Telecel WiFi zone goes commercial

Business Reporter
Telecel Zimbabwe said it has commercialised its public Wi-Fi zone service as competition in the provision of data services by the country’s three mobile phone firms’ providers stiffens.

Telecel WiFi zone data can be purchased for $1, $2, $5, and $10 with validity periods of 24 hours, 7 days, 15 days and 30 days respectively. In a statement yesterday, Telecel Zimbabwe communication and branding director Obert Mandimika said the company had introduced a soft-launch on the product in March this year and was impressed with the uptake received so far.

“Telecel is satisfied with the performance and uptake of our Telecel WiFi zones which we soft-launched in March and we are happy to confirm that we have commercially launched our WiFi service to our entire subscriber base. The WiFi zones will bring affordability and quality connectivity to our customers,” he said

He highlighted that WiFi bundles are cheaper than connecting on the internet directly with mobile phones as well as allowing users to connect access the internet with other devices.

“1 Gig of data purchased for connecting via a Telecel WiFi zone for example will cost $1 which is comparatively much cheaper than connecting to the internet directly from the mobile phone. In addition to this obvious cost advantage, customers will be pleased to know that Telecel WiFi hotspots will allow them to connect with devices other than just their mobile phones,” said Mandimika.

This comes as the mobile operator reintroduced its Mega Bonus promotion in April, which allows pre-paid subscribers to make local calls across all networks for double the value of the airtime purchased. Telecel Zimbabwe chief executive Angeline Vere is on record saying the relaunch of Mega Bonus and the 100 percent bonus across all networks was part of a company-wide commitment to ensuring Telecel offered value to its customers.

“Telecel believes that as a mobile telecommunications company our job is to keep the price of connectivity low in order to help facilitate social and business-related communication over our platform for the benefit of our customers,” said the mobile telecommunications company.