Mobile networks must stop deducting data when users visit thousands of websites in South Africa

[Newsfeed]

Mobile networks must stop deducting data when users visit thousands of websites in South Africa

Mobile operators have until 15 January 2027 to zero-rate digital content from public benefit organisations.

 

[Bad Ballie]

The mobile networks will just transfer the costs to their more affluent prices making the middle and upper classes once again finance the lower ones.

 

[grant_cpt]

The mobile networks will just transfer the costs to their more affluent prices making the middle and upper classes once again finance the lower ones.

Assuming contract users? Because Prepaid rocks

 

[Bad Ballie]

Assuming contract users? Because Prepaid rocks

Oh agreed, it's always the contract user that takes the bunt of it, but fairly much anyone getting a contract device will pay extra and date prices etc. will not come down as fast as they could. Just look at the disconnect between what the average user pays and what the poor areas are being charged for connectivity already. Its easy to see who is being used to finance who.

 

[longboy]

The banks online app and webpages are zero-rated. I found that out by accident one day, when my nephew switched off wifi and turned on mobile data. I only discovered the flipped connectivity later, when I tried a video call.

 

[Swa]

I had 8GB of data the other day that just disappeared over the evening. I don't know if I accidentally used it with something that used it in the background or the notification was incorrect and outdated. When I tried to check the webpage just hanged. When I opened the Cell C app it struggled loading for a few minutes before showing I had zero data left which is strange as Cell C never lets you use all your data.

The funny thing is you can't purchase airtime or data through the website either and I had to wait till the night data kicked in before doing so. Even Cell C's own website and domains they use aren't zero rated.

 

[MirageF1]

What effs me off big time and is also extremely annoying is Vodascum are so cheap u need data to actually use their Vodapay app to buy more airtime/data/etc
No limits to the greed of these %$#^%$!!

Of course theirs always USSD which is free, but WTF wants to navigate that sh*t!

 

[The_Ogre]

I had 8GB of data the other day that just disappeared over the evening. I don't know if I accidentally used it with something that used it in the background or the notification was incorrect and outdated. When I tried to check the webpage just hanged. When I opened the Cell C app it struggled loading for a few minutes before showing I had zero data left which is strange as Cell C never lets you use all your data.

The funny thing is you can't purchase airtime or data through the website either and I had to wait till the night data kicked in before doing so. Even Cell C's own website and domains they use aren't zero rated.

All banks are zero rated bro, unless you have a fetish for buying directly from your SP

 

[The_Ogre]

The mobile networks will just transfer the costs to their more affluent prices making the middle and upper classes once again finance the lower ones.

Transfer the cost of what exactly? These ****ers were paid by way of a discount for the spectrum price in 2022 already.

It's not as if guavamint has to suck their dicks to zero rate PBO's, it's part of the contract.

 

[wizardofid]

Oh agreed, it's always the contract user that takes the bunt of it, but fairly much anyone getting a contract device will pay extra and date prices etc. will not come down as fast as they could. Just look at the disconnect between what the average user pays and what the poor areas are being charged for connectivity already. Its easy to see who is being used to finance who.

Says who? It completely depends on the specific price plan you choose and whether you optimize for data or minutes. For example, on a standard MTN plan, you might pay R1,000 for 120GB anytime and 120GB night express. But if you shift to a dedicated data-focussed plan, you can get 200GB of anytime data for just R499.

The real issue isn't contract vs. prepaid; it's transparency. Mobile networks completely obfuscate their best price plans behind complex USSD menus that are intentionally difficult to navigate, and they rarely advertise these high-value niche packages.
You actually have the numbers completely backwards.

Prepaid users form the overwhelming majority of network subscriber bases and total revenue in South Africa contract segments are relatively tiny. If anything, SIM-only contracts (where you don't take a device) frequently offer far better per-gigabyte value than standard prepaid rates. The disconnect isn't contract users subsidising prepaid; it's a lack of consumer awareness about how to navigate hidden plan structures.


In fact, you have it entirely backwards: prepaid users heavily subsidise contract users. Because prepaid subscribers make up over 80% of the network footprint, their massive cash upfront injections finance the network's daily cash flow and massive infrastructure builds.
Meanwhile, networks use those prepaid profits to fund the massive upfront financial risk of handing out R20,000+ iPhones and Samsung devices to contract users, who only pay them back slowly over 24 to 36 months. Prepaid users pay the highest per-megabyte rates out-of-bundle, effectively footing the bill for the network and subsidising the cheaper data rates and device rollouts that contract users enjoy.

