene in SA, Goldstuck suggests this could have played a part.
"The launch of viable MVNOs means a peripheral content play like Red Bull Mobile has far less appeal. Plus, Cell C does not have to prove the viability of its MVNO stature anymore, given it is the go-to platform for new MVNOs."
There has also been lively speculation that Cell C's majority shareholder Oger Telecom (with 75% of the company) may be considering a sale. The latest "dead weight shedding" move could fuel this speculation, although Cell C boss Jose Dos Santos maintains the company is going strong as it is.
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