MTN South Africa Discontinues Free Twitter Data

Operator MTN South Africa is ending its offer of zero-rated data for Twitter, saying that it is no longer feasible because of the growing use of video on the messaging platform. MTN also announced changes to its WhatsApp and Twitter bundles, with more data to become available beginning in October.
 
MTN began to offer free Twitter data in May 2014, as a 90-day promotion, and extended the offer over the years. The operator said it was necessary to end the offer as of 25 September 2018 due to the cost and the demand it places on the network. In August, the number of free Twitter users on MTN’s network reached 13 million, using 1.9 petabytes of data.
 
At the same time, MTN also announced changes to its WhatsApp and Twitter bundles, effective 1 October. The weekly WhatsApp bundle increases from 100 MB for ZAR 5.00 (US $0.35) to 250 MB for ZAR 10.00 (US $0.70). The daily offer increases from ZAR 1.00 (US $0.07) to ZAR 2.00 (US $0.14) and from 20 MB to 50 MB. MTN’s Twitter bundles now come with 100 MB for ZAR 5.00, rather than 20 MB for ZAR 1.00, and the weekly rate will change from 100 MB for ZAR 5.00 to 500 MB for ZAR 20.00 (US $1.40).

Mobile operators’ promotions often go from temporary to long-term, acquiring the feeling of permanence. While they are initially advertised as short-term, they tend to be extended because of their ongoing efficacy in bringing in new subscribers, and because existing subscribers come to expect that the services will be continued at the same price. And when the costs to the operator are small or vanishingly small, it is no problem for that operator to continue the “promotion” package indefinitely.
 
However, if the costs change due to external factors, it becomes necessary for the operator to re-evaluate whether it still makes good business sense to maintain the promotion. In the case of MTN South Africa, it is clear that when the nature of the use of the application changed, the cost to the operator increased. When the promotion was first offered, Twitter was used mainly for text content; over time, more and more data-consuming video content came to be posted on it, to the point where it was not only costing the operator in terms of data not charged for, but actually overburdening the network. Almost 2 petabytes of data is indeed a huge number. Under these circumstances, the operator could no longer afford to keep the zero-rating of Twitter data going, and therefore terminated the promotion.
 
While Twitter-intensive customers may be unhappy about this change, there are reasons to believe that by finally ending the promotion, MTN may be activating one of the main purposes of data-oriented promotions, that is, to grow the data-consumption habits of subscribers by offering the data free, and then charging for it. After more than four years of ever-increasing data use over Twitter on its network, MTN may be able to realize a return on that investment.
 
And, of course, it is still offering its subscribers deals on Twitter, as well as on WhatsApp, by way of discrete packages in two tiers, daily and weekly. The WhatsApp deals are slightly more generous, in terms of economies of scale, which makes sense in light of the fact that the OTT messaging service is likely less heavily used for video than Twitter is.

Tarifica is the global leader in monitoring and analyzing telecom pricing. Covering hundreds of operators in every region of the globe, Tarifica’s databases of mobile and fixed line data and voice tariffs are among the largest and most in-depth in the world. Tarifica is also a leading publisher of benchmark and other pricing reports, and its analysts are recognized authorities in the telecom industry, relied upon by operators and businesses worldwide for pricing insight and guidance.  

To learn more about Tarifica, please visit www.tarifica.com 

oT Devices Used in Attack on U.S. Internet

The hackers who launched a distributed denial of service attack against the DNS provider Dyn late last week used hundred of thousands of connected devices such as baby monitors and home security cameras to infiltrate the networks. Dyn’s clients including Twitter, Netflix, Spotify, Airbnb, Reddit, Etsy, SoundCloud and The New York Times experienced internet service disruptions. Security experts have been warning for a while now that IoT connected devices can be infected with malware in order to cause disruptions of service across the internet. The gigantic, rapid growth of the IoT sector promises revenue to operators as well as device manufacturers, but this incident is a sobering reminder that humble connected devices used by unwitting consumers can provide easy entrance points to national and global networks. The IoT is an essential component of the worldwide telecommunications economy, but at present it appears to be an Achilles heel that needs tighter security.

Tarifica is the global leader in monitoring and analyzing telecom pricing. Covering hundreds of operators in every region of the globe, Tarifica’s databases of mobile and fixed line data and voice tariffs are among the largest and most in-depth in the world. Tarifica is also a leading publisher of benchmark and other pricing reports, and its analysts are recognized authorities in the telecom industry, relied upon by operators and businesses worldwide for pricing insight and guidance.

To learn more about Tarifica, please visit www.tarifica.com 

Tuenti Ecuador Launches Referral Offer

Spain-based international operator Telefónica has announced the launch of a friends’ referral scheme to help boost uptake of its Tuenti Movil MVNO service in Ecuador. Under the offer, any Tuenti prepaid customer can access their account online and send an invitation to friends via email, Facebook or Twitter. The friend who sets up a Tuenti account and as the friend who made the referral each receives US $5.00 in promotional credit. Tuenti Ecuador offers a series of data-focused prepaid plans, ranging from a 7-day bundle with 100 MB of data, 15 minutes of calls and 15 SMS for US $5.00 to a 30-day bundle with 400 MB of data, 60 minutes of calls and 60 SMS for US $15.00.

