MTN revealed that they are set to slash their Out-Of-Bundle (OOB) data rates on their broadband data bundles by up to 84%. 

The company is also introducing two new data products aimed at the lower end of the market:  A ‘1 day unlimited’ service and a time based data product.

MTN SA head Karel Pienaar explains that these price reductions were made possible by the company’s continual telecoms infrastructure development in South Africa, and that consumers can expect more of the same as the company’s projects start to come online.

MTN is actively extending its 3G and 2G radio networks, using the latest technologies to ensure they stay ahead of the mobile broadband curve.  The cellular provider is also rolling out metropolitan, national and international fibre infrastructure to serve its future data needs.

New OOB pricing

MTN said that they continue to listen to customers’ requirements, and hence developed these flexible and more affordable value propositions to cater for most of their clients’ requests.

While the data bundle pricing remains unchanged, the new Out-Of-Bundle pricing promises significant savings to the MTN broadband subscriber who finds that they frequently exceed their monthly usage limits.

The following tables provide an overview of the old and new pricing:

New products

MTN also launched two new services aimed to increase connectivity in the lower end of the market.

The first product is a ‘1 day unlimited’ service priced at R50 per day.  The 1-Day Unlimited data bundle lasts for only 24 hours once activated, and essentially provides the user with uncapped access during that day.

A fair use policy of 150MB will however apply after which a speed rate limit of 128Kbps will be applied for the remainder of the 24 hours.

This service should not only appeal to lower market segments, but also to travelers who may want to avoid Wi-Fi hotspot charges which can cost up to R60 per hour.

MTN will further launch a ‘90 minutes data bundle’ priced at R25 – equating to 27c per minute.  The 90 minutes bundle is rate limited to 128Kbps by default and is valid for 30 days with 90 minutes of Internet browsing with an additional 30-day carryover of unused minutes of data.

Per second billing will apply to these bundles. 

This time-based service is aimed at the market segment which is not familiar with data based bundles, and feels more comfortable with a time-based billing structure.

The new out-of-bundle prices will kick in on 28 March while the new ‘1 day unlimited’, time-based data bundles and the new 75MB and 300MB packages will be launched on 4 April.

MTN Out-of-bundle price cuts << discussion