adminhas surpassed the eight million mark buoyed by the introduction of Buddie Zone.
Buddie Zone is the firm’s service that allows subscribers to enjoy discounts on Econet to Econet calls depending on their location and time of day.
In a statement, the company said the just-ended festive season had once again seen a bumper rise in its subscribers that has crossed the eight million mark for the first time.
Commercial director Mr George Barbaressos said demand for Econet lines remained strong.
“People have realised that we offer the best value in every respect, in terms of value for money, in terms of the best product range, the best coverage and the best customer service” he said.
Mr Barbaressos attributed Econet’s market dominance to investment.
“We have spent and continue to spend more money on our network than all our competitors combined”.
He said 2013 would be very much about customer service and customer experience.
“It’s our main focus. We are going to spend significantly on customer service this year.
“We are going to expand and improve our network of shops, expand our call centres, and we are going to train our staff to ensure that the core values of our founder drive the company at all levels,” he added.
Meanwhile, the telecommunications firm also announced that customers for its mobile money transfer service, EcoCash, had also surpassed two million.
In another development, Econet announced that it would soon be partnering TN Bank to allow customers to buy smartphones and tablets such as iPads over a two-year installment following the creation of a special credit facility by the financial institution.
The plan to finance phones on credit is part of the telecommunications firm’s reasons for acquiring TN Bank.
The credit facility was expected to start once Econet completes the acquisition of the banking institution.
The mobile operator said plans were already at an advanced stage to restructure the bank so that it could process thousands of small loan applications for cellphones and iPads.
“In order to grow its revenues in a maturing voice market, Econet needs to convert more and more of its eight million customers to users of smartphones and tablet computers which can use high-speed data and Internet services.
“Due to liquidity constraints and the ravages of hyperinflation, many Zimbabweans are behind in upgrading their communication devices. This is the reason why Econet has decided to essentially speed up the process,” said the company.
Bongani Ndlovu
Online Reporter