Cell C is “going for Telkom’s jugular with its new rates” and is no longer playing in the same field as SA’s other mobile operators, says an analyst.
Less than a month ago it released the rates for its first data bundle rates, Cell C has slashed the rates to as little as 13c/MB.
“These prices are a challenge to [Telkom’s digital subscriber lines],” says World Wide Worx MD Arthur Goldstuck.
Cell C has introduced a 3GB bundle for at R400, effectively providing 1GB more than it had at the same price previously, cutting the cost of bandwidth from 20c/MB to just over 13c/MB.
Similarly, it’s now offering 1,2GB for the same R250 it charged previously for 1GB.
“The new prices are very close to fixed-line broadband rates, which makes Cell C among the cheapest providers in the world, never mind SA,” says Goldstuck.
Cell C’s 3GB bundle is already R13 cheaper than line rental for a 4Mbit/s line from Telkom, without even including bandwidth. Even with the cheapest bandwidth offers from companies such as MWeb and Afrihost, the total cost on Cell C is still less.
Goldstuck says having products in the market that are cheaper than fixed lines will give Cell C a significant boost in market share.
“It will give the company tremendous potential to take market share, assuming it keeps up the marketing and sales.”
Goldstuck says Cell C is now a good value proposition and alternative to fixed lines for small businesses.
“Telkom should have bundled ADSL with 3G services when they launched 8ta,” he says. “That would have been their competitive advantage.” — Candice Jones, TechCentral
- Subscribe to our free daily newsletter
- Follow us on Twitter or on Facebook