The Branson flair

It always seems to come down to the fine print.... I hate fine print, it usually just says rip-off..
 
Virgin’s offerings aren’t necessarily quite as competitive as the marketing hype would have us believe. It all depends on how they are used. So, for example, Virgin Mobile’s prepaid tariff is more expensive than that of rivals for the first five minutes of call time per day, but cheaper after that.
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That all depends on time of day - during peak times it is by far the cheapest prepaid. Vodacom - r2.99, cellc r3.20, MTN r2.99, VIRGIN r2.35.
 
The problem, though, one analyst notes, is that this means it benefits only customers spending at least R352 a month — which cuts out the vast majority of prepaid cellphone users. Similarly, the contract packages (which don’t offer the free handset upgrades South African customers are used to) may work out cheaper or more expensive than those of rivals, depending on your usage pattern. The quality of service, of course, depends on Cell C.
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Prepaid users on VM are going to save a bundle on the per-second billing from the first second if their calls are less than 1min.
 
i might be wrong but i think per second billing also only kicks in after the first 5 minutes of calls.. :(
 
Analising prepaid options:

Vodago:
Vodacom to Vodacom (Peak) R2.55
Vodacom to MTN / Cell C (Peak) R2.85
(not per second, pay for minute)

Vodago Smartstep:
Vodacom to Anywhere R2.70 - 1st minute, R1.55 - thereafter
(not per second, pay for minute)

4U Prepaid:
Vodacom to Anywhere (Peak) R2.99
(5 cents per second)
(per second billing)

VM prepaid:
VM to Anywhere R2.35 - 1st 5 minutes of day, R1.55 - thereafter
(4 cents per second, 2.6 cents thereafter)
(per second billing from first second)



VM is by far the cheapest (due to per second billing you have) compared to the rigid Vodacom costs for daytime calling, only actually beaten in off peak costs a bit by 4UPrepaid at R.1.05/1.30(depending on networks where call ends) per minute and Vodagos Vodacom to Vodacom/Telkom (Off-Peak) R1.40 (not billed per second like VM) and all the other prices are equal or much more.

The fact of the matter is most South Africans are prepaid cause they don't qualify for contracts anyway, thus prepaid prices are very important.
 
ripped off at R30 a transaction, compared to, say, R7,50 on a Standard Bank card

That R7.50 is surely their base charge. Last I checked they also charge in the region of R25 for a real deposit and more with any over the counter withdrawal.

Also although we pay bank fees here overseas the interest rates on credit cards are insane. Imagine paying 5x prime rate.

Overseas free handsets are standard too. Though you do typically get top of the range phones on dirt cheap contracts. Unlike South Africa the phones are usually locked to the provider.

Virgin often come into a sector with a big splash. They usually start off being the cheapest with the best service, but it is downhill from there. Though it is a good thing for them to come here and stir things up.
 
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