New "Monthly" packages from VC

[nicovdw]

In the Star today they mention 11 Monthly packages, with the normal more info on www.vodacom.co.za.

From the add it looks like 11 new month to month contracts to compete with Virgin Ho-bile.

Claims:
-No 24 month contract.
- Lowest call rates in SA (Less than Telkom???) From 90c per minute.
-Per second billing from 1st second.
- sms bundles from 23c
- Happy hours.

But of course: NO DETAIL ON VODACOM WEBSITE.

Is this like the premature prepaid bundles anaouncement and ads?

And of course: Will ppdb be available on these new contracts???

 

[vodacom3g]

Vodacom recently introduced Monthly Contract tariff packages for all ‘Per Second’ contract tariff packages as well as the Family Top Up tariff package (unitised).

General Information
• All existing business rules / processes remain unchanged (e.g. pro-rata billing, allocation of pro-rata bundled minutes, and ‘non pro-rata’ of top-up subscriptions fees / airtime), except where indicated differently in this communication.
• No phones will be offered with a one month contract.
• A 30 day notice period is required for termination of any of these contracts.
• The minimum contract period will be 60 days i.e. 1st month plus 30 day notice period.

Charges
• All monthly subscriptions, VAS services and call / data charges are the same as the equivalent 24-month tariff plan.

Migrations
• Customers that are still in their 24-month contract period will not be allowed to migrate to the one month contract.
• Migrations from the one month contract packages to 24-month contract will be allowed (via normal ‘upgrades business process).
• Existing carry over rules with regards to accumulated minutes will continue to apply for migrations.

Upgrades
• No Upgrades are available to one month contracts.
• Upgrades / Migrations from the one month contract packages to 24-month contracts will be allowed (via normal ‘upgrades’ business process).

 

[Piesang]

Vodacom and MTN could've done this a long time ago but instead they were taking our money. Let us pay far too much than we are suppose to.

Thanks to Virgin Mobile (Sir Richard Branson) everything is changing.

 

[Gambit]

• No Upgrades are available to one month contracts.
• Upgrades / Migrations from the one month contract packages to 24-month contracts will be allowed (via normal ‘upgrades’ business process).

So if my 2 years have expired and I don't want a new phone do I really have to cancel my contract and then get a new one to go onto a month to month contract (possibly having to get a new number). I can't find any prices for these month to month contracts online but I can only assume a contract that doesn't include a phone must be cheaper per month than one that does include a phone. At the monent if your contract expires then you automatically go on to a very expensive month to month contract until you renew your contract.

 

[nicovdw]

So basically:

No phone - same rate.

"Cheapest" is only off peak.

Ad said cheapest calls in SA. Telkom is cheaper.

Packages still have high subscription rates, coupled with confusopoly pricing.

 

[krycor]

That 23 cent tv ad is funny, no more 50c

 

[Piesang]

I pay 21c per sms as MTN.

 

[74466]

i get 35c intl sms (thank you smsbug)

 

[kaspaas]

There is no difference with the current practice when one does not upgrade after 24 months. Your VC contract just continues to run on monthly at the same rates as when the contract was running.

 

[SoTrue]

There is no difference with the current practice when one does not upgrade after 24 months. Your VC contract just continues to run on monthly at the same rates as when the contract was running.

It is utterly dishonest from Vodacom (and the other networks) not to offer a reduced rate after the cellphone has been repaid after 24 months. Disgusting!

 

[damian24]

It is utterly dishonest from Vodacom (and the other networks) not to offer a reduced rate after the cellphone has been repaid after 24 months. Disgusting!

off the v/com website...
Get 2x Nokia 6230i FREE when signing an initial 24-month Weekend Everyday Contract at R135 per month PLUS the purchase and instore activation of a 4U Starter Pack at R199. You pay SIM and Connection (Once-off): R202.

off of virgin mobile...
Nokia 6230i - Solid performer R2070.00

effectively the 2 phones are R4140... but we'll work on a 15% discount on the single phone rate = R1780, or R74 a month.

so why not provide accounts at R61 a month with all the free minutes? Hmmm, then everyone would buy a couple of accounts and get airtime dirt cheap, <begin sarcasm> as a Telkom shareholder I really don't want to see my dividents get eaten into by cheap cellular rates! </end>

The 'free' phone serves 2 purposes, (1) to encourage adoption of more profitable technologies and (2) to obfuscate the actual cost of operating the service.

of course the rebate has to be enough to cover the phone and thus the rebate is probably a good deal higher than R1780 on a weekender, check the latest game ad's, they give you a R2500 voucher with a Motorola V360 that they sell for R799, so the rebate is probably somewhere around R3300 or (you guessed it) your entire subscription.

in english, you pay off your phone with your monthly subs and vodacom gives you 120 free weekend minutes a month so why not just waive the phone, give the contract at no cost then have a crazy low rate for the first 120 minutes, as they make more money anyhow when you consider the rebates they're giving ?

D

 

[74466]

A short and sweet answer.... THEY WANT TO SKREW THE PUBLIC... just like telkom

 

[bwana]

There is no difference with the current practice when one does not upgrade after 24 months. Your VC contract just continues to run on monthly at the same rates as when the contract was running.

Exactly - I fail to see a single advantage of this effort. If you're paying the same monthly rate and not getting a phone how is this any better?

 

[vodacom3g]

Exactly - I fail to see a single advantage of this effort. If you're paying the same monthly rate and not getting a phone how is this any better?

Is the idea not to get contract pricing but NOT be locked into a 24 month contract?

 

[caspa]

A short and sweet answer.... THEY WANT TO SKREW THE PUBLIC... just like telkom

"Hear Hear".....dont forget they are family of telkom

 

[kaspaas]

Is the idea not to get contract pricing but NOT be locked into a 24 month contract?

A premium equivalent to a freebie phone (and more) is a hefty premium to pay not to be locked into a long term contract.

 

[bwana]

Is the idea not to get contract pricing but NOT be locked into a 24 month contract?

Helluva price to pay if I'm not paying off a phone any longer yet effectively still being charged for one.

 

[charl.voster]

Virgin sould just drop the sms's to R0.35 from the frist sms and then they'll cook.

 

[74466]

Virgin sould just drop the sms's to R0.35 from the frist sms and then they'll cook.

I agree.... at this moment, most students "sms chat" after 8 at night, coz its cheaper (where are tha days of 25c off peak sms, i sent 1000s a month) and if vm can do the off peak rate all day, more sms would be sent,,, more revenue.

 

[diabolus]

Is the idea not to get contract pricing but NOT be locked into a 24 month contract?

So you are actually paying a premium to get contract pricing? I'm too lazy to do the calculation now, but what would the difference in TOTAL monthly cost then be between prepaid and contract? Considering you are paying i.e. R135 "extra" to get "contract rates" = R135/3 ~ 45 primetime prepaid minutes you DON't get on contract .

So i dunno, then i might as well stick to prepaid or similar products and pay more per SMS/minute , instead of paying a fixed "fee" which is the equivalent of ADSL line rental and get slightly lower rates....