Major mobile network brand changes in South Africa — 2010 to 2022
South Africa’s mobile network operators have undertaken several rebrands over the years, with MTN being the latest to revamp its logo.
Vodacom, Telkom, Cell C, and MTN have each rebranded at least once since 2010.
Between 2010 and 2022, Telkom has had the most rebrands, while MTN and Vodacom have each only rebranded once.
A summary of each mobile operator’s rebrands over the years is provided below.
Vodacom
Vodacom received its licence to operate a GSM cellular network in the country in 1993. The operator launched its network in South Africa the following year.
At the time, the mobile network operator’s ownership formed a 50/50 partnership between Telkom and Vodafone — a British multinational operator and Vodacom’s parent company.
Vodafone increased its stake in Vodacom to 64.5% in 2008, and Telkom sold its remaining holding in the company.
Vodacom rebranded in April 2011, replacing its blue and green logo with one more aligned with Vodafone.
The new logo resembles Vodafone’s, using both the font and the well-known quotation mark, but it carried the Vodacom name.
The updated logo also shares the same colours as Vodafone’s — red and white. It further revamped the logo in 2017.
Telkom
Telkom’s cellular operations in South Africa began with its 50% ownership of Vodacom’s GSM network.
The telecommunications provider sold its Vodacom shares in 2008, with plans of launching its own 3G network. Telkom announced the launch of its network — established as 8ta — in October 2010.
The telecoms provider rebranded its mobile network from 8ta to Telkom Mobile in 2013, doing away with the black, white, and pink logo.
However, at the time, Telkom said that it wasn’t discontinuing 8ta but rather repositioning it in the market.
After the switch from 8ta to Telkom Mobile, the telecoms provider rebranded the cellular portion of its business once again the following year.
This time, the Telkom Mobile branding was replaced with just “Telkom” and the slogan “Tomorrow Starts Today”.
While the revamped logo has remained, Telkom appears to have dropped the slogan.
Cell C
Cell C launched its operations in 2001. At the time, its logo consisted of a red background with black writing and the tagline “for yourself”.
The logo lasted until May 2010, when Cell C rebranded. The new logo depicted the letter C within a circle — much like a copyright sign — and the company took its corporate colours from the South African flag.
In 2018 Cell C dropped its black-and-white logo for one with a new font and orange background.
Cell C’s orange and white branding first appeared in 2018
Cell C told MyBroadband that orange is an “unowned and vibrant” colour that will help it stand out from the crowd and that the move was part of it evolving its brand identity.
“It represents the newly-invigorated Cell C culture and shows the energy that we bring to our products and services,” the company said at the time.
Cell C has also introduced a new slogan, “Connect your way”. Its previous tagline was “The power is in your hands”.
MTN
MTN launched in South Africa in 1994.
Until this year, the company’s logo was white, yellow, and red text on a blue oval.
On 27 February 2022, the mobile network operator unveiled its revamped logo, which it said is an “extension and visual representation of the Group’s refreshed strategy.”
The logo features “MTN” written in simple block letters with an oval around it — all in black. However, the yellow background remained.
The rebrand also includes the slogan “What are we doing today?” which replaced the familiar “Everywhere you go” tagline.
Loading ...