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Brighton Gumbo Business Reporter
NETONE has launched Chatterbox, an innovation which enables the firm’s subscribers who may not be in possession of a mobile handset at that particular time to make and receive calls. The chatterboxes will be installed at public places such as schools, hospitals, growth points and post offices around the country.
In a statement the NetOne marketing and sales director Memory Ndoro-Mandiya said the community device was in the form of the traditional “call-box” yet it accepts a NetOne mobile SIM card only.
“We’ve launched this service as a relief package to our subscribers whose mobile handsets will be either inaccessible or may be undergoing repair and yet would need to make calls urgently. You would appreciate mobile handsets aren’t affordable to all,” she said.
“The cheapest mobile handset one can get on the market ranges between $15-$20, an amount, believe it or not, may not be affordable to many. This service will be accessible in hospitals, schools, growth points and post offices nationwide.”
Ndoro-Mandiya said their chatterbox service was exclusive to their subscribers as the mobile operator wants to ensure that it lives up to its promise of providing seamless communication services by 2020.
She said the Chatterbox would go a long way in assisting NetOne subscribers whose mobile phone handsets could have developed problems.
She said it will also render their subscribers access to a variety of value added services.
“These include sending and receiving SMS, upload contacts in the SIM phonebook, send and receive SMS call-me-backs, retrieve voicemails, top-up airtime, pay Zesa prepaid airtime and conduct OneWallet transactions,” Ndoro-Mandiya said.
She said in terms of security, the service was private and confidential to subscribers’ SIM card.
“The content will not be stored in the Chatterbox so no one can see your history of transactions or get your PIN details,” she said.
The service is the first of its kind in Zimbabwe.
“Global mobile service providers like Zain, MTN, Vodacom, Airtel and Orange have introduced the service in countries like Kenya, Tanzania and other parts of the world as an initiative to assist low income earners to access mobile services anywhere even without a mobile handset in their pocket.”
Ndoro-Mandiya said there was no extra charge for using the chatterbox and thus if anyone collects money for its usage that will be fraud.
She advised the public to report such cases to the police.
“NetOne implores on all users of this service to be responsible with these devices as they’ll be serving the whole community,” she said.
Online Reporter