Is 99% discount for real?
Advertising agency Net#work BBDO, on behalf of Cell C, recently lodged a competitor complaint with the Advertising Standards Authority of South Africa (ASA) against a print advertisement for Vodacom’s Yebo4Less tariff plan for Prepaid customers.
The advertisement is headed "PAY FOR 1 MINUTE AND GET UP TO 99 FREE WITH YEBO4LESS". The subheading states: "Now Prepaid customers can get up to 99% discounts on calls to all networks." The advertisement also states: "What do I get? Up to 99% off all calls to all networks."
Cell C argued that the "99" in the heading would be understood to be a reference to 99 "minutes", when in fact the respondent offers (up to) a 99% tariff discount. "This is misleading, as tariff discounts are materially different to minutes, and not all calls are necessarily charged at the same tariff," Call C said.
Cell C further complained that what Vodacom refers to as "free" in the headline is in fact a discount. "Free items imply no cost to the consumer, whereas discounted items imply a good or service at a reduced price," Cell C stated.
Cell C also pointed out that the 99% discount is at the sole discretion of Vodacom, and that there are no guarantees that the discount would be 99%. Cell C challenged Vodacom to show that the advertised discount of 99% is available for more than an insignificant proportion of the time. "The unpredictability of the offer also renders it misleading," said Cell C.
Vodacom responds
DRAFTFCB Johannesburg, on behalf of Vodacom, replied saying that it was factually correct that a consumer on Yebo4Less could, at a cost of R2.60, speak for one hour and 40 minutes. This means that a consumer pays for one minute at R2.60 and may effectively get the remaining 99 minutes free at no extra charge.
"In respect of the free minutes applicable to a call, there is no cost to the consumer that negates the fact that such minutes are free. It is merely the degree to which such minutes are free that varies," said Vodacom.
Vodacom further argued that the value of free minutes which a consumer is entitled to per call depends on a calculation in which the time of day and the caller’s location at the time of the call are material. "In short, the less "traffic" in a particular cell, the higher the discount," said Vodacom.
Vodacom further pointed out that the material terms and conditions relevant to the offer were communicated in the advertisement.
Ruling
The ASA felt that Vodacom’s terms and conditions were adequate and that Cell C did not provide enough evidence to suggest that Vodacom is in breach of any advertising codes.
The ASA further said that the interchangeable use of "99% discount" and "99 free minutes" were not misleading as a caller pays for the first minute, and thereafter receives a number of free minutes depending on the time of day and location of the caller.
These two rulings are however not significant as the ASA ruled that Vodacom may not use the terms "up to 99 free" and "up to 99% discount".
According to the ASA "…claims should not be used…where the price or other advantage claimed bears no relation to the prevailing level of prices or benefits, and in particular where it does not apply…to more than an insignificant proportion of them".
The ASA said that Vodacom failed to show that the discount of 99% applied to more than an insignificant proportion of Yebo4Less users, which it was required to do to be able to use these claims.
Vodacom was subsequently ordered to withdraw the "UP TO" 99 free and "up to" 99% discounts claims, and was prohibited from using these claims again in future.
Vodacom Yebo4less campaign – give your views
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