PhoneReport attended a press conference today at MTN's headquarters in Johannesburg, where the network operator detailed its MTN Anytime campaign on "revolutionizing" cell phone contracts. We believe the term here should been rather "improved".

According to Donovan Smith and Peter Verkade from MTN's marketing department, current contract tariffs are too complex, which we agree on, as when you ask for a cell phone contract at any mobile phone contract provider, you are often presented with numerous tariffs and plans which you are in doubt of whether they fit your needs and budget. Customers require simplified, flat tariffs, and regressive tariffs (higher the bundle purchase, lower the rate), there is need for a simplification on the acquisition process, and on MTN's eyes, networks need to take more accountability for handset repairs, unlike in Europe and other parts of the world, where handset manufacturers deal with the warranty.

Besides having a price cut in all contracts, true per-second-billing was introduced, which works from the first second, and not from the second minute unlike most operators, as two thirds of MTN consumers phone for the first minute only. A flat rate was applied, which means that you can phone to any network at the same price; migration is more assisted, and MTN helps the consumer to decide which package he/she needs for their budget and expenditure. Airtime carry-over has been increased to 5 months, and the choice of contract is easier with an online wizard entitled "Optimizer". SMS bundles are inclusive in all new contract packages.

Full detailed fact sheet can be downloaded here; press release after the break. The new contract tariffs will be introduced on Sunday, the 21st of September 2008, so you should rather wait until then before you sign up for a new contract.

MTN LAUNCHES A SA FIRST WITH MORE CONVERSATION AND LESS COMPLICATION… MTN ANYTIME

There is an unstated understanding in cell phone circles that the words “simplicity” and “cell phone contracts” cannot stand side-by-side in the same sentence. And, with more than 64 cell phone contract packages on offer across the market, it is not surprising that customers are confused.

However, with the launch of a revolutionary new pricing package, MTN SA is about to turn the way it does business on its head and prove the critics wrong by making life easier for its customers. MTN AnyTime is an exciting new pricing package that represents simplicity, flexibility and choice.

Says Pieter Verkade, chief marketing officer of MTN SA: “We are experiencing good growth with our MTN Zone product offering within the Prepaid market, but the Postpaid market required a bit of a shake-up, with the launch of something fairly radical.

“Our aim was to make something that was very complex, simple. I believe we have achieved that with MTN AnyTime. It is a pricing plan that offers our customers greater value, together with simplicity, flexibility and choice. The concept is as easy as 1, 2, 3 – pick the handset, pick the airtime and pick the extras.”

The simplicity of the MTN AnyTime packages is evident in all aspects of the offering. Each price plan has an Inclusive Airtime Value which is similar to the PayAsYouGo offer, but with the benefit of a contract.

For example, a MTN AnyTime 150 package means that the customer has R150 of airtime to spend any time and on any services from local and international calls, to SMS or MMS and Internet access. The low in-bundle call rate is deducted from the Inclusive Airtime Value, and an out-of-bundle call rate will apply once the Inclusive Airtime has been used up in a month.

“But,” continues Verkade, “perhaps one of the biggest single benefits to our customers is the introduction of a single call rate across all the networks, at anytime of the day or night. Worrying about on-peak or off-peak tariffs is now a thing of the past. And, with every package, true per second billing is standard so that you only pay for the actual that you talk and nothing more.

“All these exciting new features have been introduced with only one thought in mind – to enable our customers to have more conversation with less complication. It will also be simpler for our customers to manage their cell phone accounts and their monthly spend, as we encourage them to choose the MTN AnyTime package that best suits their lifestyle and the way they use their cell phone.”

To this end, a second package, the MTN Off Peak plan, has also been launched for those customers who make the majority of their calls after hours on weekdays or over weekends. A low off peak calling rate is available in the Inclusive Airtime Value and once this has been depleted, the customers will be billed according to the applicable out-of-bundle rate. It is thus important for the customer to choose the package most appropriate to his or her needs.

MTN has also considered this with its MTN AnyTime packages and has a TopUp option. This allows the customers to top up with PayAsYouGo airtime if the Inclusive Airtime Value has been used up before the end of the month.

“With the launch of MTN AnyTime into the competitive market, we are confident that customers will look at cell phone contracts with new eyes. We are offering our customers more value, greater flexibility and most importantly, simplicity - and that is something new in this market,” concludes Verkade.

Let’s start a conversation.