 

[Bad Ballie]

Says who? It completely depends on the specific price plan you choose and whether you optimize for data or minutes. For example, on a standard MTN plan, you might pay R1,000 for 120GB anytime and 120GB night express. But if you shift to a dedicated data-focussed plan, you can get 200GB of anytime data for just R499.

The real issue isn't contract vs. prepaid; it's transparency. Mobile networks completely obfuscate their best price plans behind complex USSD menus that are intentionally difficult to navigate, and they rarely advertise these high-value niche packages.
You actually have the numbers completely backwards.

Prepaid users form the overwhelming majority of network subscriber bases and total revenue in South Africa contract segments are relatively tiny. If anything, SIM-only contracts (where you don't take a device) frequently offer far better per-gigabyte value than standard prepaid rates. The disconnect isn't contract users subsidising prepaid; it's a lack of consumer awareness about how to navigate hidden plan structures.


In fact, you have it entirely backwards: prepaid users heavily subsidise contract users. Because prepaid subscribers make up over 80% of the network footprint, their massive cash upfront injections finance the network's daily cash flow and massive infrastructure builds.
Meanwhile, networks use those prepaid profits to fund the massive upfront financial risk of handing out R20,000+ iPhones and Samsung devices to contract users, who only pay them back slowly over 24 to 36 months. Prepaid users pay the highest per-megabyte rates out-of-bundle, effectively footing the bill for the network and subsidising the cheaper data rates and device rollouts that contract users enjoy.

In your opinion. As someone who stopped taking contract over a decade ago, I am very well aware of what it available and what the costs are, I pay cash for my devices and use prepaid services for a reason. As my wife is still a Vodacom contract user, I am also very aware of what she gets charged for.

 

[wizardofid]

In your opinion. As someone who stopped taking contract over a decade ago, I am very well aware of what it available and what the costs are, I pay cash for my devices and use prepaid services for a reason. As my wife is still a Vodacom contract user, I am also very aware of what she gets charged for.

Opinion ? Dafaq

No I can with certainty point out with verifiable facts that per gig pricing for contract users are cheaper.

I don't even have to look far mate

Cheapest and most expensive mobile data in South Africa

MyBroadband compared the prices of mobile data bundles with allocations of or around 5GB, 10GB, 20GB, 40GB, and 80GB in July 2026.

mybroadband.co.za

Now this is just one example now you tell me whether prepaid is cheaper. If you want to continue down this path I suggest you buy a shovel because it won't end well for you mate.




Now you tell me . I don't have opinions I have facts and they generally win every time.

• Vodacom Prepaid
  • R49 for 2GB Anytime (Expires in 14 days) = R24.50 per GB
  • R99 for 5GB Anytime (Valid 30 days) = R19.80 per GB
  • R149 for 10GB Anytime (Valid 30 days) = R14.90 per GB
• Vodacom SIM-Only Top Up Contract
  • R99 PM for 20GB flat data = R4.95 per GB
  • R179 PM for 60GB flat data = R2.98 per GB
  • R229 PM for 100GB flat data = R2.29 per GB

 

[Bad Ballie]

Opinion ? DAFAQ

No I can with certainty point out with verifiable facts that per gig pricing for contract users are cheaper.

I don't even have to look far mate

Cheapest and most expensive mobile data in South Africa

MyBroadband compared the prices of mobile data bundles with allocations of or around 5GB, 10GB, 20GB, 40GB, and 80GB in July 2026.

mybroadband.co.za

Now this is just one example now you tell me whether prepaid is cheaper. If you want to continue down this path I suggest you buy a shovel because it won't end well for you mate.

View attachment 1930981


Now you tell me . I don't have opinions I have facts and they generally win every time.

• Vodacom Prepaid
  • R49 for 2GB Anytime (Expires in 14 days) = R24.50 per GB
  • R99 for 5GB Anytime (Valid 30 days) = R19.80 per GB
  • R149 for 10GB Anytime (Valid 30 days) = R14.90 per GB
• Vodacom SIM-Only Top Up Contract
  • R99 PM for 20GB flat data = R4.95 per GB
  • R179 PM for 60GB flat data = R2.98 per GB
  • R229 PM for 100GB flat data = R2.29 per GB

Ok genius, now add all the other available networks, and do a proper comparison of all of them. The only "FACT" I can see is your ego.