  

The MVNO market in Ecuador is in its infancy; when Telefónica, which operates under the brand name of Movistar there, launched Tuenti there in June 2015, it was the first MVNO in the country. There are currently no independent MVNOs in Ecuador. So while Tuenti has no direct competitors, it still needs to establish itself in a marketplace that is unused to such offerings. In order to distinguish itself from Movistar’s other offerings, as well as from those of competitor MNOs, Tuenti has emphasized the social media angle with unlimited zero-rated WhatsApp and Facebook usage. This brand identity harmonizes well with a socially driven promotion campaign such as this friends’ referral scheme, which operates via social media, as well as email. We believe that it is particularly persuasive, in that the amounts of credit received for a referral is quite large in the context of Tuenti’s prepaid tariffs, since it is equivalent to a week’s worth of services. In addition, the fact that both the referred friend and the one making the referral get a credit makes the offer even more attractive.

Tarifica is the global leader in monitoring and analyzing telecom pricing. Covering hundreds of operators in every region of the globe, Tarifica’s databases of mobile and fixed line data and voice tariffs are among the largest and most in-depth in the world. Tarifica is also a leading publisher of benchmark and other pricing reports, and its analysts are recognized authorities in the telecom industry, relied upon by operators and businesses worldwide for pricing insight and guidance. To learn more about Tarifica, please visit www.tarifica.com

Twitter Offers Audio Streaming to Tweeters

Social media giant Twitter’s newly available service, Audio Card, will enable users to listen to audio directly on their timelines on both iOS and Android devices. Twitter will be partnering with several third parties, the first of which are Berlin-based digital music provider SoundCloud and iTunes, to bring music to tweeters. Users can enable the feature with a single tap while on Twitter, and they can dock the Audio Card, which will allow them to continue listening to audio as they are browsing within the Twitter app. In addition to musical artists such as Coldplay and Foo Fighters, who have shared music through the Twitter Audio Card, there have already been non-musical audio tweets from NASA, the Washington Post, the White House and the BBC World Service. Users of On SoundCloud, SoundCloud’s partner program that has been developed for artists and creators of all levels, will eventually be able to use Twitter Audio Card for their posts, as well.

This is not the first time that Twitter has tried to include music with its features and to become a multimedia network, perhaps to compete more directly with Facebook. In 2013, it launched the #Music app, which used Twitter activity and tweets to determine popular tracks and emerging artists. Users could then follow a link to listen to these songs from these tracks and artists. Most users did not find this convenient, nor did they necessarily want to listen to the same material as that of their followers. Twitter’s new partnership with SoundCloud—a company Twitter was once interested in buying—should be a more successful attempt because it will make streaming music much more convenient for Twitter users and because users will be able to listen to audio from personal friends, not just known artists or media.

Bringing this new media into Twitter’s text-heavy platform will not only be a good move for the social networking service, but it could also result in greater revenues for mobile operators as users spend longer amounts of time on Twitter because of the new content that it will be able to provide.

The above item appeared in a recent issue of The Tarifica Alert, a weekly resource that analyzes noteworthy developments in the telecoms industry from around the world. To access all of the latest articles and issues:  http://www.tarifica.com/TarificaAlert.aspx

Airtel Nigeria Launches Social Media Data Bundles

Airtel Nigeria, the country’s second-largest mobile operator, is offering WTF bundles (comprised of WhatsApp, Twitter, Facebook and BlackBerry Messenger BBM) to prepaid subscribers. The offerings, which provide access to these social media platforms, cost NGN 200.00 (US $1.24) for monthly bundles and NGN 100.00 (US $0.62) for weekly packages. Monthly bundles have an 80 MB data allowance and are valid for 30 days, whereas weekly bundles offer 30 MB of data and are valid for 14 days.

Nigeria’s mobile market has a 75 percent penetration rate with 125 million subscribers, of which more than 10 million are smartphone users. Although the country’s mobile market has experienced triple-digit growth over the last five years, operators there can still find ways to increase their presence. While a statement by Airtel said the WTF bundle was introduced to satisfy the needs of customers “who spend most of their time on social networks and love to stay connected with their friends and family on the go and every moment,” the offer is also a good way for the operator to increase ARPU by encouraging data use by subscribers who may otherwise not be interested in large data packages, particularly because the variety of messaging options that come with the bundle will appeal to the various preferences of Airtel’s subscribers.

The WTF data bundle can also be seen as an effort by the MNO to gain new subscribers, including BlackBerry users—who make up 30 percent of the country’s smartphone market—by putting BBM in the package, as well as by pricing the packages at affordable rates for budget-conscious consumers. Airtel may also be trying to increase Facebook use. We have written recently about Nigerians’ preference for messaging apps over Facebook. By combining the Facebook app with other messaging apps, Airtel is providing its customers with more options with which to consume mobile data, all of which may up-sell subscribers to larger data plans.

 The above item appeared in a recent issue of The Tarifica Alert, a weekly resource that analyzes noteworthy developments in the telecoms industry from around the world. To access all of the latest articles and issues:  http://www.tarifica.com/TarificaAlert.aspx