MOBILE network MTN’s two new package deals have been measured and found wanting by a company that helps people reduce their cellphone bills.

After assessing MTN’s new deals packages – MTN Sky and My MTNChoice + Talk – Tariffic said the operator’s efforts fell short of beating what is already on offer.

MTN’s new offerings follow hot on the heels of those by other players in the market.

Cell C recently launched Pinnacle and a cash-back campaign. Vodacom’s Plus packages and Telkom’s FreeMe are also relatively new arrivals.

“It is clear that while Telkom is pushing the envelope and innovating when it comes to their packages (to respond to the changing consumer behaviour‚ which is tending more towards high data and low call usage) and Cell C is offering a substantial amount of cash back for signing up with its new Pinnacle contracts‚ MTN is simply tinkering with its existing packages to have something ‘new’ to market as part of their summer campaigns‚” Tariffic said.

“MTN’s packages are hardly revolutionary and‚ although they will benefit customers whose specific usage will necessitate these exact packages‚ they are not shifting the market forward in any meaningful way.”

In a comparison by Tariffic‚ this is how the mobile networks fared in terms of data on offer with their deals:

• MTN’s Sky Max contract offers 25GB of data for R1,999.

• Vodacom offers 10GB of data for R2,099 with its Red VIP + contract.

• Cell C’s Pinnacle Unlimited contract gets you 10GB of data for R999.

• Telkom’s FreeMe Unlimited gives you 25GB of data for R999.

These packages allocate other fair use benefits such as free talking time and SMSes to users. Prices may change depending on whether the deal comes with a device.

MTN’s second new offering – the My MTNChoice + Talk packages – favoured the calling customer‚ rather than the data user‚ Tariffic said.

The new additions in this range bring the number of packages it offers to 13.

•Text courtesy of TMG Digital.

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