For countless years South Africans have been battling with "Keeping up with the Prices" when it came to data prices.
But June leapt off well with news that a new data only network operator had stepped into the fray.
The new mobile operator backed by prominent businessmen Patrice Motsepe, Paul Harris and Michael Jordaan is taking the fight over data prices to sector giants Vodacom and MTN.
Rain, a data-only network operator that launched mobile services two weeks ago, wanted to win over its rivals' heavy data users with a simpler offering and competitive prices, CEO Willem Roos said.
Amid a decline in traditional voice revenues and public scrutiny over connectivity costs, data is becoming a major battleground for SA's telecommunications companies, and the market is ballooning – Vodacom, MTN,
Cell C and Telkom generated a combined R47bn in data revenues in SA in their financial years ended December and March.
Rain does not offer traditional voice services, but sells data for R50 a gigabyte, while outside of peak evening hours, its customers can use unlimited data for R250 a month, according to Roos, the former CEO of Outsurance.
Unlimited data usage is valid for 19 hours a day, except at peak times – 18:00 to 23:00.
In the two weeks since launching the product, "our business volumes have surprised us slightly on the positive side, particularly since we didn't do any advertising", he said.
The metropolitan-focused operator plans to grow its network from 2,100 cellphone towers to 5,000 within the next three years.
Rain, which also offers fixed wireless services, had mostly resolved "teething problems" related to delayed deliveries of SIM cards, Roos said.
The company, which is more than 40% black-owned, was promoting dual-SIM phones, where customers used Rain for data services and a rival's network to make traditional voice calls.
Roos said some customers were becoming comfortable with the idea of ditching voice-enabled SIM cards altogether and making all their calls on WhatsApp and other internet-based services.
Rain is the cheapest operator in the market for consumers who use less than 20GB of data a month.
Join online
The company stated that customers can join online at rain.co.za, and a Rain SIM will be delivered to their door.
Customers can order up to three SIMs, and give each a
unique name.
"You will be able to experience unlimited data usage on Rain's high-speed 4G network for free, for 15 days after joining.
These free unlimited data days will be a risk-free way for consumers to experience
the network and test their individual coverage needs," said Rain.
"Customers can enjoy additional free unlimited data days when they purchase any of Rain's listed devices."
This includes dual-SIM smartphones and MiFi routers.
Rain deals
Rain's launch deals are shown below.
Rain stated that once a user has reached the end of their free unlimited data days, they'll continue with their plan at 5c per MB – R50 per gig.
The deals include:
Rain SIM (up to 3 SIMs) with 15 days unlimited data – R120
Huawei E5573 with 30 days unlimited data – R840
Huawei E5885 with 45 days unlimited data – R1,540
Huawei Y7 with 60 days unlimited data – R3,000
Huawei P20 Lite with 90 days unlimited data – R4,600
