Independent Online (IOL) and ViaMedia have launched a mobile news service, IOL USSD, for cellphone users.
Available to any model of handset, the service is accessed by dialling *120*IOL# and browsing a content menu for news, weather, sport or business.
Users gain access to the latest news and lotto numbers as well as sport, weather, business and entertainment information.
Leon Lategan, director of sales and marketing at IOL, says the wireless service uses Unstructured Supplementary Services Data (USSD), which allows simple, text-based communication similar to SMS, but on a more advanced level.
The service will initially be available only to Vodacom and MTN users, but Cell C users are expected to be able to access the service soon. Callers will be charged per minute or per part of a minute as for a phone call. Vodacom users will pay R1.50 per minute, while the service is free on MTN for a limited period.
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