MTN and Simfy Africa have signed a deal to offer the streaming music service’s product to the mobile operator’s customers at a discount.

MTN will offer the streaming service to its customers for R49/month. “All customers will have the opportunity to try the full service, and enjoy all of its features during a two-week free trial period.”

Simfy Africa was one of the first paid-for music streaming services that was made available to South African music fans. Its premium music service usually costs R60/month.

The discounted MTN Simfy service is available immediately. Subscribers who want to access Simfy Africa must register on the operator’s website before downloading the app from the Android, iOS or BlackBerry stores.

Simfy Africa offers access to 23m songs, including a wide range of local music.

MTN’s move comes as Spotify, one of the world’s largest music streaming services, appears to be gearing up for its launch in South Africa, possibly in conjunction with Vodacom if market rumours are to be believed.

TechCentral revealed last month that the Swedish company has appointed Oscar Sehlberg Westergård to head up the region and sources say the firm, which already offers its services in 56 countries, is readying its South African offering.

South Africa is already well served by streaming music platforms, with Nokia MixRadio, Simfy Africa, Deezer, Rdio and Rara all offering services already. However, big international players such as Google, with Play Music, and Microsoft, with Xbox Music, are yet to launch. — © 2014 NewsCentral Media