MTN's 'expensive Zimbabwe call rate' promo extended

Published: 21 October 2013

MTN South Africa has extended its "expensive Zimbabwe call rates" promotion to 31 January 2014.

A promotional rate that's R3.89/minute? I hope to never have to call Zimbabwe outside of the promotional rate.

Previously, MTN said that the promotion would be available until the end of September 2013.

MTN's new international call rates are grouped by country, with prices ranging between 75c per minute and R8.99 per minute. All calls are billed on a per second basis, according to MTN.

MTN issued an ambiguous statement saying it was cutting the cost of international telephone calls to "as little as 75c/minute" to a number of markets across Africa, including Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Mozambique, Lesotho and Swaziland.

It's been widely reported, based on an incorrect reading of the unclear media statement - which omits facts material to consumers - that the 75c/minute rate applies to calls to all of these markets. But a closer interrogation shows that the mobile operator's customers could, in fact, be paying as much as R3,89/minute if they place calls to Zimbabwe.

On Cell C, the lowest international call rate is 99c to Zone 1 countries, which includes the US and Europe, but Mozambique and Malawi fall into Zone 3 at R1.99. Zimbabwe calls on the network cost R5.59 in Zone 9.

Calls to Lesotho and Mozambique are R1,59/minute, calls to Swaziland R1,69/minute and Zimbabwe leads the pack with the low, low rate of only R3,89/minute. MTN has confirmed that the process listed on the website are current and reflects the current promotion which ends on the 30th of September.
- businessdaily