 

[RedViking]

Click click click click

 

[wizardofid]

Ok genius, now add all the other available networks, and do a proper comparison of all of them. The only "FACT" I can see is your ego.

Moving the goalposts won’t save you mate. You specifically brought up Vodacom to defend your point, so I showed you how Vodacom's own numbers completely destroy your argument.
But since you think the math magically changes elsewhere, let's look at the rest of the market. On MTN, standard 20GB prepaid costs an insane R599, while their month-to-month SIM-only plan gives you that exact same 20GB for R199. That is a R400 prepaid tax. On Telkom, 20GB prepaid is R259, but a raw SIM contract gives you 80GB for R199. You are literally getting four times the data for less money. Cell C is the same story, where prepaid sits around R10 a gig but their raw SIM contracts drop wholesale data to under R4.
Even the virtual networks like Capitec Connect charge a flat prepaid rate of R45 per GB. Paying R45 a gig on prepaid vs getting down to R2.29 a gig on a raw Vodacom SIM contract is total commercial madness if you actually use data.
Across every single network in SA, standard prepaid carries a massive price penalty compared to raw SIM-only values. Calling it "ego" doesn't fix your broken arithmetic. Keep digging that hole if you want, but the rate sheets speak for themselves.


Go ahead I will wait Let me know if you need more shovels....you're nearly to china mate..........

 

[Swa]

This might come as a surprise to some but there are no postpaid products. Everything is prepaid and it used to be advertised as pay-as-you-go. As for what is cheaper, having compared for over 20 years I can say in some instances it's contract and in some it's pay-as-you-go. The advantage of pay-as-you-go is the flexibility of not being tied to anything.

For the networks contract customers are more valuable as it provides a guaranteed upfront cash injection every month.

Vodacom has also paid me back over the last few years. Not only did I get airtime for free which I still have a lot left but they paid R100 in Vodabucks into my wallet the other day.

 

[Swa]

All banks are zero rated bro, unless you have a fetish for buying directly from your SP

I can say with certainty Capitec is but African Bank isn't. But this misses the point, for what reason would an SP's own website and services not be zero rated? The functionality and products just aren't all available through banks so you have to use the website which also sometimes gives you benefits.

 

[wizardofid]

This might come as a surprise to some but there are no postpaid products. Everything is prepaid and it used to be advertised as pay-as-you-go. As for what is cheaper, having compared for over 20 years I can say in some instances it's contract and in some it's pay-as-you-go. The advantage of pay-as-you-go is the flexibility of not being tied to anything.

For the networks contract customers are more valuable as it provides a guaranteed upfront cash injection every month.

Vodacom has also paid me back over the last few years. Not only did I get airtime for free which I still have a lot left but they paid R100 in Vodabucks into my wallet the other day.

Oh good lord. another one. You do know it is right in the name right pre and post, one you have to pay for the service before allocation, the other after the fact hence post. Plus I will let you in on a little secret, networks around the world apply a quality of service identifier, in other words , who or what gets network priority, and in some instances post customers do get piority service over prepaid. Every single network in the world has a quality of service identifier.

While networks won't actively advertise this, as it essentially introduces a sentiment of bias and unfairness, throttling has been a network feature for at least the last 20+ years.

Another cool little tidbit post paid will get you blacklisted and ruin credit, if you don't pay, while the actual alloaction is the same calling it all pre paid is entirely wrong, networks have to provision and buy network capacity, post paid is predictable and planned capacity, pre paid isn't which why it can and will be sificantly more exspensive.

Sure you can jump on a specific price plan, that get pretty close to post paid pricing, something prepaid users dont have access to is exsisting post paid clients often negotiate for better deals over all, with special offers and packages.

My current package is R353 for 250gig anytime data, about 1,45 odd a gig, these special offers arent once off unique individual offers either they are user profile dependant and spending so most definitely a couple of thousand people are on the same offer. While prepaid can get close to post paid, pending the price plan you choose, these price plans can either be data focused minutes focused or a balance of both, but you are almost always penalized in some form or another. post is sificantly less harsh in this regard,their out of bundle rates are almost always better for post paid. It is all prepaid???!?!!, the what ?