Vodacom taking on Neotel?

Vodacom launches fixed wireless PhonePlus service for voice, Internet and SMS

Vodacom has launched its PhonePlus service (Phoneplus device image) – a home or office wireless telephone offering that uses the Vodacom network coverage. It comes with a Voice and SMS option on prepaid and a Voice, SMS and Internet option on contract.

Vodacom’s PhonePlus service makes use of a wireless desktop phone, very similar to Neotel’s NeoConnect product range. The cost of the service is R289.00 per month which includes 500 MB of data and 50 SMSes.

With this offering Vodacom is competing directly against Neotel’s residential voice and data offerings, and partly against Telkom’s fixed line offerings.

Neotel’s NeoConnect pricing starts at R299.00 for 2 GB of data, 500 free on-net voice minutes and 25 free on-net SMSes – a better value proposition than Vodacom’s offering.

Neotel is significantly cheaper when it comes to call rates and data pricing – 8c per MB out of bundle in comparison to Vodacom’s R 2 per MB - but its lack of extensive coverage may give Vodacom a foothold in the wireless desktop phone market.

Source